Master’s student Gretsi Isac chose to earn her degree at the iSchool at Illinois because she knew the School would present rewarding challenges and open doors for professional opportunities. Now she’s preparing to graduate in August and pursue a career in data analytics.

Assistant Professor Elizabeth Hoiem and Associate Professor Carol Tilley will speak at the 2016 Children’s Literature Association Conference, to be held June 9-11 at The Ohio State University. The theme of the conference is “Animation,” which reflects developments in aesthetic creation and critical analysis of children’s and young adult literature.

Nine of the School’s master’s students have been named 2016-2017 Spectrum Scholars by the American Library Association (ALA). Established in 1997, the Spectrum Scholarship Program was created to promote diversity among graduate-level library school students.

Assistant Professor Jana Diesner will deliver a keynote address at the 2016 Collaborative Innovation Networks (COINs) conference, which will be held on June 8-11 in Rome. The theme of the conference is, “Designing Networks for Innovation and Improvisation.”

Adjunct Lecturer Bobby Bothmann has been elected by the Americas Regional Council of OCLC to serve on that council and as a delegate to the Global Council, which guides and advises the OCLC cooperative. His three-year term in this role will begin on July 1.

Alumnus Allen Lanham (MS '91) has been named an Illinois Library Luminary by the Illinois Library Association (ILA). This distinction honors individuals whose efforts have made a significant contribution to Illinois libraries.

In their recent article, “The Value Proposition of the Corporate Library, Past and Present,” Professor Alistair Black and doctoral student Henry Gabb discuss findings from their survey of modern corporate librarians.

Associate Professor Jerome McDonough and Rhiannon Bettivia, who recently defended her dissertation at GSLIS, will participate in the third biennial conference of the Association of Critical Heritage Studies, which will be held June 3-8 in Montreal. The theme of the conference is, “What Does Heritage Change?”

Senior Lecturer Maria Bonn will speak next week at the Academic Book of the Future conference, “The Future Space of Bookselling.” The event will be held on June 3-5 at Bangor University in Wales.  

While earning a master's degree, Rob Radtke completed a practicum at Dow AgroSciences, interned with the Boston Consulting Group's Data and Research Services Branch, and worked at the John Deere Technology Innovation Center in Champaign's Research Park. He credits his coursework and real-world experience with preparing him for professional roles in private industry, including his current position.