Four PhD students are part of the 2025 cohort of ALISE Emerging Scholars
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When the Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE) announced its 2025 cohort of Emerging Scholars, four doctoral students from the University of Maryland College of Information (INFO) stood out for their passion, creativity, and commitment to redefining what it means to teach, research, and lead in the field of library and information science (LIS).
The Emerging Scholars Program was created to “support the organization’s mission by providing an avenue for future LIS academics to engage, learn, and grow as educators.” Through a series of online webinars and a hands-on conference workshop, the program helps doctoral students and early-career professionals prepare for the complexities of modern academia—from refining teaching practices to navigating research and service in a broad information landscape.
For INFO’s four honorees—Nitzan Koren, Maisie Jones, Twanna Hodge, and Hayley Park—the program represents more than a professional milestone. It’s a moment of reflection, connection, and belonging in a field that continues to expand its boundaries.
Designing for Civic Engagement: Nitzan Koren
For Nitzan Koren, whose background in education and instructional design shapes her current research, libraries are essential community information mediators shaping civic learning. After earning her master’s degree from Tel Aviv University in 2019, she began designing educational programs to help young people acquire information and digital literacy skills. Now, her dissertation explores how to design programs for teens to develop political information literacy for civic engagement.
“I was interested in out-of-school learning,” Koren says, “and became more excited about the work done in public libraries through projects I was involved in with my advisor, Prof. Mega Subramaniam. Public libraries are so powerful for community life.”
Koren, who recently chaired ALISE’s programming committee—an unusual role for a doctoral student—saw the Emerging Scholars program as an opportunity to deepen her leadership and expand her network. “ALISE is a really small and close-knit community that I feel very comfortable in,” she explains. “Being part of the Emerging Scholars community will allow me to think more reflectively about my career goals—what type of researcher and instructor I want to be—and imagine myself in leadership roles in the long term.”
Access and Advocacy: Maisie Jones
Maisie Jones focuses her research on the experiences of blind and low-vision users as they navigate digital special collections in libraries and archives. Her work bridges accessibility, archival practice, and user experience design—challenging institutions to think more critically about inclusion.
Jones’s path into LIS began while she worked in an academic archive. “I encountered issues with description, preservation, and digital accessibility,” she says, “and that experience inspired me to pursue a career in LIS.”
Jones is enthusiastic about “the opportunity to seek further guidance in professionalizing as a scholar in LIS and collaborating with other LIS researchers in different stages of their careers.” For Jones, being named an Emerging Scholar is both validating and motivating. “It empowers and affirms my passion and commitment to LIS research, education, and the importance of scholarly community,” she says.
Culture, Identity, and Mental Health: Twanna Hodge
From her roots in the United States Virgin Islands to her years as an academic librarian, Twanna Hodge has long envisioned a career devoted to service, teaching, and cultural understanding. A 2022–2025 ALA Spectrum Doctoral Fellow, Hodge is also pursuing a graduate certificate in Latin American and Caribbean Studies. Her research examines how culture and ethnic identity shape the mental health information practices of English-speaking Black Caribbean immigrants.
“From middle school, I knew I wanted to be a librarian,” she recalls. “That dream came true, and I was an academic librarian for seven years before a new dream emerged—to become an LIS faculty member and mental health researcher.”
For Hodge, the ALISE Emerging Scholars program is “not just a stepping stone, but a crucial catalyst” toward her goal of becoming a faculty member and mental health advocate. The program’s focus on the realities of teaching, research, and service—particularly in an era of generative AI—is, as she puts it, “not just practical but essential.”
Having attended both the virtual orientation and the in-person workshop at the ALISE 2025 Conference in Kansas City, Hodge is especially eager for upcoming sessions on job market preparation. “My recognition as a scholar is not just a title,” she reflects, “it is a testament to my unwavering commitment to LIS education and librarianship.”
Critical Pedagogy and Belonging: Hayley Park
For Hayley Park, who earned both a BA in comparative literature and cinema studies and an MLIS from the University of Washington, the Emerging Scholars program represents an affirmation of values that have long guided their work: inclusivity, reflection, and the pursuit of equity in education. Their doctoral research centers on immigrant information experiences, particularly the ways in which immigration status shapes information behaviors and how legal information can be better accessed and used in community contexts.
“As a former library worker in various roles, I have immense respect for library professionals,” she says. “Many are deeply dedicated to making the world a better place through values-driven curiosity, service, and action.”
Park’s participation in the Emerging Scholars program was shaped by encouragement from mentors INFO Assistant Professor Ana Ndumu and INFO Associate Professor Beth St. Jean. “As a PhD student, thinking about my career trajectory is inescapable,” she says. “This program offers me the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of academic life in LIS and develop the pedagogical philosophy and skills necessary to become a successful educator.”
Having already met their cohort at the ALISE conference, Park has found deep resonance in conversations around inclusive and critical pedagogy. “Being recognized as an Emerging Scholar affirms my sense of belonging,” she reflects. “Community and shared values are at the heart of my decision-making, and this experience reminds me that I am exactly where I need to be.”
The Future of LIS Education
Together, these four doctoral scholars embody the future of LIS education—one that is inclusive, reflective, and deeply committed to public service. Through their research and their participation in the ALISE Emerging Scholars Program, they are shaping how the next generation of educators and researchers will approach the challenges of information access, literacy, and equity.
As ALISE continues to expand opportunities for doctoral students and new faculty, programs like Emerging Scholars reaffirm the organization’s mission: to prepare and empower those who will guide the profession into its next era. For INFO’s cohort, that future has already begun.