2023 - Take Five With…Lauren Sullivan

If you are looking for Lauren Sullivan, the Elgin Community College Renner Academic Library is where you’ll find her. Sullivan is a reference librarian and has been with the college since 2021. An Elgin native, Sullivan’s professional life began as a theatre technician. After graduating from Millikan University, she began working at The Hemmens in Elgin, the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, and theatres all over the country.

Sullivan’s love for theatre was always accompanied by her love for libraries, leading her to earn her master of library information science in 2018. Take five today and learn more about Sullivan beyond her professional life, which includes some unique names for her cats and her favorite thing to do in the kitchen.

 Cats, dogs, or house plants? Definitely cats. I have two cats – a 10-year-old tuxedo named Sabriel (after the book by Garth Nix) and a 3-year-old black cat named Susuwatari (it means “soot sprite” in Japanese, and you can find them in Studio Ghibli movies)!

What is your favorite meal to cook or favorite dish to eat out? I don’t really cook, but I do bake, and my favorite thing to bake is bread. It makes the whole house smell amazing, and it’s also a really therapeutic process for me.

If you could have dinner with anyone, living or dead, who would it be and why? Probably Carrie Fisher. She was such an inspiration to me, both as a performer and as a mental health advocate. I’d love to sit and listen to her stories and joke with her.

What’s your favorite spot on campus? The Blizzard Theatre stage holds a special place in my heart. I did children’s theatre and danced as a kid; my performances and recitals were here. I spent many, many summers on that stage.

What’s on your playlist/podcast list? My number one is SciShow Tangents, which is a silly little science podcast by the creators of the YouTube series SciShow. My newest favorite is Ologies with Alie Ward. She’s witty and charming, and the topics are fascinating, ranging from Thanatology to Meteorology to Gemology; I learn something new every episode.