ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

ACRL honors the 2002 award winners: Recognizing professional achievement

by Mary Jane Petrowski and Stephanie Sherrod

Excellence in Academic Libraries winners

The winners of the 2002 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award are the Andrew G. Truxal Library at Anne Arundel Community College, Cornell University Library, and Oberlin College Libraries.

Sponsored by ACRL and Blackwell’s Book Services, the award recognizes the staff of a community college, a college, and a university library for programs that deliver exemplary services and resources to further the educational mission of the institution.

“Receiving an Excellence in Academic Libraries Award is a national tribute to a library for the outstanding services, programs, and leadership it provides to its staff, faculty, and community,” said Mary Ellen Davis, ACRL executive director.

The Andrew G. Truxal Library at Anne Arundel Community College

The Andrew G. Truxal Library at Anne Arundel Community College, winner in the community college categoiy, emphasized its unique strategies for meeting the needs of the student body as well as its creative information literacy program that supports the curriculum.

Larry Hardesty, chair of the 2002 Excellence in Academic Libraries Selection Committee, said, “The selection committee felt that the library’s emphasis on ‘colleagues in learn- ing’ gave new meaning to the concept of a learning community.”

“I am thrilled that the faculty and staff at Anne Arundel Community College’s Andrew G.

Truxal Library have won the Excellence in Academic Libraries

Award,” said Library Director Cynthia K. Steinhoff.

Cynthia K. Steinhoff

“This prestigious honor signifies that our library colleagues recognize our firm commitment to student success and lifelong learning. Our partnerships with the faculty, administrators, and others on campus made possible this high level of student support, and I salute them for the vital role they continue to play in helping our library be the best it can be.”

Cornell University Library

Cornell University Library described its commitment to staff development and transforming scholarly communication in its winning application in the university category. Hardesty and the selection committee commented, “Cornell University Library undertook ambitious digitization projects and was willing to share les- sons learned with the wider higher educa- tion commu- nity.”

About the authors

Mary Jane Petrowski is ACRL senior associate executive director, e-mail: mpetrowski@ala.org, and Stephanie Sherrod is ACRL program assistant, e-mail: ssherrod@ala.org

Phipps named Academic/Research Librarian of the Year

Shelley E. Phipps, assistant dean for team and organization development at the University of Arizona (UA) Library in Tucson, Arizona, is the 2002 ACRL Academic/Research Librarian of the Year. The award, sponsored by YBP Library Services, recognizes an outstanding member of the library profession who has made a significant national or international contri- bution to academic research librarianship and library development.

In announcing its selection, the award com- mittee commended Phipps' visionary leader- ship, noting, “Shelley was one of the first to signal a need to trans- form our libraries to become organizations that will meet the challenges of the 21st century. She has fa- cilitated significant change at the Univer- sity of Arizona Library and in numerous other libraries where she has served as a consultant. Shelley’s commitment to teach- ing and mentoring has created an enduring legacy that will continue to touch and in- fluence the development of academic librarianship for years to come. Most impor- tantly, her accomplishments demonstrate that an academic librarian can be a visionary and influential leader without holding the director’s position.”

“I was really surprised when Mary Reichel called to congratulate me,” said Phipps. “I'm not someone who does much of anything by myself. I am always collaborating with others and learning from others. I view this as an award for teamwork, for being willing to be involved, for sharing what I am learning, and for assuming shared leadership for the development of libraries, librarians, and the library profession.”

Shelley E. Phipps and staff of the University of Arizona Library in Tucson, Arizona.

Phipps has held key national leadership positions, serving on the ACRL Board of Directors from 1990-1994, chairing both the ACRL University Libraries Section in 1985 and the ACRL Bibliographic Instruction Section in 1981. The State of Arizona awarded Phipps the

Governor’s Award for Excellence in 1996. Most recently, she contributed her leadership skills to the ACRL Board planning process by facilitating the development of the 2005 ACRL Strategic Plan.

