Leigh Grinstead, Manager, Research, Discovery & Impact Division (RD&I)
Leigh A. Grinstead has more than 20 years of experience working in museum administration, overseeing collections, and conducting preservation assessments and collection inventories. Leigh also spent years writing, reviewing and managing successful grant projects. Including National Endowment for the Humanities and Institute for Museum and Library Services grants, and she served as the project manager for the Colorado Statewide Connecting to Collections planning grant and consulted on five others. In addition to her grants work, Leigh used her nearly half a decade with the Collaborative Digitization Program to deepen an interest in digital collections and digital humanities work. She consults with collection-holding institutions around the nation, facilitating meetings and advising them on digital project and preservation planning, workflows, standards and best practices for capture, metadata creation, access and preservation.
Shania Belcon, Technical Support Representative
Shania Belcon has been with Lyrasis since February 2021 as a Technical Support Representative in the Research, Discovery & Impact Division (RD&I) department. She provides support for live classes, registration, and billings. Shania is a native of Trinidad and Tobago, with IT certifications in A+ and Fundamentals of Computer Repairs. She is currently pursuing more certifications within the IT field to gain more knowledge and follow her passion. Shania has a background in web development and basic coding. She is extremely passionate about her work.
Thomas Clareson, Project Director, PAR & Sr. Consultant, Digital & Preservation Services
Tom Clareson is Project Director of the Performing Arts Readiness (PAR) project, funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to help performing arts organizations nationwide learn how to protect their assets, sustain operations, and be prepared for emergencies. He serves as Senior Consultant for Digital & Preservation Services at Lyrasis, consulting and teaching nationally and internationally on preservation, disaster preparedness, digitization, digital preservation, special collections/archives, remote storage, funding, strategic planning, and advocacy for libraries, archives, and museums. Clareson serves as Vice President on the Board of Directors of the Foundation for Advancement in Conservation.
Tanya Diggs, Grants Administrator
Tanya Diggs joined Lyrasis in 2021 as its Grants Specialist and currently serves as its Grants Administrator. She has over 20 years of expertise as a grant proposal writer, program administrator, and director of grant programs at local government agencies throughout the state of Maryland.
Before joining Lyrasis, Tanya previously served as an administrator with the Redevelopment Authority, a division within the Prince George’s County Department of Housing and Community Development, where she managed a capital grants program on behalf of the County, earning her a Community Recognition Award during Women’s History Month. She has also worked as an Adjunct Professor and Academic Advisor with the undergraduate and graduate programs at a local college in Maryland.
Ms. Diggs holds a B.A. in Liberal Arts, an MA in Public Administration and has been developing her dissertation towards a PhD in Public Policy and Administration at Walden University. She has spent her career providing opportunities for and assistance to the communities that she has served.
Steve Eberhardt, Project Coordinator
Steve Eberhardt is the Project Coordinator of the PAR project. Steve has coordinated collaborative grant-funded projects at Lyrasis for 20 years, including a 2006-2008 Andrew W. Mellon Foundation-funded grant that assisted academic libraries in their recovery from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. His most recent project provided training, grants, and consultations to preserve photographic and audiovisual collections at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Sam Eddington, Program Leader, Lyrasis Learning
Sam Eddington is the Program Leader for Lyrasis Learning. He holds an MLS from Southern Connecticut State University, and a BA in English (Creative Writing) from the University of Houston. His work experience includes time spent in academic, public, school, special, regional, and correctional libraries. He has presented widely to information professionals on topics such as unconferences, job searching and hiring, programming for adults, library history, and performance evaluations.
Katy Klettlinger, Program Leader, Consulting Services - MLIS
Katy Klettlinger has over twenty years of experience in public and state libraries, academic institutions, historical societies, museums, and government agencies. She began her career in local history archives, advancing to supervisory roles, including serving as manager of the Records and Archives Program at Licking County Government in Ohio, where she built the county's program from the ground up and created its first countywide digitization program. Before joining Lyrasis, Klettlinger’s interest in serving colleagues led to her role as a Library Consultant for the State Library of Ohio. There, she assisted public libraries with digitization, space planning and strategic planning. She also enjoys working with young professionals as a career counselor for the Society of American Archivists. Klettlinger's commitment to program development, strategic thinking and mentorship continues to guide her, inspiring her to seek opportunities that celebrate growth and success in the institutions she serves.
Michelle Nielson, Grants Specialist
Michelle Nielson joined Lyrasis in 2024 as the Grants Specialist. She has 20 years of experience in nonprofit organizations and volunteers as the Executive Director for Child Life Disaster Relief. She has many years of experience with grant writing, fundraising, program management, curriculum design, teaching and nonprofit leadership.
Michelle holds a Bachelor in Healthcare Administration from Bellevue University and a Master’s in Education with a focus on administration and curriculum design from the University of Nebraska.