Each month, we feature a Core member for an interview profile called #IAmCore. This month, meet Carly Gutierrez, Bindery Coordinator at UC San Diego Library! Carly was one of the winners of our Core Forum Scholarship for 2024 and serves as a reviewer for the Core journal Information Technology and Libraries.
Describe yourself in three words.
Curious, peppy, steady.
Describe your Core Forum experience in three words.
Inspiring, inclusive, educational.
What were the major takeaways of the Core Forum?
Both keynote speakers were very inspiring. There were several panels that stood out to me as exceptional, like the “Neurodiversity in Academic Libraries” and “Neurodivergent Leadership” panels, the “Fighting Anti-Trans Misinformation” panel, and the Preservation track panel “Judging a Book by its Cover,” on 19th century book covers and arsenic and the Poison Book Project. I would love to see more Preservation panels!
What attracted you to attend the Core Forum?
I work in the Preservation Lab at a university as the Bindery Coordinator. I joined ALA and Core this past year when I began my MLIS program at San José State University, and have been wanting to learn all I can about the different aspects of the library industry. I was drawn to the Core Forum because it is smaller than ALA Annual and some of the other conferences, and I felt like it had material that would apply to me. And it did!
What advice would you give to others to get the most out of a Core Forum?
I had such a nice time staying at the hotel where the conference was held. I recommend staying somewhere close so it isn’t a burden to hang out for a while and talk to people. I found most of the presenters to be very approachable, and they were all kind. I’m a shy person and I have a hard time networking in person but even I managed to talk to a few people! (My best strategy is chatting on the elevator.) I recommend comfortable shoes and an open mind.
What are you working on now that you’re excited about?
I am finishing my first semester of graduate school at SJSU! I’m looking forward to next semester when I will finish my core classes, after which I can start taking some electives. At work in the bindery, I have been excited lately about sewing in musical scores and other types of in-house binding that we have been doing. I am training some new student employees and it is fun going through everything.
What are you currently reading/ listening to/ watching/ making?
I read Pageboy on the plane to and from Minneapolis for the Core Forum. I loved it! Memoir and biographies are some of my favorite works. I also recently read I’m Glad My Mom Died and Crying in H-Mart. I’m usually listening to Jazz 88.3, our local jazz station out of City College here in San Diego.
Anything else you’d like to share?
Stay curious! Library Science is my third industry and career. I never thought I would have the opportunities that I have had when I first started my library studies at Palomar College. Their Library & Information Technology program gave me a certificate and allowed me to get my first job in a library. Getting my BA in Creative Writing from Southern New Hampshire University last May was a huge life accomplishment for me. I’m in my 40s, with a teenage daughter and there were times I thought I just couldn’t do it: go to school, and parent, and work. But I did not quit, and it boosted my confidence knowing I could do hard things. I will graduate with my MLIS vaguely around the same time my daughter graduates from high school and the world is full of possibility, for both of us. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to attend the ALA Core Forum on a scholarship – thank you!
We hope you’ve enjoyed learning more about the people of Core. If you would like to nominate someone or self-nominate, please fill out this Form.
