Edited by Kate Eckert
Please talk about your current professional position. Describe what you do and for which organization. If you’re still in school, please discuss what you’d like to work on professionally in the future.
Gerard Regan
My title is the Instructional Technology Intern for Penn’s Biomedical Library. However, this intern experience has encompassed much more than instructional technology. I have been exposed to a little bit of everything around the library, from the reference desk to teaching workshops. I have been heavily involved with the new mobile technology initiative that Penn is putting a lot of energy behind. We are trying to promote the clinical applications that are becoming available on mobile phones and tablets to our patrons and educate them on how to utilize the technology in both the classroom and the hospital.
What is your past professional experience?
I worked for three years at La Salle University’s Connelly Library as a Reference Technical Assistant while attending school there and achieving my undergraduate degree. Since starting in Drexel’s MLS program, I have worked short stints as a Circulation Assistant at Delaware County Community College and as Interlibrary Loan Assistant at Penn’s Biomedical Library and Van Pelt Library before arriving at my current position.
What do you find most interesting about your work?
I really find the growth of mobile technology and how rapidly it is changing access to information the most interesting thing about what I am doing. I am excited to learn everything I can in order to try and shape how these tools will affect the next forty years of librarianship.
What qualities or traits do you find most helpful in your work?
I think an openness to learn and a willingness to adapt have served me well throughout my life. I try never to close myself off to other people’s ideas. There are a lot of smart people in this field and I am ready for a career of lifelong learning.
If you weren’t a librarian, what else can you imagine yourself doing?
I do harbor a dream to be an illustrator. It is a very hard business to make a living at, but I think if I gave it all my energy I could be successful at it.
What do you do for fun?
I like going to Phillies games on Sundays and watching them on TV during the week, and I love playing tennis. Unfortunately, I haven’t had much time to play over the last two years.
Is there anything about you that others might be surprised to know?
I would love to buy an old farm and live on it and grow vegetables.
Why would you encourage members to become actively involved in the Philadelphia Regional Chapter?
Meeting other people in the library profession and attending functions that help you learn more about it are the most important things you can do for your career. It is nice to expand your horizons at national conferences; however, local connections are the best ones to make. These are the people you are going to be working with to solve the daily challenges of your job. You need to build and foster relationships to learn and succeed.
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