Members

2023 Tamarack Award: Ronnie Seagren

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The Indexing Society of Canada / Société canadienne d’indexation (ISC/SCI) is pleased to announce the 2023 recipient of the Tamarack Award. Ronnie Seagren (Toronto) is being recognized for her contribution and commitment to the society.

Ronnie was chosen for her unflagging dedication to the society, willingness to always lend a helping hand, and dedication to diversity and inclusion in indexing.

Ronnie’s colleagues had the following to say about her:

[Ronnie’s] warmth of spirit and optimism are infectious and make the society a better place for all.

Ronnie brings hard work and joy to so many committees inside (and outside!) ISC/SCI. It’s been a pleasure to work with her.

I’m so pleased [Ronnie was] chosen to be the recipient of this year’s Tamarack Award. It is truly a well-deserved award.

“We are thrilled to present this award to Ronnie, and we are honoured to have her as a member of our society,” said Alexandra Peace and Jolanta Komornicka, Co-Presidents. “Thank you, Ronnie, for all you have given to the society and its membership.”

The Tamarack Award was instituted to recognize members who go “above and beyond the call of duty” in their volunteer work for the Society. Past recipients can be found on the website here: https://indexers.ca/tamarack-award-2/.

Lending Library

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We are excited to announce that the ISC/SCI Lending Library is now open!

As of today, May 1st, our ISC/SCI website contains a page for the lending library. You may access it here.

On this page, you will find:

  • a book list;
  • the library policy;
  • and the request form.

Please remember to take the time to review the policy before you submit your request form.

Don’t see a resource that you were hoping to? Email us. We can add it to the list of books we are looking to add to the collection.

Do you have books taking up shelf space that you think would provide great information to your fellow indexers? Email us. We would be grateful to talk you about a possible donation.

Due to cost and copyright laws, this membership benefit is only available to members who reside in Canada.

We are excited to launch this new program and we hope that you are too!

The ISC/SCI Library Committee

ISC/SCI Members Receive the DReam to Index Scholarship

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Congratulations to Jess Herdman, Jessica Dee Humphreys, and Wendy Savage of ISC/SCI, Anna Aridome of ISC/SCI and ASI, and Lara Abed of ASI on their win of the DReam to Index Scholarship.

From the DReam to Index team:

The winners will all receive a scholarship to attend indexing conferences. David K. Ream provided invaluable support to indexers, publishers, institutes and corporations, government offices, and the information industry at large. His significant accomplishments continue to have impact for all his clients and all who benefited from his skills and knowledge. He strongly supported the education of those entering the field of indexing and would be proud to know that these new indexers are benefiting from his legacy.

2022 Tamarack Award: Lisa Fedorak

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The Indexing Society of Canada / Société canadienne d’indexation (ISC/SCI) is pleased to announce the 2022 recipient of the Tamarack Award. Lisa Fedorak (Vancouver) is being recognized for her contribution and commitment to the society.

Lisa was chosen for her warmth, her diligence, and her independent spirit. Lisa’s colleagues had the following to say about her:

I wanted Lisa to be given the Tamarack Award to acknowledge her courage and stamina. Through Lisa’s initiative and her untiring efforts, we are on a path to becoming better at our business.

Lisa is highly conscientious and has donated an enormous amount of energy to the ISC/SCI. Lisa is a team player who is always doing what she can to make things better for others.

[Lisa] is someone in the world you’re so grateful to have crossed paths with, and I appreciate her gifts of compassion, human values, and warmth.

Co-Presidents Alexandra Peace and Tere Mullin said: “We are thrilled to present this award to Lisa, and we are honoured to have her as a member of our society. Thank you, Lisa, for all you have given to the society and its membership.”

The Tamarack Award was instituted to recognize members who go “above and beyond the call of duty” in their volunteer work for the Society. Past recipients can be found on the website here: https://indexers.ca/isc-awards/

2022 Ewart-Daveluy Award

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The ISC/SCI will not be presenting the Ewart-Daveluy Indexing Award this year. While the committee is pleased with the number of submissions and the diversity of trade and scholarly books, we agreed unanimously that none of the indexes reach the level of excellence that merits the award.

All of the indexes do some things well. Specifically, most of the indexes are clearly structured and easy to navigate, include multiple and relevant access points, are clearly worded, and accurately map the contents of the text. These are qualities we expect in all professional indexes. All of these criteria and more are listed on the ISC/SCI website.

What we are looking for is that elusive quality of elegance. Elegance is that sense that there is an unusual clarity, a memorable ease of use, a succinctness, or even a strikingly simple presentation of difficult ideas. Another view of indexing elegance appears in the criteria for the ASI Excellence in Indexing Award: “Succinctness; the right word in the right place—even if the word isn’t found in the text; a certain ‘charm’; visual appeal; a sense that the index contains exactly what it needs to, no more, no less; simplicity; grace.”

We encourage indexers to strive for elegance. Take the extra time to go over the index once more. Tighten up the phrasing; search for the precise word, and imagine what readers might look for that you have not included. The index does not need to be perfect, but it does need to stand out. Give your index that final polish to make it shine!

Next year we will begin again to look for an elegant index. As you write indexes this year, look for that index that is almost there, the one that needs a bit more care, and then consider giving it the extra polish so that you can send it when submissions open in the fall.

Thank you to those who submitted indexes. As mentioned in the submission form, we will send summaries of our comments and suggestions.