Each month, we feature a Core member for an interview profile called #IAmCore. This month, meet Daniel Dollar, Chair of Core’s Fundraising and Sponsorship Committee. Daniel is Associate University Librarian for Scholarly Resources at Yale Library.
Describe yourself in three words
- Personable
- Active
- Curious
Describe Core in three words
- Community
- Sharing
- Empowerment
What do you value about Core?
Vibrant community of library leaders working to advance the profession.
How long have you been a Core member?
I’ve been a member since 2011 when I joined the Association for Library Collections & Technical Services.
What drew you to and continues to attract you to the Core Community?
I enjoy attending the Core Forum. The conference is a manageable size that brings together leaders from public and academic libraries. It’s a great place to grow professionally, get inspired, and make new friends.
What are you working on now that you’re excited about?
I’m working to launch the Research4Life Academic Alliance, an effort to build collaborative networks between libraries and information professionals in the global north and south, to advance the mission of Research4Life to address global equity issues in scholarly communication.
What are you currently reading/listening to/watching/making?
I just finished reading Treasure Island (which I highly recommend if you, like me, had never read it) after listening to the book Storyteller: The Life of Robert Louis Stevenson by Leo Damrosch. I’m also rewatching every episode of Stranger Things in the leading up to the finale. (Yes, I’m a nerd!)
What advice can you share with others for a fulfilling and beneficial Core experience?
You get out of Core what you put in, so consider joining and being active in a committee or interest group.
Anything else you’d like to share?
With libraries under threat, now more than ever, academic and public librarians need to work together to defend intellectual freedom and inquiry.
Join an interest group or check out Core’s healthy mix of free and paid professional development opportunities if it suits you! Also, give me a shout through ALA connect if you’ll be at Core Forum in Denver or ALA 2026 in Chicago, and I can probably teach you something you didn’t know before.
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.
