The Board of Directors is comprised of ten volunteer members (eight elected, and two appointed), drawn from the CRKN membership. Details on Board composition, powers and operation may be found in the CRKN bylaws.
Member
Alan Shepard
Chair
President and Vice-Chancellor
Concordia University
Term end date: October 2019
Professor Alan Shepard is president of Concordia University in Montréal. Concordia is one of Canada's largest and most innovative urban universities. Its founding institutions, Loyola College (1896) and Sir George Williams University (1926), gave rise in 1974 to the modern Concordia, now home to 46,000 students.
Alan joined Concordia in 2012 from Toronto, where he had served as provost of Ryerson University. There he led teams developing entrepreneur-based experiential learning, including the Digital Media Zone (DMZ) and the Centre for Urban Energy. Alan has also held leadership roles in Virginia and Texas and at the University of Guelph.
He studied at St Olaf College and the University of Virginia (PhD 1990), and was a visiting student at Cambridge. He has held senior fellowships at University of Toronto.
His past and present public service includes Canadian Research Knowledge Network, Montréal Board of Trade, Stratford Festival of Canada, Montréal’s Quartier d’innovation, Fondation Montréal Inc., Montréal Science Centre Foundation, and Aéro Montréal.
Alan joined Concordia in 2012 from Toronto, where he had served as provost of Ryerson University. There he led teams developing entrepreneur-based experiential learning, including the Digital Media Zone (DMZ) and the Centre for Urban Energy. Alan has also held leadership roles in Virginia and Texas and at the University of Guelph.
He studied at St Olaf College and the University of Virginia (PhD 1990), and was a visiting student at Cambridge. He has held senior fellowships at University of Toronto.
His past and present public service includes Canadian Research Knowledge Network, Montréal Board of Trade, Stratford Festival of Canada, Montréal’s Quartier d’innovation, Fondation Montréal Inc., Montréal Science Centre Foundation, and Aéro Montréal.
Larry Alford
Director (Appointed position)
Chief Librarian
University of Toronto
Term end date: October 2018 (Annual Re-appointment)
Larry P. Alford is Chief Librarian at the University of Toronto, the largest research library in Canada and the third-ranked in North America. He also serves on the Board of Directors of the University of Toronto Press. Prior to joining the University of Toronto he was Dean of University Libraries at Temple University, including responsibilities for the Temple University Press which publishes approximately 60 scholarly monographs per year. He has also held a variety of positions in the libraries at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill over a 30 year period including serving as Deputy University Librarian and Interim University Librarian.
Mr. Alford served as a trustee of OCLC, Inc. from 2002 – 14, and as its chair form 2007 – 2012. Mr. Alford is an active member of the American Library Association (ALA), the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), and the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL). He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Canadiana.org, and a former director of the Abraham Lincoln Foundation in Philadelphia, PA. Mr. Alford holds a B.A. and M.L.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the UNC School of Information and Library Science in May 2005.
Mr. Alford served as a trustee of OCLC, Inc. from 2002 – 14, and as its chair form 2007 – 2012. Mr. Alford is an active member of the American Library Association (ALA), the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), and the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL). He is also a member of the Board of Directors of Canadiana.org, and a former director of the Abraham Lincoln Foundation in Philadelphia, PA. Mr. Alford holds a B.A. and M.L.S. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the UNC School of Information and Library Science in May 2005.
Lesley Balcom
Director (Atlantic Region)
Dean of Libraries
University of New Brunswick
Term end date: October 2020 (2nd term, non-renewable)
Lesley Balcom became Dean of Libraries at the University of New Brunswick on July 1, 2015, after serving a year as Interim Director of Libraries. Previously, she was the Associate Director of UNB Libraries for Learning & Research Services, and the Head of Reference. In these roles Lesley has led projects including the development of UNB’s copyright service, the re-visioning of UNB’s Electronic Text Centre as the Centre for Digital Scholarship, and the creation of the Learning Commons at Harriet Irving Library.
Within UNB she is a member of University Budget Management Committee, the Research Strategic Planning Committee, and the Senate Academic Planning Committee, amongst other commitments. She holds degrees from Mount Allison University (Honours in Canadian Studies) and a Masters degree in Library & Information Science from the University of Western Ontario.
Within UNB she is a member of University Budget Management Committee, the Research Strategic Planning Committee, and the Senate Academic Planning Committee, amongst other commitments. She holds degrees from Mount Allison University (Honours in Canadian Studies) and a Masters degree in Library & Information Science from the University of Western Ontario.
Gwen Bird
Vice-Chair, Director (Large Institution)
University Librarian
Simon Fraser University
Term end date: October 2018 (1st term, renewable)
Gwen Bird has been Dean of Libraries at Simon Fraser University since October 2014. Previously, she served as Executive Director of the Council of Prairie and Pacific University Libraries (COPPUL) from 2011 – 2014, coordinating collaboration between western Canadian university libraries. During this time she was active in the International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC), and the international shared print archiving community.
