Name, job title, and department: Michael MacEwen, director of administrative services, library administration.
What do you do—in one sentence: I oversee the business processes for the library including finance, HR, and building operations.
Where are you from? I was born in Minneapolis, but I spent most of my childhood in Dayton, Ohio. Between 2005 and now, I’ve lived in Michigan, South Carolina, Colorado, New Hampshire, Western Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. Now I live in Rockville, MD.
Why Georgetown/D.C.? D.C. has always been a place my wife and I had hoped to land someday. We like that it’s a bigger metro area with great museums and cultural diversity. As for Georgetown, I had been working in education/higher education in this area for the past 15 years, so I already knew it was special. Plus, I have three cousins and some close family friends and coworkers who are Georgetown alums and have said nothing but positive things.
What are some of your hobbies? Before I had my second son, I was an avid long-distance runner and triathlete. I’ve run two full marathons, a half-dozen half-marathons, and completed a 70.3 Ironman triathlon last summer. After having my second son, I don’t have the amount of spare time I used to, so now I focus more on doing home improvement projects and chasing after the boys.
Favorite book? A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry.
What are you listening to right now? I know I am almost a decade late but I recently rediscovered the musical Hamilton. I saw it once when it came to the Kennedy Center, but I hadn’t heard any of the music prior to seeing it so I didn’t fully absorb it. But, after watching it again with subtitles, I understood what the hype was about. Beyond that, I’ve been listening to stuff on the edge of folk and bluegrass, like Kacey Musgraves, Brandy Carlisle, and Todd Snider.
If you could be present for any event of the past, present, or future, what would it be? My son is very into dinosaurs right now, so I’d like to visit the late Cretaceous Period to truly see what they looked like. Beyond that, I’m fascinated with what the terrain and plant life would have looked like.
What's your superpower/hidden talent? I’m very good at quickly learning and remembering names, and I can say the alphabet backward very quickly.
What material thing could you not live without? I’ll go with my stainless-steel water bottle because it’s important to stay hydrated! I try to always keep mine full.
If you didn’t work in your current field, what would you be doing? Teaching or facilitating in some way, shape or form. That could be anything from doing work in educational technology to teaching outdoor education to fifth graders.
You are building your dream house. What is one room or feature you would want to include? I would want a basement with a trapdoor in the ground. You could press a button that would open a door in the floor to reveal a hydraulic gaming table (ping pong, pool, etc.) that would rise up when you wanted to play and then send back down so that you could use the room for whatever you want.