10/18/18 10/18/18

Meet the 2018 Executive Board Candidates: Sara Schumacher, Vice President for Conference Program

The VRA annual election of officers will take place November 1-30, 2018. Members will receive an email on November 1 with instructions for accessing the ballot. Please vote and show your support to the candidates and participate in the governance of the Association.About the CandidateSara Schumacher is the Architecture Image Librarian at Texas Tech University, a position she has held since January 2018. Prior to this, Schumacher was the Technical Services Librarian and Art History Instructor at the University of the Cumberlands (2011-2017). She received her BA in Art History from the University of Texas at Austin (2005), MA in Art History from the University of Oregon (2007) and her MS in Information Studies from the University of Texas at Austin (2011).She is currently pursuing opportunities to become more involved in the VRA, and to that end is a member of the VRA Development Committee (2018-). Schumacher is also a member of the Visual Literary Task Force to update the ACRL Visual Literacy Competency Standards for Higher Education. She has previously worked with other professional associations including the Kentucky Library Association (KLA), serving as the Chair of the Academic Libraries Association and 2-time Academic Library representative to ALA’s National Library Legislative Day (NLLD) for Kentucky (2015-2016). She was also the 2017 Chair of the KLA Library Awareness Committee, designated as the point person for the Kentucky delegation to 2017’s NLLD.Her research interests include ethics and visual media and applying visual literacy ideas to discipline specific conventions and professional applications. Her publications include the forthcoming “Placing Research on their Map: Curriculum Mapping as a Collaboration Tool for an Architecture Branch Library” co-authored with Bonnie Reed, Hillary B. Veeder and Brian C.R. Zugay for Art Documentation. Some of her recent conference presentations include “Media Literacy: Making an ImPACT” at the 2017 Kentucky Library Association Fall Conference, “Be ‘More Library’ with State and Federal Advocacy” at the 2017 Kentucky Library Association Spring Conference (Academic and Special Sections), “Beyond the Basic (Google) Image Search” at the 2017 Appalachian College Association Professional Development Day, and “Visual Literacy: Out in Front” at the 2015 Kentucky Library Association Fall Conference.GoalsMy goals as the Vice President for Conference Program would be to facilitate the aims of the VRA Strategic Plan, 2018-2022 through collaboration, creativity, and a careful balance of new ideas and traditions. I would like to address each tenant of the Strategic Priority 4.3 that mandates “conferences meet the professional development needs of current and potential members as defined by the mission statement,” and how I see myself undertaking each mission.4.2.1. Develop broader areas of professional practice in conference programming in order to reach a wider audience.VRA’s leadership is integral to maintaining high standards and professionalism in visual media research, education, and management. As disciplines intersect, new practitioners and entrepreneurs come into the field without necessary core knowledge and values. As an organization, we can reach out through branding initiatives and conference marketing that will connect us to different audiences. I firmly believe our members are our best advocates, so I would work on communications that would highlight the impact and reach of the work being done by VRA professionals.4.2.2. Engage diverse member perspectives to consider new ideas for conference models, programming, and scheduling in order to meet the professional development needs of members.I believe that diversity reflects the vibrancy, quality, and long-term success of any organization and our conferences should be a way of celebrating the “professional, socioeconomic, racial and ethnic, gender, age, sexual orientation, and geographic diversity” of our members and prospective members. I would start by seeking out perspectives from across our membership and work at supporting them to share their voice in the conference, through formal and informal programming. Sometimes “unconference” type events can empower people to get more involved and set up more diverse “conference” type events in future years.4.2.3. Coordinate with chapters or groups of chapters to build a regional conference program that complements the Association’s annual conferences.Professional funding and issues due to your career stage can often impede full participation in annual conferences, but regional conferences and chapter programming at annual conferences can provide ways of keeping engaged and facilitate collaborations. I would work with chapter leadership to identify goals and seek ways we can share resources (people, money, time, assessment data) that would enhance the quality of all conference programming.4.2.4. Publicize conference proceedings in order to promulgate the expertise of the Association to external audiences. In addition to communicating our identity to a wider audience, conference proceedings can be one way of celebrating the hard work and accomplishments of conference presenters. I would seek out the opinions and advice of other professional organizations that publish conference proceedings and with the help of the Executive Board and VRA Bulletin editors present our membership with publication options.VRA is a dynamic organization with a prominent history, and I am excited to tackle leadership roles where I can stimulate future successes for the VRA, its’ members, and myself.

10/11/18 10/11/18

Meet the 2018 Executive Board Candidates: Jeannine Keefer, President-Elect

10/3/18 10/3/18

VRA Identity Task Force Assembled

From VRA President Stephen Patton:

In June of this year I informed the membership that the VRA Executive Board had developed a charge for the VRA Identity Task Force. The charge is outlined below this correspondence. This effort is in response to VRA Strategic Plan Goal 1.1. To guide the direction of the VRA Strategic Plan, it is necessary for the Association to review the organization’s identity, vision, mission, and values.

Two examples of goals that are dependent on the work of the VRA Identity Task Force are: Strategic Direction 3: Membership; and 5: Communications and Marketing. Strategic Priorities like the creation of an integrated marketing plan to increase membership need the focus of a vision in order to be successful.

