AUSTIN, Texas—Lorraine J. Haricombe, an innovating leader in academic libraries, has announced her retirement as Director and Vice Provost of the University of Texas Libraries, marking the conclusion of a distinguished career spanning decades. She will conclude her tenure on August 31, 2025.
Haricombe joined the University of Texas Libraries in 2015, bringing with her a global experience and a visionary approach to library leadership. During her tenure, she spearheaded several transformative initiatives that have helped to redefine the role of academic libraries in the digital age. Among her many achievements, she expanded the development of Texas ScholarWorks, the university’s digital repository, which has significantly enhanced the accessibility and impact of the university’s scholarly output. Haricombe also championed the implementation of advanced data management services, providing critical support for the university's research community in managing, preserving, and sharing their data.
Haricombe oversaw the redevelopment of spaces that promoted the concept of “library as platform,” where the world of physical spaces, traditional and digital resources exist in complementary ways. She engaged in collaboration with campus partners, providing opportunities for collocation that allowed for synergies between users, services and resources. She helped to open the Foundry makerspace at the Fine Arts Library, and more recently, oversaw the completion of the Scholars Lab in the Perry-Castañeda Library (PCL), meanwhile fortifying connections with the University Writing Center and the Center for Teaching and Learning, both of which are now located in the PCL.
One of Haricombe’s most notable accomplishments as a library leader was her advocacy in advancing open access initiatives. She played a key role in the establishment of the Open Educational Resources (OER) Working Group, which has been instrumental in reducing the cost of educational materials for students and promoting the adoption of OER across the campus. Her efforts in this area earned her recognition as a national advocate for open access, reflecting her deep commitment to making knowledge freely accessible to all.
Before her tenure at The University of Texas at Austin, Haricombe served as the Dean of Libraries at the University of Kansas from 2006 to 2015 At Kansas, she was a driving force behind the implementation of the university’s open access policy, making it one of the first public universities in the United States to adopt such a policy. She also played a critical role in the development of the KU Libraries’ strategic plan, which emphasized the importance of digital scholarship and the preservation of the university’s intellectual assets. Her leadership in establishing KU ScholarWorks, the university’s institutional repository, has left a lasting impact on the preservation and dissemination of scholarly work at the institution.
Earlier in her career, Haricombe held leadership positions at Northern Illinois University, Bowling Green State University, and Peninsula Technikon in South Africa, where she developed and implemented innovative library services that greatly expanded access to information for students and faculty. Her international experience has given her a unique perspective on the challenges and opportunities facing academic libraries, and she has been a sought-after speaker and consultant on issues related to library leadership, digital scholarship, and information policy.
The daughter of a librarian, Haricombe's own academic career in librarianship began in South Africa, where she earned an honors graduate degree in library and information science from the University of the Western Cape in South Africa and a bachelor’s degree in library and information science, psychology and sociology from the University of the Western Cape. She later completed her Ph.D. in Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where her research focused on the role of libraries in supporting academic research and scholarship.
Throughout her career, Lorraine Haricombe has been a passionate advocate for libraries as centers of knowledge, innovation, and community. She has served in numerous leadership roles within professional organizations, including the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC), where she has been a vocal proponent of policies and practices that advance the role of libraries in the digital age.
As she prepares to step down from her role, Haricombe leaves behind a legacy of excellence, collaboration, and unwavering dedication to the advancement of knowledge.
“As I reflect upon my tenure at the Libraries, I am humbled by the enormous privilege I had to take a fully formed institution and reconceive it to meet critical new priorities," says Haricombe. "With a steadfast and dedicated team, we launched new initiatives to position UTL for a vibrant future and I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to work alongside them in all these endeavors. Over the last decade we continually strove to make UT Libraries greater because we believe great libraries make great universities. Thank you for the privilege.”
The University of Texas Libraries and the broader academic community celebrate her contributions and wish her the very best in her retirement.
