Ericka Patillo

Ericka Patillo is an Associate Dean of Academic Affairs and Professor of Practice at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With over 20 years of experience, she specializes in academic libraries, library management, organizational behavior, and music librarianship. She holds a BA in Music History from Old Dominion University, an MSLS and PhD from UNC-Chapel Hill.

Research Interests: Her work focuses on middle management in libraries, role conflict, inclusive library culture, and LIS education. She emphasizes co-creating spaces that honor diverse ancestral knowledge systems.

Publications: Her scholarship spans library advocacy in social justice movements, LGBTQ+ identities in librarianship, and organizational autonomy. Recent work explores how BLM protests influence library actions, while earlier research addressed functional units’ impact on librarians’ autonomy.

• Awards:
  • Beta Phi Mu
  • Chancellor’s Doctoral Candidacy Award
  • National Science Foundation AGEP Fellowship (2008–2009)
  • Phi Kappa Phi

Teaching & Advising: Open to doctoral students, she teaches courses like Management for Information Professionals and Music Librarianship. Her administrative roles include shaping library policies and fostering collaborative academic cultures.