The Media and Information Literacy Alliance is delighted to announce the setting up of its new Board, which held its inaugural meeting on 17 January 2022. The Board will provide high-level strategic oversight for MILA and lie at the heart of the Alliance’s governance. It is currently made up of ten individuals, representing a wide range of areas of expertise and professional perspectives:

Lucy Crompton-Reid – Chief Executive, Wikimedia UK

Katie Easey – Director of Education, WEA

Sue Lacey-Bryant – National Lead, NHS Library and Knowledge Services

Julian McDougal – Professor in Media and Education, Bournemouth University

Liz Moorse – Chief Executive, Association for Citizenship Teaching

Lis Parcell – Subject specialist, digital practice (libraries and learning resources services), Jisc

Nick Poole – CEO of CILIP

Sophie Randall – Director of Patient Information Forum

Jane Secker – Senior Lecturer in Educational Development at City, University of London, and Chair of the CILIP Information Literacy Group

Anoush Simon – Senior Lecturer in Information Studies, Aberystwyth University

Carolyn Waite – Information Development Manager, Lancashire Libraries

At the meeting, the Board designated Jane Secker as its Chair at least until the end of 2022. The Board immediately defined a set of initial priorities on which it will work in the coming weeks:

  • drafting a clear definition of media and information literacy that MILA can deploy in its outreach and advocacy
  • mapping relevant initiatives undertaken by media and information literacy stakeholders, particularly relating to advocacy, capacity-building and research
  • defining a partnership agreement that would frame MILA’s operations and its relationships with supporters

This work will help to frame MILA’s future activities, and shape the way that it operates as a federation or coalition of players with a shared interest in media and information literacy.