About  Jennifer Fabbi, Dean of the University Library

Dr. Jennifer Fabbi began her tenure as Dean of the University Library at California State University, San Marcos (CSUSM) in August 2014. Dr. Fabbi has a 16-year career as a librarian and educator, serving in several administrative and faculty positions in the Library and Provost’s office at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and CSUSM. She has a Ph.D. in higher education leadership from UNLV, a Master of Arts in information resources and library science from the University of Arizona, and a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from UNLV.

Dr. Fabbi is a national leader and scholar in information literacy—a set of skills and abilities necessary for successfully navigating the contemporary information landscape. She has co-chaired the American Association of School Librarians/Association of College and Research Libraries Interdivisional Committee on Information Literacy from 2012-2015. She currently works with the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) to develop resources and to design and deliver an institute for colleges and university teams to embed and assess information literacy and critical thinking core competencies into student learning experiences. She also serves on the advisory board and as an item-writer for the in-development Threshold Achievement Test for Information Literacy (TATIL), which aims to be a means assess information literacy in college students. She has published and presented more than 80 scholarly works, and her current research is on factors impacting the information literacy of first-year college students.

Dr. Fabbi currently represents the CSUSM college deans on the Graduation Initiative Steering Committee, which seeks to decrease time to graduation and increase graduation rates. She is also chair of the CSU Council of Library Deans Assessment Team, which creates infrastructure and documentation for the CSU campus libraries to both collectively and individually examine their impact in student learning and faculty productivity. At UNLV, Dr. Fabbi served in the Office of the Associate Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, concentrating on an Undergraduate Education reform proposal that was subsequently approved by the Faculty Senate in fall 2011. Jen led campus faculty development efforts by partnering with faculty and administrators to implement this cutting-edge curriculum. Within the Libraries at UNLV, Dr. Fabbi held diverse leadership positions such as Associate Dean for Research and Education, Head of the Curriculum Materials Library, Interim Director of Libraries Technical Services, and Special Assistant to the Dean of Libraries. Dr. Fabbi was named one of Vegas, Inc.’s “40 Under 40 in 2013.” Chosen from 275 nominees, she was recognized for her work to advance librarianship as a discipline as well for making a difference in Las Vegas community.

Selected Publications

Fabbi, J.L. (2015). Fortifying the pipeline: A quantitative exploration of high school factors impacting the information literacy of first-year college students. College & Research Libraries, 76(1), 31-42.

McMillen, P. & Fabbi, J. (2010). How to be an E³ librarian: Enhancing and expanding the embedded position. Public Services Quarterly, 6(2/3), 174-186.

Fabbi, J. L. (2009). “Discovery” focus as an impetus for organizational learning. Information Technology and Libraries, 28(4), 164-171.

Gonzales, A.; McMillen, P.; & Fabbi, J. (2009). New avenues for integrating information literacy into the curriculum. Proceedings of the Annual Conference of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education (1639-1644). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.

Fabbi, J.; McMillen, P.; & Hawkins, A. (2009). Whipping up the “Why Paper”: Inquiry into diverse perspectives. In Ryan Sittler & Doug Cook (Eds.), The Library Instruction Cookbook: 50+ Active Recipes for 1-Shot Sessions. Chicago: American Library Association.

Hawkins, A.; Fabbi, J.; & McMillen, P. (2009). Cooking up concept maps. In Ryan Sittler & Doug Cook (Eds.), The Library Instruction Cookbook: 50+ Active Recipes for 1-Shot Sessions. Chicago: American Library Association.

Fabbi, J. L.; Bressler, D.; & Earp, V. (2007). Guide to Writing CMC Collection Development Policies. Chicago: Association of College and Research Libraries.

Brown, J.; Fabbi, J. L. & Taranto, C. (2005). Branch libraries and technology: Impact of a new main library. Library Hi Tech, 23(1), 90-101.

Selected Presentations & Workshops

Fabbi, J. (2015, May). Creating Context for Information Literacy: Best Practices for Learning and Assessment. Workshop at the Western Association of Schools and Colleges The Big Five: Addressing Core Competencies, Honolulu, HI.

Archambault, S.; Johnson-Grau, G.; Acosta, E.; Rinto, E; & Fabbi J. (2015, April). Integrating Information Literacy into the Core Curriculum: Creating Sustainable Models. Panel presentation at the Association of College & Research Libraries Biennial Conference, Portland, OR.

Godbey, S.; Ladd, S.; & Fabbi, J. (2014, October). Teaching Teachers: A Study of Factors Impacting the Information Literacy of Teacher Education Students. Paper presented at the European Conference on Information Literacy, Dubrovnik, Croatia.

Fabbi, J.L.; Speer, W.; Giorgis, C.; & Stewart, K. (2014, June). Common Core State Standards and General Education: Information Literacy Connects the Dots. Panel presentation at the American Library Association Annual Conference, Las Vegas, NV.

