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We are pleased to announce the 2021 NEASIST Conference Support Award recipients:

Katherine Leonard, School of Library Information Science, Simmons University.

Katherine is the Marketing Chair of the student chapter of ASIS&T at Simmons University. She looks forward to attending sessions related to her career path of knowledge management, data governance, and taxonomy and has already picked out specific sessions of interest. Katherine had left a career in research and brand strategy to pursue an MLIS “to create a community that is more just, equitable, and inclusive of all voices — not just those that have historically been heard.” She “believe[s] that when we empower communities and decision-makers with data and research, we can make more equitable decisions, address gaps, and practice accountability.” 

Nick Bodanza, School of Library Information Science, Simmons University

Nick has already been involved with the student chapter of ASIS&T at Simmons University, where he served as a NEASIST liaison. He will serve as co-chair of Simmons ASIS&T for the 2021-2022 academic year. Nick says, “as technology becomes more pervasive in work and life, it is critical to develop, implement, and make them accessible ethically.” The conference will be valuable to him as it would serve “to bridge the gap between research and practice.” As incoming co-chair of Simmons ASIS&T, he also looks forward to the Annual Meeting to make sure the Simmons chapter is aligned with the parent organization and to incorporate new ideas into the Simmons chapter’s events. 

Rukmal Ryder, Salem State University 

Rukmal is an instruction librarian and is passionate about exploring how technology shapes teaching and learning in both current and future practice: “I think in five years most of the classes would be online and we would need to have the skills to create online materials for Library Information sessions.” She feels positive and excited about using advancing technologies to provide better services: “I feel that with new and advanced technology we can reach out to a wider community and serve better.” She is interested in learning more about cutting-edge technologies like AI in libraries. She looks forward to taking what she will learn from the Annual Meeting and helping the community she serves.