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Sam Tang is a class of 2018 Mechanical Engineering major who has worked for the past four years as student employee for the UCR Library’s Cyberinfrastructure department.

This position requires Tang to maintain computers and peripherals for library users and to help staff solve problems connecting to email, printer malfunctions, and other troubleshooting issues.

“It’s taught me a lot about working in an office and communicating with people,” he said. “Be patient, be kind. That was a huge lesson in IT, apart from all the technical stuff about hardware and specific applications that the library uses. I learn so much on the job.”

“Sam is a valued member of our team. He is smart, kind, honest, and reliable,” said Dan Szilagyi, Manager of Cyberinfrastructure. “He’s a hard worker who produces timely, efficient, and effective results.”

Tang grew up as an only child in Irvine, CA. His father is a biomedical engineering professor at UC Irvine. His mother was a piano teacher during his childhood, but she now works as an office manager for a law firm. Before moving to Irvine, Tang’s family lived in Virginia while his father worked on the gyroscope for cruise air missiles for DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency).

Tang originally planned to study media and arts at UC Riverside, but changed his major to Mechanical Engineering (ME) during his junior year. At first, he had no plans to study math. “I actually failed pre-calculus in high school, so I thought that math was the opposite of what I wanted to do,” he laughed.

However, he tried a few math classes here at UCR and felt like the work was rewarding. “I wanted to get the most out of learning as possible,” he said. “In high school, I was super lazy about everything. I only cared about not doing schoolwork. But that changes a lot during college when your work actually matters and you’re held responsible for the work that you put in.”

Part of what inspired Tang to become a ME major was his respect for Professor Sundararajan Venkatadriagaram. “He’s one of the nicest guys I know, but the material he gives out is super-hard and it really forces you to learn everything you can about ME,” Tang explained. “You can ask him about anything in ME and he’ll know the answer, and he can also prove it on paper. Having that kind of knowledge in engineering is something I’d aspire to do.”

After graduation, Tang could picture himself in a few different roles. “The skills in IT aren’t at all the same as what you learn in ME, but I could see myself doing research and developing in either field.” However, he has one dream that aims even higher. “If I could do anything, I’d like to be an astronaut,” Tang said. “It’s a good mix of physics, mechanical engineering, and some IT, as well, because you need to know how to operate a lot of electronics.”

Chief Financial Officer

Respected library leader to begin in October

The UCR Library is pleased to welcome Dr. Mihoko Hosoi as the next University Librarian. Dr. Hosoi brings more than 20 years of experience in academic libraries, most recently serving as Chief Officer for Collections, Research, and Scholarly Communications at Penn State. Her leadership spans strategic planning, scholarly communications, and systemwide licensing initiatives across institutions including the California Digital Library, Stanford, Cornell, and others.

"I’m grateful for this chance to lead the UCR Library," Dr. Hosoi says. "I thank Provost Watkins and everyone involved for giving me this opportunity. I will be focused on listening to our community and collaborating with academic leaders across the campus to strengthen and advance the Library for the future."

She will begin her new role as University Librarian around October 27, 2025. Read the announcement from Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Elizabeth Watkins for more information on Dr. Hosoi.
 

Head of Access Services

The UCR Library is delighted to announce that Jernine McBride has joined the library as our Associate Director of Development, effective Nov. 4, 2019.

Her office will be located in the Administration Suite on the first floor of the Rivera Library. She will report to Clyde Derrick, the Assistant Dean of Development for CHASS and the UCR Library.

Jernine earned her BA in English Language and Literature from Sonoma State University, her MA in Education from Arizona State University, and her Certificate in Africana Studies from Claremont Graduate University.

Most recently, Jernine served as the Director of Development for Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio Council in Redlands. Prior to working in libraries, Jernine worked for thirteen years in nonprofit, corporate, academic, research, and legal environments. Her positions included Chief Operating Officer and Community Outreach Coordinator for Sigma Beta Xi, Inc. Youth Services, and as a history instructor at Crafton Hills College.

Please join us in welcoming Jernine to the library!

UCR Library is delighted to announce that Brianna Marshall joined our team as the Director of Research Services.

Brianna earned her BA in Rhetoric and Composition from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, and her MLS/MIS from Indiana University, Bloomington.

Most recently, Brianna served as the Digital Curation Coordinator for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She brings demonstrated leadership in research services, especially in data services, including building successful services and navigating a large and complex research library environment.

Brianna also has experience with project management methodologies and design thinking, which will be critical skills in developing our new Research Services department.

On Jan. 28, 2019, the UCR Library was pleased to welcome Tia Lelaind as the Director of Organizational Design and Human Resources.

Tia has a track record of being a highly accomplished and innovative human resources manager with demonstrated successes in helping organizations align human resources initiatives with organizational goals in an variety of institutional settings.

She has an impressive background in career development, employee relations, and performance management at her previous institutions and at the same time has a demonstrated track record of effective working relationships with staff and management to ensure effective work environments.

Please join us in welcoming Tia to the UCR Library!

AI Research Librarian

Join us in creating a living history archive documenting the response of the UCR community to COVID-19.

Andrea Hoff's primary role as the University Archivist is to document the history of UCR, including current events. To that end, she has issued a broad call for materials and created an online form, which UCR community members can use to submit materials documenting their unique experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on the UCR community.

"Initially, we were only archiving emails documenting the university’s response to the pandemic," Hoff explained. "But as the situation has evolved and the extent of the impact has become more apparent, we’ve decided to include materials that document more extensively those lived experiences by members of the UCR community."

A living history project, Hoff's goal is to amass a collection of primary sources that reflect the individual and collective experiences of UCR students, student organizations, faculty, researchers, and staff during this global pandemic, to preserve and record history as it happens.

"We are open to various formats, but items such as journals, diaries, photographs, and video are welcome," Hoff said. "We are also open to materials related to COVID-19 from campus departments and organizations."

One example of a primary source in Special Collections, such as the Fujimoto family diaries, which offer a glimpse into one family's experience during a distinct period of U.S. history. The Fujimoto diaries chronicle the lives of a Japanese-American father and son who lived in Riverside during WWII, spanning before, during, and after the family was forced into an internment camp.

With her current project, Hoff hopes to collect materials that will do the same for UCR during the COVID-19 global pandemic.

Acquisitions Assistant