William D. Walker

William D. Walker, who transformed the University of Miami Libraries by expanding and enhancing collections and introducing new technologies to help students, faculty members, and visitors in their research endeavors, has announced that he is stepping down as dean and university librarian effective May 31, 2013.

Walker joined the University in 2003 and has overseen the Otto G. Richter Library, the Marta and Austin Weeks Music Library, and the Judi Prokop Newman Information Resource Center.

“Over the past ten years, the talented team at the University of Miami Libraries has created a rich and exciting intellectual exploratory for our students and faculty, ranging from cutting-edge digital tools to billions of pages of electronic content,” Walker said. “A steward of scholarship and knowledge, the Library’s reputation among the nation’s top research libraries has risen dramatically. During this exciting period of growth, I’ve had the good fortune to work closely both with students and faculty, and these are experiences that are deeply fulfilling.”

Calling service to faculty and students a “hallmark” of his tenure, UM President Donna E. Shalala also described Walker as “a wonderful citizen of our community.”

Before joining the University, Walker served as the senior vice president and Andrew W. Mellon Director of the research libraries at the New York Public Library, where he managed one of the nation’s largest research libraries operations. Earlier, he served as a medical librarian administrator at the University of Illinois and the Medical Library Center of New York.