Barbara J. Ford is an American librarian who served as president of the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

from 1997 to 1998. She earned a bachelor's degree from

Illinois Wesleyan University Illinois Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Bloomington, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1850, the central portion of the present campus was acquired in 1854 with the first building erected in 1856. History The in ...

, a master's degree in International Relations from

Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university in Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts, United States, with additional facilities in Boston and Grafton, as well as Talloires, France. Tufts also has several Doctor of Physical Therapy p ...

and a master's degree in library science from the

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United States. Established in 1867, it is the f ...

Career

Ford served as a

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an Independent agency of the U.S. government, independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to communities in partner countries around the world. It was established in Marc ...

volunteer in Panama and Nicaragua. Her professional positions include assistant commissioner for central library services at the

Chicago Public Library The Chicago Public Library (CPL) is the public library system that serves the Chicago, City of Chicago in the U.S. state of Illinois. It consists of 81 locations, including a central library, three regional libraries, and branches distributed thr ...

; executive director of the

Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a Public university, public research university in Richmond, Virginia, United States. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virgin ...

libraries; and associate library director at Trinity University in

San Antonio, Texas San Antonio ( ; Spanish for "Anthony of Padua, Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the List of Texas metropolitan areas, third-largest metropolitan area in Texa ...

. She has also served in several positions at the

University of Illinois at Chicago The University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) is a public research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its campus is in the Near West Side community area, adjacent to the Chicago Loop. The second campus established under the Universi ...

. Ford was Director of Mortenson Center for International Library Programs at the

libraries from 2003 to 2014. Ford served as an elected member of the Governing Board of the

International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is an international body representing the interests of people who rely on Library, libraries and information professionals. A non-governmental, not-for-profit organizati ...

from 2005 to 2009. She served as a member of the U.S. National Commission for

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

from 2011 to 2013.

American Library Association

Ford's ALA Presidential theme was "Libraries: Global Reach – Local Touch" during 1997–1998. She edited a volume, ''Libraries: Global Reach Local Touch,'' that included her inaugural speech. Ford was president of the

Association of College and Research Libraries The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes library, libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th ...

from 1990 to 1991.

Awards and honors

The American Librarian Association recognized Barbara Ford's many contributions to the library community by including her in its ALA Legacy Society Honor Roll. Ford was the inaugural speaker for the Jean E. Coleman Library Outreach Lecture in 2000. She received the John Ames Humphry/OCLC/Forest Press Award for significant contribution to international librarianship. In 2016, the Illinois Library Association recognized her as an Illinois Library Luminary for her dedication to the field. She received the Sheth Distinguished Faculty Award for International Achievement, from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign recognizing her work in teaching, research, and public service in the international arena.

Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Barbara J. Living people Librarians from Illinois Presidents of the American Library Association Illinois Wesleyan University alumni Tufts University alumni University of Illinois School of Information Sciences alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign faculty Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) UNESCO 21st-century American librarians 21st-century American women librarians Peace Corps people