ACRL announces invited speakers for 14th National Conference

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) is pleased to announce a distinguished lineup of invited paper presenters for the ACRL 14th National Conference, “Pushing the Edge: Explore, Engage, Extend,” to be held March 12-15, 2009 in Seattle, Wash. These speakers will examine such topics as the culture of assessment, measures of success in higher education and issues and trends in higher education.

Marilee J. Bresciani is associate professor of postsecondary education at San Diego State University and faculty coordinator of the master’s and doctorate in postsecondary educational leadership. Bresciani previously served as the assistant vice president for institutional assessment at Texas A&M University and director of assessment at North Carolina State University. Her research focuses on organizational evaluation of student learning and development. Bresciani has authored four books, along with multiple chapters, refereed journal articles and other publications. In addition, she is a frequent facilitator of workshops and conversations around evaluating student learning centeredness across the globe. During her presentation in Seattle, Bresciani will discuss the differences and similarities between measures of success used in business and higher education, within the context of general education.

Peter Hernon is a professor at Simmons College, where he teaches courses on government information policy and resources, evaluation of information services, research methods and academic librarianship. He received his Ph.D. from Indiana University and, in addition to teaching at Simmons College, has taught at the University of Arizona and Victoria University of Wellington (New Zealand). He is the co-editor of Library & Information Science Research, founding editor of Government Information Quarterly and past editor of The Journal of Academic Librarianship. He is also the author of approximately 275 publications, including 45 books. Hernon is the 2008 recipient of the ACRL Academic/Research Librarian of the Year Award.  His presentation will examine the culture of assessment from the perspective of an accreditation organization, how academic libraries fit into the accreditation process and how to assess performance.

Elson S. Floyd has been president of Washington State University (WSU), the state of Washington’s land-grant research university, since May 2007. WSU is classified among the nation’s 96 leading public and private universities with very high research activity by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Floyd brings an exceptionally wide range of administrative experience, as well as valuable state and national perspectives on higher education issues and policies. A native of Henderson, N.C., he holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science and speech, a master of education degree in adult education and a doctor of philosophy degree in higher and adult education, all from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. Floyd will discuss trends in higher education administration during his presentation at the ACRL National Conference.

Further details about the ACRL 14th National Conference are online at http://www.acrl.org/seattle. Registration will open in mid-to-late September 2008.  For more information, contact Margot Conahan at (312) 280-2522 or by e-mail at mconahan@ala.org.

2009 Councilor-At-Large Elections

The ALA 2009 Nominating Committee is soliciting nominees to run on the 2009 spring ballot for the offices of ALA President-elect and Councilor-at-large.

The Nominating Committee will select two candidates to run for President-elect and no fewer than 50 candidates for the 33 at-large Council seats to be filled in the 2009 spring election.  The President-elect will serve a three-year term: as President-elect in 2009-2010, as President in 2010-2011, and as Immediate Past President in 2011-2012.  The Councilors-at-large will serve three-year terms, beginning after the 2009 ALA Annual Conference and ending at the adjournment of the 2012 Annual Conference.

The ALA President and Councilors also serve in corresponding roles in the ALA-Allied Professional Association [ALA-APA].  Individuals considering ALA-APA office are encouraged to consult with their employer regarding any restrictions regarding lobbying activities or service on the governing body of a 501(c)6 organization.

Members who wish to make nominations should submit the following information: nominee name; present position; institution; address; telephone; fax; and e-mail address.  Self-nominations are encouraged.  All potential nominees must complete the Potential Candidate Biographical Form available at  <https://cs.ala.org/potentialcandidates/> https://cs.ala.org/potentialcandidates/ The database will be available June 2, 2008.   Nominations and forms must be received no later than September 1, 2008.

Nominations may be sent to any member of the 2009 Nominating Committee.  Committee members are:  Susan S. DiMattia, Chair, Consultant, DiMattia Associates, Stamford, CT,  sdimattia@optonline.net; Rose T. Dawson, Acting Director, Alexandria (VA) Library,  rdawson@alexandria.lib.vaus; Timothy P. Grimes, Manager, Community Relations and Marketing, Ann Arbor (MI) District Library,  grimest@aadl.org; Susan Hildreth, State Librarian, California State Library, Sacramento,  shhildreth@comcast.net; Corinne M. Hill, Collection Development Manager, Denton (TX) Public Library;  cmhill@cityofdenton.com; Pamela Spencer Holley. Writer, Consultant, Hallwood, VA;  pamsholley@aol.com; Jo Ellen Priest Misakian, Interim Dean/School of Education, Fresno Pacific University, Fresno, CA;  jmisakian@fresno.edu; Daniel O. O’Connor, Professor, Rutgers University School of Communication Information & Library Studies, New Brunswick, NJ; oconnor@scils.rutgers.edu; and Thomas C. Wilson, Associate Dean, Library Technology, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, tcwilson@ua.edu.

To encourage diversity and leadership development, the Committee will refrain from nominating any current Councilors for election to another term.  However, the Committee encourages all current Councilors who wish to continue their service to the Association to file as petition candidates.  Petitions will be available from Lois Ann Gregory-Wood, Council Secretariat, ALA, 50 E. Huron, Chicago, IL 60611, Email: lgregory@ala.org, or during the 2008 Annual Conference or 2009 Midwinter Meeting.  Petitions require 25 signatures for names to be included on the 2009 ballot.