At each Annual Conference YALSA hosts the Printz Program and Reception, which honors the authors recognized by this prestigious award and celebrates young adult literature. This year, two of the honorees will not be able to attend in person due to extenuating circumstances. Instead of giving their speech live, they will be airing a videotaped message at the Printz Program. Markus Zusak and Marilyn Nelson are the two authors who are unable to attend this event. John Green, winner of the ’06 award for his book, Looking for Alaska, will be present to give his speech, as will Margo Lanagan. Tickets for this program may still be purchased online. They will also be available on site. If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to contact the YALSA office at yalsa@ala.org. -Beth Yoke
Interviewing 101, Fri. June 23, 9:30a – 11:00a
This workshop will help you appreciate the opportunity that interviews create… and hopefully alleviate some of the stress! This workshop is held in connection with the ALA Placement Center. Speaker: Vicki Burger
Why Should I Hire You?, Sat. June 24, 1:30p – 3:30p
Managers and jobseekers, learn how to interact with each other before, during, and after the interview process. Hear best practices and tips about job interviews and hiring from a panel including a human resources manager, career consultant, public library director, recent library school graduate, and an organizational psychologist. Speakers: Sheila Anderson, Charlene Holly, Erica Klein, Jill Ratzan, Elisa Topper
Professional Portfolio Development, Sun. June 25 10:30a – 12n
ALA-APA Placement Center Workshop. For more details visit www.ala.org/ala/hrdr/placementservice/placementservices.htm
Getting What You’re Worth, Sun. June 25, 1:30 – 3:30p
This interactive session will give you the opportunity to learn the principles of salary negotiation during your interview and your promotions, and to engage in mock negotiations. Co-sponsored by ALA-APA and the ALA Office for Human Resource Development and Recruitment. Speaker: Mary Pergander.
Marketing Yourself, Sun. June 25, 1:30p – 3:30p
This session will include the basic methods to create, update, and maintain all current information that is vital and invaluable for annual performance evaluations, career changes or salary review. Speaker: Vicki Burger
Conference Orientation, New Members Round Table (NMRT), Sat. 8:30 – 10:30a
Get a fun and informative introduction to the Conference. Learn to navigate the exhibits, decipher the conference program, how ALA really works, and ways to get involved.
YALSA 101, Friday, 4:00 – 5:00 pm
Learn about YALSA in a basic orientation which will include an overview of the division and its activities. New members and those considering membership will learn more about the benefits, and established members are welcome to attend this great networking opportunity. Light refreshments will be served courtesy of School Library Journal.
Library Education Discussion Group Topics
Saturday, June 24, 3-4pm: Jobs, led by Heidi Dolamore
Sunday, June 25, 12-1pm: Adjunct Faculty, led by Rita Premo and Maggie Novario
-Posted by Beth Yoke
From ALA’s Conference Services Department:
ALA Conference Services has contracted with the Morial Convention Center to provide free wifi access at the Annual Conference. This access will be available to all registered attendees for the duration of the event. Wifi coverage is available throughout the building with the exception of the exhibit halls.
In order to use the in-house wifi you must have a wifi-enabled device.
Simply open your browser and you will be logged on to the center’s server, and you will then be free to browse just as you would in other public wifi situations.
This service is provided for basic internet use like browsing and checking email. This is not meant for use with VPN or other point-to-point communications.
Wifi internet access is offered “as is” – neither Conference Services nor Datasis can provide technical support for this service.
-posted by Beth Yoke
Plan:
1. If you want to minimize costs by sharing a room with someone, post your request on the YALSA-L discussion list, or ask coworkers.
2. Find a coworker, classmate or friend who is also going to the conference and plan to meet up for a meal, to tour the exhibit hall and/or go to receptions. Milling around a gargantuan convention center with 20,000 strangers can be daunting, but having a friend or even acquaintance to join you in attending specific activities makes things less stressful.
3. Do some pre-planning to identify what programs and events you’d like to attend at the conference. You’ll find information in:
a. The official conference site
b. On the YALSA Conference Page
c. From ALA’s Conference Wiki
4. Plan things to do while you’re in New Orleans
5. There isn’t a bus or commuter train available from the airport to downtown (it was this way before the hurricane), so arrange to share a cab with someone, or reserve a seat in advance on one of the airport shuttles. Shuttle information is available here: www.flymsy.com/. ALA offers a discount with Airport Express. It is only a $2 savings, but you can make your reservations online.
6. Purchase tickets for the Printz Program & Reception, Edwards Luncheon and/or Reading With Your Ears Preconference. To purchase tickets, contact Nichole Gilbert at ngilbert@ala.org or 1.800.545.2433 x4387. Only tickets for the Printz event will be available on site (& they’ll be $6 extra).
Pack:
7. Very comfortable shoes. Really.
8. An extra bag, or plan to ship items that you purchase or get for free from the exhibit hall.
9. A sweater. It will definitely be hot and muggy in New Orleans, but almost everything is air conditioned, and the convention center especially can be chilly.
10. Lots of business cards to give to colleagues you meet, potential employers and/or to exhibitors for a chance to win prizes.
If you have any questions about YALSA at the Annual Conference, please don’t hesitate to contact the YALSA Office at yalsa@ala.org or 1.800.545.2433 x4390. If you have general registration questions, please contact 1.800.545.2433 and press 5. Advance registration is now closed, but on site registration is available.
We’re looking forward to seeing you in New Orleans!
