[Sigiii-l] [InfoInternational] ACRL - Letter from the President

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Association of College and Research Libraries
Letter from the President
May, 2002


ACRL is an active, vibrant organization thanks to the efforts of all of our members, including those who serve on committees and participate in other leadership roles.  Of course, the members could not be successful without the crucial work of the ACRL staff, and it has been a particular pleasure this year to work with Mary Ellen Davis as she assumed her new role as Executive Director.  

During 2001-2002, there have been a number of special initiatives and accomplishments.  One of the most important was formalizing ACRL's role in scholarly communication by the creation of a permanent committee and discussion group, as well as making provision for staffing dedicated to promotion of scholarly communication issues.  The work of the Focus on the Future Task Force has ensured that we remain mindful of big picture issues as we daily deal with ongoing work and problems.  We have also reached out to the higher education community to promote the importance of academic libraries and librarians.  ACRL's media campaign aimed at campus decision-makers led to three advertisements in The Chronicle of Higher Education, which featured quotes from administrators, faculty, and students about the importance of libraries on their campuses.  Reactions have been very favorable.

Continuing the focus on major issues, ACRL and the Association of Research Libraries have created a joint Task Force on Recruitment with the goal of developing strategies to recruit the next generation of academic librarians.  Vice-President Helen Spalding inspired the creation of the ACRL @ your library Task Force which is developing key messages to promote the importance of academic libraries in higher education.  Many other major activities focused on effective operations of the association, such as funding and organizational issues.

In support of the 2001-2002 presidential theme of "ACRL: The Learning Community for Excellence in Academic Libraries," the President's Program Committee started a column in C&RL News on learning communities in which different writers discussed the importance of learning communities as a concept and on their campuses.  The 2002 Midwinter Meeting featured a President's Program Discussion Group at which four librarians demonstrated how ACRL-sponsored programs affected their institutions' commitment to fostering information literacy and standards for assessment.  

I look forward to seeing all of you in Atlanta for the ALA Annual Conference.  The Conference will feature 22 programs presented by ACRL sections and committees.  The President's Program on Monday afternoon, June 17 is entitled "Transformational Learning Communities: Claiming our Future" and will feature Barbara Leigh Smith, codirector of the National Learning Communities Project.  It should be exciting and challenging. 

Congratulations to all ACRL award winners, individuals and libraries.  The Award Program is a most important way of honoring the best in academic librarianship, and I encourage you to start thinking about your nominations for ACRL's 23 awards today.

Thank you for this opportunity to serve as ACRL President.  It has been an honor and a pleasure, and I have learned a tremendous amount as I had the opportunity to meet many of you, visit your libraries, and interact with others in higher education. ACRL is certainly my learning community.

With warm regards,

Mary Reichel, President
Association of College and Research Libraries
 

 
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