Kathleen (Kathy) Abromeit

(she/her)

  • Head, Conservatory Library

Education

  • MLIS, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

  • MM, musicology, University of Colorado-Boulder

  • BM magna cum laude, music history and theory, Lawrence University

Biography

As the Head of the Conservatory Library, she oversees all aspects of the library’s programs and services, including music reference and instruction, circulation and reserve, technical services and processing, music special collections, and collection development. She works to create positive, engaging, and user-centered experiences for students. She enjoys collaborating with faculty to develop meaningful library experiences for students to learn about the tremendous riches in the Conservatory Library.

Her areas of scholarly interest include music information literacy, faculty/librarian collaboration, African American spirituals, library inclusion and advocacy, and outreach. Her publications include the monographs An Index to African-American Spirituals for the Solo Voice (Greenwood Press, 1999), Spirituals: A Multidisciplinary Bibliography for Research and Performance (Music Library Association and A-R Editions, Inc., 2015), Ideas, Strategies, and Scenarios in Music Information Literacy (Music Library Association and A-R Editions, Inc., 2018), An Index to Negro Spirituals (SUNY Press, forthcoming) and Music Information Literacy: Inclusion and Advocacy (Library Juice Press, forthcoming), a co-authored volume.

She is active in the Music Library Association. She oversees the Music Received column in Notes: The Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association and is looking forward to serving as MLA’s Publication Committee chair starting in 2023.

Notes

Kathleen Abromeit and Grace Elliott Present at Midwest Music Library Association Annual Meeting

March 20, 2024

Head of the Conservatory Library Kathleen Abromeit and Public Services Librarian Grace Elliott presented, "Stop Being a Fatphobe: Bringing a Larger Conversation to Critical Information Literacy" at the annual meeting of the Midwest Music Library Association.

 

Kathleen Abromeit Presents at Music Library Association Annual Meeting

March 20, 2024

Head of the Conservatory Library Kathleen Abromeit presented on the panel, "It Takes Time: Perspectives on Leadership, Career Development, and Job Transitions" at the annual meeting of the Music Library Association.

Kathleen Abromeit Completes Leadership Certificate

July 11, 2023

Kathleen Abromeit completed the Mindfulness for Effective Leadership certificate through Case Western Reserve's Weatherhead Executive Education with Founding Director of the Executive Mind Leadership Institute Jeremy Hunter.

Kathleen A. Abromeit Compiled Bibliography of Recently PublishedMusic Scores for "Notes"

March 22, 2023

“Music Received Column," a bibliography of recently published music scores in Notes: The Quarterly Journal of the Music Library Association. Compiled by Kathleen A. Abromeit.

Recent columns have included:

  • Vol. 77, No. 3, Works by BIPOC composers and women with Jake Balmuth ’23.
  • Vol. 77, No. 4 and 78, No.1, Works by LGBTQIA composers with Jake Balmuth ’23.
  • Vol. 78, No. 2, Works by Latin American women with Jake Balmuth ’23.
  • Vol. 78, No. 3, Works for solo guitar by women composers with Eliza Balmuth ’23.
  • Vol. 79, No. 1, String quartets by Black composers with Jake Balmuth ’23.
  • Vol. 79, No. 3, Musical settings of Black poetry with Gwen Gemmel ’23.

Presentation by Kathleen Abromeit Receives Honors at Music Library Association Annual Conference

April 29, 2022

Conservatory Librarian Kathleen Abromeit presented “Researching the Negro Spiritual” with Randye Jones. Originally presented at the Music Library Association Midwest Chapter Annual Meeting, October 2020. It was selected as best of chapter paper and presented at the Music Library Association Annual Conference in March 2022.

Abromeit also presented "Using Mindfulness to Beat Mid-Career Burnout" at the Music Library Association Annual Conference, March 2022.

Kathy Abromeit Publishes

March 29, 2018

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the conservatory library, published “Peer Instruction in the Oberlin Conservatory Library: Three Models of Engagement” in Ideas, Strategies, and Scenarios in Music Information Literacy. Highlighted in the publication are activities of the conservatory library's student reference assistants.

