GPI: Sarah Hooke, Interim Dean of Henry Whittemore Library

Courtesy of Sarah Hooke

What is your academic and professional background? 

I got a bachelor’s degree in anthropology, which isn’t that easy to find a job in. Then, I got a master’s degree in library science, and then I went back to school and got a law degree, so I have a J.D. as well. So, those being my academic fortes, I have had jobs in both areas. I was an associate dean or the director of law school libraries for many years. I worked around different parts of the United States - I was in Massachusetts. Then I was in San Francisco for a while. I was in Miami and then I came back to Northeastern University here in Boston. I had an excellent job for a while. I was a legislative council aide to committees of the main legislature and my specialty was business subjects and business, like worker’s comp and labor law and things like that. I was the attorney for the senators and the representatives who are on the committee who heard the bills that came in. So, I was a nonpartisan council, which meant I wasn’t a Democrat. I wasn’t a Republican. I was the lawyer. I was the aide to give them unbiased, nonpolitical advice about what the law is like now and what this bill wanted to do to it. I also worked for the Massachusetts State Agency that used to regulate cable television back when it was more regulated. Then, I was an attorney with John Hancock and I did John Hancock’s insurance. So, those were the major law areas that I worked in - not going to court particularly, but other areas you could do with that degree. 

What drew you to Framingham State? 

I retired a couple years ago. I tried not working for a couple years and I really didn’t like it, so I was very lucky when I saw the job ad to be interim dean here for Framingham State. I thought, “That’s wonderful. I really miss being in libraries.” I like academic libraries. I like dealing with students. I used to teach a lot when I was doing my other jobs. I did actual teaching, too, as well as library administration, so I was very happy when this came up. It’s mainly like, “Oh, this is a wonderful job. I get to be in libraries again.” I’ve been active in libraries. My mother was a librarian, and I used to work in her high school library when I was in high school myself, so I’ve been in libraries for years. I love books and reading and everything. The other connection I had here, or kind of connection, I guess you’d say, is my son and daughter attended Framingham State. My daughter was in a graduate program in dietetics and nutrition. So, I got somewhat familiar with some of the people or the buildings from coming with them, so I had some familiarity with it anyway. So, that’s what drew me here. I wanted to get back in libraries again. 

What are your favorite hobbies?

Well, probably not surprising - reading. I read a lot. Then I have these, I guess you could say, special interests, but I like astrology. I just took a course in it recently because it was always just me reading things to try to get more into what all these different things are and how they work together. So I like that. I like plants. I have an apartment so I can’t have a garden, but I can at least have plants. I used to garden a lot. I like birds. Bird watching, nature, that kind of thing. Those are probably the biggest ones. My daughter was pointing out to me yesterday that I liked color, and I thought, “Well, it’s true.” Like, how do paints mix and things like that. So, just colors. I’m not an artist, but it’s of interest. 

What advice would you give to students at Framingham State?

My first advice is to stick with it and finish. I know it’s really hard at times, either financially or because you feel like, “Oh, I don’t know. I don’t know what the job market is like. I don’t really know if this is the thing for me or not.” But, I know a fair number don’t finish. I say that partly because my son didn’t finish. He said, “Well, I just don’t know. I don’t know what I want to do.” Once you have your degree, it will lead you on to a lot of things rather than shutting things off from you. If you don’t have the basic degree, a lot of jobs are so, “You can’t interview with us. You can’t do this.” It probably shouldn’t be that rigid, but it kind of is. My main advice is take advantage of the help here. What I love about this campus is the amount of interest that the school itself and the professors take in the students’ welfare. They really want to help and teach. When you go to a really huge university, you can get lost with a lot of the professors who are so driven in their research, and that’s not the biggest interest here. And don’t think you’re bothering the professor or any of the offices. You’re not. It’s what we want to do, and it’s not a bother to us. A lot of times, there are things available to students that they might not even ask about because they don’t know how, but keep asking. Ask for help because you all deserve it.