Gloria Korsman, MDiv ’92

“Here we have the opportunity to build relationships and to learn from each other in a way that forms the building blocks of peace in society. I feel really proud to be a part of that, and privileged to be a part of the community.”

Gloria is associate librarian for research services at Andover-Harvard Theological Library.

A Lifelong Path

I came to HDS in 1988 as an MDiv student. I loved my education here; it was fantastic. I made friends then that I still have to this day. I’m still working in the field of religion, so it set me on a path that has turned out to be lifelong. In my last year of study, I took a job here in the library and I loved it. There was a person on staff here at that time who saw that I enjoyed it and encouraged me to pursue a career in librarianship. After HDS, I began a library degree, then I started here full time in 1993. I’ve been on staff for 27 years now.

I lived in Divinity Hall when it was a dorm. We had a nice cross section of the student body—there were two Buddhist monks, a Roman Catholic nun, students from all over the world, and people of many cultures. That residential experience was lovely. HDS has only gotten more diverse with time, particularly in the curriculum and the faculty. Here we have the opportunity to build relationships and to learn from each other in a way that forms the building blocks of peace in society. I feel really proud to be a part of that, and privileged to be a part of the community.

I was just thinking the other day how in the time that I’ve been here we’ve seen the creation of the web! The commercial web was born around 1991. I was still a student here, but it didn’t impact us in any way, we didn’t even have email. I got my first glimpse of the web in 1995, and before that we were using other internet protocols like Telnet and FTP. I’ve seen a huge amount of tech change. I like technology, so this work suits me. I enjoy moving with the times and finding new ways to advance academic projects. Librarians work with students exploring any topic. We all have our own subject interests, but our real specialty is knowing how to take full advantage of the Harvard Library. It’s a really satisfying place to work.    

Spiritual Practice

I grew up in Massachusetts. I’m a Unitarian Universalist, and I focused on practical ministry in my MDiv. I live in Cambridge with my wife and worship at First Parish Unitarian Universalist, where I’ve been a member most of my adult life. I love the depth of community that I have—the overlapping circles between home and church and work. I feel like I’m connected in a way to my community that most Americans aren’t. I’ve gotten to know a lot of people and have really rich relationships, for which I feel fortunate.

One of my goals when I graduated college was to try to work outside the military industrial complex. I had this sense that there was work that was morally pure. I’ve since realized that things are more nuanced than that, but that was certainly what I had aspired to. I do think working in higher ed is noble work. My job is to partner with students and make sure that they have the resources to answer their questions. I see that as a form of ministry.

Living ethically and sustainably is a big piece of my spiritual practice. So, I like active transportation. I ride this Dutch grandmother bike. It’s like a 60-pound cruiser. I go so slow and everybody passes me. I acquired a car through marriage but otherwise wouldn’t choose one.

Through my congregation I have been involved in various social justice activities over the years. Sometimes it is around climate issues, and right now I’m focusing more on anti-racism and dismantling white supremacy culture. We do community supported agriculture all year round, live locally, and work on being neighborly—sharing rides or trying to find ways to help neighbors and friends to get things done with less expense and waste.

In this political moment, advocacy opportunities tend to be more local. Right now in Cambridge there are multiple things before the City Council related to transportation. I’ll advocate for better accommodations for pedestrians and cyclists. I just signed a petition against raising the price on the T because I think the T should be free.

Favorite Library?

This one of course! I’m also a big fan of Cambridge Public Library. Our missions differ, but both libraries offer a quality of civic space that you don’t find anywhere else.

Not that we could own everything ever published, but now we know that we can’t and we ought not to, and we need to share with other institutions. With so much networked information and ways to share resources between institutions, the future is more cooperative. That impacts library spaces. We can be more flexible with our space and our resources as a result of those agreements. As libraries get renovated, the shift is to reduce the physical footprint of the collections and the staff, and to make more usable space for students.

My personal research sometimes takes me to other Harvard libraries. I’ve been working on decolonizing my church history. The congregation has a received narrative that came from the mid-twentieth century and pretty much just tells history from the perspective of the people who always get recognition—ministers, donors, and otherwise famous people whose names are written on the walls and survive in our collective memory. So part of my interest is retelling that history and adding the voices of the people whose names aren’t on the walls. I’m especially interested in lay people—people of color, women, and youth—and the impact that they’ve made.

Interview and photo by Anaïs Garvanian