Lois Ann Gregory-Wood Fellows Program

In honor of Lois Ann Gregory-Wood’s approaching 50-year anniversary of service with ALA, ALA President Jim Neal and ALA Honorary Member, ALA Past President, and GLBTRT Councilor Ann K. Symons have proposed a new award to be given by the American Library Association and administered by the Office for Human Resource Development and Recruitment (HRDR). The proposal was endorsed by the ALA Executive Board at their 2017 Fall meeting and has the consent of Lois Ann GregoryWood. This proposal was presented to SSGC and reviewed by committee members. SSGC has voted to support this proposal and therefore we ask the ALA Council to approve this proposal. (see 2018 Council Document #31)

As Lois Ann Gregory-Wood approaches 50 years of service with ALA, it is appropriate for ALA to honor her long years of service and her unstinting commitment to the organization we all care for. Lois Ann started at ALA in 1968 working in a variety of ALA units before moving to PLA. For the last 27+ years she has been the ALA Council Secretariat responsible for the work of ALA Council. For hundreds of ALA Council members, past and present, she is the face of ALA Council and governance. We are proposing “The Lois Ann Gregory-Wood Fellows” award as a conference scholarship program for mid-career members who are interested in governance to attend a full cycle of ALA: a Midwinter and Annual Conference. This program will include a mentor component under the title: Lois Ann Gregory-Wood Supporter. This proposal was endorsed, in concept, by the ALA Executive Board at their Fall 2017 meeting. We also have the consent of Lois Ann Gregory-Wood to proceed with this honor. Further, this proposal fits with the strategic initiative of the Neal presidency to use ALA conference as a learning environment and use the wealth of experience of our members to help engage members into ALA governance. The purpose of the award is to give ALA members who have been working in libraries or who have been library trustees/friends an understanding of ALA governance and to help them engage in the governance of the Association at any level and to ultimately to provide a larger pool of ALA members who are interested in ALA governance. This program gives a jump start by making possible attendance at major professional governance activities within ALA.