Justina Arena: From Dewey 551.5 to Executive Director of the Bowlby Library

Justina Arena shifted from aspiring meteorologist (Dewey 551.5) to executive director of the Bowlby Library, blending STEM insight with library leadership.

When Justina Arena enrolled at Penn West California as a nontraditional student, she pictured a career under the skies—meteorology, weather patterns and forecasting. That specific interest even has a home on the shelves: 551.5 in the Dewey Decimal System, the classification for meteorology. But Arena’s path took an unexpected and inspiring turn from maps of storms to maps of knowledge.

Today, Arena serves as executive director of the Bowlby Library, a role that showcases how diverse experiences enrich higher education leadership. Her background as a nontraditional student gives her a unique perspective on student needs, library services, and the importance of accessible information. Arena’s story highlights an increasingly common narrative: professionals combining STEM expertise with information management and public service.

As an executive director, Arena draws on analytical skills familiar to anyone who studies the weather—pattern recognition, data interpretation and clear communication. In the library context, those strengths translate to strategic collection development, evidence-based decision-making, and championing digital initiatives that make resources discoverable for students and faculty. Her leadership underscores how libraries are more than repositories; they’re active learning hubs that support research, retention and community engagement.

For nontraditional students and career changers, Arena’s journey is a practical example of transferable skills. Meteorology’s emphasis on observation and modeling lends itself to project management, research support, and the technological demands of modern libraries. Under her direction, the Bowlby Library can expand services like data literacy workshops, interdisciplinary collaborations, and STEM outreach—bridging the gap between technical subjects and information access.

Arena’s move from dreaming about dew points to directing a library also offers a symbolic reminder: careers are rarely linear. The Dewey number 551.5 may have marked her original passion, but it now sits beside a broader professional library where that curiosity fuels innovation. Her leadership at the Bowlby Library celebrates the value of varied backgrounds and shows how higher education benefits when people bring unexpected expertise to campus roles.

Back