VRA Strategic Plan (summary), 2018

Betha Whitlow and Carolyn Lucarelli have agreed to co-chair the VRA Identity Task Force. The VRA Executive Committee provided guidance through the VRA Identity Task Force charge, but the Board has granted the Task Force independence in their work and membership selection. Betha and Carolyn have assembled a great team representing the diverse nature of the organization and the work of our members. Please support the Task Force in their efforts.

VRA Identity Task Force

Co-ChairsCarolyn Lucarelli, The Pennsylvania State UniversityBetha Whitlow, Washington University in St. LouisMembersMarcia Focht, Binghamton UniversityPatricia Guardiola, University of PennsylvaniaMargaret McKee, The Menil CollectionJeff Mixter, OCLC ResearchBrian Shelburne, University of Massachusetts, AmherstSue Tyson, California State ArchivesKendra Werst, Williams CollegeCharge: Develop vision, mission, and core values statements that align with the Visual Resources Association (VRA) Strategic Plan Goal 1.1. Define the term “visual resources” and consider its relevance as a discipline and/or a field of practice to current and potential members (See Strategic Priorities 1.1.4). This may include a review of the name of the organization going forward. Evaluate the VRA’s current affiliate organizations and make recommendations for new affiliations that complement and strengthen VRA’s identity and membership. Identify peer organizations with similar membership numbers and functions as the VRA to provide a baseline for performance assessment and comparison. This entire process should be informed by membership feedback which could take the form of surveys, focus groups, web conferencing and any additional methods the task force deems effective. Review the VRA Strategic Plan 2018-2022, the VRA Professional Status Task Force Report, and any other research the Task Force finds informative. The approach should be transparent, inclusive, just, and incorporate diverse representation when possible. The task force’s recommendations will likely result in a vote by the membership.

5/29/18 5/29/18

Nominations Sought for 2018 VRA Executive Board Elections

Three key positions on the VRA Executive Board will be on the ballot for the Association’s election this coming November:

President-Elect
Vice President for Conference Program
Secretary

The Nominating Committee encourages members to place themselves, or other qualified individuals, in consideration for nomination by contacting the Chair or any member of the Committee. Also, please feel free to contact any Committee member with any questions you may have regarding the nomination process.

VRA is committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. Applicants from underrepresented communities and with diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

The VRA Bylaws provide additional information about the terms and duties of each officer position.

Thank you,

VRA 2018 Nominating Committee

Allan T. Kohl, Minneapolis College of Art and Design (Chair)Krystal Boehlert, University of California, RiversideElaine Paul, University of Colorado, BoulderChris Strasbaugh, Ohio State University

6/29/16 6/29/16

Message from the VRA President: New appointments and Executive Board activities

I hope you are all well and enjoying the first days of summer. I’m emailing to let you know what the VRA Executive Board has been up to since our annual conference in Seattle.We are pleased to announce the following new Task Forces and appointments:VRA Strategic Plan Task Force:The Board has appointed Jolene de Verges, Southern Methodist University, and Elaine Paul, University of Colorado, Boulder to co-Chair the Strategic Plan Task Force (SPTF) as well as the following members to work with them on the SPTF :

Heidi Eyestone, Carleton College
Sarah Gillis, Worcester Art Museum
Beth Wodnick Haas, Princeton University
Billy Kwan, New York School of Interior Design
Meghan Musolff, University of Michigan
Molly Tighe, Chatham University

The charge and timeline:Beginning with a review of the 2008 VRA Strategic Plan, the data gathered by the ARLIS/NA - VRA Joint Task Force on Professional Standards Criteria, and the 2016 final report of the Professional Status Task Force, the Task Force will provide a status assessment and proceed to make recommendations for initiatives going forward. The Task Force will focus on the areas of: programs and services, membership, technology, financial structure, organization and governance, and leadership in the field.Initiatives will be developed according to the following criteria:– achievable within a 5 year period to commence in January 2018– include measurable activities and tasks– provide an estimated chronology of eventsRecommendations will take the form of a written report that will be delivered to the Executive Board by June 30, 2017. The report will then be presented to the VRA membership at the 2018 annual conference.Online Learning Task Force:The Board has appointed Marsha Taichman, Cornell University, to chair the Online Learning Task Force (OLTF) as well as the following members to serve on the OLTF:Betha Whitlow, Washington UniversityStephen Patton, Indiana State UniversityMarie Elia, University of BuffaloJasmine Burns, Indiana UniversityChris Strasbaugh, Ohio State UniversityThe charge and timeline:Beginning with an environmental scan of online learning approaches in similar organizations, such as the Art Libraries Society of North America, the Music Library Association, the Special Library Association, a review of the 2016 Professional Status Task Force report, and a brief report from the President’s April 2016 leadership webinar, the Task Force will identify the various factors for consideration relating to VRA's pursuit of online professional development opportunities. These will support the professional development needs of our members, provide new benefits of membership, serve as outreach to potential new members, offer a potential source of Association revenue, and further establish VRA as an authority on a variety of digital content issues. In its investigations, the Task Force will confer with various stakeholders, including the Education Committee, the VRA Foundation, the Executive Board in general and the Vice President for Conference Program in particular, as well as the VRA membership. The Task Force will offer at least two additional pilot webinars, from which it can assess and document successes and challenges. In its final report, to be delivered to the Executive Board by January 31, 2017, the Task Force will provide a set of recommendations for proceeding with this initiative. The factors addressed will include:

technical considerations for the GoToMeeting platform and other potential complementary software
mechanisms for soliciting and selecting relevant content and instructors; frequency of offerings; low-cost budget models with potential fee structures, if any
means of assessment
methods of coordinating educational content within VRA and VRAF, such as annual and regional conferences, regional workshops, and SEI
recommendations for models of ongoing Association oversight

