Profile: Dr. Perkins creates community with her students

Loves to introduce them to the broader world through books

By Molly Kutz 

KU library science professor Dr. Roseanne Perkins enjoys watching her students grow and staying in touch with students who are now working in various positions in the library science field.  

She has helped create a community with her students while in school and then networked with graduate students to stay current on what is happening with libraries today.  

According to Perkins, her favorite part of working with students is “passing along knowledge and enthusiasm for libraries with people who are equally excited. And a piece of me gets to be in all the libraries my students go to.”  

Perkins obtained her Teaching, Learning, and Technology Ph.D. from Lehigh, where she got to work with many outstanding scholars. 

As a hard worker, she obtained her Ph.D. in four and half years all while taking care of her family and working full time.  

In addition to a doctorate, she holds a bachelors in English and two master’s, one in Library and Information Science and one in Art Education.  

Her teaching career began 13 years ago when Dr. Ellie Long, chair of the Library Science Department at KU, invited Dr. Perkins to teach an adjunct class for a semester, and she fell in love with teaching college students. After another faculty member retired, Dr. Long liked what Dr. Perkins had done with her class and asked her to apply.  

Dr. Perkins got a full-time temp job for a year. Then she loved being around young people about entering the field, loved undergrad opinions, and seeing young people already decide libraries are the things for their careers and exciting for me.  

After being rehired full-time temp for five years, she got a full-time position.    

Her favorite class to teach is an undergrad foundations class. She explained that it’s the student’s first library class; she gets to introduce them to the broader world and have conversations about professional ethics, the code of ethics, and the legacy of first amendment rights.  

Another favorite class of hers is the undergrad children’s literature class, where she gets to use her experience of working in a professional children’s library to help students understand how to get kids turned on to reading and media and sharing ideas through media.  

Perkins worked for several public libraries in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania before finding her home in Kutztown, Pa..  

She considers Kutztown, Pa., her home because she has lived here the longest. She grew up in a military family and moved to many places like California, Hawaii, Virginia, and Missouri.  

When asked what best describes her personality, she said “ice cream.” 

“Ice cream is versatile,” said Dr. Perkins. “It’s sweet and cold, but cold in a refreshing way.”  

Ice cream is also like the “interdisciplinary perspectives of libraries because all libraries are different, but they have the same foundations in the core,” she said.