Banks/Harris Award recipient

Banks/Harris Preservation Award to Walter Henry

Walter Henry, lead analyst in the Preservation Department at
Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources,
Moderator of the Conservation DistList, and Creator/Administrator of
Conservation OnLine is the recipient of the 2007 Paul Banks and
Carolyn Harris Preservation Award. The award, consisting of $1,500
and a citation, sponsored by Preservation Technologies, L. P.,
recognizes the contribution of a professional preservation
specialist who has been active in the field of preservation and/or
conservation for library and/or archival materials.

Henry is known internationally as the moderator of the Conservation
DistList and the creator and administrator of Conservation OnLine
(CoOL), indispensable tools for communication and dissemination of
knowledge within the field. A visionary in the modernization of the
communication patterns of our profession, Henry launched both the
DistList and CoOL at the forefront of technological developments.
When he started the Conservation DistList in 1987, only one other
library listserv existed. Henry created CoOL using WAIS and then
Gopher servers even before the Web became available in 1994. In CoOL
Henry has not only organized and disseminated the information that
individuals need, but furthered the goals of many preservation
organizations through their presence on CoOL, sometimes making their
online presence possible. Henry has constantly added resources to
CoOL, and is at the ready during a crisis, for example, posting a
clearinghouse of updates after the Katrina and Rita disasters.
Henry's innovative use of technologies to provide the infrastructure
for information exchange and dissemination has shaped the field of
conservation to the great benefit of American libraries.

Walter Henry has also reached national, regional, and state
constituencies through his leadership in the American Institute for
Conservation, the Research Libraries Group Digital Library
Federation Task Force on Long-term Retention of Digital Materials,
the California Preservation Task Force, and the California
Preservation Clearinghouse, among other organizations.

During his long career at Stanford University Library, Henry's work
spans conservation treatment and preservation of non-print
collections to creation of a wide range of computer programs
designed to assist with managing preservation projects and
conservation labs. Currently, his work supports the Stanford Digital
Repository.

The Paul Banks and Carolyn Harris Preservation Award honors the
memories of Paul Banks and Carolyn Harris, early leaders in library
preservation, teachers, and mentors for many in the field of
preservation.

Yvonne Carignan
Head of Preservation
University of Maryland
McKeldin Library
College Park, MD 20742
301-405-9343
Fax: 301-314-9971


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                  Conservation DistList Instance 20:44
                 Distributed: Wednesday, March 7, 2007
                       Message Id: cdl-20-44-001
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