NYLA Council Election 2018 Results

The New York Library Association is pleased to announce the results of this year’s Council Election, and to report 748 votes cast (16.1% of eligible voters).

Congratulations to our new Council members!

President-Elect (2018-19) / President (2019-20)

Dr. Jen Cannell, School Library System and Arts Coordinator, Capital Region BOCES

As library professionals, we all have a huge responsibility.  Every day is a mix of meeting the needs of our patrons while trying to move our profession forward.  We must be respectful of the past, honor the present, but strive for improvements for the future.  Enacting the core values of librarianship in a world that does not always seem to understand or accept our beliefs of access, intellectual freedom, the public good, or even social responsibility can be a daunting task.  This work is too big for any one of us to try to accomplish alone so we must look to our professional organization and the system of support it provides.

NYLA has been a critical part of my success as a librarian and administrator.  I am passionate about my work, about continuous learning, and about leadership.  With NYLA, I have grown through participation on committees, attendance at conferences, and networking with librarians from school, public, academic, and special libraries.  I have learned skills that have empowered me to be a strong advocate and communicate more clearly with stakeholders.  Through each part of my career, from eager student to experienced director, NYLA has been with me.

My professional career began in Fairport, NY where I worked as a middle school librarian.  As someone who is always open to interesting and thought provoking opportunities, I found myself working with the three different library systems in the area: school, public, and reference and research library resources.  Expanding my knowledge and understanding of all types of libraries led me to a position as a School Library System Director.  Throughout my journey, seeds were planted by my supervisors and colleagues that motivated me to pursue my doctorate in Educational Leadership.

As a lifelong learner and someone whose passion is her profession, I thank you for this incredible opportunity and ask for your support.  Thank you.

Dr. Jen Cannell CV (PDF)
Dr. Jen Cannel Resume (PDF)
 

Councilor at Large (Public) 2018-2021

Tom Vitale, Outreach Coordinator, Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System

Joining NYLA as a student member in April of 2013 was one of the best decisions of my life! The organization opened up the world of librarianship to me, and many of my fellow classmates. Through NYLA, I found the job listing for the position I currently occupy, which is Outreach Coordinator for the Chautauqua Cattaraugus Library System. About a month after joining, my good friend Elena Falcone brought me in to assist with revitalizing the Round Table for Library Special Populations, now: the Library Access Round Table. I’ve met so many amazing colleagues in our field through NYLA’s numerous groups, meetings, webinars, and annual conference. I feel incredibly honored to call myself a New York librarian – we are such a strong, tight-knit group of superheroes, going beyond in our communities every day to watch democracy flourish.

Currently I serve the NYLA membership in a few roles. I am an active member of RLRT, CORT, PLRT and ESRT. I am a member of PLS, and RASS. I served as Marketing Committee Chair for RLRT in 2016, and then as Vice President and Programming Chair in 2017. I have been President of the Library Access Round Table for two-years, and have been proactive with coordinating our programming for conference. This past year, NYLA President Tim Burke appointed me to serve as a member-at-large on the Continuing Education Committee. This has been a wonderful privilege, primarily because we get to plan professional development opportunities that the membership wants to see happen. I also currently serve on the Western New York Regional Library Council’s Continuing Education Committee as chair.

I have presented twice at NYLA, once on the topic of libraries as social service centers in 2016, and again last year on developing cultural institution passes for our communities. I have also been invited over the last two years to several library systems in our State to speak about marketing, community engagement, and customer service/boundaries. I attended SUNY Fredonia for my B.S.Ed. in Elementary Education, SUNY Stony Brook for my MSW, and Clarion University of PA for my B.S. in Liberal Studies, and Master of Science in Library Science. Currently I am enrolled with Long Island University’s Palmer School in the Advanced Graduate Certificate in Public Library Administration.

As a service oriented individual it is my greatest hope to be able to serve ALL members of our library family in New York State. Though I am running as member-at-large for a public library seat on Council, I want you ALL to know that I am here to serve EVERY single one of YOU, whether you be one of our highly skilled para-librarians, detail oriented support staff, fabulous librarians (school, public, special, corporate, academic), or outstanding administrators. I am here for you, and I always will be – my email and phone are always on, and I want to hear from you about the things you want to see happening in the New York Library community!

