Meet the UNC Law Library’s New Reference Librarian: Kerri-Ann Rowe

The Kathrine R. Everett Law Library at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill welcomes our newest Reference Librarian, Kerri-Ann Rowe. Kerri was most recently the Student Services and Outreach Librarian at the University of Colorado Law School. She holds a J.D. from the University of Notre Dame, an M.L.I.S. from Syracuse University, and a B.A. from Yale University. Carolina Law is delighted to welcome Kerri to our community, and she was gracious enough to answer a few questions below.

1) How did you come to law librarianship?

Informational interviews! I realized that I didn’t want to practice law anymore, but I wasn’t sure what else I could do with a law degree. I met with a variety of people in non-traditional law jobs and asked them what they loved about their positions and what they hated. Law librarianship was one the stuck with me (and it matched all the career quizzes I had taken), so I took on a law librarian fellowship – which I loved – and decided to pursue a career in law librarianship.

2) What is your favorite thing about your job?

I love the reference interactions. Helping someone with their questions and seeing their faces when they have that aha moment and find what they’re looking for is incredibly fulfilling. It’s amazing that I can have that interaction in the classroom, at the Reference desk, or whenever I’m helping someone with a question in general.

3) What is a skill you’d like to learn?

I would love to learn to play the piano. My musical instrument skills are severely, severely limited, and I would like to learn how to play an instrument. The piano has always seemed like a good place to start.

4) What inspires you most?

I get the most inspiration while taking long walks. Beautiful scenery and the repetition of the walk itself always helps to clear my mind and open me up to new ideas and ways of thinking. I’m also getting used to North Carolina foliage. There are so many trees here!

5) What do you do for fun? Do you have any hobbies?

Cooking has become my newest hobby. I’ve been having fun trying new recipes and attempting to recreate some of my favorite dishes. There have been some failures, but those only make the successes seem so much tastier.

6) What are you looking forward to doing once the pandemic ends?

I am looking forward to going to a theater to watch a movie again. While it’s been much more comfortable to watch movies at home, I do miss the theater experience. I still haven’t been able to recreate theater popcorn.