PLA Electronic Newsletter
Volume 6, Number 1 http://www.pla.org/members/enews/vol6no1.html
In this issue:
Staffing for Results: A Guide to Working Smarter One-day
workshop, May 13, 2003
NCLIS Presentation at ALA Midwinter on Trust and Terror
ALA Previews New Web Design at Midwinter Meeting
Spring Symposium Deadline Reminder
PLA 2004 National Conference Call for Program Proposals
Application for PLA 2004 National Conference Talk Tables
Now Available
Visit the PLA "Resources" Web Page
PLA Thanks Partners
Lawyers for Libraries Workshop
ALA Washington Office News: Museum and Library Services
Act of 2003 to be Introduced; Co-Sponsors Needed
STAFFING FOR RESULTS: A GUIDE TO WORKING SMARTER ONE-DAY WORKSHOP, MAY 13, 2003
The latest entry in the PLA "Results" series, "Staffing for Results: A Guide to Working Smarter" will help you answer key questions you have related to the output and performance of your staff. By analyzing in a systematic way, how long work activities take and then assigning steps to each unit of work, you will have a quantifiable measure of the staff output. "Staffing for Results" walks you through the process of measuring work, identifying best practices, assigning costs to each activity, analyzing resource allocation, and communicating results.In this one-day workshop, the coauthors of the book, Diane Mayo and Jeanne Goodrich, will provide library managers and human resources managers information on how best to use the book's figures and work forms in your library to ensure that your library is optimizing its resources. After attending this workshop, you'll be able to answer questions like:
- Who is doing the work?
- How long does it take?
- Is this the best use of people available?
- Do we need more staff? and others.
The application form for the workshop will be available on the PLA web site (www.pla.org) by February 1, 2003.
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NCLIS PRESENTATION AT ALA MIDWINTER ON TRUST AND TERROR
We hope that you will be able to join us at the ALA Midwinter Meeting when NCLIS will be showing its new audio-visual presentation on Trust and Terror: New Demands for Crisis Information Dissemination and Management. The presentation, narrated by Walter Cronkite, will be followed by a discussion on the NCLIS initiative to expand the role of public (and other) libraries in crisis information dissemination and management. The session will be on Saturday, January 25, from 2:30-3:30 p.m., in Room 114 of the Philadelphia Convention Center. Additional information on this NCLIS initiative is available at http://www.nclis.gov/info/trust/trust.html.**************
ALA PREVIEWS NEW WEB DESIGN AT MIDWINTER MEETING
The American Library Association (ALA) will begin introducing members to its redesigned Web site at the 2003 Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia, January 24 to 29. Members can preview the Web site in Room 303B of the Pennsylvania Convention Center, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday, January 26.ALA members and staff have spent the last year conceptualizing the new Web site and developing a new content management system. "The new site will make it much easier for members and the general public to find the information they are looking for," said ALA Executive Director Keith Michael Fiels. "Member feedback from our online survey, emails and telephone calls provided us with direction in developing the new and improved site."
Based on this feedback, the new site will feature a better search engine, one-stop pages detailing ALA's work in major areas of interest, a more modern look and feel and more content to help library professionals in their daily work. The home page also will feature new navigation headings: Libraries & You; Education & Careers; Awards & Scholarships; Our Association; Issues & Advocacy; Professional Tools; News; Events & Conferences; and Products & Publications.
ALA staff and Web masters will be converting online content from the current site into the new management system over the next several months, with the new site scheduled to launch in spring 2003.
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SPRING SYMPOSIUM DEADLINE REMINDER
The deadline for advance registration for the 2003 PLA Spring Symposium
is January 27, 2003. Advance registration rates are $195 for PLA and Illinois
Library Association member, $230 for ALA members, $260 for nonmembers.
To qualify for these rates, registration form must be postmarked by January
27, 2003. Interested parties may register at the PLA desk (located in
the ALA office area) during the Midwinter meeting. 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." Visit www.pla.org to
see agendas for each of the five workshops that will be offered.
