[with apologies for cross-posting]

For Immediate Release
September 12, 2002

Ottawa, Ontario - President Wendy Newman is pleased to announce the
appointment of Don Butcher to serve as the Association's next Executive
Director, effective October 21, 2002.

Mr. Butcher brings a wealth of experience to the position.  He has
worked in not-for-profit associations for the past 16 years, most
recently three years as executive director of Ontario's real estate
appraisers. Prior to that position, he was Manager of Membership and
Professional Development for the Canadian Society of Association
Executives, the professional association for managers in the
not-for-profit sector.

He has also been Manager, Marketing & Communications for the Ontario
Physiotherapy Association - a health care professional association -
which included responsibilities in membership recruitment and retention
in addition to promoting the profession and communications with the
membership.

Don also worked at York University for over eight years, first in the
Communications department and then in two management position: in Alumni
Affairs and as the first full-time Manager of Alumni Affairs in York's
business school.

His first career was as a journalist in community newspapers in
southwestern Ontario.

"I am excited to be taking on this new challenge and I look forward to
working with all members to advocate the positions of Canada's libraries
and library workers on items of national and international importance,"
said Mr. Butcher. "At the same time, we have to ensure our members
receive the most value for their investment in CLA.  It probably comes
as no surprise that as a former journalist I have strong feelings on the
importance of easy access to information in a democratic society.
Libraries and library workers play an essential role in this, as well as
in Canada's cultural, academic, and economic life."

President Wendy Newman says the Executive Council is pleased to have
Mr. Butcher joining an already excellent staff.  "His strength in
communication and his breadth of experience and education in
not-for-profit management will be valuable resources for the Council and
members as we continue to respond to members' desire for a say in the
important issues we all face.  On behalf of Executive Council and all
members, I would like to thank the Search Committee."

The members of the Search Committee represented the breadth and depth
of CLA membership in different types of libraries across Canada. Marnie
Swanson, a past president of CLA and the University Librarian at the
University of Victoria, chaired the committee. The five other members
were: Donna Bourne-Tyson, Systems Manager/Reference and AV, North Bay
Public Library and Secretary-Treasurer of CAPL; Claudette Cloutier,
Manager, Gallagher Library of Geology and Geophysics, University of
Calgary, and a former President of CASLIS; Michael Colborne, Coordinator
of User Services, Nova Scotia Provincial Library and a member of the CLA
Executive Council; Michael Ridley, Chief Librarian of the University of
Guelph and Past President of the Ontario Library Association (OLA); and
Steve Salmons, CEO of Windsor Public Library.

This result is a tribute to a thoroughly professional process, using a
position profile based on the report of the Commission, Writing our
Future, and the deliberations of Executive Council. The Executive
Council agreed to extend the search to both the library and association
communities in Canada, and to draw on the wealth of experience and
judgment of Jack Shand of Association Resource Centre, the Search
Committee of members from across Canada, and CLA's senior staff.

Mr. Butcher holds an MBA in not-for-profit management and marketing
from York University, a Bachelor of Journalism degree from Carleton
University and a BA from York. He is a Certified Association Executive
(CAE).

For more information please contact:

Peter Wilson
Communications Coordinator
Tel.: (613) 232-9625  (ext. 320)
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Canadian Library Association
328 Frank Street
Ottawa, Ontario
CANADA K2P 0X8
(613) 232-9625; Fax: (613) 563-9895
http://www.cla.ca