-Posted by Beth Yoke
Posted by Beth Yoke:
Recently a member of Congress (Rep. Mike Fitzpatrick R-PA) has proposed legislation called the Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA). If the legislation passes, it will force sweeping changes on the Internet. It seeks to target sites like MySpace by regulating “commercial social network sites.” They are defined as any commercially operated Internet website that allows users to create web pages or profiles that provide information about themselves and are available to other users; and offers a mechanism for communication with other users, such as a forum, chat room, email, or instant messenger.
The goal of the proposed legislation would be to expand the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) to include commercial social network sites among those to be filtered in facilities that use federal funds to provide Internet access through the E-Rate, like schools and public libraries.
To learn more about this proposed legislation, or to find out how to contact your Congressperson, go to the ALA Washington Office’s site.
On May 1st and 2nd librarians and library workers from all over the country will head to Washington DC for Library Legislative Day. Once there they will meet with elected officials and/or their staff in order to: 1) advocate for adequate library funding, 2) educate decision makers about key issues facing the field of librarianship, 3) raise awareness about the key role that libraries of all types play in a democratic society, and more. For those of you who are unable to make the trip to DC, we ask that you please consider participating virtually. Information on how to do so is here:
http://www.ala.org/ala/washoff/washevents/nlld/vertld.htm
YALSA has put together a quick guide that may be useful as you communicate with decision makers about the needs of teens and issues relating to young adult library services. Please note that these are just a starting point and are not meant to be a comprehensive list or detailed discussion of critical issues. We also recognize that needs can vary from community to community, so no doubt you will have more to add or emphasize.
So, please set aside a few minutes next Monday or Tuesday to email, call or fax your legislators and let them know your concerns about libraries and YA librarianship!
-Beth Yoke
To access info about New Orleans or to view a complete list of programs and events sponsored by YALSA at the ALA conference, go here: Annual Conference
-Beth Yoke
byoke@ala.org
Posted by Beth Yoke:
The following is a list of youth division members who are Councilor At-Large candidates for ALA Council. Polls open March 15th. To learn more about the ALA election process, click on the heading of this posting.
Heidi Dolamore
Nancy Fredericks
Ria Newhouse
M.A. (Peg) Oettinger
Ellen Riordan
Barbara Silverman
Cassandra Barnett
Elizabeth (Beth) E. Bingham
Carolyn Brodie
Luann Cogliser
Eva Efron
Ann Dutton Ewbank
Carolyn P. Giambra
Dora T. Ho
Dennis J. LeLoup
Virginia (Ginny) Moore
Brenda Pruitt-Annisette
Frances Roscello
Clara Sitter
Margie Thomas
Nancy P. Zimmerman
These names are provided for informational purposes only and implies no endorsement of the candidates. Detailed information about each candidate can be found in the biography provided with the ALA ballot.
Posted by Beth Yoke:
Volunteer Opportunities: ALA has been in contact with libraries in the New Orleans area, as well as Habitat for Humanity and other organizations to determine the types of volunteer activities that will be available on Fri. June 23 and Tues. June 27. ALA will conduct a site visit in March to finalize activities, and will notify people in early April of the various volunteer options. Volunteers will be able to select their top choices for projects, and ALA will do its best to accommodate requests. The plans are currently to have full day projects to offer as much help to each site as possible. To participate, you can register through the regular ALA Annual registration form by entering event code AL1 (Friday) or AL2 (Tuesday) under the ‘Events Add On’ Section. There is a $10 fee to register for these two events, but proceeds go to the Katrina Relief Fund. If you have any questions please contact ALA at cro@ala.org
Diversions Tour: ALA’s Office for Diversity will devote its normally scheduled “Diversions Tour,” held on the Monday of every Annual Conference, to touring the most afflicted New Orleans neighborhoods and later, performing a hands-on service project at NOPL’s Alvar Branch. You may sign up for this ticketed event when registering for Annual Conference. In exchange for a purchased ticket, participants will receive a T-shirt, lunch, and an opportunity to contribute to the rebuilding of a vital library and library collection. Any proceeds from ticket sales support the Spectrum Scholarship as well as a monetary donation to the New Orleans Public Library. NOPL’s Alvar Branch Library serves a traditionally African American and a burgeoning GLBT community. It was severely affected by Katrina and requires extensive renovation (see: www.nutrias.org/~nopl/alv/alvarphotographs.htm ). We will be working with Geraldine Harris, Assistant City Librarian of NOPL, to determine the exact nature of the project we will perform, be it painting and sheet-rocking or landscaping services. Questions about the Diversions Tour can be directed to diversity@ala.org.
Scholarship Bash: At ALA’s Midwinter Meeting last month the ALA Executive Board voted that all net proceeds from the 2006 Scholarship Bash over $60,000 be designated as a one-time addition to the Hurricane Relief Fund. Here are the details that are available: ALA/ProQuest Scholarship and Library Relief Event Saturday, June 24, 2006, 8:00 – 11:00 pm Convention Center Auditorium Tickets: $35 The Scholarship Bash is held to provide scholarships for graduate students in library and information studies. ALA hasn’t yet announced the entertainment for this event, but you can check back on www.ala.org/scholarshipbash because it will be posted there when it’s finalized. Questions about the Bash can be directed to Amy McGuigan at amcguigan@ala.org.
Donate Books Now: The New Orleans Public Library needs help in rebuilding the African American, Vietnamese and GLBT collections at Alvar. She is especially seeking new or “like new” books that have been Stonewall, Coretta Scott King, BCALA Literary or other appropriate award winners, as well as canonical and popular titles in these collection areas. Send book donations to: New Orleans Public Library 219 Loyola, New Orleans, LA 70112, Attention Rica Trigs. Geraldine states: DO NOT SEND anything by US mail unless it is first-class. NOPL does not receive anything that is not first class. We can receive packages via FedEx, UPS, and DHL.