SLA Board Member Deb Hunt Honored for Innovative “23 Things” Program

Deb Hunt, Principal at Information Edge in San Leandro, Calif. and a member of the Special Libraries Association (SLA) Board of Directors, was honored by Information World Review (IWR) magazine for her work on behalf of SLA to spearhead and implement the innovative “23 Things” program.

23 Things is a free, members-only, self-directed training program to help SLA members develop confidence and skills using a wide range of Web 2.0 tools.  Hunt was granted a first-time special commendation mention by IWR at its “Information Professional of the Year” ceremony in London on December 1.  “It was a highly competitive field but Deb and the 23 Things project really stood out,” said IWR Editor Peter Williams.

“When I began my term as a member of the SLA Board of Directors, I was asked by 2008 SLA President  Stephen Abram to choose a project to lead and I immediately suggested getting SLA members up to speed on Web 2.0 skills,” said Hunt.

Hunt recruited a small team of eager SLA members to assist in the effort, and SLA’s 23 Things was created. Working closely with her team, Hunt anticipated the need for a registration and survey process as well as a formal recognition for any member who completed the 23 Things.  One of the more effective aspects of the program was the manner in which participants were asked to immediately apply their learning by creating a blog to record the knowledge they were gaining.

23 Things went live in June of 2008 and it proved to be an instant success. Hunt continues to monitor 23 Things, a thriving program that now has 1,943 participants and is growing.

The 23 Things program is credited with attracting many new SLA members, and participants coming from all over the world, including the U.S., Canada, India, New Zealand, Australia, and several countries in Asia and Africa. Hunt also received a 2008 SLA Presidential Citation from Stephen Abram for her work on this innovative program for SLA.

The nominations were judged by a panel of previous recipients of this award.  The Information Professional of the Year award is annually organized by IWR magazine along with Incisive Media, the organizers of the Online Information conference, and was sponsored by the American Psychological Association.

Comments

[Eric Schwarz - EricTheLibrarian.com]

Congratulations and thank you, Deb, for sharing with us 23 Things, and much more!

[Joseph Buffardi]

Hi Deb--
Congratulations on your recognition of the "23 things" program and the "Informational Professional of the Year" award. I know it took a good deal of work and initiative, but you were there to meet the challenge!

[Christian Gray]

Deb,

Congratulations on the honor and please know that many members appreciate the hard work. I know I have learned a few things from "23 Things"...

[Deborah Edwards]

I am a student with the MLS program through NCCU and I was excited to learn about the "23 Things" since I have been wanting to know more about Web 2.0. I believe I located some information online so I am going to investigate further. Congratulations and thanks for helping us all improve.