Nancy Kranich
 Nancy Kranich served as President of the American Library Association in 2000-2001, focusing on the role of libraries in democracies. A tireless champion of the public's information rights, Nancy has led the library community's efforts to promote civic engagement, open access, and free expression. Prior to her Presidency, she spearheaded ALA's telecommunications advocacy, formed the Coalition on Government Information, and established the James Madison Awards honoring champions of the public's right to know. Since leading ALA, Nancy has continued to promote democratic participation, launching ALA's civic engagement membership initiative, moderating public forums, participating in Kettering's US/Russia dialogue, and teaching about civic engagement. In 2004, she moved to State College, PA where she now chairs of one of the oldest National Issues Forum groups in the country.
In 2003-2004, Nancy served as Senior Research Fellow at the Free Expression Policy Project in New York, authoring the June 2004 study, The Information Commons: A Public Policy Report—a report that documents the damage of restrictive copyright regimes on free speech, civic participation, innovation, and creativity. Since joining her husband who teaches at Penn State University, Nancy consults with libraries and policy organizations, writes, speaks, and guest lectures at universities around the country. Previously, she was Associate Dean of Libraries at New York University where she managed NYU's libraries, press, and media services. She also worked in public libraries in Bridgeport and Windsor, CT, and Madison, WI.
Nancy has appeared on the Today Show, the C-Span Washington Journal, Bill Moyers' NOW, National Public Radio, and local public television shows. She has conducted hundreds of presentations and media interviews and written extensively on such topics as civic engagement, information policy, scholarly communication, and legislative action. Among her notable publications are: Libraries and Democracy: The Cornerstones of Liberty (Chicago, ALA, 2001); "Civic Partnerships: The Role of Libraries in Promoting Civic Engagement," in Resource Sharing and Information Networks, 2005/6; "Promoting Civic Engagement through the Campus Library," in Friends of Libraries USA (FOLUSA) Newsletter October 2004; and "The Civic Mission of School Libraries," in Knowledge Quest,.March/April 2006.
Nancy is Treasurer of the National Security Archive in Washington and served on the Advisory Councils of the U. of Pennsylvania Annenberg Public Policy Center Program on Excellence in Children's Media and the Small Press Center in New York. She has also worked with the State Department to advance libraries in Eastern Europe. In addition, Nancy judges Project Censored's Most Underreported Stories of the Year.
Nancy earned a master's degree and studied for her doctorate in Public Administration at NYU's Wagner School of Public Service, and an M.A. in Library Science and a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Wisconsin--Madison.
|
