UMass Names Nandita Mani as New Dean of Libraries

Nandita Mani has been named the new dean of libraries at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The announcement was made by Provost John McCarthy and Provost-Elect Tricia Serio. Mani begins her position Aug. 1.

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Mani is currently at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she is in her sixth year as associate university librarian for health sciences and director of the Health Sciences Library. She received her bachelor’s degree from Concordia University of Edmonton, Alberta, and subsequently earned a master’s in library and information science and a Ph.D. in instructional technology, both from Wayne State University in Detroit. 

McCarthy said, “Dr. Mani brings to our campus a wealth of experience in library leadership as well as an enviable record of scholarship in her field. I am pleased to welcome her and her family to our community.”

In her role at UNC, Mani led the development of the University Libraries’ data science framework, which articulated how the libraries can contribute to campus-wide data-science initiatives. Her first-authored article on this topic appeared last year in the Journal of Library Administration. She was also part of the UNC Libraries’ Reckoning Initiative to build antiracism into the Libraries’ policies, procedures and approaches. She has also overseen the Health Sciences Library’s fundraising efforts.