[OPLINLIST] Kent State SLIS to Honor Alum & Friends of the Year, plus Student Scholars & Recent Graduates

[Cunningham, Flo]

Polanka, Barlow and Bice among the honorees

The School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) at Kent State University will honor 10 of its top alumni and dozens of outstanding students at events in Kent and Columbus this spring.

The Celebration of Alumni and Student Success will take place on Tuesday, April 30, at the SLIS site in the State Library of Ohio in Columbus, and on Wednesday, May 1, at the Kent Student Center on the Kent Campus. Events in both locations start at 6 p.m. and are open to all; there is no charge to attend, but a reservation is requested. (RSVP by April 24 at http://bit.ly/SLIScelebration2013.)

This year's spring celebration combines several previously distinct events - the fall Alumni and Friends Honors and Awards program; the spring Celebration of Student Success; and the August, December and May graduation receptions. The events have been combined to allow students, recent graduates and other alumni, as well as members of the local professional communities, to meet and mingle.

Among those being honored are Sue Polanka, M.L.S. '95, as LIS Alumnus of the Year, and Don W. Barlow and Michael O. Bice as SLIS Friends of the Year.

Polanka is head of Reference and Instruction at Wright State University Libraries and serves as president of the Academic Library Association of Ohio (ALAO). She was elected to American Library Association Council in 2012 and was named a Library Journal "Mover and Shaker" in 2011, tagged as the "Ebook Guru." Polanka is editor of the American Library Association series "No Shelf Required," which also is the name of her award-winning blog on issues related to ebooks and electronic reference interfaces.

Barlow is executive director of Westerville Public Library, Westerville, Ohio. Barlow has been a frequent lecturer in SLIS Columbus classes, taught Library Management as a SLIS adjunct instructor for many years and hosted numerous practicum students. He also spearheads a tuition reimbursement program that has enticed many of his staff to enroll in SLIS. A long-time SLIS supporter, Barlow will be honored for his visionary library leadership and the transformational impact he has had on the lives of many students, alumni and other library professionals.

Bice, a former hospital executive, joined SLIS in 2010 to launch a new concentration in health information management as a concentration in the school's Information Architecture and Knowledge Management (IAKM) program. He developed the curriculum, established an advisory board of health care IT professionals, recruited adjunct instructors and established partnerships with other institutions that have helped make the concentration a success. Bice retired at the end of 2012.

Student honorees include this year's scholarship winners, Beta Phi Mu inductees, graduate assistants and student employees, plus SLIS graduates from August 2012, December 2012 and May 2013.

A list of honorees can be found at http://www.kent.edu/slis/news/celebration2013.cfm.

Event details are as follows:

Columbus -- Tuesday, April 30
Hors d'oeuvres reception, 6 to 8 p.m.; brief program beginning at 6:30 p.m.
State Library of Ohio ~ 274 E. First Ave. ~ Columbus 43201
Directions<http://www.library.ohio.gov/Marketing/Directions>

Kent -- Wednesday, May 1
Hors d'oeuvres reception, 6 to 8 p.m.; brief program beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Kent Student Center, Kent State University ~ 1075 Risman Drive, Kent 44242
Directions<http://www.kent.edu/campuses/maps/map.cfm>

RSVP by April 24 at http://bit.ly/SLIScelebration2013. For more information and a list of the honorees, visit http://www.kent.edu/slis/news/celebration2013.cfm.

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