PhD at 75: Noah Lenstra

Noah Lenstra

The PhD degree program at the iSchool celebrates its 75th anniversary in 2023. This profile is part of a special series featuring PhD alumni. Noah Lenstra (MSLIS '09, CAS '11, PhD '16) is an associate professor of library and information science at the University of North Carolina Greensboro.

What are the focus areas of your research? Your teaching?

My research centers on understanding public librarianship as a type of community work. In other words, how do public librarians work in and with communities? For the past six years, I've been pursuing this line of inquiry in the context of public health: How and why do public librarians work in and with communities to support public health? My teaching focuses on project management, organizational change, and community informatics.

What do you see as the most important impact of your work?

I see the most important impact of my work when I am able to directly affect systems to bring about change. One example that comes to mind is my participation in the South Carolina Center for Rural and Primary Healthcare's Rural Libraries and Health Cooperative Agreement Program. Through my research and advocacy, I was able to directly shape a program that has dramatically altered how rural libraries collaborate with others in the rural health ecosystem.

Why did you choose to pursue a PhD degree?

I decided to pursue a PhD because I wanted to better understand the complexities associated with inter-organizational community partnerships focused on library and information infrastructure, a reality I directly experienced when working for three years on the eBlack Champaign-Urbana project, a digital community archives project. My dissertation focused on how public libraries and senior centers independently support digital literacy among older adults, with an eye toward how these ubiquitous community institutions could better collaborate and support each other.

What has it meant to you to be an alum of the program at Illinois?

Being an alum of Illinois prepared me to see myself as a fearless leader. The program and the guidance I received gave me the confidence and skills needed to chart out new research pathways that inform inter-professional practices.

What advice would you give to new PhD students?

Don't bite off more than you can chew, and remember it takes time to build up a research program. Remembering that your PhD is just one phase of your life is hard to do but can make a big difference in terms of successfully navigating this experience. 

Updated on
Backto the news archive

Related News

Get to know Karina Cooper, librarian

Karina Cooper (MSLIS '23) likes that her job as librarian at the Niels Bohr Library and Archives allows her to explore her interdisciplinary interests and do "a little bit of everything." She credits the iSchool with helping her build a well-rounded skill set and gain valuable hands-on practice, which have helped her succeed in her job.

Karina Cooper

Get to know Kirti Tyagi, digital consultant

As a digital consultant for Caterpillar, Kirti Tyagi (MSIM '23) helps people make informed, data-driven decisions that have a tangible impact on the business. Prior to joining Caterpillar full time, she served as a digital intelligence intern for the company. 

Kirti Tyagi

Get to know Grant Florence, user experience designer

Grant Florence (BSIS '23) used final projects from his iSchool courses to assemble a portfolio of case studies, which helped him land his job as a user experience designer for Microsoft. Now he is helping to design solutions for the cloud computing platform Azure. 

Grant Florence

Get to know Jeremy Carnahan, computer vision engineer

In his role as a computer vision engineer at Precision Planting, Jeremy Carnahan (MSIM '21) is part of a team that is making agriculture more productive and sustainable while reducing costs for growers. 

Jeremy Carnahan

Get to know Paige Schulz, software developer

For Paige Schulz (BSIS '22), the best part about working as a software developer for The Aerospace Corporation is "embracing constant change." She enjoys the fast pace in the tech world and in New York City, where she resides.

Paige Schulz