Social Networking Coordinator:I’d like to extend sincere thanks to Stephanie Beene for the energy and time that she invested over the past year as our Social Networking Coordinator. I know that many members appreciated information that she posted about conference news, events, etc. in our social networking environments. Stephanie has stepped down from the position, and I am pleased to announce and welcome Kate Thornhill, Oregon Health and Science University, as our newly appointed Social Networking Coordinator. Kate will be stepping into that role as of July 1, 2016.The charge:Engage in outreach for VRA by following the Visual Resources Association’s Social Media Plan to efficiently and regularly post relevant, informative, or eye-catching content to the various Web 2.0 sites in which VRA participates (currently Twitter and Facebook).Membership Services CoordinatorLise Hawkos has renewed her contract with the VRA for FY2017. We are pleased to be able to continue this relationship with Lise and are grateful for the time she invests in supporting our members.A summary of Board member activities:Some of you may have heard from the Board through response letters to your annual reports, which document the activities of Chapters, Committees, Task Forces, Liaisons, Appointees, etc. All Board members share in the effort of responding to these reports, and we are truly inspired by the work that is happening as a result of our your time and dedication to your professions and the VRA.Speaking of dedication and time, I would like to thank my fellow Executive Board members for their remarkable commitment to both VRA and the profession. We have been meeting weekly online and monthly via conference calls to address a wide range of Association business. While attending to a large number of organizational issues, each Board member has also been busy focusing on the specific duties associated with his or her position.Following the annual conference, Secretary Jasmine Burns transcribed and condensed notes from the Board’s two annual meetings, our joint VRA/VRAF Business meeting, and our joint VRA/ARLIS-NA Business meeting in Seattle into our official minutes. This is no small task, considering that the VRA Board business meeting alone spanned 17 hours over the course of two days. Jasmine also worked to revise our mid-year report template so that we are able to better track leadership changes. Reports were due on June 15th, so Jasmine is in the process of organizing them so that Board members can access and review them efficiently before we conduct our Mid-year Board meeting.Vice President for Conference Program, Chris Strasbaugh, administered post-conference surveys for attendees and non-attendees. Chris is using the results of that survey to plan conference content that will meet your professional development needs. The 2017 Annual Conference will be held at the Louisville Marriott Downtown in Louisville, Kentucky from March 29th-April 1st. You may have seen Chris’ call for proposals on VRA-L. Chris also distributes this to other affiliated and like-minded associations, so ideas for a great conference are being generated as we speak. There’s still time to submit a proposal, but the deadline is approaching quickly. Please don’t be shy about proposing your content ideas by July 5th, 2016.Vice President for Conference Arrangements, Ryan Brubacher, has been working with both the Louisville Marriott staff and Tom Costello, our conference destination consultant, to address logistics surrounding the VRA mid-year board meeting (July 25-27th, 2016) and the annual conference (March 29 – April 1, 2017). Ryan also coordinated the renewal of Tom’s contract with the VRA, for which we are grateful. Tom does extensive work in collaboration with Ryan to investigate and secure venue options for our annual conferences as well as communicate with hotel staff about our needs during the conference. An investigation of potential 2018 conference venues is currently underway.Public Relations Communications Officer, Melanie Clark, has been working diligently with Heather Rayl, Website Content Manager, to keep our website functional and up-to-date. Melanie has updated org email addresses for various VRA leadership positions and managed numerous projects for various groups in Basecamp, the Association’s project management software. Melanie will be updating the VRA web soon to reflect the new appointments mentioned above.Treasurer, Jeannine Keefer, has processed many conference expense payments and requests for reimbursements. She has been working to close the current FY2016 budget and prepare FY2017 budget. Jeannine has also coordinated the contract renewal of our Accountant, Eileen Xethelis (CFO Consulting Partners LLC), who provides valuable consulting services for the VRA. Jeannine also serves as a member of the Financial Advisory Committee and communicates as needed with members of the VRA Foundation about financial and fundraising matters.Past President, Elaine Paul, has worked with past presidents Maureen Burns and Jolene de Verges on updating the Organizational Policies and Procedures Manual and (as previously mentioned) will co-chair the SPTF with Jolene de Verges. Elaine has been an invaluable source of information and guidance for me in transitioning into my role as President.Up next…