Kathy Abromeit Presents

March 19, 2018

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the conservatory library, presented “Creating Neural Pathways with Mindfulness: Music Information Literacy and the First-Year Music Student” at the annual meeting of the Music Library Association. The meeting took place from January 31 to February 4, 2018, in Portland, Oregon.

Kathy Abromeit Edits Volume

February 16, 2018

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the Conservatory of Music, edited Ideas, Strategies, and Scenarios in Music Information Literacy. The multi-author volume offers expert guidance on planning and implementing information literacy instruction programs in a wide range of instructional situations and theoretical frameworks. The volume is an exploration of various structures for engaging music students as reflective and involved participants in today's complex information environments. Sections include: Instructional Theories & Techniques, Instructional Modes, Building Relationships and Collaborations, and an annotated bibliography of Selected Resources. More information about the book is available at A-R Editions.

Kathy Abromeit Appointed Editor

April 18, 2017

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the Conservatory of Music, was appointed editor of the Music Library Association's Basic Manual Series. Abromeit is an author and editor of the forthcoming volume in the Basic Manual Series, Music Information Literacy: Ideas, Strategies, and Scenarios. The Basic Manual Series is a comprehensive set of manuals designed to assist the librarian in dealing with various aspects of the organization, administration and use of a music library.

Paper by Kathy Abromeit Wins Award

July 26, 2016

The paper “Navigating ‘Multiple Choice’ to ‘Research as a Process’: the Neuroscience of Teaching the First-year Music Student” by Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the Conservatory Library, was selected as the winner of the "best of chapter" competition at the 74th Annual Meeting of the Midwest Chapter of the Music Library Association (MLA). Abromeit presented the paper at the meeting, which took place October 15-17 in Louisville, Kentucky.

The paper is now in the running for the national "best of" competition between all MLA chapters.

Kathy Abromeit Presents Paper

March 11, 2016

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the Conservatory Library, attended the annual meeting of the Music Library Association where she presented “Peer Instruction in the Oberlin Conservatory Library: Three Models of Engagement.” The meeting took place March 2-5, 2016, in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Kathy Abromeit Discusses New Book, Appointed to Editorial Board

April 15, 2015

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the Conservatory Library, attended the annual meeting of the Music Library Association where she discussed her new book, Spirituals: A Multidisciplinary Bibliography for Research and Performance​ (2015), during a roundtable and panel. The meeting took place February 25 through March 1 in Denver, Colorado.

The roundtable was "Black Music Collections," and the panel, which Abromeit organized, was "Getting Published: a Panel Discussion with Authors and Editors from MLA's Three Monographic Series." The Music Library Association publishes three book series in collaboration with A-R Editions. MLA publishes practical guides, bibliographies, thematic catalogs, and technical reports that are used by librarians, scholars, and performers worldwide. Spirituals: A Multidisciplinary Bibliography for Research and Performance was published as part of the series.​

Also at the meeting, Abromeit was appointed as a member of the Editorial Board for the Music Library Association's Basic Manual Series, which publishes bibliographies and thematic catalogues used by librarians, scholars, and performers worldwide.

Kathy Abromeit Publishes Book

February 12, 2015

Kathy Abromeit, public services librarian in the Conservatory Library, has published a new book titled Spirituals: A Multidisciplinary Bibliography for Research and Performance. The volume was co-published by Music Library Association and A-R Editions, Inc.

African American spirituals transcend national, disciplinary, and linguistic boundaries as they connect music, theology, literature and poetry, history, society, and education. In doing so, they reach every aspect of human experience. To make sense of the immense impact spirituals have made on music, culture, and society, this bibliography cites writings from a multidisciplinary perspective, including music, literature and poetry, American history, religion, and African American Studies. The 1,000-item annotated bibliography documents articles, books, and dissertations published since 1920 and contains indices by author, subject, and spiritual title. Additionally, an appendix of spirituals by biblical reference, listing both spiritual title to scriptural reference as well as scripture to spiritual title, is included.