About Randy
Randy Thompson holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He also earned a Master of Library Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Telecommunications and Political Science from Indiana University Bloomington. His academic background blends legal training and information science, a combination that has shaped his career path.
He serves as an Associate Professor of Law and the Director of the Young Law Library and IT Services at the University of Arkansas School of Law. In that role he oversees library operations and the technology infrastructure that supports students, faculty and researchers. His work touches collections, instructional support and the systems that deliver legal information across the law school.
Thompson's training in both law and librarianship informs how he approaches legal research education and library management. He teaches and mentors law students on research strategies and resource use, and he takes part in faculty collaboration around curricular needs. He manages staff and coordinates services that aim to make primary and secondary legal materials accessible to the law school community.
Active in professional circles, Thompson is a member of the Illinois State Bar. He belongs to the American Bar Association and has held membership in the American Association of Law Libraries since 1991. Since 2008 he has been involved in Mid-America regional organizations, serving on the Mid-America Association of Law Libraries and the Mid-America Law Libraries Consortium, including a role on the Consortium's Executive Board that dates from 2008 to the present. Those affiliations connect him to developments in legal information, library practice and the technology supporting legal research.
At the University of Arkansas School of Law, he maintains an academic appointment while directing library and IT services that support teaching, scholarship and clinical work. He remains engaged in both bar and library associations, balancing administrative duties with classroom responsibilities. He currently focuses his practice on legal research instruction, law library administration and law school information technology services.
