may04a.indd


I n  t h e  

ACRL initiated a strategic planning process 
in 2003, with a goal of developing a new 
strategic plan that will guide the association 
for the next five to ten years. After spend­
ing a considerable amount of time refl ect­
ing on member input, conversations with 
ACRL staff, and their own experiences with 
the association, the ACRL Board drafted a 
draft strategic plan, which was shared with 
the membership at the Midwinter Meeting. 
The final plan will be presented at this year’s 
Annual Conference and implementation will 
begin in summer 2004. 

The article on page 258 provides back­
ground on the strategic planning process 
and an overview of the insights provided by 
membership that drove the development of 
this new plan. 

The Scholarly Communication column 
offers an international perspective with “The 
view from Europe” (p. 265). David Prosser, 

the director of SPARC Europe, informs on 
European initiatives in the area of scholarly 
communication, as well as provides an over­
view of the differences between the scholarly 
communication landscape in the U.S. and 
Europe. 

Also in this issue is the revised draft of 
“Guidelines for Loan of Rare and Unique 
Materials” (the original guidelines were ap­
proved in 1994). A hearing on the guidelines 
will be held at the ALA Annual Conference, 
Saturday, June 26, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. 

For a complete listing of ACRL precon­
ferences, programs, meetings, and special 
events at Annual Conference (June 24–30, 
Orlando, Florida), see the preliminary pro­
gram (p. AC–1 to AC­16). Don’t forget to 
take this pull­out guide to conference for 
easy reference. 

—Stephanie Orphan, Editor­in­chief 
sorphan@ala.org 

246 / C&RL News  May 2004 

mailto:sorphan@ala.org