AGSL Staff Members

Professional Staff

Christopher Baruth, Curator

Tom Brittnacher, Digital Spatial Data Librarian

Angie Cope, Cartographic Materials Catalog Librarian

Susan Peschel, Visual Resources Librarian

Jovanka Ristic, Reference Librarian

 

Support Staff

Ann Barnish, Preservation

Kay Guildner, Library Services Assistant

Cristina Miller, Photo and CGP Assistant

 

Student Assistants

 

Sarah Duffeck, Undergraduate student, Anthropology
Lee Frederick, Graduate Certificate student, GIS (Urban Planning)
Carolyn Hansen, Graduate student, Library and Information Science
Laura Hiatt, Undergraduate student, Social Work
Sara Ann Krueger, GIS Certificate program
Richard Kubicek, Graduate student, Anthropology
Allison Neuman, Undergraduate student, Accounting
Ryan Parker, Graduate student, Library and Information Science
Matthew Robinson, PhD student, Anthropology
Jesse Rodriguez, Undergraduate student
Michael Schubert, Undergraduate student, Journalism/Mass Comm.
Brendan Vierk, Graduate Student, Geography
Jeff Wala, Undergraduate student, Geography
Ann Zielke, Graduate student, Library and Information Science; History

 

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AGSL Staff Member Biographies

Christopher Baruth
Christopher Baruth is the Curator of the American Geographical Society Library of the Golda Meir Library, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He has been with the AGS Library, originally as Map and Imagery Librarian, since 1980.

Chris holds a B.S. in Geography and History and an M.A. in Library Science, both from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. His dissertation, directed by Brian Harley, was on the beginnings of the United States Lake Survey, 1841-1856.

In 1985 he computerized the bibliographic journal Current Geographical Publications which has been published by the Library since 1938. In 1996, as the executive editor, he created Internet access to the current issue, and now provides an online bibliography of all entries since 1985. In 1988, Chris published GEODEX: GEOgraphic InDEX System for Map Series, a computerized system to provide for inventory and access to map series. Using this system the AGSL has been able to build one of the largest automated cartobibliographies in the world with over 350,000 total entries in the system. He was also involved in the design and implementation of a federally funded project to produce a videodisc on mapping: Maps from the American Geographical Society Library, under the direction of Professor Sona K. Andrews (1996). His most recent contribution to the literature is the chapter, "Old maps in a modern world," in The Map Library in the New Millennium, edited by Bob Parry and Chris Perkins (2001).

Chris has been involved with the Geography and Map Division of Special Libraries Association since 1982, chairing the committee that published Standards for University Map Collections (1987), and serving as Division Program Planner/Acting Chair and Chair, 1987-1988. He organized the Congress of Cartographic Information Specialists Associations (CCISA), 1988, and served as co-chair of the program committee for "The Map Library in Transition," a conference sponsored jointly by the CCISA and Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress in 1993. He was the Executive Director of the North American Cartographic Information Society (NACIS) from 1990 to 2001, and is currently a member of the Standing Committee for Geography and Map Libraries of IFLA for the 1999-2003 term. Since 1997, he has acted as custodian of the archives of the Association of American Geographers (AAG).

In 1993, Chris was presented with the Honors Award, for Outstanding Achievement by the Geography and Map Division of Special Libraries Association, and in 2001, the Honors Award by the Map and Geography Round Table of the American Library Association. He holds memberships in SLA, NACIS, AAG, AGS, Association of Canadian Map Libraries and Archives and the Map Society of Wisconsin. Chris Baruth can be reached at cmb@uwm.edu.

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Tom Brittnacher
Tom Brittnacher is the AGS Library's Digital Spatial Data Librarian. Tom oversees the selection, organization, archiving and distribution of digital data collections and offers reference assistance involving GIS, spatial and numeric data queries. He joined the staff in September 2006.

Tom holds a Bachelor of Science in Geography from the University of California, Davis, a Master of Arts in Urban Planning from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Master of Library and Information Science from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Previously, Tom has worked as a Cartographer for the well-known Thomas Brothers Maps in Irvine, California as well as a GIS Technician, Transportation Planner and GIS Analyst in the private sector in California.

Tom Brittnacher may be reached at thomasb6@uwm.edu

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Angie Cope
Angie Cope joined the AGS Library staff in September of 2002 as the Cartographic Materials Catalog Librarian. Angie catalogs maps, atlases, globes and digital spatial data and performs collection development. Angie has an M.L.I.S. from UW - Milwaukee ; an M.S. in Resource Planning and a B.S. in Geography both from Southwest Missouri State University (SMSU).

Angie became the moderator for the map librarian discussion list MAPS-L in April of 2005. For more information, click here: MAPS-L.

Angie Cope may be reached at acope@uwm.edu

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Susan M. Peschel
AGS Library, Senior Academic Librarian. Ms. Peschel holds an MLS from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a BA in Geography from Montclair State University, New Jersey. She was affiliated with the American Geographical Society prior to its move from New York City to Milwaukee in 1978. She was the first professional librarian hired for the AGS Library by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1979. Ms. Peschel served as Managing Editor for Current Geographical Publications, a monthly bibliography of new literature in the broad field of geography published by the AGS Library until it ceased in December 2005. She now serves as Editor of Current Contents, an online continuation of CGP. In January 2006, Ms. Peschel assumed the responsibility for the AGSL Photographic Collections. Ms. Peschel is professionally active, serving on the Executive Board for the Special Libraries, Geography and Map Division for 10 years and, since 1997, as Associate Executive Director as well as Treasurer, since 2000, of the Noth American Cartographic Information Sociey, an organization founded at the AGS Library in 1980. Susan Peschel can be contacted at sqp@uwm.edu.

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Jovanka R. Ristic
Senior Academic Librarian, has been with the AGS Library since 1981. In addition to her primary duties as reference librarian, she is responsible for the photographic collection and contributes to Current Geographical Publications, the monthly bibliographical journal published by the AGSL. Ms. Ristic received her BS degree in botany, MS in botany/zoology (specializing in limnology), and MLS in library science, all from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She has co-authored a series of bathymetric charts of the Great Lakes with her father, cartographer Ratko J. Ristic. Since 1988, she has served as Recent Literature Editor for the journal, Cartography and Geographic Information Science. Jovanka Ristic can be contacted at ristic@uwm.edu.