After almost 40 years of dedicated service to the New Brunswick Libraries, Nita Mukherjee retired on August 1, 2022.
Over the last 30+ years, Nita worked at multiple locations across Rutgers University, Rutgers University Libraries (RUL), and New Brunswick Libraries (NBL). She started her career at Rutgers in 1982, working in the Data Control Department in the Administrative Services Building (ASB) on the Busch campus. In the mid-1980s, she joined the Circulation Department of the Douglass Library to start her career with RUL/NBL. During her time with RUL/NBL, Nita contributed greatly to the work at Copy Cataloging in the Library Technical Services Building (TSB), the Libraries Annex Access Services, Alexander Library Access Services, and Douglass Library Access Services. Finally, in 2008, she began her time managing the Chang Science Library on the Cook campus.
Nita is retiring as Branch Coordinator for the Stephen and Lucy Chang Science Library, a site she managed for the past 14 years. She made the Chang Library a warm and inviting location for students, faculty, and staff. She worked with countless undergraduate students over the years, both in her role as the site’s Student Coordinator and as the first contact at the circulation desk onsite. Nita thrived when helping students and faculty, bringing a mix of compassion, professionalism, and dedication to her work to these interactions.
Nita and her husband of 46 years, Arun, plan to continue living in the area. She looks forward to spending time with her family, her two daughters with careers in law and medicine, and her five grandchildren. She will devote more time to traveling, volunteering, and two of her long-standing passions: gardening and reading.
Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway with Maggie Harris-Clark at the 2022 Rutgers Staff Service Recognition Reception in the President’s Tent on Bishop Place (photo by Nick Romanenko/Rutgers University)
After an extraordinary 50 years of service to the John Cotton Dana Library, Maggie Harris-Clark retired on July 1, 2022.
Maggie began working at Rutgers University in January 1972. It was a cold and clear day. The temperature eventually climbed to 34 degrees, from a low of 10 degrees. William T. Cahill was governor of New Jersey, and Kenneth A. Gibson was Mayor of Newark, the first African American Mayor of Newark. Edward Bloustein was president of Rutgers University, and Horace Depodwin was Acting Provost, succeeded by James Young, the first Provost of Rutgers-Newark. Thomas Shaughnessy was the director of Dana Library. Maggie would work with several more directors: Eugene Neely (1981), Lynn Mullins (1987), Mark Winston (2008), and Consuella Askew (2015), as well as several interim directors (most recently, Jeanne Boyle and Rhonda Marker). Maggie also served under 10 University Librarians/Interim University Librarians.
Maggie in her Dana Library office, ca. 2009
Initially, Maggie worked at the Rutgers Law Library (Newark) in the Government Documents Department in a grant-funded position for six months. She then spent another six months at Dana Library in the Technical Services Department before Dr. Shaughnessy hired Maggie full time. Maggie worked for another long-time Dana Library employee, Madeline DeSantis, to maintain the card catalog and the shelf list. At that time, the library was using physical library cards to charge out books, but progress took over and advanced to using keypunch cards. Maggie transferred to the Circulation Department to work in course reserves for almost 10 years under the supervision of Mrs. Mann. About 20 years ago, Maggie was promoted to a Library Supervisor position in Circulation. Maggie is retiring as the head of Access Services at Dana Library. She has successfully navigated many changes from implementing the first automated circulation system through our current Ex Libris products. She has represented Dana Library on many cross-campus groups, including the Fulfillment Working Group.
Although Maggie spent all her years at Rutgers on the Newark campus, she could be counted on to participate in Libraries-wide events. She has many friends throughout the Libraries who will miss her irrepressible optimism and kindness.
Reflecting on her five decades at the university, Maggie fondly said, “Rutgers was my home away from home. I enjoyed working with my colleagues to advance the Libraries’ mission and to ensure our faculty and students received excellent service.”
