Kristi Holmes, PhD, associate dean for knowledge management and strategy and director of the Galter Health Sciences Library and Learning Center, has been named the 2026 Medical Librarian of the Year by the Friends of the National Library of Medicine.
The award honors individuals who demonstrate exceptional leadership, innovation and sustained contributions to the advancement of health sciences librarianship at the local, national and international levels. This year’s award emphasized visionary leadership, mentorship and measurable impact across the profession.
“Any honor like this is rooted in community,” Holmes said. “This recognition reflects the truly outstanding Galter Library team, our collaborators and our incredible partners across Feinberg School of Medicine and Northwestern University. Together, we are pushing the boundaries of what a library can be: not only a place to store information, but a partner in the creation of new knowledge. I continue to be inspired by our community’s curiosity, generosity and genuine commitment to collaboration that gives our work its meaning and impact.”
Holmes, a nationally recognized leader in health sciences librarianship, informatics and research data strategy, holds multiple leadership roles across Northwestern University, including director of informatics and data science at the Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (NUCATS) and chief of knowledge management at the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine.
In these roles, Holmes has helped redefine how academic health sciences libraries contribute to research enterprises. Her work centers on building shared knowledge ecosystems that strengthen transparency, collaboration and discovery across the scientific community, particularly through evidence‑based and data‑driven approaches.
Through international initiatives and multi‑institutional collaborations, she has helped develop evaluation frameworks, data infrastructure strategies and best practices that improve research rigor, reproducibility and impact. Her efforts have influenced how libraries, universities and federal partners approach open science and translational research.
“Dr. Holmes represents the very best of our profession — bringing together data, people and systems to accelerate discovery and improve health outcomes,” said Barbara Redman, PhD, chair of the Friends of the National Library of Medicine.
The Friends of the National Library of Medicine (FNLM) is a nonprofit organization devoted to increasing public awareness and use of the National Library of Medicine and supporting its mission in research, education and public service. Through its awards program, FNLM recognizes individuals whose work strengthens the biomedical information ecosystem and advances public health.
Holmes will be formally honored at the Friends of the National Library of Medicine Annual Gala and Awards Celebration on September 16, 2026, in Washington, DC.
