Bruce Obenhaus honored with emeritus status
Bruce Obenhaus, assistant professor and former head of reference and circulation at University Libraries at Virginia Tech, has been conferred the title assistant professor emeritus by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.
The emeritus title may be conferred on retired professors, associate professors, and administrative officers who are specially recommended to the board by Virginia Tech President Tim Sands in recognition of exemplary service to the university. Nominated individuals who are approved by the board receive a copy of the resolution and a certificate of appreciation.
A member of the Virginia Tech community since 1985, Obenhaus helped faculty, staff, and students access materials collected by the University Libraries. Over the course of his career, he worked in many areas of the library, including reference, circulation, federal and Virginia government documents depositories, maps, microforms, interlibrary loan, and special collections.
An advocate for open access to government data, Obenhaus chaired or co-chaired major committees in national academic associations, including co-chairing the national conference Maps and Geographic Information Collections in Transition at the Library of Congress. He authored or co-authored several journal articles, presentations, and series with a focus of connecting scholars to knowledge.
Obenhaus supported research in the area of geographic information systems, both through guiding researchers to available information, and through co-chairing the annual Virginia Tech GIS Symposium for 11 years. He also frequently shared his extensive knowledge in cartography.
During his career at Virginia Tech, Obenhaus coordinated several major university events, including the annual Virginia Tech Author’s Day and the Visible Scholarship collaboration with the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences. He received the University Libraries Faculty Award for Excellence in 2005 and the Virginia Tech Geospatial Leadership Award in 2014.
Obenhaus received his bachelor's degree from Rutgers University and Master of Science in library science from the University of Tennessee.
