Kara Malenfant

Kara Malenfant is Senior Strategist for Special Initiatives at ACRL where she coordinates government relations advocacy, scholarly communication activities, and ACRL’s Value of Academic Libraries initiative. She also provides consulting services on organization change and occasionally has time for research.

Prior to coming to ACRL in 2005, Kara was an academic librarian, worked in humanitarian aid and served as a Peace Corps volunteer. She earned a Ph.D. in leadership and change from Antioch University, a M.S. in library and information science from the University of Illinois–Urbana-Champaign, and a B.A. in English from Allegheny College.

Kara grew up in Minnesota and lives on Chicago’s far north side with her husband, son, and a dog who loves to lick chins. When she's not working or with her family, you'll find her gardening on her garage rooftop, biking or practicing yoga. Learn more about Kara in her Meet the Staff profile on the ACRL Insider blog.