Kete Horowhenua

Topic: Rosalie Blake made a Fellow in the LIANZA 2008 Honour Awards.

Topic type:
General

Rosalie Blake, Head of Libraries for Horowhenua Library Trust, has been awarded a LIANZA Fellowship. This is the highest honour awarded in the profession of Librarianship.

Rosalie Blake has been an inspiring leader in libraries in the Horowhenua community for over 20 years. During her tenure she has been active in advancing the number, management and services of libraries in Horowhenua, where they are recognised as delivering a quality of service outstanding for a district of its size.

Rosalie is regarded as an innovative and creative problem solver. She was a strong proponent for the establishment of the Library Trust believing that library services needed more than 3 minutes attention on a busy council agenda. The Trust is regarded as a model of its kind and its success is due in large part to Rosalie's drive, enthusiasm and hardwork.

Rosalie has contributed to the wider council and community through her convenorship of the Horowhenua District Council Information Technology Committee and has served on the Strategic Planning and Job Evaluation committees. She has also been active in community services and in raising bicultural awareness in Horowhenua, both through the appointment of a Kaiwhakahaere role and in building a stellar Te Ao Maori collection.

The Horowhenua Library Trust is best known however, for its innovation under Rosalie Blake's leadership - it is the first library to win two LIANZA 3M awards for innovation in libraries: in 2000 for Koha, an open source integrated library management system, and again in 2007 for Kete, an open source do-it-yourself framework on which to build a digital community archive and gallery of arts, culture and heritage resources, and which anyone in the community can easily use.

Rosalie has been an active member of LIANZA serving almost continuously as regional and/or national councillor for her professional association from 1983 to 2006, a highlight of that time being the organising of the Great NZ TV turn-off in 1992.

Rosalie is awarded the Fellowship for her sustained and energetic contribution to the development of public libraries, for her innovative leadership and contribution to the world of open source library information systems and for outstanding contribution to the profession during her long career.

A fellowship is the highest level of professional attainment awarded by the Association. It is only awarded to a personal member of the Association who has made a significant contribution to the advancement of librarianship and/or information management through a sustained record of achievements, or who has demonstrated outstanding qualities of leadership, teaching or research.

Source: http://www.lianza.org.nz/development/awards/professional/2008-recipients.html#fellowships