News from CILIP
Monday 4 April 2005

Debby Shorley invested as CILIP's President for 2005/06 

New President calls on the profession to redefine itself and be prepared to
change

Debby Shorley, University Librarian at the University of Sussex, was today
invested as the fourth President of CILIP by outgoing President Margaret
Haines, at a ceremony that forms part of the first meeting of CILIP Council
at the start of each administrative year.

"I am truly delighted to be taking up this role and look forward to a
challenging and rewarding year," stated Debby. "I see this as an immensely
important time for CILIP. As a profession we must learn to look forward with
enthusiasm and hope rather than continually rake over the past. We have to
redefine ourselves and be prepared to change the way we work if we are to
successfully meet the needs of today's users."

Although born in the South East of England, Debby worked in Northern Ireland
for over 20 years. This included periods in the reference section at Belfast
Central Library, the Schools Library Service and, latterly, at the University
of Ulster, and helped shape her concern for social justice and for working
cooperatively across national boundaries.

"But the most life-changing moment of all was my trip to South Africa in
1995," she confides. "I was there as a member of an IFLA delegation to see
how inclusive libraries were in the immediate post-apartheid days. However I
also witnessed the excitement generated by the prospect of that first
democratic election."  Debby visited South Africa once more, on an
Association of Commonwealth Universities Fellowship in 1998, to investigate
how the country tackled information literacy.

Advocacy ranks high in her list of professional concerns. "It is up to us to
demonstrate we know what we are doing, that we have a role. We owe it to
ourselves, and to those we serve, to exploit this to the full" she warns.
Debby is currently concerned about the lack of sufficient funding in higher
education (HE) and believes that all HE interests need to lobby together. She
also wants to see CILIP develop much closer working relationships with bodies
such as the Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL)
and the Society of Chief Librarians (SCL).  "The way to maximise our impact
is to work in partnership both as individuals and at an institutional level,"
she adds.

Whatever the forthcoming year brings to CILIP, it will be characterised by
the dogged determination of Debby Shorley as its President. "Maggie Haines
will be a hard act to follow" she concludes, " but even here there are
changes. The President, Immediate Past President and President Elect now work
much more closely as a team helping to ensure continuity, a spread of
expertise and interests at the presidential level and a greater capacity for
impact on behalf of members.  I'm sure it will be a year to remember!"

To see the full text of the Presidential address to Council, please go to
www.cilip.org.uk/president and follow the link.

Contact: Guy Daines, Head of Policy & Governance.
Tel: 020 7255 0632
Email: [log in to unmask] <Mailto:[log in to unmask]>   

Notes to Editors

CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals is
the leading professional body for librarians, information specialists and
knowledge managers, with around 23,000 members working in all sectors,
including business and industry, science and technology, further and higher
education, schools, local and central government, the health service, the
voluntary sector, national and public libraries.  

The current Presidential Team is:

President: Deborah Shorley
Immediate Past President: Margaret Haines
President-Elect: Martin Molloy

For more information about CILIP, please go to www.cilip.org.uk.