Prior to her appointment at COPPUL she was Associate University Librarian, Collections and Scholarly Communication at SFU, with overall responsibility for collections management, the acquisitions budget, and licensing of electronic resources. From 2003 – 2008 she was a member of the Content Strategy Committee at CRKN (then the NRT). Gwen's research and professional interests include shared print archiving, library collaboration, and collections management.
A Toronto native, Bird earned an honours BA in English at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. in 1986, followed by a Master of Library Science at the University of British Columbia in 1992.
Prior to her appointment at COPPUL she was Associate University Librarian, Collections and Scholarly Communication at SFU, with overall responsibility for collections management, the acquisitions budget, and licensing of electronic resources. From 2003 – 2008 she was a member of the Content Strategy Committee at CRKN (then the NRT). Gwen's research and professional interests include shared print archiving, library collaboration, and collections management.
A Toronto native, Bird earned an honours BA in English at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y. in 1986, followed by a Master of Library Science at the University of British Columbia in 1992.
Constance Crompton
Assistant Professor
University of Ottawa
Term end date: October 2021 (1st term, renewable)
I am a Canada Research Chair in Digital Humanities with research interests in linked data, data modelling, code as a representational medium, queer history, and Victorian popular culture. I co-direct the Lesbian and Gay Liberation in Canada project with Michelle Schwartz (Ryerson University). I am the vice-president (English) of the Canadian Society for Digital Humanities/Société canadienne des humanités numériques and an associate director of the Digital Humanities Summer Institute (University of Victoria).
Daniel Godon
Director (Québec Geographic Region)
University Librarian
Université du Québec en Outaouais
Term end date: October 2019 (2nd term, non-renewable)
Daniel Godon is a graduate from the École de bibliothéconomie et des sciences de l'information (master’s degree in information science) of the Université de Montréal (2003) and a graduate from the École nationale d'administration publique (SSHGD in public administration) (2009). He has nearly ten years of experience managing a university library, including seven years as Director and almost three years as Assistant Director at l’Université du Québec en Outaouais. In 2017 he was president of the Bureau de la cooperation interuniversitaire (BCI) Library Sub-Committee, which brings together all of Quebec’s university Library Directors. He also sits on the executive committee of the BCI libraries until May of 2018.
He has sound knowledge of collections management, including electronic collections. Among other things, he was the librarian responsible for electronic collections at the Library of Parliament in Ottawa for over two years (2006-2008). Included in his responsibilities was to represent the Library of Parliament at the Federal Libraries Consortium (FLC), which is responsible for joint procurement of electronic collections. He sat on the committee responsible for electronic collections at BCI and the CREPUQ (ERPAC, DCBU) in 2008-2009. Daniel has solid experience as a board of directors’ member as he has sat on the CRKN board of directors since 2014. He also sat on the Board of Directors of the Association pour l’avancement des sciences et techniques de la documentation (ASTED) for seven years, including five years on the executive committee as secretary, vice-chair and chair (2012). He has excellent knowledge of both languages used (French, English) as part of the CKRN’s operations
He has sound knowledge of collections management, including electronic collections. Among other things, he was the librarian responsible for electronic collections at the Library of Parliament in Ottawa for over two years (2006-2008). Included in his responsibilities was to represent the Library of Parliament at the Federal Libraries Consortium (FLC), which is responsible for joint procurement of electronic collections. He sat on the committee responsible for electronic collections at BCI and the CREPUQ (ERPAC, DCBU) in 2008-2009. Daniel has solid experience as a board of directors’ member as he has sat on the CRKN board of directors since 2014. He also sat on the Board of Directors of the Association pour l’avancement des sciences et techniques de la documentation (ASTED) for seven years, including five years on the executive committee as secretary, vice-chair and chair (2012). He has excellent knowledge of both languages used (French, English) as part of the CKRN’s operations
Rebecca Graham
University Librarian
University of Guelph
Term end date: October 2021 (1st term)
Rebecca Graham began her tenure as Chief Information Officer/Chief Librarian at the University of Guelph in May 2012. In 2017, she was reappointed as University Librarian. Prior to joining Guelph, she spent eight years working in the libraries of Harvard University. She began her Harvard tenure in 2003 as Associate Director for Library Operations at the Countway Library of Medicine and moved to the Harvard College Library (HCL) in 2006 where she served as the Associate Librarian for Preservation, Digitization and Administrative Services.
Prior to Harvard, Rebecca’s academic library experience includes responsibilities for library IT and the digital library program at Johns Hopkins University. She served as the IDirector and Program Associate for the Digital Library Federation (DLF) in Washington DC. She served as Manager, Integrated Library Systems at the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign (UIUC).
