The Brett Butler Entrepreneurship Award was discontinued after the 2009 award.
The LITA/Brett Butler Entrepreneurship Award sponsored by Thomson Gale is awarded annually to recognize a librarian or library who demonstrates exemplary entrepreneurship by providing an innovative product(s) or service, designed to meet the needs of the library world through the skillful and practical application of information technology. The award will be given out for the first time in 2004. Deadline for nominations is December 1.
Candidates for the award will be selected based on the following criteria: clarity, effectiveness and adequate detail in the written application/nomination, including relevance and usefulness of the product/service to libraries, appropriate and creative use of information technology in its development, and significance of its contribution to the functioning of libraries and/or librarians. Applications should evidence timeliness in product/service development, originality of ideas, persuasiveness of arguments, quality of writing, and clarity of presentation. Applications will include references with knowledge of the product/service who may be consulted by the Committee and potential sites which may be visited or queried.
The winner will receive $5,000 and a certificate. The winner may submit a descriptive summary of the entrepreneurial achievement for publication in a featured area of the LITA website.
The following distinguished people have received the award to date:
- Susan McGlamery, Metropolitan Cooperative Library Systems, Pasadena, CA 2004
- Dan Chudnov, Yale University's Center for Medical Informatics, New Haven, CT 2005
- Chris Zagar, Estrella Mountain Community College, Avondale, AZ 2006
- Annette Bailey and Godmar Back, Virginia Tech 2007
- Glenn Peterson, Engagedpatrons.org 2008
- John Blyberg, Darien Library, CT 2009
Visit the LITA Awards & Scholarships page for information on additional LITA awards.