Assistant Professor Eric Meyers will be honoured at the 2015 Association for Library and Information Science Education (ALISE) Conference with the Pratt-Severn Faculty Innovation Award. The award acknowledges his work in developing video-based e-learning resources, including the iSchool YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/ UBCiSchool/), as well as the video book trailer project in collaboration with Professor Judith Saltman. This work was supported with grants from the UBC Faculty of Arts, including the highly competitive Dean of Arts Innovation Fund.
In her letter of support for Dr. Meyers’ nomination, Professor Judith Saltman wrote: “I have been a faculty member at the School of Library, Archival and Information Studies for over 30 years, and in that time, I have witnessed many different colleagues apply innovative approaches to pedagogy. However, none of them have impressed me as has Professor Meyers in his consistently original and innovative approaches to teaching and learning, both in his courses and beyond in the professional field.” Professor Saltman has extended the initial book trailer course assignment to support the promotion of Canadian children’s materials, both in her LIBR 527 course (Library Services for Children), and through the Children’s Literature Roundtables of Canada Information Book Awards (http://vclr.ca/information-book-award/).
Established in 1996, the $1,000 cash award (sponsored by ALISE and by Pratt Institute, School of Information and Library Science, on behalf of the late David Severn, a 1968 Pratt alumnus) is designed to identify innovation by full-time faculty members, or a group of full-time faculty members, in incorporating evolving information technologies in the curricula of accredited masters degree programs in library and information studies. The award has been presented only eleven times since 1996. Dr. Meyers intends to donate the award to the iSchool to support student professional groups, bursaries, and travel stipends.
