New leader announced for Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

Tamar Evangelestia-Dougherty becomes SLA director November 6.

Ellen Stofan, the Under Secretary for Science and Research announced October 5 that Tamar Evangelestia-Dougherty will become director of the Smithsonian Libraries and Archives, effective November 6. An expert in the stewardship, interpretation and acquisition of collections, Evangelestia-Dougherty brings a rich background driving public outreach and cultivating robust print and digital collections across diverse subject matters. “Evangelestia-Dougherty will bring strategic leadership to the integrated Smithsonian Libraries and Archives, which is responsible for nearly 3 million library volumes and more than 44,000 cubic feet of archival materials chronicling the history of the Smithsonian,” said Stofan. “She will oversee 137 employees, a national advisory board of 15 members, an annual budget of over $16 million and 22 library branches and reading rooms located in Washington, D.C., New York City, Maryland, Virginia, and the Republic of Panama.”

Evangelestia-Dougherty is currently an associate university librarian at Cornell University where she initiated Cornell RAD, a new research hub for rare and distinctive collections. She also is a faculty member of the UCLA California Rare Book School. As director of collections and services at New York Public Library’s Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture from 2013 to 2014, Evangelestia-Dougherty led collection and programmatic development of five curatorial divisions. At the University of Chicago’s Black Metropolis Research Consortium, she served as executive director from 2011 to 2013 and as consulting archivist from 2007 to 2011. There, she successfully led initiatives to discover and make accessible archives related to the African American diaspora.

In addition to her extensive work with rare and distinctive collections, Evangelestia-Dougherty is an author and public speaker who has presented nationally on topics of inclusivity and equity in bibliography, administration and primary-source literacy. She currently serves on the boards of Digital Scriptorium and the American Printing History Association.

Evangelestia-Dougherty holds a master of science degree in information science from Simmons University’s School of Library and Information Science in Boston and a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Houston.

Evangelestia-Dougherty succeeds Nancy Gwinn, who was the director of Smithsonian Libraries from 1997 to 2019, and Tammy Peters, who was the interim director of Smithsonian Institution Archives after the retirement of Anne Van Camp in 2018. Scott Miller, the Smithsonian’s Chief Scientist, has served as the interim director of Smithsonian Libraries and Archives since 2020, when Smithsonian Libraries merged with Smithsonian Institution Archives.

“Please join me in welcoming Tamar Evangelista-Dougherty to her new role as director of Smithsonian Libraries and Archives,” Sotfan continued. “Her expertise and leadership will accelerate our digital presence and help us reach new audiences while continuing to support our world-class scholarship.”

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