Candidate for 2020 Chapter Cabinet Chair-Elect: Eryn Campbell

Eryn Campbell is a Research Librarian at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. A graduate of Emporia State University’s School of Library and Information Management, she previously worked as a solo medical librarian. Eryn has been a member of SLA since 2013 and has served in various volunteer leadership positions on the boards of the Insurance Employee Benefits Division and the Kansas-Western Missouri Chapter including as Chapter President in 2017. In her spare time, Eryn enjoys singing with the Kansas City Women’s Chorus where she has served as Music Librarian for several years. Connect with Eryn on LinkedIn or Twitter @erynlibrarian.
Email: eecampbell@naic.org


Candidate Q&A

Question 1: When did you first join SLA? What made you decide to join then and why do you still belong today?

I first joined SLA as a graduate student in 2013. A year into library school classes, I decided special librarianship was the path for me. The job market was very competitive in my area and I knew networking would be key to landing a job. At my very first networking event with the Kansas- Western Missouri Chapter, I made a connection that would lead to my first job out of library school. I’ve continued to be an SLA member for the professional development opportunities. The skills I’ve learned and relationships I’ve developed through SLA have made me a better researcher, leader, teammate, public speaker, and librarian!

Question 2: How has your involvement with SLA over the years helped you grow professionally and personally? How do you feel SLA can help members grow into the future?

My first year in SLA, Tom Rink came and spoke at our chapter’s annual banquet. He encouraged us to “just say yes” when opportunities arise and I took that to heart. Just saying yes has first and foremost enabled me to develop friendships with an incredible group of information professionals, both in my city and across the world. Through those friendships, I have access to an incredible network of smart, accomplished colleagues. Saying yes has allowed me to build skills I never would have had the opportunity to in my day-to-day job.

SLA has always been about connecting info pros to share information and expertise and I hope that continues to be true in the future. Moving forward, I hope to see us focus on ways to capitalize on this robust network, enhancing outreach and programming for students and new professionals, and continuing to build relationships across library, research, and information industries.

Question 3: SLA’s membership has been in decline for the last couple of years. What can the board, staff, leadership, and membership do to reverse this trend?

I think the key to rebuilding SLA’s membership is engagement. We have to find ways to connect with members in meaningful ways early and often. In this vein, I’d like to see us build out some additional mentorship programs. Specifically, I think we need to bulk up support for students and new professionals, for new managers, and for new volunteers and unit leaders. Many units already offer some form of mentorship, but a formalized, association-wide program would facilitate long-term engagement.

Question 4: SLA relies on its leadership to develop its vision to move forward. What motivates you to help lead and build a better SLA?

Fundamentally, I’m motivated to volunteer with SLA because I love our profession and believe the work we do is important. SLA has a really crucial part to play in advancing the values of our profession including intellectual freedom, information literacy, inclusivity. This work happens in lots of ways at SLA: providing learning opportunities, developing standards and best practices, mentoring. A strong, robust SLA is good for the knowledge/information profession and in turn is good for communities, business, discourse, and society as a whole.

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