ACRL New England Chapter News Online

ISSN 1527-0106

Spring 2004, Number 102

In This Issue (Home):

President's Letter

Election Results

C.E. Committee Chair Needed

Librarian of the Year Award

Annual Conference Reports

National Legislative Day Report

Interest Group Reports:
Access Services (ASIG)
Information Technology (ITIG)
Instruction (NELIG)
Online Course Info. (LOCI)
Women's Studies

Annual Reports

Board Meeting Minutes, February 11th, 2004 (.pdf)

Calendar Listings

ACRL/NEC 2004 Librarian of the Year

Linda Collins, ACRL/NEC President
Harvard University

ACRL/NEC has developed a program to annually recognize an outstanding member of the organization. This year's recipient has exemplified the essence of outstanding librarianship through her commitment to service, professionalism, and accomplishment in the areas of leadership and innovation. Through her actions, she has supported the rights of intellectual freedom and furthered the values of the organization. The 2004 Librarian of the Year Award was presented to Trina Magi, Reference Librarian from the Bailey/Howe Library at the University of Vermont.

Mother Jones Magazine describes Trina as a "Hellraiser and Defender of the Free World." Trina's concern is our right to privacy and the Patriot Act, or more specifically Section 215, that gives federal agents free access to library records without probable cause and judicial oversight. While we may all agree that this is a bad piece of legislation that flies in the face of intellectual freedom, Trina did something about it. She wrote letters to her congressional delegates, she gained the support of the Vermont Library Association, she has appeared on television and radio shows throughout the country, and has spoken at a Washington DC press conference. In response to the Vermont State Library Association and Trina's letter, Representative Bernie Sanders introduced a measure that would exempt libraries and bookstores from Section 215 of the Patriot Act. This measure has already received one hundred and forty co-sponsors.

While Trina has had much success bringing this issue forward, she is not an activist looking for a cause. She is a librarian who is concerned about the chilling effect this law has on readers and their research. She responded with a well-organized and thoughtful presentation of the opposing view, making people aware of the broader effects of this legislation. Through this award, ACRL/NEC recognizes Trina's support of the librarian's code of ethics and her respect of all library users and their right to free inquiry.