The School of Library and Information Science (SLIS) Dean Sanda Erdelez was selected as a winner of the Croatian Women of Influence Award, a recognition of leadership, innovation, and community impact of Croatian women around the world. Erdelez is among 24 women chosen to receive the 2024 award, which received 156 nominations from 15 countries. The purpose of the Croatian Women’s Network (CWN) is to recognize the accomplishments of Croatian women all over the world; 165 winners have been selected since the awards began in 2016.
Erdelez, who traveled to her native Croatia in October 2023 as part of the Fulbright Specialist Program, was also named Dean of the Simmons University School of Library and Information Science.
“I felt very honored and privileged to be recognized as a woman of Croatian heritage who has contributed to library and information science,” says Erdelez, who has been internationally recognized for her research in human information behavior and usability of information systems. “I’m also excited to connect with my colleagues in Croatia and share our experience at SLIS in educating future library and information professionals for careers that fight misinformation and promote access to high-quality information as an essential human right in a democratic society.”
Erdelez earned her LL.B. and LL.M degrees from the University of Osijek Law School (Croatia) and a Ph.D. in information transfer from Syracuse University. Her tenure as Dean of SLIS officially begins on July 1, 2024.