The idea for an Arizona Chapter of ASIS (Association for Information Science) grew out of efforts to revive an ASIS Student Chapter at the University of Arizona School of Information Resources and Library Science. After several meetings with students, it became clear that Arizona needed its own professional chapter of ASIS before forming a student chapter. An ASIS chapter in Arizona could sponsor events locally and regionally, spark student interest in ASIS, and provide a means for professionals and faculty members from different disciplines to share ideas and come together across the state.
A Steering Committee was formed in Fall 1996, consisting of librarians from the University of Arizona Science-Engineering Library (Ann Eagan, Joanne Martinez), Systems (Mohamed Taleb), and the Health Sciences Center Library (Polin P. Lei) and a faculty member from the School of Information Resources and Library Science (Sandra G. Hirsh). In preparation for requesting recognition as a new regional chapter of ASIS, the Steering Committee sponsored several events, including:
February
1997 - The Steering Committee
hosted a table at the University of Arizona's Information Systems and
Learning 2000 conference.
March 1997 - The Steering
Committee held its first membership meeting. The keynote address was
provided by Dr. Richard Orwig (Management Information Systems,
University of Arizona) and focused on some of the neural network
techniques that have been used or are being used in the Digital
Library
Initiative, groupware, and the
Internet.
April 1997 - OASIS, the LACASIS
newsletter, published an article in
the Spring 1997 (Volume 34, Number 3) about the possibility of an
Arizona
ASIS chapter.
As interest in an Arizona ASIS Chapter grew, the Steering Committee
decided to aim for formal recognition of the Arizona Chapter
at the next meeting
of the ASIS Board of Directors -- the 1997 ASIS Midyear Meeting to be
held in Scottsdale, Arizona. The Steering Committee moved quickly to
distribute petitions to request existing Arizona ASIS members to
approve the idea
of the new chapter and to draft necessary documents (e.g., the bylaws,
descriptions of officer positions). On May 2, 1997, members approved
the bylaws and
elected officers for the new chapter:
Chair - Ann Eagan
Chair-Elect - Joanne Martinez
Secretary - Sandra Hirsh
Treasurer - Philip Roché
Assembly Representative - Polin Lei
Alternate Assembly Representative - Mohamed Taleb.
The new Arizona ASIS Chapter was officially approved and recognized by
the ASIS Board of Directors on June, 1997 in Scottsdale, Arizona.