Melissa Just
Director (Western Geographic Region)
Dean, University Library
University of Saskatchewan
Term end date: October 2021 (1st term, once renewable)
Melissa is responsible for the strategic direction and general operations of the University Library, ensuring its continued contribution to the university’s goals, mission, vision, and values. She leads a team of 150 faculty and staff in seven libraries, University Archives & Special Collections, and Student Learning Services.
Melissa joined the Library as Dean on February 1, 2017. She previously served as associate vice-president for information services, and director of New Brunswick Libraries, at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J, and held a variety of leadership roles in academic health sciences libraries in California. She earned an EdD from the University of Southern California, a master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Texas, and a BA in psychobiology from the University of California, Riverside.
She represents the University of Saskatchewan as a member of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), and the Council of Prairie and Pacific Libraries (COPPUL).
Melissa joined the Library as Dean on February 1, 2017. She previously served as associate vice-president for information services, and director of New Brunswick Libraries, at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J, and held a variety of leadership roles in academic health sciences libraries in California. She earned an EdD from the University of Southern California, a master’s degree in library and information science from the University of Texas, and a BA in psychobiology from the University of California, Riverside.
She represents the University of Saskatchewan as a member of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL), and the Council of Prairie and Pacific Libraries (COPPUL).
Todd Mundle
Chair, Content Strategy Committee (CSC)
University Librarian
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
Term end date: October 2019 (2nd term, non-renewable)
Todd Mundle has been University Librarian at Kwantlen Polytechnic University since May 2012. Prior to that he served as Associate University Librarian at Simon Fraser University Library with responsibilities for Collections and Scholarly Communications and previously, for Library’s budget and personnel. As SFU’s Head, Collections Management, he was involved in the early years of the CNSLP project.
Prior to SFU he worked as a liaison librarian at the University of Regina. Mr. Mundle plays an active role in BC’s library community recently chairing the Council of Post Secondary Library Directors and the AskAway Advisory Committee. From 2004 to 2011 he served on the Steering Committee of the BC Electronic Library Network, including chairing it for two years. He has been Treasurer of the British Columbia Library Association and sat on the Library 2020 Organizing Committee.
He also served as President of the Saskatchewan Library Association, Institutional Director for the Canadian Association of College and University Libraries and member of the National Library of Canada’s Resource Sharing Review Working Group. Throughout his career Mr. Mundle has had a keen interest in technology, copyright, collection development and labour relations. He received his MLS (1989) and BA in History (1984) both from UBC
Prior to SFU he worked as a liaison librarian at the University of Regina. Mr. Mundle plays an active role in BC’s library community recently chairing the Council of Post Secondary Library Directors and the AskAway Advisory Committee. From 2004 to 2011 he served on the Steering Committee of the BC Electronic Library Network, including chairing it for two years. He has been Treasurer of the British Columbia Library Association and sat on the Library 2020 Organizing Committee.
He also served as President of the Saskatchewan Library Association, Institutional Director for the Canadian Association of College and University Libraries and member of the National Library of Canada’s Resource Sharing Review Working Group. Throughout his career Mr. Mundle has had a keen interest in technology, copyright, collection development and labour relations. He received his MLS (1989) and BA in History (1984) both from UBC
Ian Nason
Treasurer (Researcher/Administrator)
Vice-President, Finance and Administration
Dalhousie University
Term end date: October 2020 (1st term, once renewable)
Ian Nason is Dalhousie’s vice-president, finance and administration and has spent more than 30 years as a member of the university’s financial services group. Mr. Nason initially joined Dalhousie in 1982 and became director of financial services in 1991. He subsequently served as assistant vice-president, financial services before taking on the vice-president role in 2014.
Mr. Nason has overseen major transformation at Dalhousie, including the adoption of ever-evolving information technology and the establishment of stable financial management practices. His financial acumen and ability to form strong working relationships across the university has helped Dalhousie meet objectives in teaching, research and service.
Mr. Nason has overseen major transformation at Dalhousie, including the adoption of ever-evolving information technology and the establishment of stable financial management practices. His financial acumen and ability to form strong working relationships across the university has helped Dalhousie meet objectives in teaching, research and service.
Catherine Steeves
Director (Ontario Geographic Region)
Vice-Provost and Chief Librarian
Western University
Term end date: October 2019 (1st term, renewable)
Catherine Steeves is the Vice-Provost and Chief Librarian at Western University and as such participates as Library Director in the Canadian Association of Research Libraries (CARL) and the Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL). She is a member of the CARL Advancing Research Committee and the OCUL Collaborative Futures Task Force. She is a Western MLIS graduate who returned to Western in August 2014 following her position as Deputy Chief Information Officer and Associate Chief Librarian at the University of Guelph. Previously, she worked as the ITS Operations Manager for the University of Alberta Libraries. A past president of the Ontario Library Information Technology Association, she has also served on the boards of the Canadian Library Association, the Canadian Association of College and University Libraries and the Ontario Library Association. Catherine's scholarly interests include organizational change, information technology, leadership, and the evolution of research libraries.