Anne Osterman named Dean of the University Libraries

Interim Provost Ken Walsh today announced that after a comprehensive review process led by a committee comprised of faculty, staff, and administrators from both the University Libraries and across Mason, Anne Osterman has been appointed to a five-year term as dean of the University Libraries and university librarian.

“I look forward to working in close collaboration with Dean Osterman as she continues her leadership of the University Libraries and serves as a senior leader at our university,” Walsh said.

Dean Osterman was appointed as interim dean of the University Libraries and university librarian on December 1, 2022. During her time in this role, the University Libraries have grown the Open Access publishing options for Mason authors to include three additional major publishers, started a new comprehensive program of outreach about the Libraries’ collections, and hosted a university-wide series of sessions about generative artificial intelligence.

Dean Osterman joined Mason in 2012 as associate director of the Virtual Library of Virginia (VIVA) and was subsequently appointed as deputy director (2013) and director (2015). VIVA is a statewide program that serves as the consortium of 71 nonprofit public and private academic libraries in the Commonwealth. With an annual budget of $21M, VIVA provides a shared core collection of library resources, a statewide resource sharing program among the member libraries, and an open and affordable course content program that lowers the costs of higher education for Virginia students.

Dean Osterman completed a master’s degree in library science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a master’s degree in statistics at American University, and a bachelor’s degree with a triple major in English, classical civilization, and religion at Florida State University. She has published widely on the topics of collection management and collaborative library services, including the monograph Electronic Resource Management: Practical Perspectives in a New Technical Services Model.