Assistant Professor and MS/LIS Program Director Nicole A. Cooke will be a panelist at the Hampton University Forum on Minority Recruitment & Retention in the Library & Information Science Field, which will be held August 1-2 in Hampton, Virginia. The mission of the forum, which is supported by an Institute of Museum and Library Services grant, is to identify critical issues in the recruitment and retention of minority librarians and serve as a springboard for ideas to effectively address these concerns.
Two of Cooke's publications are required reading for the forum: "Tolerance is Not Good Enough" (Library Journal, May 2017) and Information Services to Diverse Populations (Libraries Unlimited, 2016). In addition, she will share her research and experiences as a member of the Lunch & Learn Diversity Panel.
"I am pleased to be able to have a voice in this unique forum, which deals with some really important and acute issues in our profession," Cooke said. "This discussion will inform my work and that of the iSchool's recruitment team. Moises Orozco Villicana and Victor Jones have been working very hard to diversify our student body with promising candidates."
Orozco Villicana also will attend the forum as part of his role as the iSchool's director of enrollment management.
Cooke is an expert in human information behavior, particularly in the online context; critical cultural information studies; and diversity and social justice in librarianship with an emphasis on LIS education and pedagogy. Her honors include the American Library Association (ALA) Achievement in Library Diversity Research Award (2017) and ALA Equality Award (2016). She holds a PhD in communication, information, and library studies from Rutgers University.