Sidney A. Lanier
Title: Catalog & Archives Librarian
Library: Syracuse University College of Law Library
Location: Syracuse, NY
Five Questions:
1. In five words, describe the library of your youth…and your vision of a library 20 years from now? Small, train car, friendly, formative. I grew up in a tiny little town called Weimar in Texas, so our public library was literally a train car full of books. The librarians were always so nice and the books inside, particularly encyclopedias, helped me learn that there was so much outside my little town. It is hard to say what libraries will look like in 20 years because they rely so heavily on technology. I foresee academic libraries becoming more entwined with IT and database research, while I anticipate that public libraries will continue to adjust to fulfill social welfare needs as necessary. I hope small town libraries like my childhood library stay much the same, though.
2. Three goals for the year? So many personal goals. I want to be better about training for cycling in the winter, so I am faster when the season starts and I want to do all the maintenance on my car and motorcycles that I have been putting off. One major goal that I have is to organize and initiate a digitization for the Syracuse College of Law’s archival collection. I am both excited and nervous about taking that on.
3. Last photo you took with your phone? See above.
4. Favorite country outside the U.S.? It is hard to pick. I love Lebanon for its eclectic and friendly people, but I also love France because I lived there for three years and it feels like home in many ways.
5. Favorite thing about living in upstate New York? The bike riding and the swimming in the summer is so fun!!