About me
Dr. Beth Patin is an Associate Professor at the School of Information Studies and is also serving at the Program Director for the Masters of Science in Library and Information Studies program at Syracuse University, where her work explores the intersection of information access and community resilience. Her academic journey is grounded in a deep commitment to understanding how information systems can both empower and marginalize, particularly during times of crisis or in historically underserved communities.
Patin’s research focuses on two interrelated areas: crisis informatics and equity informatics. In her work on crisis informatics, she investigates the critical role public libraries play as trusted information infrastructures during disasters and emergencies. In the realm of equity informatics, she brings attention to the erasure of marginalized knowledge systems, a phenomenon she names “epistemicide.” Through both lines of inquiry, she calls on information scholars and practitioners to confront systemic inequities in how knowledge is preserved, valued, and accessed.
