photo Erin Tripp, Senior Director, Research & Innovation
Erin (she/her/hers) is the Senior Director of Research and Innovation at Lyrasis. Previously, she served as the Director of the DuraSpace Community Supported Programs Division at Lyrasis and as the Executive Director of DuraSpace during its merger with Lyrasis in 2019. She has experience leading teams through change, supporting diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) initiatives, stewarding community-supported open source technologies, and developing and maturing new business models. Erin is a member of the Research Data Canada (RDC) Infrastructure Committee, an advisor on the OpenAIRE Advisory Board, and serves as a mentor in the Drexel University LIS Education and Data Science Integrated Network Group (LEADING) Fellowship Program. Prior to working in the library, archives, and museum communities, Erin graduated from the University of King’s College (BJH), worked as a broadcast journalist with CTV Globemedia and graduated from the Dalhousie University School of Information Management (MLIS) where she won the Outstanding Service Award in 2011.
photo Shania Belcon, Technical Support Representative
Shania Belcon has been with Lyrasis since February 2021 as a Technical Support Representative in the Research and Innovation 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.
photo 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.
photo 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.

photo 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. He has presented widely to information professionals on topics such as unconferences, job searching and hiring, programming for adults, library history, and performance evaluations.
photo Leigh Grinstead, Catalyst Fund Program Lead
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.
photo Katy Klettlinger, Program Leader, Consulting Services - MLIS
Katy Klettlinger has more than 20 years’ experience in a mixture of archival, government, public library, and non-profit organizations. Before joining Lyrasis in 2016, her roles included serving as a consultant for digitization, space planning, and strategic planning for the State Library of Ohio and creating and building an archival and digitization program as Records Manager and Archivist for Licking County Government in Ohio. Katy was the first library professional to be certified as a coach for the Community Heart and Soul strategic planning methodology in 2021. Katy incorporates biomimicry into her space planning consultancy to promote mental health and well-being and has a specialization in archival facility design. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Education and a Master’s in Library and Information Science from Kent State University.
photo Janet "Jan" Newcomb, Performing Arts Coordinator
Throughout her 30+ year career in arts management and education and prior to becoming Executive Director of National Coalition for Arts’ Preparedness & Emergency Response and the Performing Arts Coordinator for the Performing Arts Readiness Project in 2017, Jan Newcomb directed eight arts organizations including the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, Charleston Symphony Orchestra, four arts councils in NY and SC and a community arts center. Jan served as Director of Grants at the SC Arts Commission and taught modern dance at the University of Buffalo and the University of SC. In 2009, Jan began consulting on leadership transition and development for arts organizations; her clients include: Long Wharf Theatre, Lexington Philharmonic, Miami Summer Music Festival, South Arts, and others. In 2015, she designed and was asked to direct the MA in Leadership in the Arts & Entertainment Industries Program at NYIT in Manhattan. Jan works virtually out of her home in Corning, NY and holds a BA in Music, Hood College; MA in Dance, from The George Washington University.