Dear ACRL Members,
On behalf of the ACRL Board of Directors, Steven and I want to share with you information about proposed changes to the ACRL division-level committee structure and because we value your opinion, we invite you to complete a brief survey about the changes.
With ACRL’s new strategic plan, the “Plan for Excellence,” the Board determined it was important to develop a committee structure that aligns with this strategic plan. Since committees are appointed to carry out the work of the Board, the Board wanted to ensure it had the types of committees needed to advance ACRL’s three goal areas: Value of Academic Libraries, Student Learning, and Research and Scholarly Environment as well as its enabling programs and services that target education, advocacy and member engagement.
During the 2011 ALA Annual Conference ACRL Leadership Council the ACRL Board shared information about its plans to conduct an extensive review of all division-level committees. The Board has been working on this process since last summer and has created a proposed new structure in which many existing committees will remain, possibly some with a revised charge, while others will be discontinued. We believe these changes will enhance our effectiveness as an association while still providing value to our members.
While we realize that many of you do not participate in ACRL’s committees we wanted to be sure to keep you informed about this process and invite you to share your ideas. A Frequently Asked Questions page is available to provide you with background information about the proposed restructuring of the division-level committees. After reviewing the FAQ page and the documents related to the restructuring linked from the FAQ, we invite you to complete the ACRL Division-level Committee Structure Proposal Survey no later than December 15, 2011. The results of this survey will be shared at the ACRL Leadership Council meeting to be held on Friday, January 20, 2012, at the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Dallas. The documents will also be posted in ALA Connect for those who cannot attend this session and we will report out the Board’s actions after the Midwinter Meeting.
While division-level committees may change, there are still many other opportunities for members to engage with colleagues on issues of professional interest. If a committee focused on an issue of interest were to be discontinued it may be that more members can participate by having that topic advanced through other ACRL communities. Discussion groups and sections may be proposed for establishment by petition to the ACRL Board of Directors who act on these requests promptly. Petition forms may be found at http://www.acrl.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/workingwithacrl/forms/index.cfm.
In addition, members can form groups on their own in ALA Connect. Visit http://www.acrl.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/getinvolved/index.cfm for additional information. ACRL’s 17 sections and 8 interest groups also have many volunteer opportunities and interesting projects.
Thank you for sharing your time and talents with your ACRL colleagues, and thank you in advance for sharing your ideas in the survey.
Sincerely,
Joyce Ogburn
ACRL President, 2011-2012
joyce.ogburn@utah.edu
Steven Bell
ACRL Vice-President/President Elect, 2011-2012
bells@temple.edu