Meet MLC Monday: Alex Brower

Meet Alex Brower, Reference Librarian at the Mississippi Library Commission (MLC)! People ask her and a small team of researchers every kind of question under the sun, which they answer by phone, email, social media, and all sorts of other ways. (Last fiscal year the team answered an average of nearly 2,000 questions each month, from people right here in Mississippi to people as far away as India.) As another part of her new job, Alex has begun traveling the state to train librarians on how to use MAGNOLIA, a statewide database consortium funded by the Mississippi legislature. She also contributes to collection development, suggesting books and other materials to add and remove from MLC's inventory

Alex started working at MLC just a few weeks ago and says she's very excited to be here. She enjoys helping people and finding answers to their questions. "I can learn a lot about a variety of different topics by helping people find the information they need. I enjoy helping people from all over the state find the information that they need. I think I’m going to enjoy working at MLC for many reasons, and I’ve been very impressed with how welcoming and helpful everyone I have met has been!" She earned a bachelor’s degree and her Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) from the University of Southern Mississippi (USM). She received the Kathanne W. Greene Award and the Peggy May and H.W. Wilson scholarships while at USM.

When asked about her feelings regarding libraries, Alex responded, "I've always loved libraries because I love to read, but being a librarian has given me new and wonderful reasons to love them! Libraries are open to everyone, and they are some of the few institutions built that are built by and for their communities. Libraries provide so many needed services, from connecting patrons to a new favorite book to helping people apply for jobs, and they are wonderful third spaces that make their communities better simply by existing."

Alex says she loves to read. She doesn't have a favorite book--that changes all the time, but she is particularly fond of The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. The last book she read was Enter Pirates by Laurie Notaro. When she's not thinking about libraries and books, Alex is teaching herself to sew and her grandmother is teaching her to crochet. She has also dabbled in watercolors and gardening, but with little success.