R. David Lankes awarded Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award

R. David Lankes, Professor and Director, School of Information Science, University of South Carolina, was selected as the 2021 winner of the Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award, the Reference and User Services Association’s highest honor. In recognition of his 30 years of visionary leadership in reference services; for his national leadership in virtual reference; for his ongoing work in expanding reference services to build stronger communities; and for his excellence as an LIS scholar.

The Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award selection committee was Chaired by Chris LeBeau.

Portrait, Isadore Gilbert Mudge, dated April 1897 and “circa 1932”, Historical Photograph Collection, Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University in the City of New York.

During her career, which started in 1903 and concluded in 1941, Isadore Gilbert Mudge increased student independence in research and improved reference collections with several specific types of sources, including dictionaries, encyclopedias, and atlases, among others. A pioneer in reference librarianship, she coined the phrase “material, mind, and method” to describe her reference philosophy when she began teaching the class “Bibliography and Bibliographic Methods” as an associate professor at Columbia’s School of Library Services.

Sponsored by EBSCO, the award consists of $5,000 and a citation to an individual (or individuals) that has made a distinguished contribution to reference librarianship.

Podcast with R. David Lankes

One Response to "R. David Lankes awarded Isadore Gilbert Mudge Award"