Rebecca Fordon Receives 2026 Emerging Leader Award from AALL

Rebecca Fordon, Assistant Director for Innovation, Research & Instruction, is a recipient of the 2026 Emerging Leader Award from the American Association of Law Librarians (AALL). 

The award recognizes newer AALL members who have made significant contributions to the profession while demonstrating a strong potential for future leadership and continued service. 

 “I am deeply honored and humbled to receive the AALL Emerging Leader Award,” said Fordon. “This recognition is especially meaningful because it comes from an organization—and from colleagues and peers within it—that has had an indelible influence on my path in law librarianship.” 

Fordon is a nationally recognized leader in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) in legal research and practice. A founding member of the AI@Moritz committee, Fordon provides expert guidance and critical information about this rapidly developing topic to the law school community. She also developed and teaches a legal tech course called 21st Century Lawyering, which helps students understand and assess new technologies used in legal practice. Fordon is a board member of the Free Law Project and one of the creators of AILawLibrarians.com.    

“Rebecca’s leadership style is what I would describe as collaborative expertise. She approaches new challenges with curiosity, gathers information widely, synthesizes it thoughtfully, and then shares it generously,” said Sara Sampson, Assistant Dean for Information Services, Director of Law Library, and Senior Lecturer. “She is exactly the kind of visionary, collaborative, and forward-thinking professional who will help lead law librarianship into the future.” 

To read the full announcement from AALL, click here.