People

Appointments & Retirements

Carter, Lisa

August 1 Lisa R. Carter became vice provost of the University of Wisconsin– Madison Libraries.
Freas, Stephanie

Stephanie Freas joined Muskingum County (Ohio) Library System as assistant director in June.
Furlong, John

August 1 John Furlong became associate university librarian for the research and academic collaboration services division at Washington University Libraries in St. Louis.
Green, Harriett

September 1 Washington University Libraries in St. Louis appointed Harriett E. Green as associate university librarian for its digital scholarship and technology services division.
Hicks, Deborah

San José (Calif.) State University School of Information appointed Deborah Hicks as assistant professor in August.

At ALA

Carmichael, Jan

Jan Carmichael was promoted to web/new media manager July 13.
Kraus, Daniel

Booklist Senior Editor Daniel Kraus left ALA July 20.
Yoke, Beth

Young Adult Library Services Association Executive Director Beth Yoke left ALA August 3. On August 13 she became chief strategy officer at the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.
Oakley, Samantha

The Public Programs Office promoted Samantha Oakley to program officer June 4.
Parsons-Diamond, Gena

May 14 Gena Parsons-Diamond became program coordinator for member services for the Association of College and Research Libraries.

Cited

Andreu, Frances

The Society for Scholarly Publishing has awarded Frances Andreu, digital initiatives librarian at Rochester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology, an Early-Career Fellowship.
Pellowski, Anne

Author and former librarian Anne Pellowski is the subject of a documentary, Anne Pellowski: Storyteller to the World, which won the People’s Choice Award at the Frozen River Film Festival in Winona, Minnesota, in February.
Rochester Institute of Technology Libraries

Rochester Regional Library Council has named Rochester (N.Y.) Institute of Technology Libraries as its 2018 Academic Library of the Year.
Vandegrift, Micah

Micah Vandegrift, open knowledge librarian at North Carolina State University Libraries in Raleigh, has been named a 2018–2019 Fulbright-Schuman Innovation Fellow studying open research practices and infrastructure in the Netherlands and Denmark.
Athens Regional Library System

Georgia Public Library Service has named Athens Regional Library System as Georgia’s Public Library of the Year.

Obituaries

Aagaard, James

James Aagaard, 87, an alumnus, professor, and librarian at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, for 63 years until retiring in 2011, died June 22. In 1970, Aagaard helped create the Northwestern Online Total Integrated System (NOTIS), a cataloging system for the library. NOTIS was installed at other sites beginning in 1979, and at its peak, more than half of the largest research libraries in the US used it. Sales of NOTIS funded two multimillion-dollar endow- ments at Northwestern, supporting library collections and library technology. Aagaard was awarded the Library and Information Technology Association/Gaylord Award in 1985.
Clark, Robert

Robert L. Clark, 72, director of Oklahoma Department of Libraries (ODL) from 1976 until his 2000 retirement, died May 26. As state librarian, he headed two Governor’s Conferences on libraries and led a strategic planning process to redefine Oklahoma State Library’s role in the information age. Clark championed records preservation programs, government openness laws, literacy programs, and library technology. He and ODL made news in 1997 when a federal judge granted ODL intervenor plaintiff status in a court case surrounding the Academy Award–winning film The Tin Drum. When an Oklahoma County judge ruled the film contained obscenity, VHS copies of the movie were confiscated from the library system and area video stores. The Video Software Dealers Association (VDSA) sued, and ODL was granted standing in representing access and censorship concerns on the local level. The VSDA prevailed, and the film was ultimately returned to library and store shelves. Clark received Oklahoma Library Association’s Oklahoma Library Legend Award in 2007.
Garcia-Ayvens, Francisco

