by A very late post for OLA’s 2010 Superconference. This year was a little bit different for me. I didn’t get to attend too many sessions this year and that’s because I took my new role as OLITA President. This meant a little more behind the scenes activity, more talking with vendors and meeting all sorts of great people. We’ve got a great OLITA council this year and I look forward to working with them as we re-examine our strategic priorities and make sure they’re aligned with OLA’s new strategic plan. Digital Odyssey is also quickly coming! This year it’s Going Mobile and will be held at Ryerson June 11. We’ve invited Jason Griffey to be our keynote – it’s going to be great! Be sure to keep an eye on the OLITA website for details. Ok, well, I’ve slipped into talking about OLITA rather than the conference, so back to the conference. As always, it was a great conference (complete with obligatory snow storm) and a big congrats to all the people who put so much work and effort into making it a wonderful conference!
conferences
Roundup
Again, far too much time has passed since my last posting and far too much has happened. Here’s a roundup of just some of the things that are happening.
OLA is undergoing some strategic planning discussions at the moment. I love being able to take time to stop and look at the big picture, to figure out what it really is that we want to accomplish as individuals, an association, as a profession. We rarely have the chance to stop the daily routine to see where we are going. This scares a lot of people, or at least makes them uncomfortable but this isn’t a bad thing. Some of this comes down to a fear of change but that could be a whole blog post for another time. You can take part in the OLA discussion on the ola site, facebook and twitter.
We launched the big project I was part of this summer. We made a series of 6 short, humourous videos promoting library services to new students. You can check them out on our youtube channel. One even made a top 5 list!
I just came back from presenting at Internet Librarian. This is one of my favourite conferences – amazing people with great ideas. You can find my presentation here – feel free to contact me with any questions. One of the highlights of the conference was the launch of Michael Porter and David Lee King’s video Library 101 – be sure to check it out! I attended the unconference and my first preconference (on digital natives and digital immigrants) – both great events with amazing discussion. One of my favourite things about conferences is the chance to sit around with smart people and discuss the issues we all face as librarians. As usual, I came back from the conference full of ideas and energy – something I was in great need of. It feels like it’s been busier than usual with instruction this year, which is a sign of liaison success I suppose.
I recall thinking “ooh, I should blog about this” in the past few months but in the busy-ness of life, they have gotten lost. At least you’re a little more up-to-date on the state of things though!
Shoving and Making
It’s been an interesting couple of months. This is largely due to the fact that I recently attended the Northern Exposure to Leadership. I met some wonderful people doing incredible things. It was an absolutely amazing experience and one that I’m still trying to fully digest. I do hope to post something more on this experience, as soon as I figure out how to put the whole experience into words.
Library Journal recently announced this year’s Movers and Shakers. I’m not surprised to find that I know many of the names, both in real life and virtually, on the list. Congrats to you all!
Many of you may already know about the Library Society of the World‘s new award, the Shovers and Makers. I think this is a great idea! While Library Journal recognizes some of the most outstanding work being done in our field, the Shover and Maker award celebrates the fact that many of us are doing great things too. All you have to do to claim a Shover and Maker award is post a profile celebrating the great things you are doing. I’ve done mine. Go! Do one for yourself! Celebrate all your hard work!
I will be attending Computers in Libraries this coming week. Hope to see some of you there!