PLA E-Newsletter
Volume 5 No. 17
http://www.pla.org/members/enews/vol5no17.html

In this Issue:
Register for PLA's Spring Symposium
PLA Call for Award Nominations
Why Are You A Public Librarian?
PLA 2004 National Conference Call for Proposals
PLA Selects Consultant Team to Write Collection Management Manual
Volunteer at a Library in Africa or Central America
(ALA) Public Programs Office Accepting Grant Applications for Elizabeth I
Major Copyright Bill Affecting Distance Education Becomes Law

REGISTER FOR PLA'S SPRING SYMPOSIUM

Registration is now open for PLA's 2003 Spring Symposium workshop series, to be held March 6-8, 2003, at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel in Chicago. Registration information can be downloaded at http://www.pla.org/conference/spring03/index.html. In addition, all PLA members will receive the registration brochure via regular mail.

Symposium attendees will have the choice of attending one of five programs that cover all aspects of librarianship: "Building the Perfect Library;" "Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Effectiveness;" "Power Up With Print: Connecting Teens and Reading in a Digital Age;" "Emergent Literacy Part II: Research and Preschool Services;" and "Staffing for Results." New speakers have been added for the "Power Up With Print" workshop. They are YA author James W. Bennett, Amy Alessio (librarian/author), and Jennifer Bromann (librarian/author). Agendas for each of the five workshops will be posted to PLA's Spring Symposium website (http://www.pla.org/conference/spring03/programs.html) shortly.

In addition, noted children's author Mem Fox will keynote the Opening General Session the Spring Symposium. Fox, whose books include "Possum Magic," "Time for Bed" and "Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge," frequently links the joyful experience of families reading together to children's future success. Other special events to be offered at the 2003 Spring Symposium include tours of the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio and the Newberry Library, an author luncheon, and more.

PLA CALL FOR AWARD NOMINATIONS

The Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), announces a call for award nominations for the year 2002-2003. Each year PLA and various sponsors support an award program recognizing excellence in a variety of public library services. Application and nomination forms can be found at http://www.pla.org/awards/info.html or call 1-800-545-2433, ext. 5PLA. The deadline for receipt of all award applications is December 1, 2002. For more information, call the PLA office, 1-800-545-2433, ext. 5PLA. PLA 2004

WHY ARE YOU A PUBLIC LIBRARIAN?

What made you decide to become a public librarian? PLA would like to know! We are collecting your stories to post on our recruitment web page. This page is being developed for people interested as public librarianship as a career. Your real-life stories help PLA promote the profession and shatter the stereotypes. Read some current examples at http://www.pla.org/projects/testimonial.html and consider submitting yours to bmacikas@ala.org. We'd love to use your photo too.

NATIONAL CONFERENCE CALL FOR PROPOSALS

The PLA 10th National Conference will be held February 24-28, 2004 in Seattle, Washington. The National Conference Committee, under the leadership of Clara Bohrer, West Bloomfield Hills (MI) Public Library, and the Program Subcommittee, chaired by Neel Parikh, Pierce County (WA) Public Library System, are seeking proposals for programs and preconferences to be held at the National Conference. All programs are 75 minutes long. Preconferences can be one-half day, one-day or one-and-a-half days long.

Program topics of interest include, in addition to all aspects of library management and administration, Collection Management, Fund Development, Technical Services, and Services to Special Populations, Adults, Children and Young Adults. A complete list of subject categories is included in the online form.

All proposals must be entered using the online form available on PLA's web site at http://www.pla.org/conference/conf04/proposal.html. Faxed or mailed proposals will not be accepted. Please read the detailed instructions on the web site carefully before entering your proposal information. The deadline for entering proposal information for programs sponsored by ALA/PLA committees, divisions, or affiliates only is January 31, 2003. After this date, the online form will no longer be available on the PLA web site. Proposals submitted by non-ALA/PLA units are due by December 31, 2002. Program organizers will be notified of acceptance or rejection beginning in February 2003.

Proposals for Talk Tables - open, loosely moderated round-table discussions -will be accepted at a later date and will have a different deadline. The PLA National Conference is the best conference for public librarians! Don't miss the opportunity to share your expertise!

PLA SELECTS CONSULTANT TEAM TO WRITE COLLECTION MANAGEMENT MANUAL

The Public Library Association has selected Kathy Biehl and John Sandstrom to work with the Public Library Association's Collection Management Manuscript Editorial Board to develop a manual on collection management for public libraries. Five of these manuals have been published to date and they have become known as the Results series. These include:

Planning for Results 1998
Wired for the Future 1999
Managing for Results 2000
The New Planning for Results 2001
Staffing for Results 2002

Kathy Biehl, a freelance writer from Oak Ridge, New Jersey and John Sandstrom, Collection Management Specialist, Library Systems and Services, Inc., bring many years of library work and writing experience to the project. They were selected from a pool of qualified candidates in response to PLA's recent request for proposals to write the manual. For more information contact PLA at 800-545-2433, ext. 5PLA.

