June 9, 2002 Jean Hirons To Receive Margaret Mann Citation From ALA

Jean L. Hirons, coordinator of the Cooperative Online Serials (CONSER) Program in the Serial Record Division at the Library of Congress, will receive the 2002 Margaret Mann Citation from the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS,) a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

The award will be presented at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, June 17, at the ALCTS President's Program, during the ALA Annual Conference, June 13 to 19 in Atlanta.

The Margaret Mann Citation Committee is presenting the award to Hirons for her "extraordinary contributions to serials cataloging." According to the citation, Hirons has influenced both the theory and practice of serials cataloging in a changing environment.

Hiron's most notable contribution has been revising the "Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules" (AACR) to accommodate serials and developing the Serials Cataloging Cooperative Training Program, a new concept in library training. She enlisted the help of colleagues from throughout the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada in order to explore and propose broad changes to the cataloging rules. They expanded the existing AACR2 Chapter 12 for serials to cover a new concept of "continuing resources" by introducing new rules for the cataloging of Web sites, databases, and looseleafs. The new rules will be issued in August and implemented by libraries later this year.

Hirons holds a master's degree in library science from the University of Rhode Island and a B.A. degree in fine art from Marietta College. From 1997 to 1999, she worked with colleagues nationwide to develop a new concept in training, which built on the collaborative model of CONSER. CONSER is a cooperative program consisting of 30 libraries, including the Library of Congress and the National Library of Canada, who build and maintain a master database of authoritative bibliographic records for serials and create and promulgate serials cataloging standards for the United States and other countries. To date, three courses have been released, and two more are in the works for release in 2002-2003.

Established in 1951, the award recognizes "outstanding professional achievement in cataloging or classification, either through publication of significant professional literature, participation in professional cataloging associations, demonstrated excellence in teaching cataloging, or valuable contributions to practice in individual libraries." The award also includes a $2,000 donation from the Online Computer Library Center, Inc., to the library school of the winner's choice. Hirons will give the scholarship to her alma mater, the University of Rhode Island, which named her alumna of the year in 2002.