And the second week of the semester has commenced! I’ll stop prefacing all of these with a calendar check, I promise.
Our next new GA is Holly Soboroff!
What brought you to GSLIS:
Holly grew up on a farm in Crescent, Iowa. She completed her undergrad at the University of Iowa, majoring in Journalism & Mass Communications and English. “I married one of the weirdos from the dorm honors floor, taught high school journalism and English in Washington, Iowa for eleven years, and had two children…” says Holly. Her children are Charlotte, age 9, and Henry, age 6. Her husband started teaching sociology at Eastern Illinois University in 2013, with Holly and the kids following him down to Charleston the next year. Just before coming here, Holly was teaching in Shelbyville.
Holly’s just getting started at GSLIS, as this is her very first semester in the program. “This is going to sound cheesy, but when I was looking at changing careers last year, I thought that I always feel happy in libraries. Since the best library school in the country is two counties north of me, it made sense to apply here.” Holly is interested in public libraries, but keeping her options open to make the most out of her degree.
Since Holly’s still just getting started she hasn’t been able to determine her favorite class yet. However, she’s interested in looking at how libraries, public libraries in particular, can make a difference within the communities that they supply. She’s found that, “of course,” the best thing about working at Help Desk/ITD so far is her coworkers. Naturally. We are all pretty great.
Tell me something interesting about yourself.
Holly likes to spend much of her free time reading. Lately she’s been getting into nonfiction, comics, historical romance, and young adult fantasy. She also enjoys cooking and baking, and watching cartoons with her children, with the occasional dash of anime and Bob’s Burgers. She likes to keep herself busy during her commute, as well. “[…]NPR in the morning, podcasts at night, unless I’m going home during All Things Considered.”
Back when she was a child, Holly’s hairstyle of choice was apparently a permed mullet. This is not the case anymore.
Three song titles that describe Holly’s life.
“Parents Are People,” Marlo Thomas and Harry Belafonte
“Nothin’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” Starship
“Bulletproof,” La Roux
Three things Holly can’t live without.
1. Coffee.
2. Her dogs, and their daily morning walk to the EIU stadium. “[Starting] the day with two buddies who think a twenty minute walk is the most exciting thing EVERY is pretty uplifting.”
3. Her 2005 Impala that’s gotten her through a tanked economy, her second pregnancy, and her first master’s degree. Despite being officially declared totaled after a flood, it’s still alive and kicking.
Stop by the Help Desk anytime to catch up with Holly!
