Message from the Executive Director – April 2025
Happy Spring! April marks the new season of spring and is the month we celebrate National Library Week and show appreciation for library workers.
This month, I am grateful for the wonderful team of librarians and staff who make the UT Health San Antonio Libraries the amazing place that it is. Their hard work and dedication help to support students, faculty, and staff every day. This month I want to introduce you to this team and their work.
Library Liaisons
Under the leadership of Chris Gaspard, Associate Director for Liaison Services, the Liaison Team supports each school and demonstrates their collaborative spirit by providing references and research support, delivering instructional sessions, and helping to conduct structured reviews.
While Chris serves as the Liaison for the Long School of Medicine and the residents, this team includes Matt Hayward, the Liaison for the School of Nursing; Rebecca Howe, Liaison for the School of Health Professions; and Jeff Lacy, the Liaison for the School of Dentistry and School of Public Health as well as the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. For many faculty and staff, these liaison librarians are the face of the library. We will be expanding this team by adding a Liaison Librarian for Clinical Services later this spring.
Resource Management
Under the leadership of Andrea Schorr, Associate Director for Resources Management, this team manages both our electronic resources and special collections and archives. Dana Whitmire, Electronic Resources Librarian, works closely with Andrea to manage our collections budget and electronic resources. Ron Mesa, Library Administrative Assistant, helps to manage the overall library budget.
Kelley Minars, Resource Sharing Librarian, manages interlibrary loan and document delivery and oversees outreach and engagement. Diane Fotinos, Archives & Special Collections Librarian, and Mellisa De Thorne, Library Archives Assistant, collaborate to manage the P.I. Nixon Medical Historical Library and University Archives. Diane also serves as the Record Retention Officer for the institution. Congratulations to Diane for her work on getting our Records Retention Scheduled recertified for the 9th time by the Texas State Library & Archives Commission! This is the team that also oversees our website and digital archives.
Front-Line Services
David Alvarez and Juan Jaime, both Access Services Associates, work with me to support front-line services and oversee public spaces and the library facility. They help library patrons daily. Their work over the last several months was essential to rolling out 115 new chairs, 3 new whiteboards, and refurbishment of cafe-height stools and ottomans.
In my short time here, many of you share your appreciation for individuals and the entire library team and tell me the specifics of how a library team member helped you. These are always bright spots in my day. I am fortunate to be able to work with such a talented and dedicated team!
Pat Hawthorne, Executive Director of Libraries