Meet the Open Source Team: Spotlight on Melissa Lefebvre

Melissa Lefebvre is Bibliomation's Open Source Project Manager.

Question: How long have you been working for Bibliomation? What job responsibilities have you held?

Answer: I began working at Bibliomation in 2004. My primary job responsibility is web services administration for Bibliomation's member libraries. I handle the web catalog customization, as well as web server support. I also support our web catalog add-ons, like WowBrary (new item lists) and our PC/Print Management system, LibraryMetricks. I am now also responsible for project managing Bibliomation's migration to Evergreen.

Question: What is your responsibility as Open Source Project Manager for Bibliomation?

Answer: My ultimate goal is to migrate our 48 public libraries and 20 K-12 schools to Evergreen. Before that migration, I will project manage the migration of our four development partner public libraries to Evergreen. I also will be spreading the good word of the open source ILS to the greater library world. I want to dispel the myth that the open source ILS is a primitive system. It is fully functional and will be ready for our libraries to use on Day One.

Question: What is your educational background?

Answer: I received my Bachelor of Fine Arts in Fine Art Photography from RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology) in '97. I then received my Photographic Conservation Certificate two years later from the George Eastman House in Rochester. Then came my MLS - I received that degree in 2004 from Southern CT State University, in New Haven. My first library job was at the Middlebury Public Library. While there I interned at Bibliomation and was eventually hired.

Question: What do you like most about Evergreen?

Answer: From the community standpoint, I love the consortial aspect, their willingness to share their resources. I love this communal sharing among the libraries. From a program standpoint, I love the RSS feeds in the OPAC. Our libraries will be able to use them to provide new item lists; they could also be used to provide school summer reading lists. I also like the fact that Evergreen has a staff client. This is what our libraries are used to.

Question: What do you like to do in your free time?

Answer: What free time? Ideally, I use my free time to do photography. I also like to hike. I'm interested in forensic science so anything oriented to that - the show, NCIS and books on forensics -- I'm interested in. I have a two-year old so I'm also into coloring, and I make a mean batch of Play-Doh. I also like to make lotions and lip balms - I made some cheeky chocolate lip balm last Christmas that tasted like an Andes mint.

Melissa can be reached at mlefebvreATbiblioDOTorg.
Amy Terlaga, Bibliomation's Assistant Director and open source team interviewer, can be reached at terlagaATbiblioDOTorg.