Clara Drummond appointed Director of Northwestern’s Charles Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives

Dean of Libraries Xuemao Wang has appointed Clara Drummond as the Director of the Charles Deering McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives, effective September 1, 2025.

As the Director of the McCormick Library, Drummond will provide leadership and management to its forward-thinking special collections and archives program. She will be instrumental in shaping and guiding collection development and stewardship, as well as establishing the McCormick Library as a leader in engaging students with special collections through instruction, research, and exhibitions.

“Our rare collections have so many possibilities for use in research at Northwestern and beyond. With increasing use of emerging technologies to enhance the stewardship and access to special collections and archives, I look forward to seeing more integration of technologies with our special collection and archives operations. We are excited to have Clara harness this potential and elevate the future trend of such advancement” said Xuemao Wang, Northwestern’s Dean of Libraries.

Drummond is a curator with more than 17 years of experience working with special collections in libraries and museums. Most recently, she served as co-interim head, lead curator, and exhibitions coordinator at the Eberly Family Special Collections Library at Penn State University, where she oversaw daily operations, guided collection development and stewardship, and led the exhibitions program. Previously, Drummond was assistant curator of literary and historical manuscripts at The Morgan Library & Museum in New York and worked independently as a curator based in Belgium. Her work is grounded in creative, collaborative approaches to connecting students, faculty, and the broader public with rare and archival materials. She has partnered with filmmakers to spotlight collections and their impact, curated exhibitions on topics ranging from the history of dye-making to animals and the creative process, and spearheaded the use of collection endowments to support new commissions and community programming.

“I am thrilled to be stepping into the role of Director of the McCormick Library of Special Collections and University Archives at Northwestern University. I look forward to collaborating with the library’s talented team to facilitate meaningful encounters with our rare collections and foster enduring partnerships that will support innovative research, teaching, and engagement to enrich the academic experience for students and faculty,” said Clara Drummond.

Drummond holds a PhD from Boston University and an MLIS from Simmons University. She has published several articles and book chapters on topics from exhibitions to rare collections and curated a number of museum and library exhibitions.