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PLA 2004 NATIONAL CONFERENCE CALL FOR PROGRAM PROPOSALS
PLA 2004 National Conference chairperson Clara Bohrer reminds members
that the deadline for entering proposal information for programs sponsored
by ALA/PLA committees, divisions, or affiliates is January 31, 2003. After
this date, the online form will no longer be available on the PLA Web
site. The date for non-PLA affiliates has already passed. Program organizers
will be notified of acceptance or rejection beginning in February 2003.
All proposals must be entered using the online form (http://www.pla.org/conference/conf04/proposal.html
) on PLA's web site. Faxed or mailed proposals will not be accepted.
Please read the detailed instructions on the Web site carefully before
entering your proposal information. The Public Library Association (PLA)
10th National Conference will be held February 24-28, 2004, in Seattle.
The program subcommittee, under the leadership of Neel Parikh, Pierce
County (Washington) Public Library System, is 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. "Our quality programming is what makes
the PLA conference the best continuing educational opportunity available
to public librarians," said conference chair Bohrer.
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APPLICATION FOR PLA 2004 NATIONAL CONFERENCE TALK TABLES NOW AVAILABLE
PLA 2004 National Conference chairperson Clara Bohrer also would like to remind members that the application form for submitting proposals for Talk Tables to be held during the PLA 2004 National Conference, February 24-28, in Seattle is now available at http://www.pla.org/conference/conf04/program/talktable.html. Talk Tables are small group discussions on library topics of current interest, led by a facilitator. What sort of topics are presented at Talk Tables? You can find a list of the Talk Table topics presented at the 2002 PLA National Conference at http://www.pla.org/conference/conf02/program/talktables.pdfTalk Tables will be scheduled on the Thursday and Friday (February 26 and 27) of the conference only, in correspondence with the regular programs schedule:
8:30am-9:45am |
10:30am-11:45am |
2:00pm-3:15pm |
4:00pm-5:15pm |
Please read the form carefully and supply all information requested. The form is in Word format and can be saved as a Word document, completed and emailed back to PLA as an attachment. Or, it can be printed, completed, and either faxed or mailed to the PLA office. Contact information is noted on the form.
The deadline for submitting Talk Table applications is July 15, 2003. PLA will notify all successful applicants by September 1, 2003 and provide date and time assignments soon after. All Talk Table facilitators are expected to attend and register for the PLA National Conference at their own expense.
Questions? Contact Linda Bostrom, lbostrom@ala.org; 312/280-5027. Take advantage of this opportunity to participate in the best-and only-national conference for public librarians!
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VISIT THE PLA "RESOURCES" WEB PAGE
Visit http://www.pla.org/resources/resources.html for a list of resources tailored to the needs of public librarians. This collection of links to non-ALA sites have been provided as resources for additional information. While you're there be sure to take a look at www.pla.org/resources/practices.html a collection of "best practices" compiled by the PLA Electronic Communications Advisory Committee. We'd like to add to this collection. If your library has a best practice you'd like to contribute, please send an email that details your best practice for consideration. The PLA Electronic Communications Advisory Committee will review submissions on an ongoing basis. Practices that are recognized as effective will be posted to this web site as they are approved. Please provide a detailed description of the practice. If necessary, supporting materials or questions should be submitted to bdowling@ala.org (Brendan Dowling, PLA's Technical Services Specialist).*****************
PLA THANKS PARTNERS
PLA thanks our Partners 2002-2003 for their support!Gold Partners ($5,000 +)
Baker & Taylor
EBSCO
epixtech
Gaylord
Ingram
3M
Silver ($1,000 to $4,999)
Demco, Inc.Highsmith Inc. and Highsmith Press
Bronze (up to $999)
Library JournalIf you will be attending Midwinter, be sure to visit the booths of these Partners and say "Thanks from PLA."
