staff

Dr. Benjamin holds a BA in Theology and English from Valparaiso University, her MLS from North Carolina Central University, and her MTS and ThD in the History and Theology of the European Reformations from Duke Divinity School. She joined the staff as Divinity Library Director in 2018, and she teaches courses in the historical division at Duke Divinity School. One of her favorite things about Durham is that it sees the intersection of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail (a hiking trail that spans the state of North Carolina) and the East Coast Greenway (a bike path that runs from Maine to Florida). Dr. Benjamin is a bike commuter to the Duke campus and spends part of each day on Durham's Greenway, but in her spare time she adores mystery novels and hiking with her beloved hound-mix, Mechthild. She highly recommends you read A psalm for the wild-built.

 
Dr. Benjamin's recent courses:

• CHURHST 708 (Introduction to Church History)
• CHURHST 750 (Early and Medieval Christianity)
• CHURHST 803 (History of Biblical Interpretation)

Lacey Hudspeth is the Research, Engagement, and Instruction Librarian at Duke Divinity School. She serves as an academic advisor, Co-Director of Duke Divinity Pride, manages course reserves for Divinity and Religious Studies faculty, and works with the writing center to teach digital and information literacy. She earned her Masters of Theology from Harvard University, her MDiv from Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and her MLS from North Carolina Central University. She has worked at the Emory and Harvard libraries as well as working as a reference librarian for the North Carolina School of Science and Math. She enjoys readings memoirs and biographies, working in her vegetable garden, and exploring all of the local bookshops in the Triangle. 

Contact Lacey if you have questions about: 

• How to write/construct a research paper
• Looking for monographs, academic journal articles, or other resources 
• How to use JSTOR, Atla, or other research databases 
• If you're interested in medieval theology and philosophy
• If you're interested in learning more about Divinity Pride

Dr. Kjær holds a Bachelor of Theology from Aarhus University, an MA in Hebrew Bible Studies from Leiden University, and her doctorate in Middle Eastern Languages and Cultures (Hebrew Bible/Ancient Near Eastern Studies) from the University of Texas at Austin. Her dissertation was about monotheism and religious transformation in pre-Islamic Southern Arabia. She has worked in Aarhus Theological Library, and taught library instruction to first-year students at UT Austin. Most recently, she has worked as a daily manager at the Museum of Durham History, which she highly recommends that you visit, especially if you are new to Durham. When not reading all there is to read about the Book of Esther, Dr. Kjær spends time discovering the best places to hike, bike, and camp around North Carolina.

Come talk to Dr. Kjær about: 

• General library use

• Finding resources for OT/NT and the Ancient Near East 

• Using the citation manager Zotero 

• The trials and tribulations of being an international student 

Dean Hawkins holds an MDiv from Duke Divinity School, where he specialized in Hebrew Bible, New Testament, and biblical languages. He serves as the primary support person for Duke Divinity’s hybrid students and manages the Divinity School’s mail and copy room. Before joining the Divinity School Library, he worked at Chatham Outreach Alliance, an emergency food pantry dedicated to serving families in need in Chatham County. He enjoys cooking, spending time with his dogs, reading Russian literature, and listening to a downright unreasonable number of podcasts.

Come talk to Dean about:

• Research and general library use
• How the Divinity Library supports hybrid students
• Questions about the mail/copy room

As the digitization and technology librarian, Mr. Nguyen works to make the libraries' collection more accessible. Mr. Nguyen earned a master's degree in library science from the University of South Carolina and a bachelor's degree in philosophy from the College of Charleston. Before joining the Divinity School Library, he worked at the University of South Carolina's Moving Image Research Collections and the Book and Paper Conservation Lab.

Hildegard is a tri-color holland lop originally from Creedmoor, NC. She joined the Divinity Library staff in 2020 and oversees all main floor operations. Hildegard loves an orderly environment and would like to remind students not to reshelve Reference Room books, but leave them on the carts! She is usually in the office on Thursdays, and otherwise works remotely, sharing occasional exploits on her Instagram. Ask Hildegard about:

• Eating crunchy vegetables
• Hiding under chairs
• The trials and tribulations of walking on smooth surfaces