- About
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Advocacy
- Advocacy Policies and Procedures
- Census 2020 Resources
- Creating or Changing Illinois State Library Law
- Illinois Minimum Wage Resources
- Intro to Property Taxes for IL Libraries
- ILA Public Policy Principles
- Legislative Issues
- Making Your Case
- Ready, Set, Advocate
- TIFs and Public Library Districts in Illinois
- Top Ten Advocacy Tips
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Committees
- Advocacy Committee
- Awards Committee
- Conference Program Committee, 2023
- Conference Program Committee, 2024
- Diversity Committee
- Finance Committee
- Fundraising Committee
- ILA Reporter Advisory Committee
- Intellectual Freedom Committee
- iREAD Committee
- Nominating Committee
- Public Policy Committee
- Reaching Forward Committee
- Serving Our Public Committee
- Events
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Forums
- Illinois Association of College & Research Libraries Forum (IACRL)
- Library Trustee Forum (LTF)
- Marketing Forum (MF)
- Resources & Technical Services Forum (RTSF)
- Small and Rural Libraries Forum (SARL)
- Students and New Professionals Forum (SANP)
- Young Adult Services Forum (YASF)
- Youth Services Forum (YSF)
- Initiatives
- Membership
- Publications

The Illinois Association of College and Research Libraries Forum (IACRL) promotes the interests of academic libraries and the personnel of those libraries; enhances the abilities of academic library personnel to identify and meet the information needs of current and potential library users; develops and promotes leadership to the academic library community.
News
- Meet the new IACRL Vice-President/President-Elect: Shannon Pohrte
- September 28, 2023
- Interviewed by Robin Harris, Northeastern Illinois University Shannon Pohrte is the Associate Dean and Copyright Officer at Elgin Community College Library, and the newly elected IACRL Vice-President/President-Elect. What do you think is the most imp…
- ILA 2023 Conference Preview
- September 27, 2023
- by Robin Harris, Northeastern Illinois University The 2023 Illinois Library Association Conference will be held October 24-26 at the BOS Center in Springfield, Illinois. This year’s theme, “Connect, Cultivate, Collaborate,” focuses …
- Message from the IACRL President: Sarah McHone-Chase, Aurora University
- September 27, 2023
- Hello, IACRL! I’m excited to serve as president this year and I can’t wait to see all the interesting work that Illinois librarians do this year. My intentions this year focus on keeping IACRL thriving and looking to places within the org…
IACRL is a chapter of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). For the purposes of this forum, academic libraries include college, community, technical and junior colleges and university libraries as well as research libraries not affiliated with academic institutions.
Mission
The mission of the IACRL is to promote the interests of academic libraries and the personnel of those libraries; to enhance the abilities of academic library personnel to identify and meet the information needs of current and potential library users; to develop and promote leadership to the academic library community.
Goals and objectives
- To contribute to the professional and career development of all academic library personnel
- To enhance the capabilities of Illinois libraries to serve the needs of their users
- To promote and speak for the interests of academic libraries
- To promote study, research and dissemination of information relevant to academic librarianship
- To promote and foster cooperation and communication among the members of IACRL, the academic community, and other organizations with common interests
- To support and protect intellectual freedom in academic libraries
- To honor the contribution of individuals who enhance academic libraries in Illinois
Join IACRL
Any ILA member can join IACRL by updating your ILA forum preferences. Non-members of ILA can become members by joining ILA and checking the IACRL Forum box on the ILA membership application. (Membership in ALA or ACRL not required.)
IACRL Directory of Expertise
The Illinois Association of College & Research Libraries is developing a directory of expertise for Illinois academic librarians. Sign up to share your expertise with your librarian colleagues. Share your passion for and experience with any number of the specialties listed below. This contact list of expertise will give librarians across the state the opportunity to network with each other, answer one another’s questions, and share knowledge.
Mailing list

Keep in touch! Stay informed and join our listserv! The IACRL listserv is an unmoderated discussion group, consisting primarily of occasional announcements about IACRL and upcoming events.
To subscribe, unsubscribe, or update your information, please visit http://list.railslibraries.info/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/iacrl.
To post a message to all list members, email iacrl@list.railslibraries.info. You can also email iacrl-request@list.railslibraries.info with the word help in the subject or body for additional list maintenance options.
If you have questions, please contact list moderators Gwen Gregory (ggregory@uic.edu) or Eric Edwards (eedwards@ilsos.net).
IACRL By-Laws
Our By-Laws were approved by the membership on October 27, 1997 and were amended on October 17, 2000, April 1, 2014, and October 8, 2009. View a full HTML version of the IACRL by-laws online.
Officers
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Sarah McHone-Chase, President Aurora University Library
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Shannon Pohrte, President-Elect Elgin Community College
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Sanga Sung, Secretary/Treasurer Government Information Librarian at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Daniel Matthews, Past President Digital Services Librarian at Moraine Valley Community College Library
Term ends 06/30/2024
Standing Committees
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Daniel Matthews, Awards Committee Chair Digital Services Librarian at Moraine Valley Community College Library
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Shannon Pohrte, Conference/Continuing Education Committee Chair Elgin Community College
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Wendell G Johnson, Membership Committee Chair Social Sciences Librarian at Northern Illinois University Libraries
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Daniel Matthews, Nominating Committee Chair Digital Services Librarian at Moraine Valley Community College Library
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Kim Tipton, Communications Committee Chair Librarian at McHenry County College Library
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Jacqueline Zook, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee Chair Technical Services Coordinator at Northeastern Illinois University
Term ends 06/30/2024 -
Laura L. Barnes, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee Chair Sustainability Information Curator at Illinois Sustainable Technology Center
Term ends 06/30/2024
Forum Leadership
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Gwendolyn Harrison, Board liaison Lincoln Library
Term ends 06/30/2026 -
Tamara Jenkins, Staff liaison Illinois Library Association
Term ends 06/30/2025