Julia M. Rholes was appointed Dean of Libraries of the University of Mississippi in June 2003. She is responsible for providing leadership for approximately 60 fulltime library faculty and staff. She provides leadership, planning and oversight for the University Libraries, including the J. D. Williams Library, the Science Library and the Library Annex, a remote storage facility for archival materials and low use circulating collections. The Dean leads efforts to develop distinctive research collections and innovative library services and programs. The dean oversees the budget and is expected to be actively involved in the ongoing development of external funding sources. Prior to coming to the University, Rholes held administrative positions at the University of Kansas (interim dean, assistant dean) and at Texas A&M University (interim assistant dean, Head of Reference and Instruction). She received a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College, an M.A. from the University of Texas (Austin), and an M.L.S. from Rutgers University. Ms. Rholes has been active in a number of professional organizations. She has held elected positions within the American Library Association, the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries and the EPSCOR Science Information Group (ESIG). She was named a Frye Institute Fellow in 2002. She has authored a number of publications in the field of academic librarianship.