A challenging and provocative year.

This year has been challenging and provocative for me. When I began the presidency, I was wise enough to know that I was really only going to get to investigate most of the issues I felt were important. Through the taskforces, SLA will be lucky enough to have begun thinking about our professional values and the value we bring to the industry. We also demonstrated how much we value our colleagues through our efforts (both staff and members) with the Natural Disaster Task Force.

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We are identifying new members and have thought seriously about partners and collaborating. We will have suggestions on how to shape our future and recommendations for new programs for members. We will also have taken a good look at different models for chapters, to be executed according to the needs of the members wherever they will be.

We will also have, for the first time in many years, currently conducted research into our practice.

This year we experimented with different communication programs, planned and robust, spontaneous and targeted. While I didn't anticipate the thoughts of every member's opinion, I responded as quickly as I was able.

Behind the scenes, we investigated new opportunities to expand programming within Europe and to establish programs for senior or executive members. We formally collaborated with ongoing conferences this year by returning to the European Business Information Conference and initiating support with E-Content. We think that this provided us insight into the interests of our current members and the interests of potential members. In both cases, SLA was welcomed and our recognition was real.

The association also participated in big issues this year, particularly the global Internet governance decision that was reached in December 2005 through the United Nations program, WYSIS. Our influence continues to grow globally through IFLA.

So while there is much to follow up, there are also emerging issues that continue to demand our attention. Outsourcing didn't fade, and many members of the profession did not immediately join some new paradigm of the information industry. The association must encourage the graduate education programs to embrace curriculum that makes us even more competitive. Current copyright laws still challenge the clear distribution of published resources regardless of the author's intentions. Positively, there are several new tools for our members to use in the introduction of collaborative workspace, blogs, wikis and social computing models (oh my!).

This year we made a beginning on the agenda we proposed. This was another year in which to look outward. To improve the way the association is viewed and interpreted, and to continue to seize a role for it on traditional information platforms, and to look to gain entree to platforms untried. There is still quite a bit to do.

I would like to thank all my colleagues who worked so passionately and intensely. I would like to thank the current Board of Directors for being so committed to champion big issues. I would like to thank our association executives who continue to experiment in their roles in an effort to provide even more value. Our committees worked very diligently behind the scenes. Lastly, I can't thank all the members who volunteered to be task force leaders and members enough, as they really made a momentous contribution, one that we will probably be acting on for the next few years.

Specifically, I would also like to thank Ethel Salonen and Rebecca Vargha who have been great colleagues and tremendous work mates. The triumvirate has been effective, supportive, and fun.

Being president of the association is really a celebration of the members. I met many members this year, which I will say is the most pleasurable and selfish thing I have done. Our members are real, talented, committed, funny, and gracious. They are unselfish in their hospitality and untiring in their efforts. Now there is just one more major event to confront. I am very much looking forward to our annual conference in Baltimore. The program is ground shifting and insists on innovation. I would like to specifically thank Karen Reczek and her conference planning committee and most certainly our colleagues who acted as program planners.

I look forward to congratulating our award winners and catching up with all my colleagues whom I only manage to see at conference. Conference will be multi-media this year, so look for an opportunity to experience it live regardless of where you are.

I would like to thank all of you for the extraordinary experience of this year and for the honor of being a leader within SLA.