Cal Poly Humboldt names interim Special Collections librarian for spring

Cal Poly Humboldt Library announced that Camille Charette will serve as interim Special Collections librarian for the spring 2026 term, a move intended to maintain access to rare books and archival materials for campus and community patrons. The appointment provides continuity for research support, class instruction, and community use while the library manages staffing for the term.

Charette’s role centers on supporting students, faculty and community members who work with rare books and archival holdings. The library encouraged patrons to schedule research appointments or instruction sessions and provided contact details for arranging consultations and classroom visits. The posting also noted Charette’s personal ties to the region, which the library framed as an asset for engaging with Humboldt County researchers and local history projects.

Special Collections functions as a hub for primary-source research across disciplines and for local history inquiries from genealogists, writers and community organizations. An interim appointment at the start of the academic term matters because staffing continuity affects course planning, timely access to fragile materials and the scheduling of in-person instruction sessions that often require advance preparation. For faculty integrating primary sources into syllabi and students conducting thesis or capstone research, the librarian’s availability can be decisive for project timelines.

For community members who rely on Special Collections to trace family histories or document local events, the announcement signals that the library remains a staffed access point rather than an intermittently available resource. The library’s encouragement to schedule sessions underscores the practical need to plan visits around handling restrictions, material retrieval times and any class instruction the collections may support.

The appointment also highlights the broader institutional role of Special Collections in preserving and making available materials that document Humboldt County’s social, cultural and environmental history. Interim staffing creates an opportunity to reaffirm outreach to community partners and to coordinate with faculty on integrating archives into research and teaching for the spring term.

Our two cents? If you expect to use Special Collections this term, schedule your visit or instruction session early and check with the library about handling and access guidelines so fragile items are available when you need them. Ensuring clear timelines and communication now will help students, faculty and community researchers make the most of Cal Poly Humboldt’s archival resources.