Bonnie Lerner came to Widener Law’s Harrisburg campus in 1990 as a member of the library’s support staff, and she earned her M.L.S while continuing her duties at the library. After earning her degree, she became a full-time librarian in 1995.
As the Reference/Electronic Services Librarian, Bonnie has to wear a variety of hats to help keep the Harrisburg law library running smoothly. She serves as the Lexis and Westlaw liaison, provides reference hours to answer faculty and student research questions, and maintains the library’s computers and electronic services. She is also responsible for portions of the library’s website, including the Pennsylvania online research tools.
Bonnie has worked hard to keep with technological developments in the field, and she takes pride in having learned to write HTML. She fondly recalls the early days of home computers, including the Apple IIc she owned, and she credits those early experiences with her ability to adjust to new technologies.
While Bonnie gets satisfaction from completing a successful research project for a faculty member, she finds that some patrons present an interesting dilemma. “Dealing with members of the public who think that you can be their lawyer is challenging,” she says, continuing, “All I can do is lead them to a book that might answer their question.”