President

The Center for Research Libraries (CRL) has selected Jacob (Jake) Nadal as its next President. He will begin his role on November 18.

Jake Nadal is a nationally recognized expert on preservation and has served in leadership roles at a variety of independent, academic, and government organizations. Currently, he is Director for Preservation at the Library of Congress, a role he has held since 2017. At the Library, he has overseen the work of over 200 staff members across four divisions: Collections Management, Conservation, Preservation Services, and Research and Testing. He is a former Executive Director of the Research Collections and Preservation Consortium (ReCAP) and has served in leadership roles and developed preservation programs for the Brooklyn Historical Society, UCLA, New York Public Library, and Indiana University, where he received his master's degree in library science.

Nadal’s commitment to information access reveals itself equally in his fieldwork and his policymaking: His work on recovery after conflict or natural disaster, for example in Liberia, in partnership with the Liberian Collections Project and the Carter Center, has helped to restore access to information and cultural materials with real human and social impact. Similarly, his activities with the HBCU Library Alliance, the Held in Trust program, and international exchange programs promoted equity of access and professional opportunity. The importance of coalition-building for Nadal and his wide-ranging experience in crafting policy are both reflected in his membership on the U.S. Cultural Heritage Coordinating Committee and in his role as the Library of Congress representative to the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission. 

Nadal received a bachelor of arts in music from the University of Puget Sound and a master of library science from Indiana University Bloomington. 

Anita Tien led this search with Andy Marshall, supported by Christina Errico.