dec12_b.indd C&RL News December 2012 654 Are you looking for ways to expand your professional network and contribute to ACRL? Committee volunteers help shape the association by advancing its strategic plan and influencing the direction of academic and research librarianship. Serving on a committee or editorial board is a great way to become involved and make an impact on the profession. If you’d like to become more engaged, I invite you to volunteer to serve on a 2013–14 division or section committee. Volunteering in ACRL is a wonderful way to help develop your leadership skills, meet new colleagues, and develop or enhance your professional network. I therefore strongly en- courage all association members to volunteer to serve. After all, the association is only as strong as its members. It is through the dedi- cated work of our member-leaders that ACRL continues to thrive. Your contributions help ACRL achieve the goals stated in the Plan for Excellence (our strategic plan), provide an opportunity for you to share your expertise, and continue to pro- mote ACRL as the higher education association for librarians. I thank you, in advance, for volunteering your time and efforts to strengthen the asso- ciation—Trevor A. Dawes, ACRL vice-president/ president-elect The rewards of volunteering Volunteering offers many benefits and oppor- tunities. You can: • connect with others in the profession who are passionate and committed to academic librarianship, • learn from those who share similar professional concerns and interests, • network with information professionals in higher education, • become part of a community of aca- demic and research librarians, • gain insights into the profession, • enhance your leadership skills through group facilitation and project management, • discover new ways to work, • expand your awareness and under- standing of the value of academic libraries in higher education, • influence and advance the work of the association and the profession, and • promote excellence within the profes- sion. The appointment process Appointments are made at the division and section level, and through the editorial board process (see editorial board section below). Section vice-chairs are responsible for commit- tee appointments for the year they will serve as chair. The ACRL vice-president is responsible for committee appointments at the division level for the year he or she serves as president. The ACRL Appointments Committee assists the vice- president in an advisory capacity. Division-level committees are created to conduct the work of the Board, and each committee crafts an annual work plan in consultation with their Board and staff liaisons to accomplish the charged activities and responsibilities. Current committee members whose terms conclude at the 2013 ALA Annual Conference should submit a new volunteer form if they wish to be considered for re-appointment. The online volunteer form closes February 15, 2013, Make a difference: Connect, contribute, collaborate Volunteer for division and section committees and editorial boards December 2012 655 C&RL News and most committee appointment offers will be sent in April and May 2013. Onsite attendance at the ALA Midwinter Meeting and the ALA Annual Conference is not a requirement of committee service. However, members of all ACRL committees, task forces, and similar bodies are expected to fully par- ticipate in the work of the group whether it be working virtually or face-to-face. Factors influencing appointment Although the appointment process may reflect the priorities of the vice-president/president- elect and section vice-chairs, several factors are always considered: • Evidence of interest and expertise. Have prospective volunteers attended the meetings, visited and/or posted to the committee’s ALA Connect community, and introduced themselves to the chair? Do they have knowledge and/or previous experience that relates to the work of the committee? Have they indicated their interest on the volunteer form? • Demographics and composition of com- mittee. A balance is sought with respect to type of library (community college, college, or university), geographic representation, ethnic diversity, and gender. Those who have not had the opportunity to serve on an ACRL committee are encouraged to volunteer. • Recommendation of the current committee chair. Current committee chairs are asked to suggest prospective members. • Willingness to participate in the work of the committee. While attendance at the ALA Annual Conference and Midwinter Meeting is not required to serve on a committee, volunteers should be prepared to engage in the committee work year-round. The final appointments are the prerogative of the ACRL president-elect and the section vice-chairs. How to apply 1. Identify the committees that interest you. ACRL committees and their charges are listed on the ACRL Web site (www.acrl.org, select “Direc- tory of Leadership” from the menu bar). Check out the committees space in ALA Connect, where documents, discourses, and the work of the committees are posted. Attend face-to-face (or virtual) committee meetings at the ALA Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference to decide if their activities interest you. Talk with committee members. Express your interest to the committee chair. Ask about current projects and explain how you might contribute to the work of the committee. 2. Submit a volunteer form. Volunteer forms should be submitted by February 15, 2013. You will be asked to login using your ALA member ID and the password you created. Be sure that you are a current ALA/ACRL member before attempting to login. To volunteer for a division-level com- mittees, visit www.ala.org/acrl/membership /volunteer/volunteer for more detailed instruc- tions. To volunteer for a section committee, com- plete the online volunteer form at www.ala.org/ acrl/membership/volunteer/volunteer. 