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From the Presidentposted 10 October 2007The executive board met for its mid-year meeting September 17-18 in Minneapolis to review recommendations for ARLIS/NA organizational restructuring--a structure which will soon be yours to vote on! We also discussed proposed changes to the nominations process, progress on member conveniences such as the MemberClicks online membership service, and various reports on other task force and committee activities. It was a busy, productive meeting in which we balanced "big picture" review planning with discussions of minute detail. Substantial topics, issues, and initiatives are demanding attention of the executive board and the society. All of the activity demonstrates a strong awareness of the 2006-2009 Strategic Plan:
Task Force Reports, Committee Reports and Next Steps Assessment Task Force Much of our September 2007 meeting focused on Assessment Task Force recommendations. As reported at the end of summer, the board agreed that all committees should retain their current structures. After the Atlanta conference, we received a great deal of input resisting a recommendation to transform the divisions and sections into special interest groups. Accordingly, we agreed to retain committees, divisions, and sections recognizing that these subgroups are a critical part of the ARLIS/NA organizational identity and fabric. We accepted the recommendation to disband roundtables in deference to promoting interest groups which offer members a less formal, more flexible way to meet, organize, and dig in to various topics of interest in our profession. The interest groups will operate according to the Assessment Task Force recommendation. We took action on recommendations for restructuring the executive board. For the last five months, board members exercised functional roles (as recommended) while maintaining some of their regional liaison functions. Much of the chapter liaison work has gradually and successfully been transferred to our chapter coordinator position. After a thorough examination and review of the effectiveness of this structure, we decided to transform the current board roles to become "Functional Liaisons." The objective is to move from geographical representation to representatives playing functional roles in key areas such as communications liaison, education liaison, marketing and development liaison, and a chapter coordinator. Board members will continue visiting chapters throughout the year. We believe that this change will improve our society's ability to address and to accomplish many goals of our strategic plan. We chose to continue one geographical position by retaining the Canadian representative seat on the board. This position will be at-large so that one board member will have flexibility to serve in a variety of functional capacities. A summary of the ARLIS/NA restructuring efforts and the options under consideration will be made prior to the membership voting to change the bylaws by the end of 2007. We also decided to appoint a task force to provide planning recommendations for advancing the society's technological infrastructure. This will lead us to a variety of means to communicate, facilitate initiatives, and network. The task force will help ARLIS/NA envision a new technological framework. Nominations Task Force A membership vote to revise the nominations process will be brought to the membership by the end of 2007. The Nominations Task Force has recommended a hybrid nominations process combining elements of former and current procedures. This is a strong recommendation that the executive board agreed offers a balanced process. Details of the ballot process have not been finalized and have been sent back to the task force to complete. Summer Educational Institute Task Force The Summer Educational Institute (SEI) Task Force proposed the formation of an SEI Advisory Group. The advisors would represent both ARLIS/NA and VRA. Their focus would be on long-term planning. The executive board will be discussing this proposal within the next few weeks. Awards Task Force The Awards Task Force recommended that the awards calendar synchronize the process for all of the awards committees. This suggestion was well-received by the executive board and results will be seen within this year's award planning and reporting. Education Task Force The Education Task Force submitted a thorough overview of the educational initiatives currently underway and recommendations for how we might shape a more substantial framework to support these initiatives. The overall recommendation suggests that the society begin to address more fully the educational initiatives as outlined in the 2006-2009 Strategic Plan. The executive board will be examining the recommendations and the task force will soon present a survey to find out what the society wants in terms of educational initiatives. Membership Committee Task Force The committee provided a number of recommendations, including promotional ideas and a call for the first membership dues increase in ten years. While we are proud to offer quality member services at the current rates, today's dues do not carry the power they carried ten years ago. The possibility of an increase was discussed and we reviewed options from which to calculate potential increases. We believe that this is a decision that should be made with deliberation and care and that must be based on strong findings for need. Our goal is that any increase would impose minimal impact while providing maximum benefit for our members. Accordingly, we found that the topic warrants further research and it is definitely a topic to watch during the next year. Membership Services There were a number of Special Funding Request Proposals approved at the mid-year meeting. An announcement about these will be available by the end of October 2007. It is exciting to see the projects, gatherings, and other initiatives proposed. We are getting closer to presenting MemberClicks, which will provide us with a new online membership directory that allows for continuous updating and simplifies the membership renewal process. As I mentioned in my last message, we ran into a couple of project delays but expect to have this service up by the end of October. We thank you for your patience. Once MemberClicks is in place, the membership handbook and directory will be updated. The Board recognizes that the move to an electronic version is an issue for many members who are accustomed to ARLIS/NA providing a print copy. We revisited the topic at the mid-year meeting to review the feedback from you. We confirmed our decision that having an online version that can be updated along with the pdf version and directory will be practical: members can print/download the files and a copy will be maintained in our paper archives. We will be discussing options for producing a minimal number of printed copies for purchase. I want to thank the board members for their considerable contributions of time, commitment, and diligence, and of course I strongly encourage all members to offer your input on any pertinent issue. My son celebrates his first birthday this month! It is hard to believe that a year has passed. I'll be the first to admit that at times being a new mom, an academic librarian, and president of ARLIS/NA has its challenges! Luckily, I've been blessed with lots of energy and enthusiasm for these demands. I am energized by what is an exciting time for ARLIS/NA as we identify and adopt innovation in support of our mission and vision. Yours Sincerely, Deborah K. Ultan Boudewyns ARLIS/NA President Top of Page |