SACHIE NOGUCHI (野口幸生) grew up in Gunma Prefecture, Japan, and studied at Keio University, where she received a dual undergraduate degree in both Library Science and Japanese Literature. Later, she received an MA in Library Science from McGill University and another in Sociology from the University of British Columbia. She was Japanese Cataloger at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana from 1984-88 and Japanese Bibliographer-Cataloger & Coordinator for the Japan Information Center (JIC) at the University of Pittsburgh from 1988-2004. Noguchi served as Chair of the North American Coordinating Council on Japanese Library Resources (NCC) from 2001-04 and took on many other roles in the organization, including co-Chair of the MVS (Multi-Volume Sets) committee and co-coordinator of the JAC project. She also initiated NCC’s Librarian Professional Development Committee (now Working Group) and acted as an ongoing consultant for the group. Noguchi was Japanese Studies Librarian at Columbia University from 2004-18, officially retiring in 2019.
In addition to her work with NCC, Noguchi served as chair of the Council on East Asian Library's (CEAL's) Committee on Japanese Materials and as CEAL Treasurer. She also served on CEAL's Executive Committee. In 1999 she organized CEAL’s Japanese Studies Librarian Training Workshop held at Harvard University, which involved about 50 participants and instructors.
Starting in March 1995, Noguchi was the co-director of the Japanese Text Initiative, a collaborative effort between the East Asian Library of the University of Pittsburgh and the Electronic Text Center of the University of Virginia Library to make texts of Japanese literature available on the World Wide Web. This experience became the basis of her doctoral dissertation titled "Assessing Users and Uses of Electronic Text: The Case of the Japanese Text Initiative, Japanese Classics Electronic Text on the World Wide Web." She received her PhD from the University of Pittsburgh in 2001. Since then, she has written widely in both English and Japanese about, among other topics, the uses of new electronic resources, the various programs of the NCC, and about the status of consortial licensing among academic libraries.
Message from Tara McGowan, NCC Executive Director:
I had the pleasure of video-taping this interview between Sachie Noguchi and her friend Fabiano Rocha in Sachie’s beautiful apartment overlooking the Hudson River. Sachie Noguchi has instructed and inspired many Japan Studies librarians over her long and varied career. As quickly becomes apparent in the interview, she has also led a life full of adventures! For those who know Sachie personally, this interview will evoke many fond memories, and for those who may not have had a chance to work with her, they will learn a lot about the development of the field of Japan Studies librarianship through her experiences.
I must apologize in advance for technical issues that led to some blurring at the outset of the video. The placement of the camera was not ideal because Sachie was in the process of packing to return to Japan, and it was impossible to reposition her chair away from the window. However, I want to assure everyone that the quality of the video improves as the interview progresses, so I encourage you to watch it until the end. Sachie is an inspiration to us all and will be much missed!
Related Works and References:
Journal Articles:
Noguchi, S. (1988). Japanese-Style Management: A Bibliometric Study. Special Libraries, 79(4), 314–321.
Noguchi, S. (2001). Consortial licensing. In case of academic libraries. Journal of Information Processing and Management, 44(5), 309–318. https://doi.org/10.1241/johokanri.44.309
Noguchi, S. (2003). Digital reference services. Journal of Information Processing and Management, 45(10), 696–706. https://doi.org/10.1241/johokanri.45.696
Noguchi, S. (2004). Law school libraries in the United States. Journal of Information Processing and Management, 46(11), 728–740. https://doi.org/10.1241/johokanri.46.728
Noguchi, S. (2005). Disaster preparedness of the Columbia University Libraries. Journal of Information Processing and Management, 48(6), 376–381. https://doi.org/10.1241/johokanri.48.376
Noguchi, S. (2005). 第180回 中枢・衛星? : アメリカにおける大学図書館と日本研究(INFOSTA Forum). The Journal of Information Science and Technology Association, 55(12), 552–552. https://doi.org/10.18919/jkg.55.12_552
Magazine Articles
Noguchi, S. (1988). International conference on scholarly information network. College and Research Libraries News, 49(4), 211.
Noguchi, S. (1988). The first international conference on japanese information. College and Research Libraries News, 49(1), 16.
Noguchi, S. (1989). British library colloquium on resources for japanese studies. College and Research Libraries News, 50(8), 667.
Wei, K. T., & Noguchi, S. (1989). RLIN CJK versus OCLC CJK: The illinois experience. Library Resources & Technical Services, 33(2), 140.
Noguchi, S. (1992). Language barriers and information flow