Jim Kuhn to lead library division at Ransom Center

The Ransom Center announces the appointment of Jim Kuhn as associate director and Hobby Foundation Librarian.

Kuhn, who begins April 1, 2016, has a diverse and extensive background in academic and special collections librarianship.

Currently serving as the University of Rochester’s Joseph N. Lambert and Harold B. Schleifer Director of Rare Books, Special Collections and Preservation at River Campus Libraries and as assistant dean for special collections and preservation, Kuhn oversees a variety of materials, ranging from a book collection of more than 100,000 volumes dating from the incunabula era through the present to manuscript and archival holdings documenting 19^th– and 20^th-century political and social reform movements. He also oversees medieval studies at the university’s Rossell Hope Robbins Library.

Prior to his position at the University of Rochester, Kuhn worked at the Folger Shakespeare Library for more than 16 years, overseeing and leading collection information services, technical services and cataloging. While at the Folger, Kuhn had a successful record of attracting external funding for cataloging, transcription and digitization projects as well as a number of digital humanities initiatives. He also advocated for and led the Folger into Web archiving and a digital preservation network.

“Jim is highly regarded within the profession at large,” said Ransom Center Director Stephen Enniss. “He has a distinguished 25-year career in a variety of library settings. He’s firmly grounded in the humanistic values that inform our service to the scholarly community.”

At the Ransom Center, Kuhn will be responsible for all research library operations, including reader and viewer services, description and access, reference, instruction and digital collections. His prior administrative and supervisory experience and mix of skills in technical and digital services, bibliography and advocacy will prepare him to provide strategic leadership and vision for the Ransom Center’s largest division. His experience with faculty and research collaborations will be valuable to patrons conducting research.

“This is a remarkable time for academic institutions devoted to stewardship of creative works and collective memory. This is also a particularly exciting time to be joining a staff so clearly committed to supporting advanced scholarship and open pedagogical access to these remarkable and growing collections,” said Kuhn.

Kuhn received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy with a dual major in Asian studies and a master’s degree in philosophy with a concentration on 20^th-century Anglo-American thought. Kuhn also holds a master’s degree in library science.