Ann Boyle

For excellence in her role in managing and developing the Local Studies Collection in the Geraldton Regional Library

Ann Boyle is the winner of an ALIA Excellence Award. These awards recognise excellence in any area, field or aspect of practice in the library and information services sector.

When Ann was appointed Local Studies Librarian at Geraldton Public Library 17 years ago, the collection was under-resourced, under-developed and unknown. Today it is one of the most respected and strongest local studies collections in the country, its value recognised by grants and funding, a vital part of its community and made available to all interested communities - local, scholarly and professional - through physical, virtual and published access.

Ann developed many activities, services and tools for collection use which are far more common now than when she first began using them in Geraldton: a Community Information database, an electronic index, seminars and workshops in many subject areas, the creation of the oral history collection (and the many community activities centred on it), establishing a local researchers group to support and encourage participation and focus its coverage, the publication of local area histories, community partnerships with the Geraldton Historical Society, local genealogical groups and local newspapers. The Oral History mornings, to which the public are invited to listen to and discuss a tape from the collection over morning tea, are an example of the popular community access which distinguishes this collection.

The collection's open access, made possible by the collection policy of acquiring duplicate material wherever possible, has allowed Ann to build rapport with users in the community, who respond with volunteer expertise and donations. Special collections have been developed within the Local Studies collection, such as the Randolf Stow and the Abrolhos Islands collections. The comprehensive genealogical resources attract researchers from interstate and overseas.

As well as building relationships within her local community, Ann has worked with the State Library of Western Australia, and has contributed to her profession through conferences and workshops. The staff of other local studies collections regularly consult Ann's expertise, whether as a librarian or for funding and grants application advice. Her unrivalled knowledge of the Geraldton collection is a resource for researchers, authors and students working on films and videos, books and other projects. She has encouraged her staff, both paid and volunteer, to develop their skills, has maintained high professional standards and has been a supportive colleague to her peers.

She has been instrumental in the publishing of three varied local history titles: one social and economic, one of local biographies and a photographic history of the area. These are A Life of Its Own: A social and economic history of the City of Geraldton and the Shire of Greenough, 1846-1988, by Sr Mary Albertus Bain (1996, City of Geraldton), Geraldton: 150 years, 150 lives (2001, Local Studies Department, Geraldton Regional Library), Geraldton: A photographic history (2004, Local Studies Department, Geraldton Regional Library).

Ann's contribution to library services in Geraldton, to her local community and to the free flow of ideas and information, and the creation of an outstanding collection make her a worthy recipient of an ALIA Excellence Award.