Copyright 1997 CAUSE. From CAUSE/EFFECT Volume 20, Number 3, Fall 1997, p. 3. Permission to copy or disseminate all or part of this material is granted provided that the copies are not made or distributed for commercial advantage, the CAUSE copyright and its date appear, and notice is given that copying is by permission of CAUSE, the association for managing and using information resources in higher education. To disseminate otherwise, or to republish, requires written permission. For further information, contact Jim Roche at CAUSE, 4840 Pearl East Circle, Suite 302E, Boulder, CO 80301 USA; 303-939-0308; e-mail: [email protected]

CNI REPORT
Transitions at CNI

by Richard P. West

Early in July, Clifford Lynch was appointed as CNI's second executive director. Cliff succeeds Paul Peters, who was the founding executive director of CNI. All involved in CNI were committed to making the transition from the sudden loss of Paul's leadership to a new director as short as possible. I am pleased that we have been able to find so able a successor in Cliff.

During the interim, Joan Lippincott performed the director duties. Her willingness to respond to the demands of the ongoing CNI program was outstanding. Her efficiency and focus regarding the CNI program during the last six months has continued the high-quality support that has been CNI's hallmark.

Gerry Bernbom played an essential role as well during the transition period. Gerry, who was on leave from Indiana University, was largely responsible for the success of CNI's Institution-Wide Information Strategies (IWIS) project. His willingness to come to Washington, DC, and his ability to quickly comprehend the issues before the various program initiatives, gave Joan the time she needed to provide executive direction to the needs of our 200-member organization.

On behalf of the CNI Steering Committee and the chief executive officers of ARL, CAUSE, and Educom, it's my pleasure to publicly thank Joan and Gerry for the essential contribution they made to keep CNI's program activities on a productive course. Thanks too to the other CNI staff members who contributed so much in delivering this year's program initiatives.

Many of you know Clifford Lynch. He has been highly visible in CNI from its inception in 1990. Cliff comes to CNI from the University of California, Office of the President, where he was director of library automation. He has been at the center of innovation and research in networking and networked information. At UC, Cliff managed the MELVYL information system, providing the UC community with access to a large online catalog, a myriad of abstracting and indexing databases, and full text and bitmapped primary content resources. He also ran the intercampus TCP/IP network.

Cliff's work at UC linked directly with many important CNI initiatives. He led CNI's Z39.50 interoperability test program, which was central in moving Z39.50 from a standard to a real infrastructure component for networked information access.

In July, Cliff met with the CNI steering committee for a thorough review of the existing program and a discussion of new program directions for 1997-98. What emerged was a series of new technology-focused initiatives in areas such as authentication and authorization, expanded work on metadata, networked information implications of Internet2, and the National Learning Infrastructure Initiative.

Our CNI transition in leadership is complete. In spite of unforeseen challenges, our 1996-97 program was completed as originally described, and the 1997-98 program continues the CNI standard of excellence. There has been only what I consider normal attrition in our membership, which is the sole source of CNI funding. Credit and thanks for this go to the task force members. Without them, there would be no CNI.

Thank you for supporting CNI by renewing your 1997-98 membership. Your continued faith in the CNI vision is a vitally important part of this transition. I am confident that new leadership at CNI will provide a program that is responsive to advancing scholarship and intellectual productivity, and will continue the high return on the membership's investment.

CNI Report is a regular CAUSE/EFFECT department that provides reports about the activities of the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI), formed by the Association of Research Libraries, CAUSE, and Educom in 1990 to promote the creation of and access to information resources in networked environments.

Richard P. West ([email protected]) is Vice Chancellor for Business and Finance for the California State University System. He has chaired the steering committee of the Coalition for Networked Information since its establishment in 1990.

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