Name: Kerry J. Maas

Career: Primary contact for libraries that use the Polaris Integrated Library System software fro GIS Information Systems in New York

Majors: Humanities, History, German and a minor in English

Graduation Year: 1997

Hometown: Parkston, South Dakota

Where she lives now: Syracuse, New York

Campus activities while at Dana:

• German Club
• Forum Volunteer
• Forum Technical Director
• Assisted with the Nebraska Scholastic Art Awards

Career Achievements:
I have a masters in library science from Syracuse University. I assist the sttes with problems ranging from data issues to workflow issues to computer or server issues to software upgrades. I also give input on how the software should be developed.

How did Dana help prepare you for your career or graduate school?
Communication is a major part of what I do. I am a conduit between the development team and the customer. As such, much of what I do is explaining what the system does to the customer and explaining what the customer wants at the conceptual level. I communicate using whatever method works the best — written, spoken, pictures, diagrams, etc. — to both the customers that I work with and my colleagues. My ability to define, clarify and communicate concepts via these methods of communication were either learned or perfected while at Dana.

What do remember most about your time at Dana?
The people. I knew that I could at any time talk to any professor and that they would know who I was. They didn't have to look me up in a file or a class roster to know what I was taking and what my majors were. I could also have a casual discussion with them about anything — not just a class, but things going on in the news, on campus and things that just came up.