REFORMA Elects New Officers, 2012-2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact:
Yago S. Cura
Public Relations Committee Chair
646-207-9441
yagooutreach@gmail.com
www.reforma.org
REFORMA Elects New Officers, 2012-2015
Los Angeles, CA.— REFORMA elected new officers that will be part of the Executive Committee and will take office following the 2012 ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim for the 2012-2015 term.
Isabel Espinal, Librarian for Afro American Studies, Native American Indian Studies, and Information Literacy, has been elected REFORMA vice-president/president-elect. Isabel’s commitment is for 3 years. First, she becomes president-elect at the 2012 ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim; then, she becomes president 2013-2014, and immediately thereafter, past-president 2014-2015.
Isabel was inspired to run by a fortuitous reencounter with an old REFORMA pin. After several years of demurring to run because of time and family commitments, Isabel says, “this year felt different despite my current obligations.” She explains, “on the very day that I got the email asking me if I would run this year, I found a REFORMA pin that I had not seen in years. The pin said “REFORMA: Leer es Poder.” I took that as a sign that the time had come for me to say yes.”
Cristina D. Ramirez, Library Community Services Manager for
Broad Rock Branch, Richmond Public Library, was elected Member-at-Large. Cristina will serve a two (2) year elected term and will represent all Member-at-Large members at REFORMA meetings.
Oscar Baeza, Public Services Librarian, El Paso Community College, and Romelia Salinas, Head of Access Services at California State University, Los Angeles, were elected Chapter Representatives. They will also serve two (2) year elected terms. They are two of three chapter representatives whose terms are staggered, with one re elected in one year and two the following year. These elected officials maintain open lines of communication and represent their designated chapters’ concerns at all REFORMA meetings.
Louis Muñoz, PULSE Librarian Trainee, Multilingual Center, Brooklyn Public Library, was elected Secretary. Louis will serve also two (2) year term and will be responsible for
taking minutes at all official REFORMA meetings. As Secretary, he will also distribute minutes electronically to the Membership Board for approval.
Established in 1971 as an affiliate of the American Library Association (ALA), REFORMA has actively sought to promote the development of library collections to include Spanish-language and Latino-oriented materials; the recruitment of more bilingual and bicultural library professionals and support staff; the development of library services and programs that meet the needs of the Latino community; the establishment of a national information and support network among individuals who share our goals; the education of the U.S. Latino population with regard to the availability and types of library services; and lobbying efforts to preserve existing library resource centers serving the interests of Latinos. Nationally, there are 26 REFORMA chapters. For more information on REFORMA, please visit www.reforma.org.