The University of Missouri (Mizzou) has named Kara Whatley as vice provost for libraries and university librarian, effective October 1, 2024. Whatley is currently the university librarian at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and serves as the chief executive of the Caltech Library system.
Whatley’s previous roles include positions of increasing leadership at Texas Tech University Libraries and New York University Libraries. Throughout her career, she has shown a strategic focus on catalyzing information discovery, preservation, and sharing to support the university mission.
Whatley served as an Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Leadership and Career Development Program (LCDP) career coach in 2020–2021. She is the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Division Councilor and the ACRL representative to the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Science and Technologies Section. She also currently serves as a member of the Elsevier North American Library Advisory Board, the EBSCO North American Deans and Directors Library Advisory Board, and the Springer Nature Library Advisory Board.
At Mizzou, Whatley will succeed Deb Ward, who retired May 31, 2024, after leading the libraries since 2019. Jeannette Pierce, associate university librarian for research, access, and instructional services, is serving as interim vice provost for libraries and university librarian until Whatley’s arrival in October.
For more information, see the University of Missouri Libraries news release, “Kara Whatley Appointed MU Vice Provost and University Librarian.”
