about


BIOGRAPHY

I have been a librarian at Oberlin College Libraries (OCL) since 2009, first as a Reference & Instruction Librarian (2009-2016) and then as Outreach & Programming Librarian (2017-2023). As the STEM Librarian and Head of the Science Library (since 2023), I am excited to focus on planning and developing new services, setting priority for our projects, and recommending actions that support the goals of OCL and Oberlin College, while also teaching students how to make the best use of library resources and services. I enjoy working closely with faculty to develop exercises and activities that meet students where they are, build their confidence with research, and empower them to be savvy information seekers, consumers, and producers. 
My research interests include the importance of mentoring in information professions; diversity and social justice in libraries; improving access and preservation through digitization; and creating frameworks to help underrepresented people be more visible in library and archival collections, a topic on which I have also presented at professional conferences.
I am the editor of the book, Librarian As Mentor: Grow, Discover, Inspire (Mission Bell Media, 2017), and a contributor to Steven Bell’s edited volume, Crucible Moments: Inspiring Library Leadership (Mission Bell Media, 2016). My chapter, “Show Them Who You Are: Code-switching and Code-meshing in the Academy,” will be published in Music Information Literacy: Inclusion and Advocacy later this year.

RESEARCH FOCUS
  • Mentoring and leadership development in academic libraries, particularly among librarians of color
  • Recruitment and retention of academic librarians of color, as well as their association participation and membership
  • Diversity and social justice in libraries
  • Blacks in American Agriculture since 1974
  • African American genealogy research techniques
  • Improving access and preservation through digitization
  • Creating frameworks to help underrepresented people be more visible in library and archival collections


 RESEARCH PROJECTS

 I am currently investigating the hidden/unseen labor of outreach work in libraries.

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS, PAPERS, AND PRESENTATIONS
Publications:
        Johnson, E. A., & Vasudev, S. (2020). I cannot be the only one: Creating a community of
                practice for outreach librarians. Public Services Quarterly, 16(2), 124-129.
                doi:10.1080/15228959.2020.1738310
Johnson, E.A., ed. (2017). Librarian As Mentor: Grow, Discover, Inspire. Santa Barbara: Mission Bell Media.
Johnson, E.A. Blacks in American agriculture since 1974. Manuscript in preparation.
Johnson, E.A. (2015). Navigating choppy waters: Catalysts for smooth leadership sailing. In Steven J. Bell (Ed.), Crucible moments: Inspiring library leadership (183-192). Santa Barbara: Mission Bell Media.
Mitchell, M. S., C. H. Comer, J. M. Starkey, and E. A. Francis. (2011). Paradigm shift in reference services at the Oberlin College Library: A case study. Journal of Library Administration 51(4),  359-374.
Hooker, N. H., C. J. Shanahan, V. Rake, E. Francis, C. Popovich, & J. Dehoney. (2009). A technology-enhanced teaching tool: Tracking student adoption and performance. Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, 31(4), 963-983.
Francis, E. (2001, November 21). Chess yields valuable life lessons. The Columbus Dispatch, p. 6C.
Francis, E. (2001, July 4). Happy birthday to us! The Columbus Dispatch, p. 1G.
Francis, E. (2002, February 6). Librarian found career by accident. The Columbus Dispatch, p. 12F.
Presentations and invited talks:
Johnson, E.A. (2018, November). Librarian As Archivist in Africatown: A Grassroots Experiment. Conference presentation for Academic Library Association of Ohio’s 44th annual conference, Columbus, OH.

Johnson, E.A. (2018, March). Librarian As Archivist in Africatown: A Grassroots Experiment. Opening keynote address for Ohio Library Council Technical Services Retreat, Columbus, OH.

Johnson, E.A. (2018, February). Librarian As Archivist in Africatown: A Case Study. Presented at the monthly meeting of the Oberlin African American Genealogy and History Group.

Johnson, E.A. (2017, November).  Librarian As Mentor, Or: Why You Should Listen to Your Mother. Book talk sponsored by the Oberlin College Friends of the Libraries.

Francis, E. A. (2009, April). Reaping Benefits in the Digital Landscape: Ornamental Horticulture at The Ohio State University, Or: An Exercise in Overcoming Obstacles Along the Way. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Agriculture Network Information Collaborative, Beltsville, MD.