UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) has selected Rebecca Miller Waltz, Penn State University Libraries associate dean for learning and engagement, to join a cohort of 25 individuals in North America — one of 22 from U.S. universities, including four Big Ten schools — to participate in its 2025–26 Leadership Fellows Program beginning in October.
“We are excited that Rebecca Waltz has been selected for such a prestigious and highly competitive program,” Faye A. Chadwell, dean of University Libraries and Scholarly Communications, said. “She already brings so much to the table in support of our mission — a strong vision coupled with strategic and empathetic leadership, deep library experience and a drive to collaborate with others. We can anticipate that her engagement with this cohort of other next-gen library leaders will not only bring additional value to us, but it will add value to this important ARL program.”
The Leadership Fellows Program is “a 13-month hybrid experience designed to prepare the next generation of senior and executive leaders in research libraries and archives,” according to its official announcement. The fellows develop the knowledge, awareness, skills and attitudes necessary for innovative and successful leadership of complex organizations by participating in a multifaceted curriculum, peer and individual mentoring, self-assessment, executive coaching and site visits. Fellows in this cohort were selected by ARL member peers in a selection working group.
“In the face of unprecedented challenges to the promise of higher education, to libraries as trusted institutions, and to the foundations of information as a public good, the applicants to this year’s ARL Leadership Fellows Program demonstrate deep experience, broad perspective and a commitment to guiding the academic research library community into our uncertain shared future,” Daniel Chamberlain, associate dean of Libraries, Research and Digital Strategies, Dartmouth Libraries, and selection working group member, said.
The Leadership Fellows Program provides each cohort with six major experiences, including two learning summits, two site visits at host institutions, monthly virtual sessions, mentor-sponsor relationships with an academic research library director or senior staff member, self-assessments and career coaching, and attendance at two ARL meetings.
“I am so humbled to have been selected for this program and am grateful to Penn State and my colleagues for supporting my participation in this program. Because of this support, I will be able to learn with and from peers leading in many different research library settings, ultimately strengthening the leadership I am able to offer to Penn State and University Libraries,” Waltz said. “I am most excited about the opportunity to bring new knowledge and understandings back to Penn State and to share the outstanding work that we are doing at the University Libraries with our colleagues across the profession.”
A 2012 American Library Association (ALA) Emerging Leader, Waltz joined Penn State University Libraries with tenure in 2015 as head of Library Learning Services, was promoted to the academic rank of librarian in 2020 and was named associate dean in 2022 after holding the position in an interim capacity. She has served as an adjunct instructor for Syracuse University’s School of Information Studies and a facilitator for the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) Information Literacy Immersion Program since 2017. Waltz also serves the ACRL Board of Directors as a director-at-large. The second edition of her popular co-authored title, “The New Instruction Librarian: A Workbook for Trainers and Learners,” will be released by the American Library Association this fall.
Waltz earned a master of education degree in instructional design and technology from Virginia Tech in 2014, a master of library science degree from the School of Information and Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2007, and undergraduate degrees in English and religion from the College of William & Mary in 2004.
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit membership organization of research libraries and archives in major public and private universities, federal government agencies, and large public institutions in Canada and the US. ARL champions research libraries and archives, develops visionary leaders, and shapes policy for the equitable advancement of knowledge.
For more information about the ARL Leadership Fellows Program and the 2025 Fellows, visit the program’s website.