Mentoring Spotlight: Allan Kohl

Allan Kohl is the Librarian, Visual Resources and Library Instruction, at Minneapolis College of Art & Design (MCAD), and has been a VRA member for 26 years.Can you tell us a little bit about your background, and how you got into the field of visual resources?Over the past half-century, I’ve been a high school English teacher; then “Audio-Visual Services Librarian” in my first higher education job; then slide librarian and adjunct instructor in art history here at MCAD, gradually evolving into my current position, which is closer to many aspects of traditional library work, along with helping to manage the College's Archives.Which VRA mentoring activities did you participate in recently?Conference Mentor, Year-Round Mentor, and Year-Round Mentor for the Midwest Chapter Student Membership Scholarship Award.What services did you provide during your mentoring activities?Networking, professional guidance, and VRA Midwest Chapter Student Membership Scholarship Award mentoring. The latter seemed like a natural fit, in that I’m part of the selection committee for this award, and in looking over the applications I sometimes see specific ways I might help an applicant, based on that person’s career objectives.Briefly tell us about who you were matched with.I have tended to be matched with individuals who may be completing graduate degrees while also working at least part-time (on granted projects, etc.).What was your motivation for participating in the mentoring activities?Recruiting new, younger members to VRA to refresh our membership base, and helping first-time conferees have a rewarding experience.What aspects of the activities did you find the most valuable, and why?The opportunity to answer questions one-on-one. This is similar to what I do in reference work as part of my MCAD Library job, and it’s a natural segue into helping younger professionals navigate their integration into a peer community.Do you have any words of advice or wisdom for any of our members who may be thinking about participating in VRA's mentoring activities?Try it -- you'll like it! You can meet Allan at VRA 2020 in Baltimore! Want to learn more about becoming a VRA mentor? Visit our Mentorship page! httpS://vraweb.org/opportunities/mentorship/Have you had a great VRA mentoring experience? We would love to hear about it! Contact the Mentor Coordinator to find out to share your story here!