3. Volunteer again and check out other opportunities. If you are not appointed, volunteer again next year. In addition, con- tinue to explore ACRL’s many opportunities to network and connect at www.ala.org/acrl /getinvolved. Review the many discussion and interest groups. Each group selects a new leader in the spring outside of the volunteer process described above. If you’d like to start a new discussion or inter- est group, contact ACRL Program Coordinator Casey Kinson at ckinson@ala.org. ACRL division-level committee appointments ACRL committees (and their charges) can be found on the ACRL Web site (www.acrl.org, select “Directory of Leadership” from the menu bar). Appointments to ACRL standing committees are made in the spring for terms beginning im- mediately after the ALA Annual Conference. The Appointments Committee sends appointment recommendations to the ACRL president-elect. The president-elect makes the final appoint- ments for the committees. C&RL News December 2012 656 Questions about division-level appoint- ments may be directed to the Appointments Committee Chair Kenley Neufeld, library director at Santa Barbara City College, at kenleyneufeld@gmail.com. If you have any questions about using the volunteer form, please contact Casey Kinson for division committees at ckinson@ala.org or (312) 280-2511 or ACRL Program Officer Megan Griffin for section committees at mgrif- fin@ala.org or (312) 280-2514. ACRL section appointments ACRL has 17 specialized sections which help members customize their ACRL experience through newsletters, electronic discussion lists, specialized programming, preconfer- ences, recognition, and various initiatives. To learn more, visit www.ala.org/acrl/aboutacrl /directoryofleadership/sections. Section vice-chairs appoint members to section committees. Most appointments are made in the spring for terms beginning im- mediately after the ALA Annual Conference. If you wish to be considered for a sec- tion committee appointment, complete the ACRL volunteer form at www.ala.org/acrl /membership/volunteer/volunteer by February 15, 2013. For more information about section appointments, please contact section vice-chairs: African American Studies Librarians Section. Johnnieque B. Love, University of Maryland; phone: (301) 405-9048; e-mail: jlove1@umd.edu. Anthropology and Sociology Section. Pauline D. Manaka, University of California- Irvine; phone: (949) 824-4969; e-mail: pdmanaka @uci.edu. Arts Section. Sara Harrington, Ohio University; phone: (740) 593-0219; e-mail: harrings@ohio.edu. Asian, African and Middle Eastern Sec- tion. ShuYong Jiang, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; phone: (217) 244-3669; e-mail: shyjiang@illinois.edu. College Libraries Section. Sally Gibson, Creighton University; phone: (402) 280-2228; e-mail: sallygibson@creighton.edu. Community and Junior College Librar- ies Section. Jose A. Aguinaga, Glendale Community College; phone: (623) 845-4105; e-mail: jose.aguinaga@gcmail.maricopa.edu. Distance Learning Section. Timothy Peters, Central Michigan University; phone: (989) 774-3720; e-mail: peter1t@cmich.edu. Education and Behavioral Sciences Section. Scott Andrew Collard, New York University; phone: (212) 992-9240; e-mail: sac11@nyu.edu. Instruction Section. Christy R. Stevens, California State Polytechnic University; phone: (909) 869-4236; e-mail: crs7772@ gmail.com. Law and Political Science Section. Lyn- da M. Kellam, University of North Carolina- Greensboro; phone: (336) 334-5251; e-mail: lmkellam@uncg.edu. Literatures in English Section. Arianne Hartsell-Gundy, Miami University; phone: (513) 529-8494; e-mail: hartsea@miamioh. edu. Rare Books and Manuscripts Section. J. Fernando Pena, Long Island University; phone: (212) 998-2681; e-mail: fernando. pena@liu.edu. Science and Technology Section. Mat- thew Marsteller, Carnegie Mellon University; phone: (412) 268-7212; e-mail: matthewm@ andrew.cmu.edu. Slavic and East European Section. Nata- sha Lyandres, University of Notre Dame; phone: (574) 631-3009; e-mail: nlyandre@nd.edu. University Libraries Section. Beth Filar-Williams, University of North Carolina- December 2012 657 C&RL News Greensboro; phone: (336) 256-1232; e-mail: efwilli3@uncg.edu. Western European Studies Section. Timothy Shipe, University of Iowa; phone: (319) 335-5824; e-mail: timothy-shipe@uiowa.edu. Women and Gender Studies Section. Heather Lee Tompkins, Carleton College; phone: (507) 222-7172; e-mail: htompkin@ carleton.edu. Editorial boards ACRL has eight editorial/advisory boards for its publications: Academic Library Trends and Statistics Survey Editorial Board; Choice Edito- rial Board; College & Research Libraries Editorial Board; College & Research Libraries News Edito- rial Board; New Publications Advisory Board; Publications in Librarianship Editorial Board; RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Cultural Heritage Editorial Board; and Resources for College Libraries Editorial Board. Appointments to editorial boards are made after the ALA Midwinter Meeting for terms that begin immediately after the ALA Annual Con- ference. The editors recommend the names of individuals to fill vacancies. The Publications Coordinating Committee approves the rec- ommendation, and the ACRL vice-president/ president-elect makes the appointment. If you would like to be considered for ap- pointment to an editorial board, contact the editor of the editorial board early in the fall or indicate your interest on the ACRL online volunteer form. Academic Library Trends and Statistics Survey Editorial Board chair. Charles C. Stewart, City College Libraries; e-mail: cstewart @ccny.cuny.edu. Choice editor. Irving Rockwood, Choice; phone: (800) 347-6933 x119; e-mail: irock- wood@ala-choice.org. College & Research Libraries editor designate. Scott Walter, DePaul University, phone: (773) 325-8023; e-mail: swalte11@ depaul.edu College & Research Libraries News editor. David Free, ACRL; phone: (312) 280- 2517; e-mail: dfree@ala.org. New Publications Advisory Board staff liaison. Kathryn Deiss, ACRL; phone: (312) 280-2529; e-mail: kdeiss@ala.org. Publications in Librarianship editor. Craig Gibson, George Mason University; phone: (703) 993-3716; e-mail: jgibson1@ gmu.edu. RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manu- scripts, and Cultural Heritage editor. Beth Whittaker, Ohio State University; phone: (614) 247-7463; e-mail: whittaker.50@osu.edu. Resources for College Libraries chair. Nancy P. O’Brien, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; phone: (217) 333-2408; e-mail: npobrien@illinois.edu. www.antioch.edu/phd (877) 800-9466 A PhD program that focuses on your learning and leading A curriculum that applies cutting-edge research to your own practice Live anywhere, work fulltime Attend quarterly residencies coupled with virtual learning throughout the year Study with renowned scholar-practitioner faculty Graduation rates that surpass the national average High student satisfaction and success Faculty who love their work and who care about change Antioch University’s multi-campus system is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.