For immediate release:
April 22, 2008

For more information, contact:
Jerome Offord Jr.
Association of Research Libraries
202-296-2296
jerome@arl.org

ARL Leadership and Career Development Program Application Deadline Extended to May 5

Washington DC—The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Leadership and Career Development Program (LCDP) has extended its current application deadline to May 5, 2008.

The LCDP prepares librarians from underrepresented groups, with a minimum of three and a maximum of ten years of professional experience, for leadership roles in research libraries.

Over the course of five LCDP offerings since ARL launched the program in 1997, 100 librarians have completed the program and a large percentage of them have either been promoted within their libraries or have taken new positions with significantly expanded responsibility. ARL sponsors the LCDP to address the needs of research libraries for a more diverse professional workforce that can contribute to library success in serving increasingly diverse scholarly and learning communities.

The program focuses on the ARL Strategic Directions: Scholarly Communication; Public Policies Affecting Research Libraries; and Library Roles in Research, Teaching, and Learning. The LCDP incorporates leadership and career development theories throughout the program and fellows are responsible for completing a research project by the close of the program.

The ARL Leadership and Career Development Program consists of six components undertaken over 18 months:

1. a two-day Leadership Institute during the American Library Association (ALA) Midwinter Meeting in Denver, January 22–25, 2009;
2. two four-day LCDP Institutes: the first in April 2009, the second in February 2010;
3. an ongoing relationship with a career coach;
4. a personalized visit to an ARL library;
5. advice on defining a research project related to one of the ARL strategic directions; and
6. a Closing Ceremony, held in conjunction with the ALA Annual Conference in Washington DC, June 26, 2010.

Through contacts with experts and research library leaders, these program elements are combined to allow fellows to explore the strategic issues faced by research libraries in the digital environment, leadership roles within research libraries, and career development options and opportunities. The LCDP components are also used to build a “community of learners” as, over the course of the program, fellows exchange views with expert presenters and with one another, and as they compare notes and learn from career coaches about one another’s professional responsibilities and experiences. This design enables LCDP fellows to internalize the learning and develop relationships with peers and coaches, while at the same time engaging in meaningful research to increase opportunities for professional writing, publication, and/or presentations.

To apply or learn more about the LCDP, visit http://www.arl.org/diversity/lcdp/.

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) is a nonprofit organization of 123 research libraries in North America. Its mission is to influence the changing environment of scholarly communication and the public policies that affect research libraries and the diverse communities they serve. ARL pursues this mission by advancing the goals of its member research libraries, providing leadership in public and information policy to the scholarly and higher education communities, fostering the exchange of ideas and expertise, and shaping a future environment that leverages its interests with those of allied organizations. ARL is on the Web at http://www.arl.org/.