Employee Spotlight: Kate Conrad

Meet ORAU employee Kate Conrad! Kate is an ORAU contractor working under the National Student Services Contract (NSSC) at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Research Triangle Park, NC. As a Digital Research Librarian, Kate works with EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD), the Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment (CPHEA), and the Health and Environmental Effects Assessment Division (HEEAD). Kate is part of a multi-disciplinary research team that supports the Health and Environmental Research Online (HERO) project.

Over the past few years, Kate has collaborated with librarians and data specialists to facilitate the development and operation of HERO. Kate provides literature searches, data curation, document acquisition, and general project support for the HERO project. In addition, her work supports literature searches for toxicologists studying the effects of pollutants on human health to save lives. Various programs within the EPA utilize the HERO database, and Kate stated, “I'm proud to be working on such an important resource.” Currently, Kate is leading a team that trains new HERO team members and develops and refines instructional materials for both new hires and external users of the HERO database. Additionally, Kate recently completed the Scopus Certification Program which is a certification program for librarians studying Scopus, a source-neutral abstract and citation database.

Background

Kate grew up in New Hampshire and attended undergraduate school in New York City. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration from the School of Visual Arts in 2012. Afterward, Kate worked in retail for several years before deciding to make a career change. She has always shown interest in libraries from a young age and later obtained a Master of Library and Information Science degree from Rutgers University in January 2022.

Kate has a strong interest in research and reference. One of her long-term goals is to combine her expertise in customer service with her education to meet the needs of an exciting and dynamic institution.

Fun Facts: Kate has many creative hobbies, and she loves to paint and draw!