Michelle Nielsen Ott

Biography

Michelle joined Bradley University in 2021. Previously she was the Director of Library Services at Methodist College (2017-2021) and the Outreach and Reference Librarian at Illinois Central College (2009-2017).

She has earned the designation as a Consumer Health Information Specialist (Level 2) from the Medical Library Association.

Her library subject liaison areas are biology, chemistry, family and consumer science, health science, nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy, & physics.

She was selected as Research Training Institute Fellow (Medical Library Association) for 2022-23.

Memberships

• American Library Association
• Association of College and Research Libraries
• Illinois Library Association
• Illinois Association of College and Research Libraries
• Health Science Librarians of Illinois
• Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi
• Midwest Chapter-Medical Library Association
• Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society
• Medical Library Association

Awards

• Career Leader Award, Women in Leadership of Central Illinois, 2022
• Academic Librarian of the Year, Illinois Library Association/Illinois Association of College and Research Libraries Forum, 2022
• ATHENA Young Professionals Award, Peoria Chamber of Commerce, 2021
• 40 Leaders Under Forty, Peoria Magazines, 2021
• 25 Women in Leadership Award, WEEK-TV, 2021
• Community Leader Award, Women in Leadership of Central Illinois, 2021
• Golden Gem Award, American Association for Women in Community Colleges, Illinois Central College Chapter, 2017
• Excellence in Academic Libraries Award, Illinois Central College, 2014

Scholarship

Areas of Research Interest

• Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
• Health Science Librarianship
• Library outreach and engagement
• Universal Design for Learning

Publications

• Roth, E., Campbell, J., Nielsen Ott, M., & Turner, L. (2019, July). Libraries support STEM education. Peoria Magazine, 42-43.

Presentations

• One State Together in the Arts, 2020
  • “The Power of Public Art: Changing the Face of Peoria”
• Peoria Reads, 2020
  • “We Need Diverse Books”
• Spark Conference, 2020
  • “Working Hard or Hardly Working?: Project Management for the Busy Librarian”
• Illinois Library Association Annual Conference, Tinley Park, IL, 2019
  • “Speed Mentoring and Networking for Library Staff”
• Illinois Library Association Annual Conference, Peoria, IL, 2015
  • “Creating Connections with Community Reading”
• ForwardFocus Conference, Peoria, IL,  2015
  • “Reaching Under-Prepared Students”
• Indiana Library Federation Conference, Indianapolis, IN, 2014
  • “The Academic Library and the Unprepared Student”
  • “Creating and Telling the Library's Story”
• Between the Lines, Illinois Central College, Peoria. IL, 2014
  • “Forever Young Adult”
• Illinois Library Association, 2022
  • "Academic Library Space for Promoting Wellness: Space Changes at Cullom-Davis Library, Bradley University"
• Delta Kappa Gamma Society, Nu Chapter Program, 2022
  • “‘There is work to be done’--The Call for Diverse Books: Trends in Publishing Diverse Books in the US”

Service

• Association of College and Research Libraries, Professional Development Committee
• Illinois Library Association/Illinois Association of College and Research Libraries, IACRL Awards Committee
• Health Science Librarians of Illinois, Conference Planning Committee