Alumnus Chooses Career that Empowers Communities Through Technology

As the Manager of Technology Education, Mr. Jones oversees an expansive program that reaches the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, NY. Within the Technology Education program, he manages stand-alone workshops and 12-week courses that provide certification in digital and office skills.

Often, Mr. Jones builds partnerships with companies like Apple and Microsoft to ensure participants are getting the most up-to-date information. He leads a team of instructors who deliver more than 200 classes monthly.

“The most important thing we do is help people gain employment,” he shared. “When you see that real-world impact on someone, it’s really rewarding.”

Now in his fifth year at NYPL, Mr. Jones has managed technology education for three years. He first started as a senior librarian, utilizing the skills he gained from his dual degrees in Public History and Library and Information Science. As a senior librarian at the third largest NYPL location in the Bronx, Mr. Jones has learned how to manage high patron demand.

“I felt prepared,” he said. “Developing reference skills and being able to research quickly helped me become a successful librarian.”

Mr. Jones graduated from St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences with his M.A. in Public History in 2018, followed by his M.S. in Library and Information Science in 2019. The dual-degree program offered him a unique opportunity to blend his passion for both history and information science—something he felt was rare in the greater New York metropolitan area.

As a native of Spanish Harlem, Mr. Jones always felt deeply connected to his community and to the history of New York City. “It was amazing to come back to my home city, to get real-world experience here without needing to relocate,” he stated. “If I had gone anywhere else [for graduate school], I probably would have moved back here anyway.”

When reflecting on his time at St. John’s, two faculty members in particular left a lasting impact: Kristin Szylvian, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Graduate Director of Public History, and Susan Rosenberg, Ph.D., Professor and Graduate Director of Museum Administration.

Dr. Szylvian was a major influence on Mr. Jones, initially recruiting him to the program and assisting him in securing internships. “As one of the first students to complete the dual-degree program, he set a high bar for students to follow with his creative thinking and a commitment to learning how theory and research methods can be applied in educational and public service settings,” she shared.

Although Mr. Jones only worked with Dr. Rosenberg for one semester, she inspired him to push himself, refine his goals, and view his work in public history with a new level of devotion. “I have been closely following his achievements and career path at the New York Public Library,” Dr. Rosenberg said. “The work he did in my curating class left an indelible impression: I witnessed his intensely creative, interdisciplinary thinking and how he constantly challenged himself to grow his already-remarkable talents as a writer, researcher, and communicator. It is thrilling (but not surprising) to see Richard’s emergence as a thought leader, networker, and educator, passionately leveraging his experience in librarianship and technology to innovate new, relevant models for connecting collections and communities, while building robust partnerships that strengthen institutions and enable his mentorship of younger generations.”