A. REBECCA MURPHY

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Instruction Librarian
amurphy@cumberland.edu
615-547-1216
Vise Library
Faculty
Doris & Harry Vise University Library
B.A., University of North Carolina
M.L.S., East Carolina University

A. Rebecca Murphy joined the Vise Library team in Fall 2023 as an Instruction Librarian. She completed her Masters of Library Science program in December 2022 through East Carolina University. She previously worked as an Assistant Librarian for the Henderson County Public Library system in North Carolina for two years.

Rebecca grew up in Asheville, North Carolina and earned her Bachelors of the Arts in History at the University of North Carolina at Asheville. She briefly studied acupuncture at a local college before pursuing a degree in Library Science. She enjoyed being on a college campus and decided to pursue an academic concentration at East Carolina University, specifically hoping to work with student researchers. In her free time, she enjoys reading historical nonfiction, writing, gardening, caring for her various pets, and spending time with her friends and family.

JESSICA FENN

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Cataloging Librarian and Instructor
jfenn@cumberland.edu
615-547-1302
Vise Library
Faculty
Doris & Harry Vise University Library
A.S., Volunteer State Community College
B.S., Middle Tennessee State University
M.S.I.S., University of Tennessee

Jessica Fenn joined the Vise Library staff in 2021 as a technical service librarian. Jessica received her master’s degree in Information Science through UT-Knoxville Spring 2020. Jessica had one practicum experience at Middle Tennessee State University in 2019.  She has also worked at Volunteer State Community College as a Library Assistant for 10 years.

Jessica grew up in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Middle Tennessee State University in 2017 and an Associates of Science degree in Psychology from Volunteer State Community College in 2013.

DAVIA SULLIVAN

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Library Assistant
dsullivan@cumberland.edu
615-547-1374
Vise Library
Staff
Doris & Harry Vise University Library
A.A., Cumberland University
B.A., Cumberland University

Davia Sullivan is a lifelong Lebanon native and a second-generation alum of Cumberland University. She joined the Vise Library staff in the fall of 2022 as a library assistant. Prior to joining the Vise Library, she received both her A.A. and B.A. at Cumberland University, graduating Summa Cum Laude with a major in General Studies and a minor in History.

She is also a member of Phi Gamma Mu honor society. Currently, she is acquiring her master’s degree
from the University of Tennessee Knoxville in Information Sciences.

Davia can be found writing fictional stories, watching Marvel films, listening to rock music,
reading books of all genres, or spending time with her family and cats in her free time.

STEPHEN SPANN

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Director of the Library and Instructor
sspann@cumberland.edu
(615) 547-1354
Vise Library
Faculty
Doris & Harry Vise University Library
B.S., Middle Tennessee State University
J.D., University of Tennessee, Knoxville
M.S.I.S., University of Tennessee, Knoxville

Steve joined the Vise Library staff in the fall of 2019 as a Librarian and Instructor. He earned his Masters of Science in Information Sciences from the University of Tennessee in the spring of 2019. Steve had two practicum experiences in 2018, one at Vanderbilt University’s Divinity School Library and one at Vanderbilt University’s Law School Library. He also worked as a reference librarian at the Williamson County Public Library in Franklin, Tennessee while he was pursuing his M.S.I.S. 

Steve grew up in the Bellevue community of Nashville. He earned a Bachelor of Science in political science from Middle Tennessee State University in 1981. He was a member of the school’s debate team. He then earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Tennessee in 1984. He spent the next 25 years practicing law in Nashville, working for the Middle District of the Tennessee Court of Appeals, law firms King and Ballow, and Sherrard and Roe, and in the legal departments of First American National Bank and Gaylord Entertainment Company. He was involved in a wide variety of legal issues, but worked primarily in contracts, labor and employment law, general business litigation, and intellectual property.  

Steve is a member of the Pi Gamma Mu honor society, the Tennessee Library Association, the Association of College and Research Libraries, the American Library Association, the Tennessee Historical Society, and the Abraham Lincoln Association.