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 Olson is only the seventeenth recipient to receive this award since
it was established 34 years ago. It is her ongoing service to
missionaries and international libraries, her work as a liaison to
the Association of Biblical Higher Education, her achievement in the
publishing of Library Guidelines for ABHE Colleges and Universities,
her help to TCMI’s Haus Edelweiss, and her many years of leadership
in the ACL that set her apart for this honor.
“I’ve always considered it a service to do what God has allowed me
to do,” said Olson in response to the award recognition.
The Emily Russel Award was established in 1971 in memory of Miss
Emily Russel, co-founder of the Association of Christian Librarians
(known at that time as the Christian Librarian’s Fellowship), in
recognition of her vision and foresight. Honorees are selected by
the membership and approved by the Association’s Board of Directors
based on foreign service, special achievement in the librarian’s
local community, publication or contribution to library literature,
innovative library initiatives and professional organization
activities.
A graduate of Great Lakes Bible College, Olson’s professional
library career began there. She earned her Master of Science in
Librarianship from Western Michigan University. Olson became a
member of the ACL in 1976 while in Michigan at Great Lakes. She
attended her first annual conference in 1977, and has missed only
two conferences since. She held her first office as Indexer in 1978
and served her first term on their Board of Directors in 1980.
In 1988, Olson began her first term on the executive leadership of
the ACL board. In that same year, she moved from Michigan to
Illinois to become an assistant librarian at LCU’s Jessie C. Eurie
Library. Olson continues to serve at Lincoln Christian as Director
of Library Services, a position she was promoted to in 1994.
Olson has continued to be heavily involved in the leadership of ACL,
serving as Conference Co-Program Director (1988), ACL Vice-President
(1988-1990), President (the first to serve two terms, 1990-1994),
Past President (1995), Executive Director (1995-2007), and
Conference Keynote Speaker (2009). She has also let numerous
workshops for ACL and the Association for Biblical Higher Education
(ABHE)
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In addition to her Board work, Olson served with Vihari Hivali on the Commission
for International Library Assistance, now known as the Commission for
International Library Advancement. She has a sincere commitment to missions as
demonstrated by her support of an Eastern European librarians’ conference and
her repeated work as a visiting professor at TCMI Institute in Austria over the
last 10 years.
Olson now serves as ACL Liaison to ABHE. A logical assignment that followed two
terms on the ABHE Commission of Accreditation, serving as Vice-Chair for a
portion of that time. Olson was also the champion for the ABHE publication,
Library Guidelines, for ABHE Colleges and Universities. She will soon complete
the revised guidelines, exploring contemporary library challenges and helping
formulate best practices. No other ABHE professional group has a comparable
publication to use as a resource.
ACL is an evangelical Christian academic organization that seeks to strengthen
libraries through professional development, scholarship and spiritual
encouragement for their members in service to higher education. It is one of the
oldest and largest evangelical academic library organizations and
internationally known for the global outreach of the Association’s services.
Established in 1944, Lincoln Christian University’s vision is to be a
transformational community of global difference makers. In 70 years, LCU
undergraduate, graduate and seminary alumni have reached at least 167 of the
world’s most populated countries and every state in the U.S. Today, the
institution continues to nurture and equip Christians with a Biblical worldview
to serve and lead in the church and the world through traditional residential
and seminary programs as well as through extension sites and online degree
programs for non-traditional adult learners.
[Chris Thomas, Lincoln Christian
University]
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