MERCED, CA — Veteran librarian R. Bruce Miller will merge the traditional and technological worlds of information resources as Founding University Librarian for the University of California, Merced.
Miller's selection as the head librarian for the first new United States research university of the 21st century was announced today by UC Merced Chancellor Carol Tomlinson-Keasey. He will begin his duties with UC Merced on April 1 after serving as Associate University Librarian for User Support Services at UC San Diego since 1987.
“We are privileged to have found someone with such vision, leadership and depth of experience in library services, information resources and information technology as Bruce Miller,” said Chancellor Tomlinson-Keasey. “In addition to guiding development of UC Merced's library services, he will fill a crucial role on the academic planning leadership team charged with coordinating information strategies for the new campus.”
The Founding University Librarian also will help guide physical planning for the UC Merced library, one of three initial buildings for which Governor Gray Davis has allocated a total of $160 million in his 2001-2002 state budget proposal.
“The library is the heart of the university,” Miller said. “It is incumbent upon us to build the library of the future in support of this university of the future.
“The traditional role of the university library to identify, acquire and deliver information resources in support of instruction and research is a role that endures even as we capitalize on information technology. I am a strong advocate for books' as well as bytes' and intend to take full advantage of information technology, delivery systems, collaborative arrangements and on-site collections to ensure easy and rapid access to the scholarly information resources to be used by UC Merced students and faculty.”
As Associate University Librarian at UC San Diego, Miller is responsible for the Acquisitions, Catalog, Preservation, Software Engineering and Systems departments, and has the lead role in planning and management of information technology systems in the campus libraries.
Miller's implementation of remote access to UC San Diego's library services and collections led to the development of InfoPath, a pioneer in campus-wide information systems. He also has guided the transition from card catalogs to the online catalog, has worked closely with faculty in the development of Britannica Online and was the Founding Chair of the UC Library Technology Advisory Group. At present, he is involved in the development of multilingual software that will support cross-platform script access for Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
Prior to his position with UC San Diego, Miller served as librarian and systems analyst at the University of Texas at Austin's General Libraries where he helped design one of the first, large integrated online library systems. During his ensuing tenure as the statewide systems officer for the Indiana University Libraries System, he led Indiana's eight campuses in the acquisition and implementation of their first online library system.
Miller received his undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Texas at Arlington and earned his master's degree in library science from the University of Texas at Austin, where he also pursued graduate studies in Russian literature and language and doctoral studies in information science. The Austin campus later honored him with the Alumnus of the Year award from the Graduate School of Library and Information Science and the Librarian Excellence Award.
Among his professional activities, Miller has served as Vice President of the Library and Information Technology Association, on the Britannica Online Advisory Council and on the editorial boards of Information Technology and Libraries and Public Access Computer Systems Review. Miller also has authored and co-authored numerous publications, including “The Digital Pacific Rim Library of the University of California, San Diego,” due out in March.
UC Merced currently employs almost 70 educators and professionals. The University's main campus in Merced is currently being planned, and is expected to open in fall 2004 to serve 1,000 students. The campus will grow over coming decades to serve 25,000 students. UC Merced contributes to educational access through the entire San Joaquin region via special educational and outreach centers in Fresno and Bakersfield. A new UC Merced center will open in Modesto next summer.
