University of Houston Libraries is pleased to welcome Molly Knapp as the new data management librarian.

Molly Knapp

Please describe your role. How does your work align with the student success and research productivity focus of the University?

As the UH data management librarian, my responsibilities include leading the expansion of the Libraries’ data management service portfolio; managing and promoting the UH Dataverse Repository (an open access repository for the UH community to share and preserve their research data) and DMPTool (a free service that simplifies creating data management and sharing plans to meet grant funding requirements). I‘m looking forward to growing partnerships across campus to address current and emerging data management needs among faculty, students, and research centers.

Please share a bit about your background and professional interests. How do these inspire and shape your approach to research services?

I bring over 20 years of experience working in academic and health sciences libraries and engaging with students, adult learners, researchers and faculty. I’ve held roles at the Network of the National Library of Medicine (NNLM), Tulane University Rudolph Matas Library of the Health Sciences, and the John P. Isché Library at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center-New Orleans. At the NNLM I was a primary instructor for classes about Pubmed.gov, the largest free biomedical and research database in the world, and in my opinion, the most important trove of knowledge for anyone working in the sciences. I am inspired by the motto “see one, do one, teach one,” a medical education method originating from American surgeon William Stewart Halsted in the late 19th century, who formalized the apprenticeship model for surgical training at Johns Hopkins Hospital. This approach emphasizes acquiring skills through observation, hands-on practice, and then solidifying that knowledge by teaching it to others. My experiences working in academic medicine and government shape my approach in growing our data management and research services here at UH. As a runner and former New Orleanian, I am also fond of using the motto “it’s a marathon, not a sprint,”  to describe everything from 5Ks to Mardi Gras, much to the chagrin of my teenage children.

What are one or two things you’d like faculty, students, and scholars to know about the function/purpose/significance of data management?

Everyone should be interested in data management, because everything we do generates a data point for someone or something, who probably wants to monetize it. I hope to empower our community with awareness and understanding of how to control, monitor, use and share data. Just recently I was introduced to the book You Are a Data Person: Strategies for Using Analytics on Campus by Amelia Parnell, which posits that nearly every campus professional will need to approach their work with a data-informed perspective. The book is free to read through UH Library ebooks, and includes a set of self-assessment questions to see  what kind of data identity you may have. I got “Visionary”. So here’s my data vision for the people of UH: Don’t be scared of your data, tame it! If you need ideas on how to do that, come to me.