I am pleased to announce that the following individuals have been selected by SPARC's voting membership to serve on the SPARC Steering Committee for three-year terms (January 2009-December 2011), effective next month:

•    Jonathan Miller, Rollins College (non-ARL director)
•    Randy Olsen, Brigham Young University (ARL director)
•    Patricia Renfro, Columbia University (staff representative)
•    Lee Van Orsdel, Grand Valley State University (non-ARL director)

Congratulations to this outstanding group. They each bring invaluable experience, perspective, and insight to SPARC.

Our thanks go to the other fine candidates who graciously consented to participate in the election process. Also, we are grateful to the SPARC Nominating Committee for this year's election: Ken Frazier, Joyce Ogburn, and Sam Demas. Thank you.

The new members join the current members of the SPARC Steering Committee:

•    Jun Adachi, Japanese National Institute of Informatics, for SPARC Japan
•    Larry Alford, Temple University
•    Sherrie Bergman, Bowdoin College
•    David Carlson, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
•    Faye Chadwell, Oregon State University Libraries
•    Ray English, Oberlin College (chair)
•    Diane Graves, Trinity University
•    Thomas Hickerson, University of Calgary
•    Paula Kaufman, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
•    Bas Savenije, Utrecht University Library, for SPARC Europe
•    Vicki Williamson, University of Saskatchewan, for the Canadian Association of Research Libraries

Finally, and especially, I want to extend my deep gratitude to the Steering Committee members whose terms will conclude this month: John Ober, University of California; and Sarah Pritchard, Northwestern University. You have both made invaluable contributions to SPARC during the past three years, helping us to shape our programs, set priorities, and keep our momentum going forward. My sincere thanks to each of you!

All best,

Heather

Heather Joseph

Executive Director, SPARC