The Board will receive the Professional Status Task Force report on June 30th, and we look forward to reviewing and using it as a tool to assess member and non-member professional needs and help us think about benefits that we can offer current and prospective members. This report will be useful to many of our committees for various reasons, and we look forward to sharing it with all of you soon.
As always, we strive to address membership recruitment and retention. We will continue work with the Membership Committee and with the Membership Services Coordinator on outreach activities relating to this year’s membership renewal campaign. VRA’s leaders met online in April to discuss the Association’s identity and how we all can effectively communicate this with others and connect it to the work we are doing. The ideas and concerns that we share are important to address as we think about the health of the Association and our professional roles. I would like to offer periodic online discussions with VRA leaders, and the Board is also investigating ways to bring this discussion forward at a broader scale—perhaps during the annual conference.
The dialog about the cultivation and efficiency of leadership within VRA will remain a priority. While online and conference discussions with leaders have been important, we are thinking creatively about how to make it easier for new members to learn about and become involved in the VRA. Ideas are emerging around how this might be formatted as a conference event, and we will provide more information about that in the next months.
We will continue the ongoing focus on outreach to and collaboration with other organizations in the coming year. We are working again this year with the DLF and CLIR to coordinate another cross-pollinator grant that would support a VRA member’s attendance to 2016 DLF conference and a DLF member’s attendance to the 2017 VRA conference. I will update you on that is more information becomes available.
Fundraising for the Association, our annual conference, and the vital travel awards program is an ongoing topic. We will work with the Development Committee, the Travel Awards Committee, and the VRA Foundation to continue harmonizing our various fundraising activities, and to develop new strategies for raising money for VRA and travel awards.
The publishing and communications program for the Association is also an area of continued focus. We encourage submissions from all of you, and you can review the guidelines here: http://online.vraweb.org/vrab/submguide.html . Currently, access VRA Bulletin content is a member-only benefit for the duration of a 6 month embargo period, after which the content is made available openly. The Board will be reviewing this model with Maureen Burns (Content Editor) and Hannah Marshall (Production Editor) within the upcoming months. It is important to re-evaluate from time-to-time how we make information about the work we do accessible to each other and others beyond the VRA.

We on the Board now turn our attention to the mid-year Board meeting in Louisville next month, and this begins our focused planning for the 2017 conference. We wish you a happy, healthy, and productive summer. Please do not hesitate to contact us (or me personally) with questions or concerns:board@vraweb.org jennifer.w.green@dartmouth.eduSincerely,Jen Green, VRA President

4/29/16 4/29/16

VRA Executive Board Elections - Nominations Sought

NOMINATIONS SOUGHT FOR 2016 VRA EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTIONSThree key positions on the VRA Executive Board come vacant at the 2017 annual conference:

President-Elect
Vice President for Conference Program
Secretary

The Nominating Committee is actively seeking nominations for these positions. Running for office is an excellent way to serve the Visual Resources Association, get to know more of your colleagues in the field, and give yourself an opportunity to grow professionally. If you are interested in serving on the VRA Executive Board please feel free to contact any previous or current officer; they would be happy to share their experiences and reflections of their time in office. The Committee encourages members to place themselves, or other qualified individuals, in consideration for nomination by contacting the Chair or any member of the Committee.The VRA Bylaws provide additional information about the terms and duties of each officer position.Thank you,VRA 2016 Nominating CommitteeJolene de Verges, Southern Methodist University (Co-Chair)Steven P. Kowalik, Hunter College (Co-Chair)Elaine Paul, University of Colorado, Boulder

3/18/16 3/18/16

VRA President's Post Conference Letter

Hello, VRA colleagues --

I was thrilled to see many of you in Seattle for the 3rd Annual VRA + ARLIS/NA Joint Conference. This year’s joint conference exposed us to cutting-edge information, inspiring ideas, and opportunities to collaborate with colleagues beyond the VRA. I, personally, left the conference feeling saturated with new ideas and perspectives to pursue in my work, and I hope that you did as well. I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to experience both VRA and ARLIS communities jointly; two organizations that engage in rich conversations, share ideas openly, and adapt quickly to change.

Before I launch into the daunting task of acknowledging and reflecting on the impressive qualities of this year’s joint conference and conference participants, I’d like to remind you all that the attendees’ post-conference evaluation survey is open ( https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BPL99TV )and will remain open until March 31st, 2016. The Executive Board encourages everyone to take just a few moments to share feedback, which will be vital to planning future conferences.

First and foremost, I want to thank all members of the Joint Conference Planning Committee for the collegial and efficient ways that they worked across both VRA and ARLIS/NA to ensure a successful conference. Their collaborative perspectives and working relationships set the tone for all conference planning and arrangements. I will mention many of them by name throughout the course of this message, but for a more complete list of those involved in making this joint conference happen, please visit the joint conference website.

Honoring our members.

Our annual conference gathering gives us the opportunity to personally honor colleagues for distinguished achievement and outstanding career contributions to the field of visual resources and image management.

Congratulations go to this year’s joint recipients of The Nancy DeLaurier Award: VRA Core 4.0 creators Kevin Esmé Cowles, Janice Eklund, Benjamin Kessler, and Trish Rose-Sandler. Their groundbreaking work developing VRA Core 4.0 and the accompanying metadata schema has made a huge impact on colleagues working in a variety of disciplines both nationally and internationally. In her letter of support for the recipients, Elisa Lanzi writes, “I’ve just returned from the Digital Library Federation conference. I love the fact that VRA Core 4.0 is mentioned in presentations right alongside Dublin Core. Trish, Jan, Ben, and Esme made that happen by signing on for the long haul and applying brilliant and strategic thinking to improve access to cultural heritage content.” During their acceptance speech, Trish gave a special thanks many members who’ve contributed to VRA Core 4.0 and also recognized the diligent work of VRA Core Oversight Committee members. Trish, Jan, Ben, and Esme have exhibited particular leadership, expertise, determination, and vision to ensure that the talented contributions of many are focused and sustained.