Councilor at Large (Academic) 2018-2021

Jane Verostek, Associate Librarian, College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Throughout my 20+ years as a librarian I have had wonderful experiences working in public, special and academic libraries. Within each position I had the opportunity to work alongside colleagues that mentored me and outside of my positions - I met exceptional library colleagues through my work with NYLA, SUNYLA, CLRC and many other library organizations that provide a network and support system.   
I started my library career as a clerk in a small public neighborhood library and my work there established my deep respect of how important library services are to a wide variety of patrons and how the library creates a sense of comfort for many patrons. While working on my Masters in Library Science and there-after I worked in special libraries (the S.U. Law Library) and the private sector (Gaylord Brothers) and public libraries (the Onondaga County Public Library). I am currently an Associate Librarian at the F. Franklin Moon Library at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

Since joining SUNY ESF as a librarian in 1998 I have served on the NYLA ASLS Academic and Special Libraries section board as Director, Vice President, President and Past President, have presented at NYLA conferences and was recognized by NYLA in 2013 by receiving the Excellence in Library Innovation Award for my creative and innovative work with creating and teaching online library courses for SUNY ESF. I have also served as the delegate for SUNYLA - the SUNY Librarians Association - for my campus since 1998 and attend SUNYLA Council Meetings and present at SUNYLA conferences. I've learned that it is important to serve in all the ways you can - by providing leadership and guidance for organizations like NYLA and SUNYLA but to also take time to share experiences and information you have via conference presentations, workshops and mentoring.

Beyond SUNYLA and NYLA I am actively involved with CLRC - The Central NY Library Resources Council and was a board member and then Vice President, President and Past President of the board from 2013-2017. Since my term on the CLRC board ended I have been serving on the CLRC Library Resources Services Committee that reviewed and made recommendations for the 2018 CLRC RBDB grant applications. I also currently serve on the CLRC NYS Fair Planning Committee. Serving on committees such as these allows me to use my many facets - my expertise in understanding grant applications and planning and my belief that we can teach the public about libraries anywhere - like a state fair and make it fun.

As the 2017-2018 academic year comes to a close and the summer begins I am feeling refreshed and looking forward to continuing my library work with new perspectives and a greater appreciation. In the fall of 2017 I was nominated for and received the CLRC Academic Library All Star of the Year Award which recognized one librarian in academia from within the 4 county area that CLRC serves of Herkimer, Madison, Oneida, and Onondaga county. Then in May of 2018 I completed a Master of Arts in Museum Studies from Syracuse University and was also awarded the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Librarianship for my work with re-opening our archives and special collections. I advocated for 3 years to re-open our archives and special collections that was closed and inaccessible - and am so proud I was persistent and ultimately successful. We are now on our 4th year of being re-opened and have made great strides with writing and receiving grants, digitizing historical materials, providing reference and making our students, faculty and alumni aware of the incredible resources we have in our archives and special collections. Advocating for libraries and staff in all types of libraries and in all areas of libraries is something I feel strongly about and I hope to use my experience and skills once again for NYLA. The support and mentoring from organizations such as NYLA tremendously helped me to become the librarian I am and I hope to continue to give back and share what I have learned to others in the profession.

To learn more about Jane - visit her SUNY ESF webpage Jane M. Verostek | Moon Library | SUNY-ESF or her LinkedIn page Jane Verostek - Associate Librarian and Faculty, Tenured - SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry - Franklin Moon Library | LinkedIn
 

Thank you to all of our 2018 Council Candidates!

Michelle Miller, President-Elect / President	Jennifer Bollerman, Councilor at Large (Public)	Ryan Perry, Councilor at Large (Academic)

Section & Round Table Elections

Coinciding with the NYLA Council election, each of NYLA's Sections will be voting to elect officers.  An overview of the candidates can be found here. Details on the candidates for each Section election can be found on the Section's web pages.  When accessing the NYLA Council Ballot, all additional Section ballots that you are eligible to participate in will be displayed.