ASCC Press Release Tuesday, August 09, 2011

ASCC Bids Farewell to Librarian Dr. Steven Lin

By James Kneubuhl, ASCC Press Officer

At a lunchtime ceremony this past Friday, members of the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) administration and staff gathered to bid farewell to Dr. Steven Y. Lin, who for the past 14 years has served as the College’s Head Librarian. Dr. Lin will be heading first to Texas and then to his homeland of Taiwan to assist with the care of his elderly parents. He leaves behind a long record of distinguished service to ASCC, and his stewardship of the College’s Library Services played a crucial role in the institution’s advancements in recent years.

Born in Fuikien in the southeastern province of China, Dr. Lin grew up in central Taiwan. His parents, having read the New Testament of the Christian Bible, gave him the name Steven. His educational background includes a BA in English from the Taiwan National University, an MS in Educational Technology from Texas A&M University, and a MLS and PhD in Library Science from Texas Woman University. He is married to Rachel Chen Lin and they have two grown children now living in Texas.

While living in Texas, Dr. Lin worked as a law librarian at the Dallas County Community College, and then as a children’s librarian, reference librarian, and assistant branch library manager at the Dallas Public Library. In the mid-1990s, he heard of the vacant position of Library Director at ASCC through a notice in the Chronicle of Higher Education. “When I first visited American Samoa to apply for the position, it actually reminded me a lot Taiwan, which also has a tropical climate,” Dr. Lin recalled, “and this was one of the reasons I accepted the job.”

During the years of his management, Dr. Lin saw the ASCC Library make the transformation from the air conditioning-less building now occupied (with air conditioning) by the American Samoa Bachelors in Education Program to the state-of-the-art facility in the front of the campus which opened in 2003. Asked what he considers his most significant accomplishments at ASC, Dr. Lin said he feels proudest of upgrading the Library’s reference materials and setting up the Educational Resources Center to meet the requirements of the four-year teacher education program provisionally approved recently by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Although he had settled comfortably into island life, a change in the circumstances of his parents back in Taiwan prompted Dr. Lin to make his most recent transition which will see him return home. “My parents need looking after,” said Dr. Lin, who is himself 68 years old, “and among my siblings I’m the one in the best position to take semi-retirement and focus on their care.” Between leaving American Samoa and settling in Taiwan, Dr. Lin plans to visit his wife and family in Texas. “I look forward to taking my enjoyment of tennis, which I developed here, with me back to both Texas and Taiwan,” he said.

At his farewell ceremony, Dr. Lin celebrated with members of his library staff and many of his longtime colleagues in the ASCC administration, including ASCC President Dr. Seth Galea’i. “We will always consider you part of the ASCC family,” said Dr. Galea’i in tribute, “and we hope you will come and visit us to see how we continue to grow thanks to many changes you helped us make.” For his part, Dr. Lin said he will look back on his time in American Samoa with great satisfaction. “I am grateful to the College for hiring me,” he reflected, “and the days I spent here will certainly be one of my best memories for the rest of my life.”

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