For her many years of remarkable dedication, leadership, and service to both VRA and ARLIS/NA and to the visual resources and library professions, VRA and ARLIS/NA presented this year’s Distinguished Service Awards to Ann Baird Whiteside. In addition to serving as President of both organizations, Ann has been an initiator and leader on numerous projects such as CCO, SAHARA, and VRA Core 4.0 and has made significant contributions to ARTstor’s Shared Shelf Platform. Ann has also worked effectively across multiple disciplines and organizations. In her letter of support, Jolene de Verges comments, “As a leader in both ARLIS/NA and VRA, Ann has built bridges between the visual resources professional and traditional librarianship. She chaired the ARLIS/NA-VRA Joint Conference Task Force which led to a set of recommendations for streamlining the process of planning all future joint conferences between the two organizations.”

Many thanks to the Nominating Committee, chaired by Margaret Webster, and to the nominators for their work in ensuring that these contributions to the field have been formally recognized and celebrated.

The recipients of the 2016 Travel Awards, along with the generous donors who have made these awards available, were recognized this year during the Annual Business Meeting. A total of 10 awards were given out in support of attendance at this year’s conference. The Travel Awards Committee, led by Co-Chairs Vicky Brown and Jeannine Keefer, reviewed the applications and coordinated fundraising with the Development Committee, co-chaired by Barbara Brenny and Marie Elia. Our deep appreciation for the generosity of donor sponsored travel awards goes to Kathe Hicks Albrecht and the anonymous donor who supports the “New Horizons” travel award fund. Last, but certainly not least, VRA is grateful that members like you support the Luraine Tansey Educational Fund Awards. It is heartwarming to see so many of us helping both new and veteran members attend and benefit from our annual conferences.

Absorbing new content and ideas.

The Seattle program was engaging and diverse. It emerged from 95 submitted paper or session proposals, resulting in 39 sessions; 15 submitted workshop proposals, resulting in 6 workshops: 55 submitted poster proposals, resulting in 40 posters, and 11 SIG/SUG meetings. Topics included digital humanities, visual literacy, geospatial and visualization projects, image rights and reproductions, new technologies, museum education, environmental design, makerspaces, e-book publishing, materials education and research, diversity within our professions, RDF and LOD, crowdsourcing, cataloging, archives, visualization, open access, and more. Additionally, there were a number of productive organizational and chapter meetings held in Seattle.

Our deep thanks go to our Vice President for Conference Program, Chris Strasbaugh, for his outstanding work as he co-coordinated the program and schedule in collaboration with Program Committee Co-Chairs Dan McClure (ARLIS/NA), Denise Hattwig(ARLIS/NA) and Mar González Palacios (AASL, ARLIS/NA); to the Education Committee, co-chaired by Beth Wodnick Haas, Ryan Brubacher (past) and Marsha Taichman (present), for their invaluable contributions toward programming; and to the many presenters, instructors, and moderators who offered such timely, relevant, and forward-thinking content. Your knowledge and experiences should be disseminated to an international audience. I hope that if you presented at the conference that you will consider taking that presentation to the next level by publishing it as an article for the VRA Bulletin (http://online.vraweb.org/).

Sarah Bergmann, design thinker and founder of the Pollinator Pathway, spoke during Convocation and shared thought-provoking perspectives on how the plight of the honey bee inspired her to consider symbiotic relationships and the importance of building and maintaining pathways to support these relationships. While Sarah’s consideration of bees inspired her to build pathways that connect city dwellers to existing green spaces, her work inspired us to think about the benefits that might be realized when we build connections across disciplines and professional organizations. Sarah’s talk was a compelling way to draw our 3rd Annual Joint conference to an end.

Enjoying the venues and the city.

Joint Conference co-chairs, Josh Polansky and Alan Michelson deserve a standing ovation for the time, enthusiasm, and thought that they each invested in this joint conference. Josh and Alan really went above and beyond in many ways to ensure that conference attendees had a positive and enriching experience in Seattle.

Sessions, workshops, speakers, meetings, and social excursions involving scheduling, AV, catering, or all of the above ran seamlessly during our entire time at The Westin Seattle Downtown. There were many others involved in the joint conference planning process who deserve our thanks when it comes to our comfort at the Westin and around Seattle, including Past-Presidents Elaine Paul (VRA) and Kristen Regina (ARLIS/NA), Local Arrangements Chairs, Cindy Abel Morris (VRA) and Traci Timmons (ARLIS/NA). Special thanks also go to Robert Kopchinski, ARLIS/NA Executive Director, who exhibited remarkable skill coordinating, communicating, and managing a variety of conference needs and requests from both VRA and ARLIS/NA. And, of course, all of the staff at The Westin deserve recognition for their gracious service.

The city of Seattle was an added bonus alongside the excellent conference program. The Joint Conference Co-Chairs and Local Arrangements Co-Chairs helped develop tours and call attention to the city’s many fine museums, restaurants, and shopping venues, as well as offered attentive and thoughtful support and advice to attendees during the conference. From the Welcome Reception at the Seattle Art Museum to the Convocation Reception at the Seattle Public Library attendees had opportunities to explore many of the highlights that Seattle has to offer (rain or shine). Thank you to volunteers who assisted in leading these tours.

Secretary Jasmine Burns worked collaboratively with ARLIS/NA members Tad Suzuki and Suzanne Rackover to coordinate numerous registration desk volunteers, prepare conference badges and bags, and be simply hospitable during the entire conference. Thank you to all who volunteered their time to create such a welcoming and informative resource for attendees.

Past Public Relations and Communications Officer John Trendler worked with Sarah Seymore to create the conference website (http://www.arlisna-vra.org/seattle2016/index.php)

Past Treasurer Allan Kohl contributed his attention and wisdom to the joint conference budget, and as always, exhibited great care in his stewardship of the Association’s finances.

