UIS library dean elected to leadership post in global cooperative

Jane Treadwell, university librarian and dean at the University of Illinois Springfield’s Brookens Library, has been elected vice-chair/chair-elect of the Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) Americas Regional Council of the OCLC Global Council.

OCLC is the 72,000 library member cooperative behind WorldCat, the world’s largest database of library resources. The system is used at Brookens Library to allow users to search other locally held databases and display results along with WorldCat results.

“I’m honored that my peers in libraries throughout the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and Latin America have elected me to this post,” said Treadwell.

The OCLC Global Council and its regional councils provide an important avenue for member libraries of the cooperative in 170 countries to offer feedback to OCLC management and its Board of Trustees on significant issues and strategic direction.

“I will help to facilitate this process in the Americas and, as a member of Global Council Executive Committee, help to set the agenda for the work of that group,” said Treadwell. “Brookens Library should benefit from my involvement because I will be bringing back new ideas not only from OCLC, but from other libraries all over the world.”

Founded in 1967, OCLC is a nonprofit, membership, computer library service and research organization dedicated to the public purposes of furthering access to the world’s information and reducing library costs. The service allows libraries to locate, acquire, catalog, lend, preserve and manage library materials.