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Biography

Valerie Hotchkiss served as the Azariah S. Root Director of ���سԹ� College Libraries and Professor of English and Book Studies from 2021 to 2026. Following a 30-year career directing theology, rare book, and university libraries, she brought her experience to ���سԹ�. Together with a dedicated staff, the Libraries achieved significant progress under her leadership, guided by the 2021–2025 strategic plan and marked by major operational, technological, and facilities improvements, including renovated library spaces, implementation of a new integrated library system, and the creation of the OCL Digital Collaborative. She also strengthened engagement across campus by revitalizing advisory and support groups, expanding professional development and student internship opportunities, and enhancing instruction in information, data, and AI literacies to support research and student success. 

Hotchkiss publishes in the areas of cultural history, religion, women’s studies, and the history of books and printing. Her books include Clothes Make the Man: Female Transvestism in Medieval Europe (Taylor & Francis, 1996/2012), English in Print from Caxton to Shakespeare to Milton (U of Illinois Press, 2008), The 1862 Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation: A Facsimile Edition with Michael Burlingame (U of Illinois Press, 2014), The Reformation of the Bible / The Bible of the Reformation with David Price and Jaroslav Pelikan (Yale University Press, 1996), and Creeds and Confessions of Faith in the Christian Tradition, a 4-volume work she coauthored with Jaroslav Pelikan (Yale University Press 2003). She recently completed a screenplay for a Romanian production company on prehistoric Europe. In retirement, she will devote more time to writing, travel, and the study of rare books and print culture. She is currently writing a new book about incunabula collecting.