Fabbi, J.L.; Rinto, E.; & Fawley, N. (2013, November). Curriculum Mapping to Integrate and Communicate Information Literacy Learning. Workshop at the Greater Western Library Alliance Symposium, Librarians Partnering for Student Learning: Leadership, Practice, and Culture, Las Vegas, NV.

Fawley, N. & Fabbi, J.L. (2013, November). Navigating the Road Ahead: Putting Curriculum Maps into Practice. Roundtable discussion at the Greater Western Library Alliance Symposium, Librarians Partnering for Student Learning: Leadership, Practice, and Culture, Las Vegas, NV.

Fabbi, J. L. (2013, October). Fortifying the Pipeline: An Exploratory Study of High School Factors Impacting the Information Literacy of First-Year College Students. Paper presented at the European Conference on Information Literacy, Istanbul, Turkey.

Zald, A. E.; Fabbi, J. L.; & Hoover, S. (2013, October). Curriculum Mapping to Integrate and Communicate Information Literacy Learning. Workshop at the European Conference on Information Literacy, Istanbul, Turkey.

Hoover, S.; Fabbi, J. L.; Zald, A. E.; & Rinto, E. (2013, April). Meet us on the Corner of Intentional & Strategic: Integrating Information Literacy Learning through Curriculum Mapping. Workshop at the Association of College & Research Libraries 2013 Conference, Indianapolis, IN.

Fabbi, J. L.; Zald, A. E.; Heavey, C.; & Hoover, S. (2013, March). Never Enough Cooks in the Kitchen: Engaging Stakeholders in General Education Reform through Team‐Based Course Design. Workshop at the Association of American Colleges and Universities General Education and Assessment Conference, Boston, MA.

Hoover, S.; Fabbi, J. L.; & Zald, A. E. (2012, October). Found in Translation: Articulating Campus-Wide Learning Outcomes and Assessing Impact with ACRL Performance Indicators. Poster presented at the Library Assessment Conference: Building Effective, Sustainable, Practical Assessment, Charlottesville, VA.

Fabbi, J. L. (2012, October). Integrated Course Design for Teaching and Learning Strategies. Workshop at the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Retreat on Core Competencies, Anaheim, CA.

Fabbi, J. L. (2012, October). Creating Coherent Pathways for Quality Learning. Workshop at the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Retreat on Core Competencies, Anaheim, CA.

Fabbi, J. L.; Brown, J.; Zald, A. E.; and Hoover, S. (2012, April). Educational Role of Libraries. Presentation at Living the Future 2012, Tucson, AZ.

Fabbi, J. L. & Middleton, C. (2012, March). GWLA Student Learning Initiative and Recent National Context. Presentation at the Greater Western Library Alliance Directors Spring Meeting, San Diego, CA.

Fabbi, J. L. & Forgues, D. (2012, March). Bridging the Gap: Transitioning Information Literacy Skills for Student Success. Presentation at the Association of American Colleges and Universities Network for Academic Renewal—Student Success: Pushing Boundaries, Raising Bars, Seattle, WA.

Fabbi, J. L.; Gianoutsos, D.; & Forgues, D. (2012, February). Bridging the Information Literacy Gap: First-Year Students Reflect for Success. Presentation at the Annual Conference on the First-Year Experience, San Antonio, TX.

Fabbi, J. L. & Zald, A. (2011, July). Information Literacy by Remote Control. Day-long workshop at the University of Kansas-Kansas State University Professional Development Day, Manhattan, KS.

Fabbi, J. L. & Reiber, C. (2011, March). An Outcomes Based Approach to Undergraduate Education. Panel presentation at the Greater Western Library Alliance Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV.

Fabbi, J. L. & Zald, A. (2010, November). Research-Based Learning from the Start: Developing Undergraduate Researchers. Paper presented at Association of American Colleges and Universities—Creativity, Inquiry, and Discovery: Undergraduate Researchers In and Across the Disciplines, Durham, NC.

Fabbi, J. L. (2010, June). Mining the 21st Century Librarian: A Partnership to Recruit and Educate Diverse Librarians for Underserved Communities in the West. Poster presented at the annual conference of the American Library Association, Washington, D.C.

McMillen, P.; Fabbi, J.; & Gonzales, A. (2009, May). Unconventional Avenues to Integrating Information Literacy into the Curriculum. Presentation at the Workshop for Instruction in Library Use (WILU), Montreal, Canada.

Gonzales, A.; McMillen, P.; & Fabbi, J. (2009, March). New avenues for integrating information literacy into the curriculum. Poster presented at the annual conference of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education, Charleston, SC.

Fabbi, J. & Nozero, V. (2007, March). Anchoring the Middle: Empowering Department Heads. Round table presentation at the Association of College and Research Libraries Biennial Conference, Baltimore, MD.