Being a new member or a first-time attendee.

Past Presidents, Kristen Regina (ARLIS/NA) and Elaine Paul (VRA) welcomed conference newcomers at the New Members and First-Time Attendees Reception, which was planned and facilitated by both VRA and ARLIS Membership Committees. Hors d'oeuvres and beverages were served while volunteer members from both organizations introduced a matchmaking activity that supported mingling and network building.

Karen Bouchard took the lead this year to offer conference mentors for those interested in connecting with a new colleague at the conference. This is a program that the VRA offers each year. If you are a new member who has yet to find your niche in VRA, please know that all committee chairs welcome inquiries about their work, and there are many opportunities to become involved (httpS://vraweb.org/about/committees/). You do not need to be an expert from the start; you simply need a willingness to learn and contribute. You will find that the rewards exceed the investment many times over. Please feel welcome to reach out to me as well.

Thanking our sponsors for their support.

Development Committee co-chair, Barbara Brenny, worked with ARLIS/NA Joint Conference Development Coordinators Clayton Kirking, Suzanne Rackover, and Jane Carlin to communicate closely with our conference sponsors, who provided very generous support, without which we could not offer such outstanding programming and venues. Our deep gratitude goes to our sponsors, donors, and friends for their ongoing generosity. For a complete list of all joint conference sponsors and the levels at which they contributed, please visit the conference website’s Sponsors page.

Finally, annual conferences and joint conferences would not exist without the participation of attendees. This year’s attendance exceeded our expectations, which enriched this opportunity for us to meet and share knowledge, build connections with one another, and help shape the direction of our profession. Whether or not you were able to join us in Seattle, I hope to reconnect with as many of you as possible next year in Louisville, Kentucky.

With sincere thanks,

Jen Green

p.s. There was a professional photographer at the conference who snapped many shots. These images will be shared with the VRA Board soon, and then we can find a way to share them with you. If you took photos at the conference, feel free to join the VRA Flickr Events group and post them at https://www.flickr.com/groups/vra_events/pool/. There is also a VRA Flickr Group to share images of more general interest. If you took photographs while touring Seattle or other parts of Washington, feel free to post them here: https://www.flickr.com/groups/visualresources/pool/

10/12/15 10/12/15

VRA annual election and candidates

Dear VRA colleagues,The VRA annual election of officers will take place online, November 1-30, 2015. Members will receive an e-mail on Nov. 1 with instructions for accessing the ballot. Instructions will also be posted on the VRA website.The three offices open for next year are Vice President for Conference Arrangements, Public Relations and Communications Officer, and Treasurer. You can find the announcement of the candidates at httpS://vraweb.org/elections/, including their bios and statements of goals. Please join The Executive Board in thanking these colleagues for volunteering to be candidates for the positions.We would also like to extend our thanks to the Nominating Committee: Jolene de Verges (Chair), Marcia Focht, and Steven Kowalik.In accordance with the Bylaws, the Nominating Committee has the discretion to put forward either two opposing candidates for a given office, or to put forward a single candidate for a given office. In either case, a vote by the membership is required. Please vote to show your support for the candidates and participate in the governance of the Association.Thank you in advance for your participation in the very important election process.Elaine PaulPresident, Visual Resources Association

4/16/15 4/16/15

New Board appointments: Slide and Transitional Media Task Force Chair and Website Content Manager

The VRA Executive Board is pleased two announce two new appointments.First, the Board has appointed Jacob Esselstrom, University of Wisconsin-Madison, as chair of the Slide and Transitional Media Task Force. We thank Jacob for taking on this important role for the Association. Our gratitude also goes to Jenni Rodda, whose year-long term as the task force's chair ended with the 2015 conference. Jenni will remain a member of the task force in the coming year.The Board has also appointed Heather Rayl, Indiana State University, as our new Website Content Manager. This position is responsible for managing authorized website users, editors and contributors, posting and editing content for publication on the website, and handling general website maintenance. The Website Content Manager works with and reports to the Public Relations and Communications Officer.Heather has been creating and managing websites for over 12 years. She has experience with both creating sites from scratch as well as working with content management systems, like Drupal and WordPress. At the County of Los Angeles Public Library, where she was Internet Services Coordinator, she managed three servers for the library: the public facing internet, the staff intranet, and the catalog server. She was responsible for creating content for the sites, maintaining existing content, migrating to new platforms when needed, and performing upgrades. As the Emerging Technology Librarian for Indiana State University, she designed and implemented a site re-design. She is familiar with both Unix and Windows servers. She also on the website committee for the Indiana Online Users Group. She is extremely comfortable with HTML, CSS, Javascript (and jQuery), PHP and MySQL.Heather is a new VRA member, and we warmly welcome her to the Association and thank her for her willingness to serve. Any requests for updates to the VRA website can be sent to Heather at webadmin@vraweb.org.

