James G. Neal

James Neal
Neal in 2018
President of the American Library Association
In office
2017–2018
Preceded byJulie Todaro
Succeeded byLoida Garcia-Febo
Personal details
NationalityAmerican
OccupationLibrarian

James G. Neal is an American librarian, library administrator, and a prominent figure in American and international library associations. In 2022 President Joe Biden appointed him to the National Museum and Library Services Board which advises the agency on general policies with respect to the duties, powers, and authority of the Institute of Museum and Library Services relating to museum, library, and information services, as well as the annual selection of the National Medal for Museum and Library Service.[1]

Neal, whose career dates back to at least 1973, when he was social sciences librarian at City College of New York's Queensborough Community College,[2] is widely active in national and international forums in the areas of copyright and scholarly communication.[3] From 2001 to 2014 he was Vice President for Information Services and University Librarian at Columbia University, and he now serves as University Librarian Emeritus. At the Columbia University Libraries, he focused on the development of the digital library, special collections, global resources, instructional technology, library facility construction and renovation, and electronic scholarship. Before taking up his position at Columbia, he was Dean of University Libraries at Indiana University and Johns Hopkins University and held administrative positions at Penn State's library, Notre Dame's library, and the City University of New York's library.[4][self-published source?]

In 2007, Neal received the Hugh C. Atkinson Award from the Association of College and Research Libraries, [5] In 2009 he was honored by the American Library Association with the Melvil Dewey Medal and in 2015 with the Joseph W. Lippincott Award.[6] In April 2016, Neal was elected president of the American Library Association for 2017-2018.[7]

  1. ^ President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions. The White House. August 12, 2022.
  2. ^ Briody, Jack (April 1997). "James Neal receives ACRL's highest honor". College & Research Libraries News. Vol. 8, no. 4. Archived from the original on October 21, 2023. Retrieved August 5, 2024.
  3. ^ "NISO Board Appoints James Neal as Vice-Chair ...," National Information Standards Organization. November 27, 2006. Archived July 14, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ Neal bio, Columbia University web site
  5. ^ "News Makers". Information Today. 24 (3): 23. March 2007 – via ProQuest Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  6. ^ "People". Library Journal. 140 (10): 25. June 1, 2015 – via ProQuest Retrieved August 7, 2018.
  7. ^ Albanese, Andrew (April 29, 2016). "Jim Neal Elected ALA President for 2017-2018". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved July 2, 2016.