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LAWYERS FOR LIBRARIES -AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCES LAWYER INSTITUTES
The Office for Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association (ALA) is pleased to announce a series of training institutes in 2003. "Lawyers for Libraries" is an opportunity for attorneys to increase their understanding of legal issues affecting libraries-specifically, censorship and privacy matters. Participants will be instructed by practicing attorneys specializing in First Amendment law and will be eligible for CLE credits for their participation. "Library censorship issues impact all of us, and the future of local libraries as a repository for the broadest range of information will be strengthened by knowledgeable attorneys willing to support their local library programs," said Joseph, Lichtenstein & Levinson attorney Burton Joseph. "Every attorney interested in the First Amendment and intellectual freedom should welcome the opportunity to attend the institute." These institutes will feature sessions on:- The Library as a Public Forum
- Unprotected Speech
- Minimizing Liability, specifically regarding Internet filtering as well as "hostile work environment" issues
- Privacy and Confidentiality, especially in light of the USA PATRIOT Act
"From the Children's Internet Protection Act to the USA PATRIOT Act,
not to mention persistent local challenges to library materials and policies,
libraries today need committed, informed attorneys to provide clear guidance
and expertise," said Judith F. Krug, director of the ALA's Office for
Intellectual Freedom. "The Lawyers for Libraries regional training institutes
will ensure that attendees know about the most up-to-date, accurate and
relevant legislation and case law related to the First Amendment in libraries."
The first training institute will be February 27-28 in Washington, D.C.;
the second will be May 12-13 in Chicago. Future institutes will be announced
soon. The cost is $500. Librarians and trustees are welcome to attend,
provided they bring an attorney with them. For more information on Lawyers
for Libraries, please visit our Web site at www.ala.org/lawyers.
Contact Jonathan Kelley with any questions at jkelley@ala.org,
or call (800) 545-2433 x4226.
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MUSEUM AND LIBRARY SERVICES ACT OF 2003 TO BE INTRODUCED; CO-SPONSORS NEEDED
ACTION NEEDED: Library supporters should contact their Representatives
and ask them to co-sponsor the Museum and Library Services Act of 2003
(we understand Representatives Hoekstra (R-MI) and Boehner (R-OH) are
submitting the bill today). Prospective co-sponsors should contact either
Representative Hoekstra's staff person Rebecca Hunt (at 225-4401), or
Subcommittee Staff Person Rich Stombres (at 225-4527) to sign on to the
legislation. Either your Representative or his or her staff person should
call Representative Hoekstra's office directly. If your voting area has
been re-drawn, check our LSTA web site (www.alawash.org/lsta)
and click on "contact Congress" to verify the name of your Representative.
To check the list of sponsors for the 2002 legislation, go to the THOMAS
web site (http://thomas.loc.gov/)
and call up last year's bill number "HR 3784."
On January 7, or soon thereafter, the Museum and Library Services Act
of 2003 will be introduced under the co-sponsorship of Representative
Pete Hoekstra, Chair of the Subcommittee on Select Education and Representative
John Boehner, Chair of the House Education and the Workforce Committee.
The bill number and outline will be posted on the ALA Washington Office
web site as soon as it is available.
The ALA Washington Office and the American Association of Museums have
sent a joint letter welcoming all new Members of Congress and outlining
our support for the Museum and Library Services Act of 2003. The letter
welcomes their sponsorship of the legislation. If your Representative
is new, and would like some supporting material on the legislation, please
call us at 1-800-545-2433 and ask for Mary Costabile or Emily Sheketoff.
Since this is the beginning of the 108th Congress, you may find your Representative
at his or her local office often during this month. This provides a great
opportunity for an office visit to outline the importance of the legislation.
Contact a museum professional in your city to accompany you on the visit.
The perspective from both sides of the legislation, libraries and museums,
can give you a good starting point to discuss the benefits of the legislation
for both communities.