In the Sternberg Library, librarians work tirelessly to optimize collections and databases, help students find the resources that they need, and make the library a more inviting place to work. It seems there is always something for Hackley’s librarians Brianna Judkins, Jackson Blossom, and library administrative assistant, Danielle Schmitt, to do.

The library creates many resources available to students, both online and in print. “We do a lot of guides for specific classes so they don’t have to go through all the databases,” said Ms. Judkins.

In the past two years, a system has been implemented on the Hackley School Library webpage that integrates all of the Upper School databases. This allows for students to search through all the databases at once, rather than looking through each one individually.

Serving as not only the backbone of the entire library system, the librarians lead lives unbeknownst to most students.

Before coming to Hackley, Ms. Judkins was a librarian for the Department of Defense for eight years, traveling overseas to schools on military bases. She worked in South Korea for three years, Germany for three years, Iceland for a year, and Turkey for a year.

Before becoming a librarian, Ms. Judkins taught math at a high school in Hawaii. She got into librarianship through technology. “I would go to the library to grade papers and I started to get to know the librarian there and she was always using technology; all the computers were in the library…so I really went to library school and became a librarian because at the time, that’s where all the technology was,” she said.

Mr. Blossom was also a teacher before he switched to librarianship. He taught history at a high school in Massachusetts but felt, “locked into a curriculum teaching to a test… My classroom was carved out of the library with temporary walls due to overcrowding, and I watched a happy librarian do her job passionately every day.”

This spurred Mr. Blossom to pursue a career as a librarian, “impulsively jumping into library school at the University of Rhode Island.” He taught at a few schools along the East Coast before arriving at Hackley.

Before teaching and attending library school, Mr. Blossom drove delivery trucks. He delivered Meals on Wheels, office supplies, candy, and soft drinks. He also managed shops, and has “pulled many, many shots of espresso.”

Mrs. Schmidt, who is responsible for all the vibrant, creative displays throughout Goodhue, found herself on the Hilltop two years ago, after working at a bookstore. Previous to that, she had worked for 18 years as a photo editor for The Journal News.

Mrs. Schmidt has been beekeeping for six years as well. She is “still a newbie and learning how to not kill her bees,” she said.

Although all the librarians came from different professions, they have found a place on the Hilltop. They constantly strive to make the library a better place to learn and work, whether that be through new collections, more organized databases, or ensuring that Goodhue is quiet and clean. When asked what they thought would improve the library further, they said with conviction, “the noise from the senior lounge.”