John M. Jackson is Cataloging Supervisor at the University of Southern California Grand Library in Los Angeles. John has been an ACRL member since 2010 and is your ACRL member of the week.
1. Describe yourself in three words: Postmodern technophile lit-geek.
2. What are you reading right now (or listening to on your iPod)? I just finished reading Thousands of Broadways : Dreams and Nightmares of the American Small Town by Robert Pinsky and I’m about to start Seeking Meaning : A Process Approach to Library and Information Services by Carol Kuhlthau. My iPod helps me make it through the daily LA commute with Radiolab and This Week in Google.
3. Describe ACRL in three words: Focused collaborative development.
4. Why did you join ACRL? I joined ACRL as a step forward in my own professional development as a library student and as a relatively new addition to the ranks of those working for the libraries of academia.I’m excited about the possibilities for collaboration and sharing that being part of a professional organization can bring about and inspire.
5. What do you value about academic or research librarianship? I admire its intensity, its dedication to the goals of scholarship, and its trust in the ability of people to drive intellectual change through individual research and collaboration.
6. In your own words: In January 2009, I began an MLIS program specializing in academic libraries. I spend my days cataloging and my nights studying (and cooking dinner with my lovely wife, Tiffany). The hours are rough, but I like to think the work is noble. I have aspirations of working as a subject specialist and reference librarian for the institutions of higher education; but, life thus far has taught me that in the end we rarely have the final say. So I will continue to pursue my goal, letting the currents guide me, in the hopes that wherever I end up… well, that’s where I’ll be.
Editor’s Note: Are you an ACRL member? Would you like to be featured as ACRL Member of the Week? Nominate a colleague? Contact Mary Jane Petrowski at mpetrowski@ala.org for more information.
With topnotch youngsters like this, there is hope for the library of the future.
Hang in there! and keep safeguarding our literary future!