4/12/15 4/12/15

VRA President’s Post Conference Letter

Greetings, VRA colleagues --It was wonderful to see so many of you in Denver at our 33rd Annual Conference, which offered cutting-edge information, inspiration, and warm camaraderie. I feel so privileged to be a part of this community, which works hard to accomplish great things in support of the Association, our members, and the profession.Have a look at the Storify created from this year's conference tweets (https://storify.com/VRA/vra33-denver-co-2015). If you took photos at the conference, feel free to join the VRA Flickr Events group and post them at https://www.flickr.com/groups/vra_events/pool/. Please take a moment first to review the “Event Photography and Recording Policy”: http://www.vraweb.org/conferences/vra33/conference-policies/. There is also a VRA Flickr Group to share images of more general interest. If you took photographs while touring Denver or other parts of Colorado, feel free to post them here: https://www.flickr.com/groups/visualresources/pool/Before sharing my acknowledgments and reflections upon a stellar conference, I’d like to remind you all that the attendees’ post-conference evaluation survey (https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/GFBYNCF) and non-attendees’ post-conference evaluation survey (https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7GK3H39) have been posted and will remain open until April 15. The Executive Board encourages everyone to take just a few moments to share feedback, which will be vital to planning future conferences.AWARDSThe Members and Awards Dinner is our annual opportunity to honor colleagues for distinguished achievement and outstanding career contributions to the field of visual resources and image management.

Congratulations go to this year’s joint recipients of the Nancy DeLaurier Award: Murtha Baca, Patricia Harpring, Elisa Lanzi, Linda McRae, and Ann Baird Whiteside. As co-authors of Cataloging Cultural Objects, they created an excellent and very much needed data content standard to the cultural heritage community. In his letter of support for their nomination, Sherman Clarke noted, “Every once in a while, a project comes along that is so important that you wonder how you got along without the results of that work. Cataloging Cultural Objects is one of those projects.” For those of us with dog-eared copies sitting close to our desks, truer words have never been spoken.
For her many years of incredible dedication and service to the Association and to the profession, VRA presented this year’s Distinguished Service Award to Maureen Burns. In addition to serving as President, Maureen has contributed to the Association in numerous other ways, including serving as Co-Chair of the Digital Initiatives Advisory Group, Chair of the VRA White Paper Task Force, and currently as Content Editor of the VRA Bulletin. In his letter of support Brian Shelburne comments, “It seemed that, in addition to serving as President-elect or later as President, Maureen was like a hummingbird on speed…. Her many years of unflagging participation in VRA groups, her dedication to developing the profession, and her support for new members alone should be enough to deserve such an honor. If one adds to those traits her great networking skills and warm, gentle leadership style, one has a person who is most deserving of this award.” I encourage you to visit the DSA section of the VRA website in the coming weeks (httpS://vraweb.org/about/committees/awards-committee/vra-awards-recipients/), where information about Maureen’s many accomplishments will soon be posted.

The recipients of the 2015 Travel Awards, along with the generous donors who have made these awards available, were also recognized at the dinner. A total of 15 awards were given out in support of attendance at this year’s conference. The Travel Awards Committee, led by Co-Chairs Vicky Brown and Jeannine Keefer, reviewed the applications and coordinated fundraising with the Development Committee, Co-Chaired by Mary Alexander and Barbara Brenny. Our deep appreciation for the generosity of corporate travel awards sponsorship goes to Archivision and Gallery Systems; and for donor award sponsorship to Kathe Hicks Albrecht, and the anonymous donor who supports the “New Horizons” travel award fund. Last, but certainly not least, VRA is grateful that individuals like you support the Luraine Tansey Educational Fund Awards. It is heartwarming to see so many of us helping both new and veteran members attend and benefit from our annual conferences.

PROGRAM

The outstanding Denver program was created from 59 submitted proposals, resulting in 14 sessions (including 4 sessions composed of 14 individual papers), 6 workshops, 11 SIG/SUG meetings, 9 posters, 6 Birds of a Feather lunches. Topics included digital humanities, visual literacy, mapping and geospatial projects, image rights and reproductions, usability testing, new technologies, digital asset management, crowdsourcing, cataloging, embedded metadata, sharing collections, professional advancement, archives, research data management, visualization, and more. Additionally, there were a number of productive organizational and chapter meetings held in Denver.
Our deep thanks go to our past Vice President for Conference Program Steven Kowalik for his outstanding work on coordinating the program and scheduling; to the Education Committee, co-chaired by Beth Wodnick Haas and Ryan Brubacher, for their invaluable contributions toward programming; and to the many presenters, instructors, and moderators who offered such timely and relevant content. Your knowledge and experiences should be disseminated to an international audience; please consider transforming your papers and presentations into articles for the VRA Bulletin (http://online.vraweb.org/).
Our plenary speakers shared thought-provoking perspectives from museums and digital libraries.
- Opening speaker Aaron Straup Cope, Head of Engineering with the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian National Design Museum, asked us how experiences can be collected as design objects. Can a design museum collect objects that convey the experience of, say, Virgin America as service design? More provocatively, what about “collecting” the War on Terror? What do we collect? Orange jumpsuits? How do we convey an experience when an object has been removed from its interactions and context? From here Cope moved to the experience of museum goers, describing the recently launched New Cooper Hewitt Experience, and sharing the story of designing a new interactive Pen that allows visitors to enhance their experience by “collecting” and “saving” objects from the galleries to customized web pages.
- Closing speaker Emily Gore, Director for Content for the Digital Public Library of America provided an insider’s view of content coordination and collections workflows, including the DPLA Hubs program. Having “transitioned from sprint to marathon,” DPLA is now focused on sustainable collaborations, building community, data quality, use and reuse. Much of Gore’s current daily work focuses on identifying and helping to establish new Service Hubs for DPLA. She is currently working on a framework for Rights Statements for cultural heritage materials in partnership with our colleagues at Europeana and key experts in the US.

