Kaufman earns prestigious national honor

Billie Jo Kaufman, law library director and professor of law, has been honored with the 2024 Marian Gould Gallagher Distinguished Service Award by the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL). The Association’s highest honor is presented to an individual who has completed or is nearing completion of an active professional career and in recognition of a career of outstanding, extended and sustained service, and achievement in law librarianship and to AALL, its committees, special interest sections, chapters, and other entities. Honorees may be recognized for exceptional achievement in a particular area of law librarianship, for service to the Association that goes well beyond expectation, outstanding contributions to the professional literature, or for access to justice initiatives.

“I am deeply honored and humbled to accept this award, that not only reflects my individual efforts, but also underscores the collective dedication of the entire community of law librarians,” said Billie Jo. “I have been privileged to work with talented colleagues who continually inspire and challenge me. I am especially grateful to my deans, faculty, and colleagues who have supported my innovative and creative thinking. In accepting this award, I am reminded of the responsibility that comes with it—to continue advocating for the advancement of law librarianship and to contribute to the enrichment of our profession.”

Billie Jo joined the Mercer Law faculty in 2019. Currently she teaches legal writing and introduction to legal research.

Previously, she served as the associate dean for library and information resources at American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL) where she oversaw all library services and collections and supervised information technology and media services. She is an experienced instructor teaching such courses as American legal institutions, advanced legal research (online and onsite), women, crime, and law (research component), and several summer program courses in both Chile and Turkey.

Prior to her time at AUWCL, Billie Jo was director of the Law Library & Technology Center and associate professor of law at Shepard Broad Law Center, Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where she held several positions within the law library system from 1987 until 2003.

Billie Jo is an active member of the American Bar Association, the American Association of Law Libraries, the Association of American Law Schools, the Southeastern Association of Law Schools, and the Southeastern Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries. She recently served as co-chair for AALL Local Arrangements Committee Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., and serves as the co-chair of the China American Forum on Legal Information & Libraries.

Billie Jo earned her law degree from Nova Southeastern University, and her master’s and bachelor’s degrees from Indiana University, Bloomington. She continues her service to the ABA as a site visitor and routinely provides consulting services to law libraries and law schools on matters relating to library services and collections, facilities, and information technology.

Billie Jo said, “I love this place – and after over 30+ years – Mercer students are THE best!.”