The Judith and William Bollinger Fellowship in Library Innovation was established in 2011 by Penn Libraries Board of Advisors member and University Trustee Emeritus Judith Bollinger, WG'81, PAR'14, and her husband William, PAR '14. The Fellowship offers talented recent PhD recipients the opportunity to help shape library research services that keep pace with the rapidly changing scholarly ecosystem.

“We are very grateful to Judy and Bill for sharing our vision for a postdoctoral fellowship program,” said H. Carton Rogers, Vice Provost and Director of Libraries Emeritus. “The Libraries look forward to the energy and new approaches these Fellows will bring to our strategic efforts.”

The goal of the Fellowship is to improve the Libraries’ support of scholarly inquiry by better integrating library technology and collections into the work styles and research practices of Penn’s many academic communities. Bollinger Fellows will survey research and teaching methods of scholars at Penn, with particular attention to the use of digital tools and the creation of digital content.

“The Penn Libraries are already a center of excellence for linking traditional scholarship with digital tools,” Mrs. Bollinger said.  “We believe that these Fellows will continue to forge these links, thus helping Penn scholars from all disciplines pursue cutting edge research.”

Bollinger Fellows will propose and help to direct projects that cut across the emphases of the Libraries’ Strategic Plan with a focus on innovation in digital humanities, library outcomes and performance assessment, and instructional technologies and their pedagogical implications.

The Penn Libraries looks forward to welcoming Angelica Rivera as the Bollinger Fellow in June 2023. Angelica holds a PhD in Physics from Drexel University and currently holds a post doctoral position at the Naval Academy. Her fellowship will explore new areas of data analysis and assessment infrastructure.

Past Bollinger Fellows include:

  • Karin Gilje, 2021 – 2023
  • Dr. Jennifer Garcon, 2019 – 2021
  • Jacob Levernier, 2017 – 2019
  • Katie Rawson, 2013 – 2015
  • Mitch Fraas, 2011 – 2013