December 2015 599 C&RL News Are you looking for ways to expand your professional network and contribute to ACRL? Committee volunteers help shape ACRL by advancing its strategic plan and influencing the direction of academic and research librarianship. Serving on a com- mittee 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, ACRL Vice-President/President-Elect Irene M. H. Herold invites you to volunteer to serve on a 2016–17 division or section committee. When elected, I expressed my desire to lead with “Aloha Spirit.” This has a very spe- cific and special meaning in Hawai'i, such as the “coordination of mind and heart within each person,” and Aloha is the “essence of relationships in which each person is im- portant to every other person for collective existence.”1 Being important to each other for our collective existence is what volun- teering for ACRL is all about. As a member engaged organization, we depend upon you for leadership and the collective wisdom of your mind and heart. I invite you to join with me in contributing to ACRL by volunteering your service. Mahalo.—Irene M. H. Herold, ACRL vice-president/president-elect The rewards of volunteering Volunteering offers many benefits and op- portunities. You can: • connect with others in the profession who are passionate and committed to aca- demic 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 the editorial board section that follows). Section vice-chairs are responsible for committee 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, Make a difference: Connect, contribute, collaborate Volunteer for division and section committees and editorial boards C&RL News December 2015 600 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 2016 ALA Annual Conference should submit a new volunteer form if they wish to be considered for reappointment. The online volunteer form closes February 15, 2016, and most committee appointment offers will be sent in April and May 2016. 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 participate 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, sev- eral 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 them- selves 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 commit- tee 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 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 website (www.acrl.org, select “Directory of Leadership” from the menu bar). Check out the committee’s space in ALA Con- nect, 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 ALA An- nual 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, 2016. You will be asked to login using your ALA member ID and the password you cre- ated. Be sure that you are a current ALA/ACRL member before attempting to login. To volunteer for a division-level com- mittee, visit www.ala.org/acrl/membership/ volunteer/volunteer for more detailed in- structions. 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, vol- unteer again next year. In addition, continue 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 interest group, contact Chase Ollis at collis@ala.org. ACRL division-level committee appointments ACRL committees (and their charges) can be found on the ACRL website (www.acrl. December 2015 601 C&RL News org, select “Directory of Leadership” from the menu bar). Appointments to ACRL standing commit- tees are made in the spring for terms begin- ning immediately after the ALA Annual Con- ference. The Appointments Committee sends appointment recommendations to the ACRL president-elect. The president-elect makes the final appointments for the committees. Questions about division-level appoint- ments may be directed to the chair of the Appointments Committee, Erin L. Ellis, as- sistant dean, Research and Learning Division, University of Kansas, eellis@ku.edu. If you have any questions about using the volunteer form, please contact ACRL Program Officer Allison Payne for division committees at apayne@ala.org or (312) 280- 2519 or ACRL Program Officer Megan Griffin for section committees at mgriffin@ala.org or (312) 280-2514. ACRL section appointments ACRL sections help members customize their ACRL experience through newsletters, electronic discussion lists, specialized pro- gramming, preconferences, 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 begin- ning immediately 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 Febru- ary 15, 2016. For more information about section appointments, please contact section vice-chairs: Anthropology and Sociology Section. Helen Clements, Oklahoma State University, email: helen.clements@okstate.edu Arts Section. Kai A. Smith, University of Notre Dame, email: kaialexis@gmail.com. College Libraries Section. Patricia Kre- itz, Saint Mary’s College of California, email: pak2@stmarys-ca.edu. Community and Junior College Librar- ies Section. Michael Miller, Bronx Commu- nity College-CUNY, email: michael.miller@ bcc.cuny.edu. Distance Learning Section. Stefanie Buck, Oregon State University, email: stefanie.buck001@gmail.com. Education and Behavioral Sciences Section. Kaya Van Beynen, University of South Florida-St. Petersburg, email: kaya- town@mail.usf.edu. Instruction Section. Jennifer Knievel, University of Colorado, email: jennifer. knievel@colorado.edu. Law and Political Science Section. Da- vid Schwieder, University of Florida, email: dschwieder@uflib.ufl.edu. Literatures in English Section. Laura Braunstein, Dartmouth College, email: lrb@ dartmouth.edu. Rare Books and Manuscripts Section. John Overholt, Harvard University, email: overholt@fas.harvard.edu. Science and Technology Section. An- drew Stuart, Ohio University, email: stuarta@ ohio.edu. Slavic and East European Section. Thomas Keenan, Princeton University, email: tkeenan@princeton.edu. University Libraries Section. Rebecca Blakiston, University of Arizona, email: blakisto@email.arizona.edu. Western European Studies Section. Katie Gibson, Miami University, email: gibsonke@miamioh.edu. C&RL News December 2015 602 Women and Gender Studies Section. Nina Clements, Claremont Colleges, email: ninaclements@gmail.com. Editorial boards ACRL has eight editorial/advisory boards for its publications: Academic Library Trends and Statistics Survey Editorial Board; Choice Editorial Board; College & Research Libraries Editorial Board; College & Research Librar- ies News Editorial Board; New Publications Advisory Board; Publications in Librarian- ship 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 Conference. The editors recommend the names of individuals to fill vacancies. The Publications Coordinating Committee approves the recommendation, and the ACRL vice-president/president-elect makes the ap- pointment. 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 Statis- tics Survey Editorial Board chair: Robert E. Dugan, University of West Florida, email: robert.dugan@gmail.com CHOICE editor: Mark Cummings, Choice, email: mcummings@ala-choice.org. College & Research Libraries editor: Scott Walter, University Librarian, DePaul University, email: swalte11@depaul.edu. College & Research Libraries News editor: David Free, ACRL, email: dfree@ ala.org. New Publications Advisory Board staff liai- son: Kathryn Deiss, ACRL, email: kdeiss@ala.org. Publications in Librarianship staff liai- son: Kathryn Deiss, ACRL, email: kdeiss@ala.org. RBM: A Journal of Rare Books, Manu- scripts, and Cultural Heritage editor: Jen- nifer Karr Sheehan, The Grolier Club, email: jsheehan@grolierclub.org. Resources for College Libraries chair: Neal Baker Earlham College Lilly Library, email: bakerne@earlham.edu. Note 1. See www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent /Vol01_Ch0001-0042F/HRS0005/HRS_0005 -0007_0005.htm. The #1 source for jobs in Library and Information Science and Technology joblist.ala.org JOB SEEKERS Search and sort hundreds of job ads by position type, employer, location, and more EMPLOYERS Strengthen your candidate pool— ALA reaches the most engaged professionals and students