Mark Christel Named Director of Libraries at The College of Wooster

Associate director for reader services and collections at Vassar College will succeed Damon Hickey

Mark Christel

WOOSTER, Ohio - Mark Christel, associate director for reader services and collections at Vassar College, has been named director of libraries at The College of Wooster. He will succeed Damon Hickey, who is retiring in June after 17 years at Wooster.

"Wooster is a vibrant and innovative liberal arts college," said Christel. "I have developed a deep appreciation for the College, and I am honored to have been selected for the position."

Christel will serve as the administrative officer of the Flo K. Gault Library for Independent Study, the Andrews Library, and the Timken Science Library. His responsibilities will include providing leadership in prioritizing activities and program development; communicating and collaborating with students, faculty, and staff; maintaining engagement with developments in librarianship, scholarly publishing, and information technology; establishing and maintaining collaborative efforts with other support services on campus; fostering professional development and growth among library faculty and staff; managing the budget for all library operations; and representing the College in meetings with external constituencies.

Christel, who has a master's degree in library and information studies from the University of Michigan, earned a master's degree in English Literature from Rutgers University and a bachelor's degree with honors in English from the University of Wisconsin. During his five years at Vassar, Christel managed a $2.6 million acquisitions budget and supervised an 18-member staff that coordinated reference, instruction, interlibrary loans, reserves, and circulation. He also coordinated the work of 10 librarians in Vassar's liaison program. In addition, he oversaw the development of the library's Web site, served as one of the primary liaisons to the Computing and Information Services group, and directed a number of library-wide projects.

Before Vassar, Christel spent nine years at Hope College, where he served in a variety of roles, including coordinator of reference services and chair of the collection development team. He was also involved in Hope's information literacy program and instrumental in the creation of its TechLab, a high-end computing facility, which he was later appointed to direct.

"Mark will provide leadership to the College libraries at a time when the nature of information and the work of librarians are changing at an unprecedented pace," said Iain Crawford, vice president for academic affairs at Wooster. "His time at Hope College has given him experience in the Great Lakes Colleges Association, while his years at Vassar have provided an opportunity for him to grow professionally at one of the country's leading liberal arts institutions. The search committee was deeply impressed with Mark's knowledge and skills as a librarian as well as with his record of collaborating with other librarians and the faculty to advance teaching and learning. I very much look forward to working with him as Wooster's libraries evolve to adapt to this new universe of information and serve the students and faculty even more successfully than they already do."

The College of Wooster is an independent liberal arts college, nationally recognized for an innovative curriculum that emphasizes mentored independent research. Each Wooster senior works one-on-one with a faculty adviser to create an original research project, written work, performance or art exhibit. Founded in 1866, the college enrolls approximately 1,800 students.