Programmatic, Advisory, and Advocacy Council Members
These individuals advise on current trends and issues impacting library and library adjacent work. Their advice and expertise directly supports the professional development activities offered by The Library Collective and helps to shape the organization's public policy initiatives.
Current Members
Emily Frigo is the Head of Professional Programs at Grand Valley State University where she leads organizational learning initiatives across the libraries and focuses on liaison research consultation services. Emily's research interests encompass tenure and promotion practices, interpersonal communication, and the development of students, adults, and organizations.
Andrew Prellwitz is the library director at Ripon College, a liberal arts college in Wisconsin. Andrew manages the instruction, archives and electronic resources for the library. He also occasionally teaches courses on a variety of topics including German language and literature, oral history, digital humanities, and the half marathon.
Leigh Ramey is the Youth Services Consultant at the South Carolina State Library in Columbia as well as an adjunct instructor for the University of South Carolina iSchool and the University of Denver MLIS program. She loves traveling the state to provide training and support for public library staff who work with children, teens, and families. She is especially interested in early literacy, supporting new readers, and outreach efforts in underserved communities. She has over twenty years of experience working at both the state library level as well as public libraries in SC and Colorado. She graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2012 with an MLIS degree and currently teaches a Children’s Literature course there. In her free time she enjoys spoiling her niece and nephews, beach fun, traveling, yoga, music and theatre, cheeseburgers, and of course, relaxing with a good book and her (sometimes) sweet cat, Fiona.
Christine Rosa holds an MLIS degree with a Certificate in Archives and Cultural Heritage Resources from Dominican University (Illinois) and a BA in Fine Arts with a concentration in Metalsmithing from Illinois State University. Christine is the Access Services Librarian and Art Librarian at CalArts. Prior to moving to Los Angeles, Christine has served in various librarian and archivist roles in The Bronx, Austin, and her sweet home, Chicago. Christine's research (and personal) interests include zines, artist books, digital art preservation, and Latine artists. Outside of the library setting, she stays busy riding her bike, going for hikes, watching terrible reality TV, and making art and jewelry.
Robert Spinelli is a librarian and archivist working at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens in Nashville, TN. Prior to this role, he has worked in special collections and as the sole librarian at various colleges in the area. Mr. Spinelli holds a BA (English), MA (Philosophy) and an MS (Information Sciences. He has presented at conferences speaking about conspiracy theories and its connections with religion and social media and has co-presented on African American funerary traditions. Other research interests include death traditions, cultural memory and digital methods of memorialization. Mr. Spinelli is currently working on establishing a digital archive representing African American cemeteries in the Nashville area and is co-editing a special issue of the journal Mortality centered on questions of memory preservation in society.
Kris Wheeler brings over 22 years of experience working for some of the largest and most respected library companies in the world, including Gale-Cengage, Wiley & Sons, Bibliotheca, Elsevier, and, most recently, Clarivate. He is a veteran account rep, leader, speaker, and library warrior, working in higher-ed and public library markets, as well as at Statewide and multi-state consortia levels. His goal has always been library and student equity, getting the best tools into the hands of all students, regardless of where they came from, or where they went to school, and is delighted to have worked with The Library Collective since its very first year. He is based in the Twin Cities living with his researcher wife and 2 guinea pigs. He enjoys hiking, gardening, and painting in his spare time.
Previous Members
Jalesia Hornton was the Director of Access and Resource Sharing Services at Southern Methodist University. She received her MLIS in May 2017 and her Master's in Public Administration in 2022. Her work focused on increasing access to academic libraries through innovative and updated services, user design, and increased accessibility options for those with disabilities. She was the current chair of the RUSA STARS Outreach and Promotion Committee and represents RUSA STARS on the Awards Coordinating Committee, Access to Resources Discussion Group, and Professional Resources Committee.
David Schuster has been working at Binghamton University, leading various units. A few of the departments he has led are Special Collections and Preservation, Technical Services (Cataloging and Acquisitions), Technology, and Digital Initiatives, which include Scholarly Communications and Digital Scholarship. In his 30-year library career, he has worked in and been involved with School Libraries, Public Libraries, Academic Libraries, and has worked for a vendor. These experiences make him a well-rounded individual with concerns relevant to all types of libraries. He has a bachelor of science in Business Management with an emphasis in computer science, with an MLIS emphasis on Technical Services from the University of Missouri Columbia. He is interested in strategic alignment, leadership, and access to resources - how people access information. He enjoys gardening, reading, glamping in their camper, and playing with his Westie, Stella.
Dr. Priyanki Sinha is the Deputy Librarian at Jaipuria Institute of Managment in Jaipur, India.