Francisco Garcia-Ayvens, 69, who held positions at Chicano Resource Center Library in Los Angeles, California State University in Fullerton and Dominguez Hills, and the University of California, Berkeley, died March 12. Garcia-Ayvens created notable bibliographic tools, including The Chicano Periodical Index; Chicano Anthology Index: A Comprehensive Author, Title, and Subject Index to Chicano Anthologies, 1965–1987; and Quién Sabe?: A Preliminary List of Chicano Reference Materials.
Lubelski, Gregory

Gregory Lubelski, 67, former director of Wayne County (Ohio) Public Library and Erie County (Pa.) Public Library, died May 21.
Derner, Carol

Carol Derner, 83, director of Lake County (Ind.) Public Library from 1985 until her 1999 retirement, died April 20. She had stints at several public libraries in Indiana and Illinois throughout her career, which began in 1958. She was named Woman of the Year by Merrillville (Ind.) Business and Professional Women in 1990, and the Indiana Library Federation named her its Outstanding Librarian in 1997.

Latest Library Links

13m

In the early eighth century, three Bibles were produced by monks at Wearmouth-Jarrow Abbey in northern England. Two remained in Northumbria, but in 716 CE the third was sent to Rome as a gift for Pope Gregory II. Known as the Codex Amiatinus, it has remained in Italy until now. For the first time in 1,302 years, the oldest surviving complete Bible in Latin has returned to the country of its creation to form the centerpiece of an exhibition of Anglo-Saxon art, literature, science, and politics at the British Library.

The Guardian (UK), Oct. 18
1h

ALA Graphics’ winter catalog is on its way, and will unveil new products that will educate, excite, and inspire. The catalog cover highlights a new Wolf in the Snow poster from Caldecott Medal–winning artist Matthew Cordell. A matching bookmark is also available. These heartwarming items are perfect for Picture Book Month celebrations this November and throughout the winter. Shop all of the new products at the ALA Store.

ALA Graphics, Oct. 18
18h

The winner of the 2018 Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction is Pulse Points by Jennifer Down. The prize is one of three literary prizes that Readings awards each year, the other two being the Readings Children’s Book Prize and the Readings Young Adult Book Prize. Each exists to celebrate the work of early-career Australian writers. There are 14 short stories in Pulse Points, each very different, but all dealing in the moments of everyday life that sting.

Readings, Oct. 18
19h

Alex Harrington writes: “As a reference librarian, I get a lot of the same questions day in and day out. How do I find a book on my topic? How does the printing system work? Where is the bathroom? I used to get frustrated or annoyed answering the same questions 20 times a day, but then I remembered this XKCD comic, and it reminded me of a few things. One: We are here to teach people the things they don’t already know. Two: Everyone has to learn a thing before they know it.”

ACRLog, Oct. 18
20h

Sharpening participants’ problem solving and collaboration skills by mashing up real-time adventure, immersive theater, gaming, and old-fashioned entertainment, escape rooms are a natural for libraries. And, as Ellyssa Kroski demonstrates in Escape Rooms and Other Immersive Experiences in the Library, published by ALA Editions, they’re feasible for a range of audiences and budgets. Kroski explains the differences between highly structured escape rooms and more casual immersive experiences.

ALA Editions, Oct. 18
20h

Guadeloupean author Maryse Condé has been awarded the 2018 New Academy Prize in Literature. She was named the winner at a ceremony held October 12 at the Stockholm Public Library main branch in recognition of the role played by Swedish librarians in nominating authors for the award. Condé receives the 1 million Swedish kronor award for an authorship that “describes the ravages of colonialism and the postcolonial chaos in a language which is both precise and overwhelming.”

Book Riot, Oct. 12
22h

Silvana Reyes Lopez writes: “Space opera novels are full of world-building, all-around action, and interesting characters. Space opera is inside the science fiction genre, and from there you can travel the stars, finding new books to read. It might contain fights or lost empires, or princesses running from their kingdoms and enemies trying to kill each other. It has everything for everyone, so you can’t go wrong on the direction you choose. Let’s go down this list of the 25 of the best space opera books.”

Book Riot, Oct. 18