Stacy Gilbert, Business Librarian, Assistant Professor at the West Campus Library at Texas A&M University, has been selected as the 2017 Emerging Leader for the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA).
The American Library Association (ALA) Emerging Leaders program is a leadership development program that enables newer library workers from across the country to participate in problem-solving work groups, network with peers, gain an inside look into ALA structure and have an opportunity to serve the profession in a leadership capacity. The Emerging Leader experience begins with a daylong session during the ALA Midwinter Meeting, followed by six months of project engagement through online learning and networking environments. The program culminates with a poster session presentation to display the results of the project planning work of each group at the ALA Annual Conference.
As the RUSA Emerging Leader, Stacy will partner with other emerging leaders on the project of her choosing. She will also work with RUSA leadership in a variety of other roles throughout the year. Stacy will kick off her tenure as the 2017 RUSA Emerging Leader at the upcoming 2017 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Atlanta, GA.
Stacy received her Master of Science in Library Science, with a Archives and Records Management concentration, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2014. Stacy also received a Master of Science in Media and Communications at the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2013 and her Bachelor of Science in Television-Radio, International Communications concentration, at Ithaca College in 2010. She is a member of RUSA and the Business and Reference Services Section (BRASS) of ALA, a member of the Special Libraries Association’s Business and Finance Division as well as a member of the American Marketing Association.
Stacy is a firm believer that effective leadership is to put people in situations where they can make the most of their talents. When working on group projects, Stacy tries to understand everyone’s strengths, weaknesses and interests in order to guide them to a role they might want to play on the projects team. Another important aspect of leadership is professional and personal growth and a great leader understands where her teammates hope to be in one year, five years or more. Stacy appreciates leaders who assign people projects that maximize and grow their skills and may guide people slightly outside their comfort zones so they can grow to new areas.
About RUSA
The Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) serves all types of libraries in reference, user services, adult readers advisory, collection development, resource sharing, genealogy and archives, business reference and reference technology. Review RUSA’s website for additional information on membership, awards, upcoming conferences and events, professional resources and so much more!
