| Name | Marquita Gooch |
|---|---|
| Degree(s)/Year(s) received at FSU | Master of Library and Information Studies, 2011 |
| Please list awards, recognitions, other degrees/certificates earned, and leadership roles in professional organizations during your professional career. | Georgia Librarian of the Year, 2020 VP Marketing and Branding, Georgia Library Association |
| Current City | Atlanta |
| Job position and company | Assistant Director for Technology and Training and Marketing Coordinator, Clayton County Library System |
| Tell us about your job. What does a typical day look like? | My day typically begins with signing into all social media accounts and checking for analytics. Next is catching up on and sending a variety of emails. Lately, it's been following up on a number of projects I'm in charge of launching like the Entrepreneur in a Bag kit. With grant funding, we were able to build 7 entrepreneur bags to be checked out by patrons. Each bag contains a laptop, hotspot, entrepreneur guide and a full color printer! I designed the bags to be portable for small business owners that need to handle things on the go. It's become a really popular addition to our services. |
| What is your favorite thing about your job? | Getting to come up with new and innovative ideas to help the community. I also love being able to be silly by creating fun and engaging videos on TikTok that introduce those who think libraries are only for books to some behind the scenes things and other relatable content. It's helped us market to those audiences we're often missing and has increased traffic to our website and visitors. I also enjoy purchasing new equipment like our virtual reality and other gaming devices. |
| How did you become interested in this career and how did your education prepare you for it? | I became interested when my mentor mentioned it to me. He broke down all the possibilities of what I could do in the field and took time to answer all of my questions. I was fortunate to have him. Being an FSU iSchool alum taught me the foundations of librarianship, which is what I base all my decisions on. iSchool curriculum provided me with the core elements I needed to go into any library setting and do great work. The program allowed me to create policies, advocate for necessary change, predict and anticipate trends and most importantly, how to adapt to change quickly and with ease. |
| What does the future look like for you? What’s next? | I've got my sights set on being a Director or department head someplace. I'm hoping wherever that next phase is, it allows me to continue to do what I love which is to build a library for the people - all people. |
| Anything else (personal or professional) that you’d like to highlight? | In addition to being a super cool librarian, I'm also a DJ and wedding officiant. I'm not sure where that fits but I think it's cool when librarians break the stereotype and do something else beyond the work. |
| How long have you been working in the information profession? | 14+ years |
| Did you use your degree for anything beyond traditional information profession positions? If yes, please explain in more detail. | Yes, I've worked as a contracted researcher for private business people and used my familiarity with metadata and analytics to create detailed marketing reports for clients. |
| What did you learn that has been the most applicable/useful/vital to your current position? | Be flexible. Nothing is ever set in stone no matter how hard we plan. Flexibility and a good attitude when adjusting to sudden, unpredictable change is key. |
| What led you to choose to seek a graduate degree from the FSU School of Information? | I'd researched several schools but FSU was the only one that responded to my inquiries quickly and openly. I received a wealth of information and got a great sense of what the program would be like before I even committed. I didn't get that from other schools I looked into and when I decided to apply, it just felt like the right decision. |