VOLUNTEER AT A LIBRARY IN AFRICA OR CENTRAL AMERICA

Spend the summer of 2003 helping communities gain access to the information they need to build a better future as part of the Inform the World Library Skills Exchange (ITW). ITW volunteers provide hands-on assistance and training to rural librarians in South Africa, Honduras and Guatemala. The program is a unique opportunity to share your skills while experiencing another culture. If you love libraries and have a sense of adventure, join us for this exciting service project!

Who: The World Library Partnership (WLP) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to building global understanding by promoting literacy, learning and access to information. Visit our website at http://www.worldlibraries.org for more information.

What: The ITW volunteers will conduct practical service projects in libraries in rural South Africa and Central America.

When:

Central America

Honduras - June 25-July 23, 2003
Guatemala - July 2-July 30, 2003

South Africa

Limpopo Province - July 15-August 15
Kwa Zulu Natal Province - July 22-August 22, 2003

Eligibility: WLP invites librarians, library school students, teachers, IT professionals and others who love libraries to apply. Conversational Spanish is a requirement for the Central America program. Fluency in English is required for the South Africa program.

How to Apply: The application for the various ITW 2003 programs can be found at our website - http://www.worldlibraries.org - along with more detailed information about each program. The Application Deadline is January 31, 2003. We welcome early applications.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns. For the South Africa programs contact Maggie Hite at maggie@worldlibraries.org. For the Central America programs contact Mary Alice McCarthy at maryalice@worldlibraries.org or give us a call at 919/479-0163.

ALA PUBLIC PROGRAMS OFFICE ACCEPTING GRANT APPLICATIONS FOR ELIZABETH I

The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office is now accepting grant applications from libraries wishing to host the traveling panel exhibition, Elizabeth I: Ruler and Legend. This new exhibit commemorates the 400th anniversary of the death of Queen Elizabeth I of England and will encourage audiences not only to reacquaint themselves with the Queen, but also to become more familiar with the historical and cultural forces that shaped her personality and her time and examine the mixture of history and legend that continues to surround her today. The traveling exhibition is based on a major exhibition of the same title, which will open at the Newberry Library of Chicago on September 30, 2003.

Libraries of all types interested in hosting the exhibition can download the application and guidelines at http://www.ala.org/publicprograms/elizabeth/ or request a copy by sending an e-mail message to publicprograms@ala.org . Applications must be received by December 20, 2002.

Elizabeth I: Ruler and Legend is organized by the ALA Public Programs Office and the Newberry Library with major support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. For more information about Elizabeth I: Ruler and Legend, please visit http://www.ala.org/publicprograms/elizabeth .

MAJOR COPYRIGHT BILL AFFECTING DISTANCE EDUCATION BECOMES LAW

From: ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline
Volume 11, Number 87
November 4, 2002

On November 2nd, 2002, the "Technoology, Education and Copyright Harmonization Act" (the TEACH Act), part of the larger Justice Reauthorization legislation (H.R. 2215), was signed into law by President Bush. TEACH redefines the terms and conditions on which accredited, nonprofit educational institutions throughout the U.S. may use copyright protected materials in distance education-including on websites and by other digital means-without permission from the copyright owner and without payment of royalties.

TEACH establishes new opportunities for educators to use copyrighted works without permission and without payment of royalties, but those opportunities are subject to new limits and conditions. The American Library Association joined with numerous other associations and groups representing educators, librarians, and academic administrators to negotiate the language of the TEACH Act and to vigorously support its passage. The process of drafting the TEACH Act necessarily reflected the views of diverse interests, and some terms we would like to have seen in the law met with strong opposition from copyright owners concerned about protecting their creations and preventing widespread threats to their markets. On the other hand, the ALA and many other library and education groups were successful in adding many provisions in the bill that can significantly enhance distance education.

To help with this effort throughout the country, the American Library Association is launching an initiative to provide guidance and to help interested persons so that they may better understand the new law and implement its requirements. Please watch for developments at this dedicated website: http://www.ala.org/washoff/teach.html. We have posted and will continue to update summaries and explanations of the law, together with guidance and other information to help the community enjoy the advantages of the new law and to strengthen innovative educational programs through the sharing of important information resources.

We welcome your comments and observations at any time about this project. For more information, contact Carrie Russell, Copyright Specialist at ALA's Office for Information Technology Policy, crussell@alawash.org or (800) 941-8478.

ALAWON (ISSN 1069-7799) is a free, irregular publication of the American Library Association Washington Office. All materials subject to copyright by the American Library Association may be reprinted or redistributed for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credits.

PLA E-Newsletter Volume 5 No. 17 http://www.pla.org/members/enews/vol5no17.html