It is time to cast your vote in the 2018 ASI Board of Directors election.
ASI is pleased to announce this year’s slate of candidates for positions on the Board of Directors. The Nominations Committee had several goals when working to put together the slate of candidates, all of which focus on securing a strong future for ASI. These goals include the development of a strong Board of Directors that will function well as a whole while also representing the diversity of ASI members and their views; broadening the number of people who are included in ASI leadership at all levels; and ensuring that ASI will continue to have active members with board experience who are willing to take on future leadership roles at the highest levels. We believe the candidates presented here will help achieve all of these goals, and that they will work diligently to further the mission of ASI.
The following candidates have agreed to serve and, if elected, will take office at the ASI Annual Conference on April 28, 2018.
Biographies and vision statements appear below. Click on the individual names for more information.
President Elect
Jennifer Spanier
Director at Large (Two positions are open in 2018):
Amron Gravett
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DEADLINE FOR VOTING IS 5 PM MOUNTAIN TIME, MARCH 9, 2018.
Candidate Biographies and Vision Statements
Jennifer Spanier (Candidate for President Elect)
Biography
Jennifer has been indexing professionally since 2009 in a wide variety of subject areas. Her educational background is in biology and library and information sciences. Her subject specialties and special interests include life sciences, gardening, nature, environmental science, fitness, and health and wellness. In addition to back-of-the-book indexing, she does some database indexing. She is currently serving ASI as Director at Large, Co-Webmaster, Webinar Committee Chair, and New England Chapter Co-Leader. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys life on the farm in rural Vermont and is looking forward to getting back in her kayak this summer.
Vision Statement
I have been a member of ASI from the time that I was still training to become an indexer. Attending my first conference as a newbie I felt totally welcomed and that I had finally found my professional niche. ASI has continued to be vital to my professional development and I hope to see it fill that role for generations of indexers to come.
One of ASI’s greatest strengths is its sense of community and openness to collaboration among colleagues. I would like for ASI members to feel that they are being heard and valued by the ASI leadership, and that there are ways for them to become directly involved in the functioning of the organization. It’s also important that we evolve with the times and creatively seek new ways to meet, learn, share information, and collaborate. Input and ideas from members are most welcome.
Amron Gravett (Candidate for Director)
Biography
I began working with books 18 years ago: first as a collection and preservation specialist, then as a librarian, and since 2011, I have been a professional book indexer for my business Wild Clover Book Services. I do back-of-the-book, ebook, embedded, and serials indexing for scholarly and trade clients.
I have a Masters in Library Science and a Bachelors in Cultural Anthropology (with minors in Hawaiian Studies, Women’s Studies). Recently, I have taken continuing ed courses at UC Berkeley, Simmons College, as well as webinars and workshops offered through ASI. I co-wrote an article in Key Words on collaboration and pro-bono indexing projects. Although I am relatively new to volunteering for ASI service, recently I helped update the Key Words index and am currently on the ASI Membership Committee.
Vision Statement
I believe in applying innovation, creativity, and critical thinking to today’s publishing industry. I strive to constantly adapt to new technologies because I think thriving in this business requires a flexible mindset. I hope to be a catalyst to emerging professionals that will enrich our organization, and their own careers, in new and creative ways.
I think of ASI as a supportive network engaging and connecting indexers and publishers in our common quest to help people access the wealth of information that is available in print and digital formats. I believe in enriching the ASI culture to extend beyond the physical space of meeting at conferences and workshops into the digital space of online chatting, digital communication, and future online groups that gather informational professionals from near and far. I believe we should be strategic with our time and focus our energies on essential tasks that support people, learning, and the success of indexing as a culture.
Bonnie Taylor (Candidate for Director)
Biography
I first became aware of indexing when the contract for a book I wrote required that I either provide the index or pay the indexer out of my royalties. Fortunately for my book, I chose the latter route, and my interest was piqued. I took a two-day training seminar in the spring of 1997, and that launched my freelance indexing career.
Indexing fit in well as a part-time business for me while my husband's U.S. Army career took us through six moves over the following thirteen years, from Hawaii to Germany and places in between. When Fred retired from the Army in 2013, we relocated to the northern Virginia area, and the following year I took a full-time position in Bloomberg BNA's Taxonomy and Indexing Department as a tax law indexer, where I've been happily employed ever since.
Fred and I are now empty nesters with a son in the Air Force in Texas and a daughter in Boston. We share our home with two cats and a dog. In my spare time, I enjoy reading, traveling, and knitting.
Vision Statement
I have participated in ASI to varying degrees since 1997 when I attended one day in Winston-Salem to learn how to use my newly purchased copy of Cindex. I've attended national conferences in Galveston, Philadelphia, San Diego, and Chicago and also numerous regional chapter meetings in a variety of places. I have written a couple short pieces for Key Words and even co-authored a chapter in the third edition of Starting an Indexing Business. Through ASI I have made many good friends who (1) understand what I do and (2) don't think I'm crazy for liking to do it.
ASI has played an important role in my professional development through face-to-face training at national and regional conferences and more recently through webinars. I would like to see our webinar offerings expanded to better reach members who are not always able to attend conferences. I am also excited about the work of ASI's Digital Trends Task Force in recent years and would like to see this work continue into the future.
As part of the board of directors, I promise to use my efforts to help ASI continue to offer networking and educational opportunities to indexers while also educating publishers and other potential clients of the value we bring to their products.