Bill Ross

 

Bill Ross, Professor and Head of the Milne Special Collections and Archives Department, has been at UNH since 1990. He has a BA in American history from East Carolina University, an MA in history and an MLS in library science from the University of Maryland, and a Ph.D. in educational administration from American University (Washington, DC). His teaching and research interests range from the administration of academic libraries and archives to the American Civil War and the history and culture of New Orleans. In recent years, he has become involved in incorporating archives and special collection into the curriculum and exploring ways in which academic libraries can employ Web 2.0 tools and social media.

In addition to his library responsibilities, Bill has served as an adjunct faculty member in the University of Rhode Island library school. He currently teaches three first-year inquiry courses at UNH: one uses primary source material to teach the Civil War; another is an interdisciplinary course on New Orleans; and a third explores the juxtaposition of American landscape and  thought with the sport of fly fishing. He has served as faculty advisor for UNH-Habitat for Humanity, works with the UNH-Alternative Break Challenge to place student volunteers in the Gulf Coast region during spring break, and represents the UNH Library on the Discovery Committee.

He lives in nearby Dover, NH with his wife,  two cats, and assorted backyard wildlife. They are the proud parents of a daughter and two sons. He is an avid fly fisher, which due to the large collection of angling books in Special Collections; he tries to pass-off as a work-related malady.

The woolybugger, a combination of chenille, feathers, and wire, is his favorite fishing fly.