Reference librarian Rob Faleer will retire on July 30, 2021. Rob joined the University Libraries in February 1979 as a Non-Print Media Librarian in the library unit then known as the Division of Instructional Resources. His responsibilities included purchasing and cataloging media as well as coordinating the rental of 16mm films and VHS videotapes for CMU courses. As Non-Print Media Librarian, Rob also coordinated annual public screenings of films and videos from such prestigious organizations such as the American Film and Video Festival and the Ann Arbor Film Festival.
Rob joined the library’s Reference department in 1996 where he served as a subject librarian and liaison with several academic departments, including Broadcast and Cinematic Arts, Journalism, Religion, History, and World Languages & Cultures. He worked closely with faculty and graduate and undergraduate students to answer their questions, support their research, and provide the necessary library support to courses. A veteran instructor for the library’s LIB 197 course, Rob taught the course more than 60 times.
In addition to supporting the research of others, Rob is a scholar himself, having published scholarly articles and presented many scholarly papers at state, regional, and international conferences. Rob is most proud of his reference book, Church Woodwork in the British Isles, 1100-1535: An Annotated Bibliography, published in 2009 by Scarecrow Press, an imprint of Rowman & Littlefield. The book is highly regarded by scholars who study late Romanesque, Gothic, and early Renaissance structural and decorative church woodwork, and it has been added to the collections of many academic, national, and special libraries around the world.
In retirement, Rob plans to spend more time with his family, working in his garden and continuing to research British historic architecture. All of us in the University Libraries thank him for his many contributions over the years and wish him a very happy retirement!
