For her role in the Collaborative Digital Reference Service, Diane Nester Kresh, director of the Library's Public Service Collections, is among the 2001 Federal 100, an award given by Federal Computer Week to top executives from government, industry and academia who have had the greatest impact on the government systems community. The award, which specifically honors those who have "made a difference in the way organizations develop, acquire and manage information technology," was presented on July 10 during a reception at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Tysons Corner, Va.
Diane Kresh - Gail Fineberg
Launched by Ms. Kresh in 2000, the Collaborative Digital Reference Service (CDRS) is a Web-based professional reference service that meets the reference and information needs of researchers through an international digital network of libraries.
Ms. Kresh received her bachelor's degree in theater and master's degree in library science from Catholic University of America. During her 27-year tenure at the Library, she has held a number of positions, including director of preservation. She has played a key role in developing the Library's strategy for the capture and retention of digital information and is currently the chair of the Library's Universal Holdings Team, responsible for defining collecting policies for digital content.
In her current position, Ms. Kresh directs a staff responsible for 15 of the Library's 21 reading rooms, including the Main Reading Room. Under her direction, the Public Service Collections staff is also responsible for the custody and security of more than 113 million items in the Library's general and special collections.
Ms. Kresh is a frequent keynote speaker at professional meetings sponsored by organizations such as the American Library Association, the Society of American Archivists, the Association of Research Libraries and the Coalition for Networked Information. In 2000, she was part of a U.S. delegation that traveled to Japan to discuss information technology issues at the Kanazawa Institute of Technology Roundtable meeting. For her efforts in the area of digital reference, Ms. Kresh was recognized by the library community with a cover story in the Feb. 2, 2001, issue of Library Journal.
For more information about the Collaborative Digital Reference Service, go to www.loc.gov/rr/digiref. For a list of the Federal 100, visit the Federal Computer Week Web site at www.fcw.com.
