Vanessa Rusch, MLIS
Library Relations Manager

Vanessa is a dedicated librarian with a diverse background spanning more than 15 years working across publishing, universities, and academic presses. She earned her BA in English and Professional Writing from Columbus State University and her MLIS from the University of Alabama. Vanessa’s passion for information access drives her commitment to the areas of Open Access and Open Education. In her role as Library Relations Manager, she creates interactive in-person and online instruction where she partners with librarians to support their patrons on teaching and learning with SAGE resources. A certified yoga instructor, nature advocate, and avid traveler, you can also find Vanessa exploring Oregon’s great outdoors with her family and friends.

Emily Smith, MSLS
Library Relations Manager

Emily Smith is a dedicated librarian with over a decade of experience in libraries in the US as well as abroad. Her commitment to considering international and diverse perspectives is rooted in her experience working as a librarian in both the Netherlands and Kuwait. As a Library Relations Manager with SAGE, she delivers innovative instruction on SAGE resources to support librarians, faculty, and researchers. Emily is a relationship builder, passionate about creating connections between people and content. Emily earned her BA in History from Michigan State University, an MA in Historical Administration from Eastern Illinois University, and her MSLS from Clarion University. In her free time, Emily enjoys running, reading, and taking her dog on walks around Chicago.

Jessica Gradeci
Senior Library Relations and Outreach Specialist

Jessica joined SAGE in 2011 and works with our librarian partners to better understand how to utilize and integrate SAGE databases in their institutions. Her academic experience in the humanities and literature offers a valuable perspective in using SAGE databases from a multidisciplinary approach. She also enjoys working with faculty and students and showing them how SAGE resources can be a valuable tool in their work and research. Jessica holds a BA in Writing and Rhetoric from Pepperdine University and an MA in Humanities from Mount Saint Mary’s University. A native and resident of California, she enjoys life with her husband and two kids, cooking, hiking, and scoping out new parks for the kiddos to explore.

Patrick Cox
Field Editor

Patrick joined SAGE in 2018 as a Field Editor, bringing his vision for higher ed instruction to LRFO to help faculty members build dynamic courses using SAGE resources. His own innovative research on the construction of American childhood in informal educational settings has been influential in Childhood Studies and cited in numerous education and sociology publications. He is a founding editorial board member of the field-defining journal Global Studies in Childhood, published by SAGE, and has taught courses on children’s literature, American studies, & digital literacy. His research and teaching are a natural outgrowth of years of experience as a public school teacher. He's passionate about bringing his knowledge and extensive teaching background to build customized rigorous educational experiences hand-in-hand with faculty members using SAGE’s library resources. He completed his BA in Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature at the University of Minnesota and his Childhood Studies Ph.D. work is at Rutgers. Beyond work, Patrick spends as much time as he can reading and playing with his two amazing sons Finn and Leo.

Kathleen Saylor
Field Editor

Field Editor Kathleen Saylor creates curricula-mapped, online, multimedia resources to support faculty and academics across disciplines. Her valuable experience as an acquisitions editor for SAGE Video, where she spent 18 months developing new academic video content, drives her passion for supporting customers. Kathleen is an ardent advocate for all kinds of digital resources, and she is motivated by the concepts of content preservation, education, and the dissemination of knowledge. She earned her Master of Letters in History at the University of Glasgow, and in her spare time, Kathleen is an amateur wine educator, folk music festival goer, and proud pet mom.

Kris Row
Faculty Outreach Specialist

Kris joined Faculty Outreach in 2016. As Faculty Outreach Specialist, her unique role harnesses her wide-ranging experience with SAGE, textbook publishing, and her background in Business and the Social Sciences. She partners with Marketing and Editorial to create innovative outreach solutions that lead to powerful customer relationships. Kris adores being part of the dynamic, supportive LRFO team that is driven to make a positive impact through the support and engagement we provide to our customers. Kris earned her Bachelor's in Psychology, with an emphasis in Business, from UCLA. She enjoys reading in her hammock, knitting while watching football, swimming in the ocean or in a pool, and the San Diego life with her husband and their two daughters.

Rhonda Contreras, MLIS
Senior Manager of Library Relations

Rhonda is a librarian with experience leading both public and academic libraries. Her passion for developing engaging instruction emerged while earning a BA in Secondary Education from the University of Illinois at Chicago and an MLIS from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. As the former Director of Library and Learning Services at American InterContinental University, Rhonda managed co-curricular programs and developed an innovative curriculum with a focus on First-Year Experience courses. A founding member of the Library Relations and Faculty Outreach team since joining SAGE in 2015, she leverages her wealth of knowledge in adult and experiential learning to enable a team that delivers dynamic instruction. She lives in Illinois with her husband and two daughters, with whom she loves going on adventures – both real and imaginary.

Anne Fulton
Manager of Faculty Outreach

Anne Fulton is a passionate believer in the power of education with 15 years of publishing experience innovating with authors, faculty, students, and librarians across disciplines. She joined SAGE in 2015 and since 2019, proudly leads a Faculty Outreach team dedicated to helping faculty see how SAGE supports student success. Anne's MA in English from the University of Dayton, and her extensive background in publishing, provides her with an understanding of resources from both the creator and user perspective. When she's at home in Virginia, Anne loves to bake and read with her husband and two small boys.