State Librarian Kendall Wiggin and Gary M. Shirk, Chief Information Officer at Yankee Book Peddler, have been appointed by ALA President Barbara J. Ford to the Outsourcing Task Force. LaDonna T. Kienitz, Community Services Director and City Librarian, Newport Beach, CA, will chair the task force. Mr. Wiggin, who is currently chairing the NELINET Outsourcing Task Force, said that it is an honor for New Hampshire to have two representatives on the task force.

The Outsourcing Task Force members form a diverse group representing a wide range of professional experience, as well as ALA involvement. The task force has been charged by the ALA Executive Board to advise the Association on issues related to outsourcing, subcontracting, and privatization of library services; to gather data and examine the literature on these issues and to evaluate their impact on library services and operations; to examine past ALA positions and the ways in which these issues relate to the ALA Code of Ethics and other Association policies; to provide an opportunity for general membership discussion at the Annual Conference in 1998; and to provide Council with a comprehensive report with recommendations at the 1999 Midwinter Meeting.