New RBM editor named

Contact: Kathryn Deiss
ACRL Content Strategist
(312) 280-2529
kdeiss@ala.org


NEWS
For Immediate Release
July 22, 2008

CHICAGO - The Association of
College and Research Libraries (ACRL), has named Beth Whittaker editor of RBM:
A Journal of Rare Books, Manuscripts, and Cultural Heritage (RBM).

Whittaker served on the RBM editorial board from 2006-2008 and
brings in-depth knowledge of the world of rare books and manuscripts to the
bi-annual publication. Her three-year appointment as editor begins immediately.

“In addition to her
excellent credentials and strong references, the search committee was
especially impressed with Beth’s enthusiasm, commitment, grasp of issues facing
special collections and interest in reaching out to new constituencies,” said
ACRL Publications Coordinating Committee Chair Daren Callahan.

Head of Special Collections
Cataloging at Ohio
State University,
Whittaker is currently secretary of the ACRL Rare Books and Manuscript Section
(RBMS) Executive Board. She previously served on the RBMS Bibliographic
Standards Committee and as editor of “Controlled Vocabularies for Use in Rare
Book and Special Collections Cataloging.” Her research in the areas of rare
books, digitization and special collections cataloging is widely published.

Whittaker earned her MLIS
from the University of Texas at Austin and graduated
Phi Beta Kappa from the University
of Kansas with master’s and
bachelor’s degrees in history and French.

###

ACRL is a division of the
American Library Association (ALA), representing more than 13,000 academic and
research librarians and interested individuals. ACRL is the only individual
membership organization in North America that
develops programs, products and services to meet the unique needs of academic
and research librarians. Its initiatives enable the higher education community
to understand the role that academic libraries play in the teaching, learning
and research environments.