Maggie in the Dana Library’s new third-floor open study space, June 2022 (photo by Dennis Mark/Rutgers University Libraries)
This past June, President Jonathan Holloway and the university honored Maggie at the Rutgers Staff Service Recognition Reception. “I very much appreciated the recognition and respect,” Maggie remarked. “It’s wonderful knowing that I made a difference in the Rutgers community.”
In retirement, Maggie plans to continue being active in her church and the Eastern Star. Her pastor has already announced her expanded role to the congregation. She has many plans for volunteer work and is looking forward to doing more at home. She is especially looking forward to the birth of her first great-grandchild in August. As busy as she will be, Maggie promises to keep up with her friends at Rutgers.
We wish Maggie a long and happy retirement and express our warmest appreciation for her many years of steadfast service to Dana Library and Rutgers University.
Bobbie Tipton in Alexander Library, August 2022 (photo by Dennis Mark/Rutgers University Libraries)
Roberta “Bobbie” Tipton retired from her position as business librarian at Dana Library, effective July 1, 2022.
Bobbie started at Dana Library in 1985, hired as a reference librarian (business). Before coming to Rutgers, she began her library career as a medical librarian at John F. Kennedy Medical Center in Edison, New Jersey, and as a corporate librarian at the Hayden Publishing Company. She is that rare breed that maintained her core responsibility to business librarianship throughout her 37-year career at Rutgers. In 1994, Bobbie added liaison responsibilities for the School of Public Affairs and Administration. Following Ann Watkins’ retirement, she provided library support for Rutgers University–Newark’s nursing program. She is a co-liaison to the Honors Living-Learning Community. She added to her business credentials by earning her MBA from the Graduate School of Management (Rutgers–Newark) in 1993.
Bobbie Tipton assisting a student.
Over the years, Bobbie mentored and worked alongside business librarian colleagues Ka-Neng Au, Wen-Hua Ren, and Jonathan Torres. She has authored and co-authored numerous articles and book chapters. Her latest article, “Statewide Access to Business Databases: States, Libraries and Support for Small Business,” co-authored with Ka-Neng Au, was published in Journal of Business and Finance Librarianship in August 2021. She has been a frequent presenter at various conferences, including Virtual Academic Library Environment (VALE), New Jersey Library Association (NJLA), and Special Libraries Association. At the last in-person NJLA conference in 2019, Bobbie presented as part of a panel along with two other Dana colleagues on the topic, “Focusing Student Engagement with Graded Assignments,” She received the NJLA/College and University Section Research Award twice, once in 1991 and again in 2018.
Bobbie has served in state and national professional associations and others, including the boldly named BRASS (Business Reference and Services Section) of the American Library Association, where she is currently a member of the Business Information Sources Committee. Her service to Rutgers includes faculty committees, campus committees (Newark Pandemic Flu Planning Committee, 2007–2009), and search committees. She is a member of the Collections Strategy Task Force and, until recently, served on the Advisory Committee on Appointments and Promotions. It is only coincidental—but in keeping with her dedication—that Bobbie’s last day in the office was spent interviewing a library faculty candidate as a search committee member for the Criminal Justice Librarian position.
From left: Bobbie Tipton, Bonnie Fong, the late Krista White, and Minglu Wang celebrate their New Jersey Library Association Research Award in April 2017.
Above all else, Bobbie thrives when she helps students and faculty. She is the author of many research guides—and the heir to almost as many; the count is up to 145 active LibGuides. She produced short videos to introduce and guide users through some of these videos. She has been a regular presence at the Dana Library Reference Desk and on the Ask a Librarian schedule. She provided uncounted instruction sessions to Rutgers Business School and School of Public Affairs and Administration (SPAA) classes and the Writing Program at Rutgers–Newark.
Bobbie’s delightful humor brightened our libraries and meeting rooms. It will not surprise many that she compiled “Humor and Work: A Selected Bibliography” for The U*N*A*B*A*S*H*E*D* Librarian (1994). She has been an indefatigable librarian, devoted to student success, and generous to her colleagues. Bobbie will bring all these qualities to her continued work with learners of English as a second language in her community.
