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From the President

posted: 28 March 2005

For this, my last president's Update column, I have three objectives: thanks, highlighting major initiatives, and touching on some of the myriad activities that have occupied the Society over the last year.

I would like to start by thanking the Society for the opportunity to serve as your president. Serving as president has been a substantial time commitment; it has also been rewarding in many ways. I feel that in the course of fulfilling my duties I have learned so much, and been able to make a difference. I couldn?t ask for more. I received support from many sources, and would like to acknowledge at least some of those here. Thanks go to past president Allen Townsend who started my training when I was vice-president and has generously continued to offer advice and the balm of good humor throughout the past year. I would also like to thank other past presidents--presidents emeriti--Ted Goodman, Daniel Starr, B.J. Irvine, Jack Robertson, and Roger Lawson for their help, support, and counsel. Incoming president Margaret Webster has been a delight to work with, and along with the members of the Executive Board, a source for alternate perspectives and shared commitment to the welfare of ARLIS/NA. For those who have collaborated or participated in Society projects or initiatives, thank you for your involvement and accomplishments. And to the membership as a whole, thank you for continuing to support ARLIS/NA and the advancement of the Society and its work.

In looking back over my term, I have to say that the ARLIS/NA web site (AWS) redesign is, in my opinion, potentially one of the most far reaching projects. I started lobbying for and working on a redesign as vice-president. Now, as I am about to become past president, those beginnings and the efforts of many are coming to fruition. The most annoying and obvious problem with the AWS was the navigation. This has been addressed in the newly structured pages. But so much more has been set in motion with the redesign. The long-term implications are inspiring. We can build on the redesign to consider additions of content, we can explore using the AWS for functions such as the online purchase of publications, and we can expand use of the AWS for communication with members through foci such as news and periodic surveys. The possibilities will continue to unfold as we settle into using the new site. The Society?s thanks go to Publications Committee chair Jack Robertson for pursuing this so vigorously, and to current web master Nedda Ahmed and past web master Jonathan Franklin for all their work to implement this project. Others from the Publications Committee and the board have provided valuable feedback. Ultimately it will be for the membership to make this web site their own by contributing the content that will bring it to life and by offering suggestions for its continuous improvement.

A second major initiative which came to fruition this year after several years of preparation is the Summer Educational Institute for Visual Resources and Image Management. Sponsored jointly with VRA, the Summer Educational Institute "is intended to provide a standardized and sustainable program for visual resources training, with a focus on issues related to the transition from analog to digital collections" (per the web site). The first institute was held in the summer of 2004, and was judged a great success by attendees and instructors alike. The second institute will be July 5-9, 2005 at Duke. The Society's thanks go to Mary Wasserman and John Taormina the co-chairs for the first institute and substantially responsible for shaping the institute, and to Trudy Jacoby and Maureen Burns who have taken up the torch and serve as the current co-chairs.

Among the many other activities in which the Society has been engaged, the following stand out as having a strong potential for the future.

The membership voted on a dues structure revision and bylaws changes resulting in a more flexible association. For example, the bylaws were revised to allow the possibility of electronic voting.
The Development Committee chaired by Kim Collins, and in particular Allen Townsend combining the roles of past president and local conference development person, led the way in implementing an approach to development suggested by our executive director, Elizabeth Clarke, offering sponsorship packages at various levels (gold, silver, etc.) to our supporters.
The management firm and select members of the board explored such issues as chapter liability insurance and distance learning, with resolution still pending.
The Professional Development Committee chaired by Heather Ball refined the list of core competencies presented in draft at the New York conference, and readied for the next step: putting the competencies to use.
The Publications Committee subgroup led by Roger Lawson investigated and recommended that the Society enter into an agreement with Ebsco to provide Art Documentation in Ebsco full-text online databases, potentially bringing a much higher profile to Art Doc articles and authors, and thereby to the association.
New entries in the Occasional Papers series were proposed and are now in progress under the guidance of editor Paul Glassman.
Award recipients were identified for a variety of awards, thanks to the hard work of the various awards committees.
A Strategic Plan is being developed for 2006-2009, based on two surveys of the membership, an environmental scan, and discussion sessions at conference, under the leadership of co-chairs Leslie Abrams and Lucie Stylianopoulos.
And as many of you have experienced by the time you read this column, the Houston conference planning team put together a stellar conference experience, led by local arrangements co-chairs Jon Evans and Mark Pompelia and program co-chairs Laura Schwartz and Elizabeth Schaub.

More on the Society?s year can be found in my annual report on--where else--the ARLIS/NA web site!

In conclusion, let me reiterate my thank you to all the members who have made this year a success for the Society.

Jeanne Brown, ARLIS/NA President

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