ARRANGEMENTS AND LOGISTICS

Cindy Abel Morris, Vice President for Conference Arrangements, deserves a round of applause for her adept and attentive planning. Hotel accommodations and events -- whether sessions, workshops, speakers, meetings, or social occasions involving room scheduling, AV, catering, or all of the above -- ran seamlessly during our entire time at The Westin Denver Downtown. She is so talented that she even arranged for the beautifully sunny and warm weather! Special thanks also go to Tom Costello, our destination consultant, whose skill at recognizing and addressing potential glitches before they can materialize is unparalleled. And all of the staff at The Westin deserve recognition for their gracious service.
The city of Denver provided a delightful backdrop to the excellent conference program. The Local Arrangements Committee, led by Heather Seneff and Hannah Unsderfer, helped develop tours and call attention to the city’s many fine museums, restaurants, and shopping venues, and provided other helpful advice to visitors. From the Clyfford Still Museum to the Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, with fascinating walking tours in between, attendees explored many of the highlights that the Mile-High City has to offer. Thank you to volunteers Ken Schroeppel of the College of Architecture and Planning, University of Colorado Denver for leading the Denver architecture walking tour, and our own Allan Kohl for leading the tour of the Colorado State Capitol Building.
Past Secretary Stephanie Beene created our online registration form and oversaw the registration packets. Assisted by numerous volunteers, Membership Services Coordinator Lise Hawkos managed the registration desk. Thank you to all who volunteered their time to create such a welcoming and informative resource for attendees.
Public Relations and Communications Office John Trendler created the conference website (http://www.vraweb.org/conferences/vra33/) and the PDF of our program, (http://www.vraweb.org/conferences/vra33/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/VRA33Program.pdf), and will be collecting and uploading presentations to the VRA SlideShare account (http://www.slideshare.net/VisResAssoc/).
Treasurer Allan Kohl oversaw the budget with precision and wisdom, always with the greatest care in his stewardship of the Association’s finances.

NEW MEMBERS AND FIRST-TIME ATTENDEES

The Membership Committee, chaired by Melanie Clark, welcomed conference newcomers at the New Members and First-Time Attendees Breakfast. The Membership and Education Committees teamed up once again to offer the VRA Connect event at the breakfast, where committee chairs and selected appointees introduce themselves, their work, and the many opportunities for involvement with the important work that VRA conducts.
Continuing the popular Conference Mentor tradition, the Membership Committee’s Mentor Coordinator, Karen Bouchard, matched all individuals requesting mentors with seasoned conference attendees. Our thanks go to mentors and mentees alike.
If you are a new member who is yet to find your niche in VRA, please know that all committee chairs welcome inquiries about their work, and there are many opportunities to become involved (httpS://vraweb.org/about/committees/). You do not need to be an expert from the start; you simply need a willingness to learn and contribute. You will find that the rewards exceed the investment many times over.

SPONSORS AND CONFERENCE SUPPORT

The Development Committee communicated closely with our conference sponsors, who provided very generous support without which we could not offer such outstanding programming and venues. Our deep gratitude goes to our sponsors, donors, and friends for their ongoing generosity.
- The following commercial and non-profit partners participated this year with generous sponsorships: Archivision, Artstor, Fotosearch, Gallery Systems, The Public Art Archive, Scholars Resource, vrcHost, and Wolff app.
- Many thanks also go to the Visual Resources Association Foundation, which sponsored the VRAF Legacy Lecture: Opening speaker.
- The coffee break was sponsored in part by the VRA Greater New York Chapter. Special thanks also go to my employer, the Department of Art History, University of Colorado Boulder, for support in recognition of my role as VRA President.
- Our gratitude goes to Archivision, Gallery Systems, and vrcHost, along with Wild West Chapter members and our friends at the Denver Art Museum and History Colorado for providing prizes for the drawing held at the Sponsors’ Meet and Greet event.

Finally, we would have no annual conference without the participation of attendees. Each year offers a special opportunity for us to meet and share knowledge and fellowship, and help shape the direction of our profession. I look forward to seeing you next year in Seattle at the joint ARLIS/NA-VRA Conference.With gratitude and best wishes,Elaine--Elaine PaulPresident, Visual Resources Association

4/7/15 4/7/15

NOMINATIONS SOUGHT FOR 2015 VRA EXECUTIVE BOARD ELECTIONS

Three key positions on the VRA Executive Board come vacant at the 2016 annual conference:

Vice President for Conference Arrangements
Treasurer
Public Relations and Communications Officer

The Nominating Committee is actively seeking nominations for these positions. Running for office is an excellent way to serve the Visual Resources Association, get to know more of your colleagues in the field, and give yourself an opportunity to grow professionally. If you are interested in serving on the VRA Executive Board please feel free to contact any previous or current officer; they would be happy to share their experiences and reflections of their time in office. The Committee encourages members to place themselves, or other qualified individuals, in consideration for nomination by contacting the Chair or any member of the Committee.The VRA Bylaws provide additional information about the terms and duties of each officer position. Additional information, including the VRA Organizational Policies and Procedures Manual and Board Compensation Policy is found in the Organizational Leadership and Management section of MemberClicks.Thank you,VRA 2015 Nominating CommitteeJolene de Verges, Southern Methodist University (Chair)Marcia Focht, Binghamton UniversitySteven Kowalik, Hunter College/CUNY