New Hires and More
August 10. 2021
Hilary Jasmin: Hilary is the Pharmacy and Interprofessional Education library liaison. Library liaisons wear a number of hats. To name a few, they provide library orientation to new students and faculty, deliver customized workshops and lectures to enhance student learning, and collaborate with faculty in educational activities that promote information literacy. Hilary received exciting news in that she was awarded a stipend to attend 2021 AACP (American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy) Annual Meeting, July 19-22, 2021! Even more impressive is that this is her second time to receive the stipend as she was awarded this in 2020 as well. The mission of The Grace and Harold Sewell Memorial Fund is to increase librarians’ identification with medical, pharmaceutical, and health care professionals. Thanks, Hilary, for rockin’ the librarian world!
Tamara Nelson: Tamara, the Research and Learning Services librarian and College of Medicine library liaison, was selected from over 90 applicants to serve on the editorial board of the Journal for the Medical Library Association! The Journal of the Medical Library Association (JMLA) is the premier journal in health sciences librarianship, dedicated to advancing the practice and research knowledge base of health sciences librarianship and providing equitable opportunities for authors, reviewers, and editorial team members. Impressive accolades for Tamara!
KacieJo Brown: : KacieJo (one word, not two) was hired as the Student Affairs Specialist in the Office of Student Affairs and Community Engagement (SACE) where she'll focus on policy and conduct issues, community engagement initiatives, and student wellbeing programs. Rooted in her passion for mental health awareness and accessible education, KacieJo appreciates the opportunity to work with SACE and the UTHSC community because of everyone's dedication to the betterment of the university. KacieJo received a master's degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education from Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania. New to the Memphis area, KacieJo explores the area looking for adventures that include food, nature, art, and yoga.
Jean Perdicaris: UTHSC launched a new buddy program in which new employees are paired with employees who have been with the university for 1 year or more, for a period of 3 months. Following an extensive application process, Jean was selected to participate in the pilot program which ran May through July 2021. The program’s aim is to provide new employees with a point of contact for general inquiries re: day to day issues and to assist new employees’ integration with the university by providing access to someone who is familiar with the UTHSC culture, attitude, and expectations. Jean’s “buddy” was Mary Judson, executive administrator to the dean in the College of Pharmacy. She reports that not only did she make a new friend, but learned even more about the inner workings within specific Colleges. She “taught” Mary the campus tunnels, campus hierarchy (formal & informal), campus food court, and maybe some good ‘ole fashioned campus gossip.
Jenessa McElfresh: Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Jenessa was recently hired as the Systematic Review Service Coordinator and Senior Research & Learning Services librarian. Among other projects, she is the point person for the library’s Systematic Review Service, which involves coordinating and supporting the work of expert librarians as they work on systematic reviews and other evidence synthesis research projects with UTHSC faculty. She also is a liaison librarian to the College of Medicine. Jenessa is passionate about connecting people with quality information and shares that making those connections is a fantastically rewarding experience. Jenessa yearned to be a mermaid princess when she was very young. That didn’t quite work out but a grad school job working the night shift at a medical school library completely changed her life’s course. And the rest is history… Jenessa reports that Memphis is a wonderland for her. She’s a “dog mom” to a spunky little rescue and looks forward to exploring the local dog park scene.