Melanie L. Freese Devoted Her Career to Helping Others as an Educator and Librarian

    NORTH BALDWIN, NY, February 03, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Melanie L. Freese has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.

Through a passion for education and a strong work ethic, Melanie L. Freese has established herself as an impactful shaper of young minds over the course of more than five decades. A certified teacher and public librarian, mentor, and volunteer, she has served as an associate professor of library services at Hofstra University since 1990 and played a pivotal role in the development of numerous educational services.

Growing up an overweight child, Ms. Freese was often bullied and as a result had a low self-esteem throughout her upbringing. However, she overcame it through her achievements as a student, and ultimately came out of her shell entirely as a teacher. She prepared for her professional journey by earning a Bilingual Childhood Education degree in elementary education and a minor in history and a Master of Education from Hofstra University in 1967 and 1969, respectively. In between degrees, she found her footing as an elementary school teacher from 1967 to 1968, but upon obtaining her master's degree and a certification to teach nursery school to sixth-grade students in the state of New York, she taught at Grace Episcopal Day School in Massapequa from 1969 to 1970. In the classroom, she was very dynamic with children and proved to have a lasting effect on her earliest students. She then shifted gears and found success as an assistant to the social work librarian, an assistant to the acquisitions librarian and biographical searcher, a reserve librarian, and a circulation assistant at the Swirbul Library located inside Adelphi University—where she remained from 1972 to 1983; in the midst of this appointment, as she found the work so rewarding, she founded a library at St. Peter's Lutheran Church, earned a Masters of Library Science from Long Island University Post, became a certified public librarian, and decided to fully dedicate herself to this wing of education.

At Hofstra, she excelled in the role of senior catalog librarian from 1984 to 1999 and served as an assistant dean and the chairwoman of technical services at the Joan and Donald E. Axinn Library from 1999 to 2001. In her long-running associate professor position at the university, she sees herself as both an educator and an information specialist. In addition, she is currently mentoring a young colleague on learning to catalog materials for the music library. Seeing mentorship as a viral part of any profession, she has enjoyed giving the "pragmatic and practical" applications beyond just the theoretical principles of librarianship that are extremely necessary for someone in the field.

Outside of her primary endeavors, Ms. Freese considers the highlight of her lengthy career to be establishing a library for residents of the Wayside Home and School for Troubled Girls in 1993—which was active up until 2003. Giving back to her community for decades, she has enjoyed helping children through education as a Sunday school teacher and lector at St. Peter's Lutheran Church since 1959—a position in which she emphasizes cooperative learning and aims to improve comprehension skills. She also previously served as president of the Academic and Special Libraries Division of the Nassau County Library Association; a member and president of the Board of Advisers for the Business and Professional Women of Nassau County, Inc.; and a storyteller and leaders at Vacation Bible School. A renowned voice in her field, Ms. Freese has presented numerous training workshops on various aspects of cataloging and classification for faculty and staff members; reviews materials for "Libraries Alive," a publication of the National Church Library Association; and has contributed as an author to numerous library-based books.

Since 2019, she has found success as the vice president of the Woman's Advance Club, based in Baldwin, New York, through which, among other tasks, she works to get scholarships for high school students to pursue a higher education. She is also a devoted member of several organizations, including the American Library Association and International Honor Society in Education. In recognition of her myriad achievements, she has been honored with an International Order of Merit from the International Biographical Centre, a Distinguished Service Award from St. Peter's Lutheran Church, and a Woman of the Year Award from Business and Professional Women of Nassau County, Inc.

Guided by a devotion to her work, Ms. Freese plans to continue working as long as she can—although she does have an eye on retirement in the next five years. She hopes to be remembered by her peers and students as a well-rounded and caring educator who loved people.

About Marquis Who's Who®
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who's Who in America®, Marquis Who's Who® has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Today, Who's Who in America® remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. Marquis® now publishes many Who's Who titles, including Who's Who in America®, Who's Who in the World®, Who's Who in American Law®, Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare®, Who's Who in Science and Engineering®, and Who's Who in Asia®. Marquis® publications may be visited at the official Marquis Who's Who® website at www.marquiswhoswho.com.

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