Vanderbilt Heard Libraries’ Bill Hook and Larry Reeves are among 26 fellows participating in the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Leadership Fellows Program for 2013-2015.
Hook and Reeves were nominated for the highly competitive program by Dean of Libraries Connie Vinita Dowell, who serves on the association’s board. The program fosters the development of senior-level leaders in large research libraries.
Hook, an associate dean, is responsible for supervising six of Vanderbilt’s eight university libraries. He serves as director of the Divinity Library and interim director of the Central Library.
“The programming provides a stimulating exposure to issues and relationships that confront the upper-level administration of so many libraries and universities,” said Hook, who is also a professor of the practice of theological librarianship. He noted that the fellowship has proven already to be an excellent learning environment for the fellows, who represent a broad array of backgrounds and experiences.
Reeves, an associate dean and director of the Alyne Queener Massey Law Library, is the only law librarian accepted for the current class of fellows.
Over the course of the 18-month fellowship, fellows attend a series of educational institutes at sponsoring universities that address issues relevant to research libraries in the context of large, complex institutions. Fellows are also invited to attend site visits at other major research libraries and participate in related educational programs, conferences and meetings of the ARL leadership.
“The program is intended to give fellows insights into the leadership of host universities, and I feel particularly fortunate that Vanderbilt hosted a Strategic Issues Institute Nov. 10 through 15.” Reeves said. “This was an excellent opportunity for the fellows to engage with Vanderbilt leaders from across the campus.”
The fellows will also attend institutes at the University of Toronto and the Universities of Guelph and of Waterloo in Ontario, Canada. Site visits will include Purdue University and North Carolina State University.
Established in 1932, the ARL is a non-profit membership organization comprising 125 research libraries in the United States and Canada representing universities, public libraries, national libraries, and special libraries.
Grace Renshaw contributed to this story.