Yolanda Cooper, university librarian and dean of libraries, will leave Emory to take the position of vice provost and Lindseth Family University Librarian at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, beginning Jan. 1, 2022.

Cooper has worked at Emory since 2014, when she was named university librarian, her promotion to dean of libraries coming in 2019. In these positions, she has provided strategic leadership and overseen operations and processes for all Emory libraries with the exceptions of the Emory Law library and the Pitts Theology Library. 

“Yolanda has worked diligently to better establish Emory Libraries as an intellectual leader within the greater Atlanta community and as a key resource on our Atlanta campus,” notes Ravi B. Bellamkonda, Emory University provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. “We will miss her keen vision and strong leadership.” 

Since her tenure at Emory began, Cooper has been responsible for the construction of the Library Service Center in collaboration with Georgia Institute of Technology; the development of the libraries’ Digital Library Program; instituting a comprehensive review and implementing diversity, equity and inclusion practices; and the renovation of the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library. 

Most recently, she worked with her staff to provide a safe library user experience during COVID-19, co-chaired with Paul Root Wolpe the Task Force on Untold Stories and Disenfranchised Populations, expanded Emory’s presence at the AJC Decatur Book Festival, and co-chaired Emory’s Symposium on Slavery and Dispossession.