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Dr. Karen F. Kaufmann joined the USF iSchool in August 2023 as an Assistant Professor of Instruction with a focus on information literacy, user relevance, user information experience, and the intersection of theory and practice in information science.

Dr. Kaufmann brings over twelve years of academic librarianship and teaching experience to inform her research interests. Her research interests include information literacy, user relevance, user information experience, and the role of the academic library in supporting transfer students. The intersection of research informing practice, and practice informing research is a space that is especially poignant for information literacy and related information studies. This extends to the complex nature of information literacy as transdisciplinary and evidenced across disciplines. Her doctoral work investigated the "The Socio-Cognitive Relevance of Information Literacy: The Impact on Student Academic Work". The thesis was awarded one of the 2017 Beta Phi Mu Eugene Garfield Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships. Current research and writing projects include a cross-institutional study of the impact of information literacy instruction, a book chapter about my experiences as a self-directed doctoral student, and the co-editor of a book project about information literacy as a discipline (Facet Publishing) and co-leader of the international Information Literacy is a Discipline (ILIAD) group. Kaufmann is co-author of the book "Supporting Transfer Student Success: The Essential Role of College and University Libraries", published in 2021 by Libraries Unlimited, ABC-CLIO. Her research, publications and presentations reflect her interest in information ecologies and the international scope of information science and information literacy.