Pat is a graduate of Western Michigan University. She received her BA in 1967 and her MLS in 1968. In 1991. Pat received her Ph.D. in Library and Information Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Pat's areas of teaching include management of libraries, children's and young adult materials, public libraries, and public library services to youth, literacy, and storytelling. She is co-author of Writers on Writing for Young Adults.