John Ober Joins the California Digital Library as the Assistant Director, Education and Communications

On May 11, 1998, John Ober will assume the post of Assistant Director, Education and Communications, California Digital Library.  In his new role, John will be responsible for managing CDL communication and education programs.  Working closely with other members of the CDL management team, he will develop programs that communicate the goals and objectives of the CDL to faculty, students, and librarians throughout the University, as well as to CDL partners in other educational institutions and in industry.  John will serve as a resource to librarians on the UC campuses for the development of local educational and training programs, and will be a key participant in the design of an effective user interface for access to CDL collections and services.  In addition, he will make presentations about CDL programs to various groups, as well as participate in national discussions of issues relating to the training of users of digital content.

“In a cooperative endeavor such as the CDL, continuous communication with the user community and user education are of paramount importance,” says Richard Lucier, University Librarian and Executive Director of the CDL.  “John will regularly evaluate the needs of the CDL community and the effectiveness of our technological tools and systems in meeting those needs.”

John has broad experience and knowledge in librarianship, teaching, and computer technology.  Most recently, he was the Development Librarian for Electronic Resources for the Center for Science, Technology, and Information Resources/Library Learning Complex, California State University (CSU), Monterey Bay.  In this position, he coordinated the technological infrastructure for the Library, as well as strategic planning and development for the Library academic program, and the collection of electronic primary sources.  Previously, he served as the Acting Director, Library Systems, at UC Berkeley, where he was responsible for the operational and strategic management of the UC Berkeley Library Systems Office and acted as project manager for several digital library projects.  He was also a Network Resources Librarian at UC Berkeley.

As an Instructor at CSU Monterey and an Assistant Professor at UC Berkeley, John has taught courses on database management, networks and networked information, and the management of information technology.  He has worked with various faculty and university committees at both institutions, given numerous presentations on digital resources, computer technology in libraries, and user training, and has written several articles and book chapters.

John received a B.A. in English/Philosophy from Bowling Green State University, an M.S. in Sociology from the University of Houston, an M.L.I.S. in Information Systems Management from UC Berkeley, and a Ph.D. in Library and Information Systems Management, also from UC Berkeley.