Phipps is a highly regarded organizational development consultant. In 1977, she was se- lected as a Council of Library Resources aca- demic library management intern, serving in the Duke University Perkins Library. In 1981, she graduated from the ARL Consultant Train- ing Program. Her work with the ARL Library Management Skills Institutes, the Leadership and Career Development Program, and the New

Measures Program, has contributed di- rectly to the profes- sional development of hundreds of academic librarians.

Phipps also played a critical role in the transformation of the service model at UA.

Phipps’ publica- tions reflect her pio- neering work in the area of organizational change and leadership. Her most recent publications are “Beyond Measuring Service Quality: Learning from the Voices of the Customers, the Staff, the Processes, and the Organization” (Li- brary Trends, Spring 2000) and “Transforming Libraries into Learning Organizations: The Chal- lenge for Leadership” (Catalysts for Change: Man- aging Libraries in the 1990s, 1993). Her 1993 pub- lication has become a touchstone for those who want to leam how to transform their libraries.

Phipps received her bachelor’s in English literature from Regis College and earned her MLS from UA. At the UA Library she has served as assistant dean for team facilitation since 1993, assistant university librarian for branch services (1991-1993), and held other positions, including acting university librarian, assistant university librarian for branch services, and head librarian for the UA Science-Engineering Library.

Phipps will receive a cash award of $3,000 and a citation at a ceremony and reception to be held Monday, June 17, 2002 during the ALA Annual Conference in Atlanta. The reception is sponsored by YBP Library Services.

Oberlin College Libraries

The Oberlin College Libraries, winner in the college category, was commended by the se- lection committee for “a tradition of leader- ship excellence, both on campus and in the profession.” The committee also saluted Oberlin for its model program aimed at re- cruiting student library assistants into aca- demic librarianship.

“Winning the award is a testament to the superb quality of our library staff and their ongoing commitment to providing excellent services and resources for our community. I greatly appreciate the opportunity this award provides to celebrate the staffs many recent accomplishments, which are part of a long tradition of library excellence at Oberlin,” said

Ray English, director of libraries at Oberlin Col- lege.

Each winning li- brary will receive $3,000 and a citation, to be presented at an award ceremony held on each recipient’s campus. The winners will also receive special recognition at the ACRL President’s Program during the ALA Annual Conference on June 17, 2002, in Atlanta. ■

Cornell University Library

Sarah E. Thomas, Carl A. Kroch uni- versity librar- ian at Cornell University Li- brary, said,

“We are delighted to have been selected. You can’t imagine what a wonderful place Cornell is until you’ve had the pleasure of spending time with our creative and dedicated library staff. They have an un- paralleled esprit de corps, working together to bring the highest quality service to Cornell students, fac- ulty, and staff.

“Whether building a cutting-edge digital li- braiy, providing a nur- turing and intellectual environment for campus learners, or sharing their research with others, my colleagues are the best.”

Staff at the Oberlin College Libraries.

Instruction for first-year undergraduates: Developing strategies to facilitate their transitions

Please join ACRL’s Instruction Section for a preconference in Atlanta, June 14, 2002. The topic of the preconference, Instruction for First-Year Undergraduates: Developing Strategies to Facilitate Their Transitions, is an exciting one!

This preconference will explore characteristics of first-year students, examine what they are learning about information resources and strategies in high school, and investigate programmatic innovations at the institutional and library levels that meet first-year student needs. During the interactive preconference, attendees will develop or enhance personal instructional approaches to working with first-year students with leadership from highly respected librarians.

The speakers include: Randy Hensley, University of Hawaii at Manoa; Frances Jacobson, University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign; Lisa Janicke Hinchliffe, Illinois State University; and Margit Watts, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

This conference topic was hugely successful at ALA’s Annual Conference in Chicago. If you missed it or want a refresher, please join us in Atlanta.

Registration information is now available, and location information will be available shortly. Seating is limited, so please mark your calendars now for June 14, 2002 and plan to attend. Questions? Please contact Carla Wilson Buss, University of Georgia, at (706) 542-1114 or cbuss@libris.libs.uga.edu. See you in Atlanta!