Soli Johnson, library services assistant, Divinity Library

In her role as library services assistant at the Divinity Library, Soli wears many hats: she not only helps maintain the collection, oversee interlibrary loans, and process course reserves, she also assists library patrons and trains the library’s student workers. To broaden her expertise in librarianship, “I do as many jobs as I possibly can within the library,” she said.

Soli has held her current position as library services assistant for 9 years but has worked at the Divinity Library for 21 years. Previously, she served that library as acquisitions assistant.

Soli received her BA from Mount Holyoke College and earned her MILS from Southern Connecticut State University in 2011, with a focus on reference, information seeking, instruction, and management.

In addition to her many skills in information technology, Soli has language skills in Italian, Japanese, and Swedish and is learning Haitian Kreyol. She also has first-aid training and basic training in crisis prevention de-escalation techniques. In her leisure time, she enjoys cooking and crafting.

From 2021 to 2022, Soli served as chair of the Ares User Group (AUG), under the direction of Daniel Dollar, associate university librarian for scholarly resources. Ares is a reserves management system for both electronic and hard copy reserves; it provides copyright management functions and support for integrations with Canvas and other learning management systems.

The AUG committee is the primary body of Ares expertise within Yale Library. In coordination with the Access Steering Committee (ASC), the AUG helps provide one of the most important services that Yale Library offers: making the library’s extensive resources available to all users who need them.

AUG committee members work together to develop, document, and maintain best practices and training procedures in course reserves services. The chair and co-chair positions rotate, open to Clerical and Technical (C&T) staff who manage course reserves across all Yale libraries. As both chair and committee member, Soli represents the Divinity Library on the AUG committee, where she serves with 30 fellow members.

Soli is especially committed to her work with students. She has gained training in mental health services to assist students who are experiencing crisis. She also is proud to have been responsible for posting the new Pride flag and Bi-Pride stick that are prominently displayed on the door of the library. She is eager to learn more about the library’s DEIA resources and to participate in upcoming initiatives and events.