Mary Bolin, professor and meta data librarian, is retiring from University Libraries in June.
Bolin was born and raised in Nebraska and graduated from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 1976 with a bachelor’s degree in linguistics and worked at Love Library as both a student and a library assistant. She left the university, received a Master of Science in library science from the University of Kentucky in 1981 and spent the next five years at the University of Georgia.
In 1986, Bolin became the head of cataloging at the University of Idaho and spent 17 years there, becoming the head of technical services in 1993. She earned a master of arts in linguistics in 1999, and was tenured and fully promoted at Idaho.
In 2004, Bolin had the opportunity to return to Nebraska and came back to the University Libraries as the chair of technical services. The post was later renamed discovery and resource management. While at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, she earned a doctorate in educational leadership and higher education in 2007.
In 2015, Bolin stepped down from chair and became a catalog and metadata librarian in discovery and resource management and later in digital initiatives and special collections. She became a fellow of the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities in 2019.
Bolin is one of the founders and editors of the Library Philosophy and Practice, a peer-reviewed electronic library science journal that can be found on the Libraries Digital Commons. Bolin has written many publications and given many presentations. She has taught classes at the University of Idaho and the San José State University School of Information. Bolin’s service record is extensive, including being elected chair of the libraries faculty in 2018, serving terms in Faculty Senate and the Senate Executive Committee.
The University Libraries have set up an online message board for anyone wishing to share a memory or message with Bolin.
