As Interim University Librarian, William Garrity is responsible for oversight of the UC Davis Library, one of the nation’s top academic research libraries and a major academic unit supporting the students and faculty of UC Davis, the healthcare professionals of UC Davis Health, and the public.

Since joining UC Davis in 2014, Garrity has served as deputy university librarian and the library’s chief operating officer, sharing overall responsibility for leadership, administration, and operation of the university library, which includes the Peter J. Shields Library on the Davis campus and Blaisdell Medical Library on the UC Davis Health campus in Sacramento. In that role, he has fostered an inclusive environment where students, researchers and library employees alike can learn, discover, and innovate.

In addition to the resources and expertise expected of a major research library, Garrity recognizes the critical role of the library as a “third space” that supports students’ academic success and sense of belonging on campus. Under his leadership through the COVID-19 pandemic, Davis became the first UC campus to reopen its main library building in Fall 2020.

Garrity brings more than 30 years of experience working in university libraries, health science libraries and information technology. Prior to UC Davis, he served as associate chief information officer at Dartmouth College, providing executive leadership of campuswide academic and information technology services. He has also held leadership positions in the Dartmouth and University of Pennsylvania biomedical libraries, and in the University of Chicago Library.

A graduate of Siena College in New York, Garrity served in the Peace Corps in Costa Rica before earning his master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Chicago.