Thank You ARLIS/OV

Thank you to the 2007 ARLIS/Ohio Valley Travel Award Committee for presenting me with this year's travel award!!!

The 2007 Art Libraries Society of North America Annual Conference is going to be a great experience for me. I had such a fantastic time at the 2006 ALA Annual Conference, and I know being at this year's ARLIS/NA conference will be as equally rewarding.

The formal announcement is as follows:

The 2007 ARLIS/Ohio Valley Travel Award Committee is pleased to announce that this year's recipient for an award to attend the Annual Conference in Atlanta is Bryan Loar, Resource Librarian at Fitch, a Global Design Agency in Powell, Ohio.

Bryan has been instrumental in the development and day-to-day operations of ArLiSNAP (Art Library Students & New ARLIS* Professionals), a site that provides a forum for students and new librarians. He will be presenting "New Forms of Communication:
Harnessing Collective Knowledge through Web Logs," at the New Voices 2 session.

We congratulate Bryan and look forward to his active participation in ARLIS/NA.

Jane Carlin (University of Cincinnati, DAAP Library) & Anne Morris (Toledo Museum of Art)

Don Barlow's New Blog

Director of the Westerville Public Library, an individual I highly respect, now has a blog. Check it out here.

Today Is a Good Day

Over the last year, I have tried to create a corporate library that proactively reaches out to its patrons. I've created a e-newsletter, I've begun creating awareness vignettes that highlight Fitch's resources, and I've created an online presence that easily connects patrons with the same resource that I use for research. Each step of the way, I feel that I've added value to the library and to the organization as a whole. More importantly, I've gone above expectations by raising the bar of what Fitch's Resource Library should and could be.

Today our office had its first annual meeting. Not only did I get two rounds of applause for the work I've done at Fitch--the co-manager of Fitch's American offices specifically praised me for the changes that I have initiated. Furthermore, he indicated that his praise was based on both what he has seen as well as what he has heard from other associates.

What a great feeling.

My hopes are to continue the Resource Library's evolution, to always remain beta (thank you Don Barlow), and to continue Fitch's growth as a learning organization.