NISO Webinar, Libraries and the Move to Transparency

Helping people gain a greater understanding of the information community — our issues and concerns, challenges and opportunities — is core to NISO's mission. Our events are a key element of this, with our popular webinar program at their heart. And, following the NISO/NFAIS merger earlier this year, all NISO members can now attend all 14 webinars in 2020 completely free of charge! This includes an unlimited number of places and full access to a recording of each webinar for anyone who is unable to attend the event itself.

Jon's primary responsibilities include leading public, technical, and digitization services. He has also established the Libraries' Accessibility Office, which works closely with the University's Office of Student Disabilities Services and Learning Resources Center. Finally, he oversees the Libraries' Community Outreach and Engagement program to work with local nonprofits on re-establishing and operating over a dozen public school libraries in the city of Philadelphia. He holds a BA in Philosophy from Temple University, an MLIS from Drexel, and an MS in Higher Education Management from the University of Pennsylvania. His doctoral work is in Higher Education at Temple University. In 2016, he was selected as a Senior Fellow in UCLA's Graduate School of Education and Information Studies.S

As Senior Associate Dean at Virginia Tech University Libraries, Julie Griffin oversees library programs and departments advancing research, teaching, and learning at the University, including data services, research collaboration & engagement, teaching & learning engagement, learning environments, immersive environments, and scholarly communication. Previous academic appointments include service as Associate Dean for Research & Informatics at VT Libraries and Head of Scholarly Communication & Digital Services at Georgia Tech Library.

Michael is a graduate of Florida State University's School of Library and Information Studies. As a professional librarian, Michael has worked for non-profit library consortia, public, private, k-12 and University libraries. He has been a library technology consultant for several different libraries including the State Library of Florida. While in the private sector, Michael became a Six Sigma Black Belt. Michael is currently the Assistant Dean and Chief of Staff for the University Libraries at Virginia Tech. He continues to give workshops around the state on topics that include process improvement in the library, integrated library systems, and enhanced discovery services.

Michael Levine-Clark, the Dean and Director of the University of Denver Libraries, is the recipient of the 2015 HARRASOWITZ Leadership in Library Acquisitions Award. He writes and speaks regularly on strategies for improving academic library collection development practices, including the use of e-books in academic libraries, the development of demand-driven acquisition models, and implications of discovery tool implementation.

Sian is Assistant Dean of Collection Management at the University of North Texas (UNT). Spanning demographics of patrons and libraries, Sian has worked in both public and academic libraries beginning her career at Dallas Public Library as a children’s librarian, then spending several years as librarian at a private technical college. Back in public libraries, she held positions for eight years at the Denton Public Library that included managing branch libraries and Technical Services and Collection Development. Before completing her library science degree, she worked at a variety of major retail chain stores and as a teacher. Sian graduated from UNT with a master of science in library and information science and is currently finishing her PhD at Texas Woman’s University.

Sue Polanka has 28 years of experience in libraries, with 13 of those served here at Wright State. She earned a Master of Library Science degree from Kent State University in 1995. Prior to Associate University Librarian, Sue was Head of the Reference and Instruction Department. She has also served on the Administrative Council for the University Libraries, and led the development and implementation of the University Libraries Strategic Plan. In October, 2017 Sue was awarded the Jay Ladd Distinguished Service Award by the Academic Library Association of Ohio.