Copley Library 2023-2024 Annual Report

“I want our students to feel welcomed and gain a stronger sense of belonging. I’m committed to supporting them in their academic success and throughout their entire college journey here at USD.” | Regina Gong Regina Gong I was thrilled to join Copley Library as one of their Associate Deans in February 2023, following my time at Michigan State University Libraries. Over nearly 25 years, I’ve held a variety of roles and responsibilities in libraries across different institutions, beginning in my home country, the Philippines. In 2000, I immigrated to the United States and settled in the Bay Area with my spouse, where we both worked for a library software company. We later moved to Michigan, where I officially launched my academic library career, first at a community college and then at a research-intensive, land-grant university. I hold a Master’s of Library and Information Science from Wayne State University and a Ph.D. in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education from Michigan State University. As both Associate Dean and Associate Professor, I’m deeply engaged in all areas of undergraduate student success, ensuring diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility within all library programs and services and advocating for open educational resources (OER). My research interests are broad and guided by my values and identity. I began conducting research, writing, and presenting early in my library career, even though I was not in a tenure-track position. It was primarily collaborative, which I found exhilarating since I learned so much from my co-authors. I have been actively writing and presenting on OER, open education, open pedagogy, equity, and student success since these are my primary areas of focus. My doctoral education has exposed me even more to different ways of knowing, theories, and research methods, enabling me to interrogate issues from a critical perspective and elevate the voices of those in the margins. Additionally, I strive to make my work available as open access (OA) to achieve a more extensive reach and impact. I collaborate with campus partners throughout the academic year to develop and deliver workshops designed to meet the diverse needs of all USD students. These workshops cover various topics, including research skills and strategies, information and digital literacy, literature reviews, scholarly identity development, research proposal creation, academic publishing, and navigating the hidden curriculum. Most sessions are held at Copley Library to help students familiarize themselves with our spaces, resources, and services. I want our students to feel welcomed and gain a stronger sense of belonging. I’m committed to supporting them in their academic success and throughout their entire college journey here at USD. Fun facts: I’m a foodie, and I consider myself a home chef, much to my family’s enjoyment. I’m also an avid hiker. I love being close to nature, hiking trails, and scaling mountain summits. I have climbed all five summits in San Diego multiple times and other high-elevation mountains around the country, including the renowned and dangerous Angels Landing in Zion National Park.

12 | HELEN K. AND JAMES S. COPLEY LIBRARY