UO Libraries employee earns national award

University of Oregon librarian John Helmer has been named the 2012 winner of the American Library Association’s Hugh C. Atkinson Memorial Award. The national award recognizes an academic librarian who has made significant contributions in the area of library automation or management and has made notable improvements in library services or research.

“This is perhaps the most prestigious award given to academic librarians, and John joins a stellar list of outstanding professionals who have made a major difference for their institutions and for the entire field of librarianship,” said Deb Carver, the UO’s dean of libraries.

Helmer worked in several capacities at the UO Libraries prior to being named executive director of the Orbis Cascade Alliance, a consortium of library professionals from 37 universities in the Pacific Northwest. The alliance was formed in 2003 through the merger of Orbis and Cascade, two academic library consortia founded in the early 1990s. It serves the equivalent of more than 250,000 full-time students at member institutions.

“The committee was impressed with John’s breadth of experience, professional contributions and his ability to facilitate collaboration across 37 individual institutions,” said Mary Carmen Chimato, committee chair for the Hugh C. Atkinson Memorial Award and assistant dean of the University of the Pacific Library.

Helmer will receive a cash award and citation at the Library and Information Technology Association Award Ceremony on June 24, during the American Library Association’s Annual Conference in Anaheim, Calif.