Tag Archives: MLA

MLA Announces Recipients of 2013 Annual Awards

Information in this post was submitted and written by Kristen Mastel, MLA President received 10/31/13.

The Minnesota Library Association is pleased to announce the winners of the 2013 MLA Annual Awards:

  •  William DeJohn (posthumously) was the recipient of the William G. Asp Distinguished Career Award in memoriam for his gifts of leadership and collaboration, his support of MLA, and his dedication to the role of libraries and their staffs in addressing the lifelong learning needs of Minnesota residents.
  • Susan Hansen, Rochester Public Library, received the Above & Beyond Award for exemplary service to the Rochester Public Library community and “above and beyond” teamwork and support for her colleagues.
  • Michelle Filkins and Jennifer DeJonghe received the Above & Beyond Award on behalf of the David Barton Community Labyrinth and Reflective Garden, Metropolitan State University, for creating both a fitting memorial to Library Dean David Barton and an innovative way for the library and university to engage with its students and with the local community.
  • Anna Hulseberg, Gustavus Adolphus College, received the MLA President’s Award in recognition of her attention to detail, process improvements, and financial management while serving as Minnesota Library Association treasurer.
  • Kirsten Clark, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, received the MLA President’s Award in recognition of her dedication to the Intellectual Freedom Committee as Chair, service as Member-at-Large, and leadership in redesigning the MLA logo.

Once again, congratulations to this year’s award recipients! If you would like to learn more about award category mentioned above, feel free to visit MLA’s Awards page, online.
Kristen Mastel, MLA President

MLA Logo

My MLA Conference Recap

Patricia Post, CMLE Director
Patricia Post, CMLE Director

It is always unfortunate for CMLE staff that the MEMO and MLA Conferences are back to back. It is hard for us to both be out of the office, but we always come away from both conferences with new programming ideas and connections in the library field. The two conferences are quite different in look and feel, which is what keeps it interesting. MEMO is of course very focused on school media and their issues, while the MLA Conference is heaviest maybe in public library issues, followed closely by academics. Our staff intentionally looks for the breakout sessions that are bursting at the seams, to see what is most popular. If we join the fray, we are looking on behalf of all Central MN library types, but also watching and listening to see how the content is received, and if the questions from the attendees indicate something might be lacking in content. If the speaker is phenomenal, we ask them about their willingness to bring their expertise to our region.

We listen at the lunch tables and in the hallways to hear what people are excited about, and what they are struggling with too! For staff like ours, these are all clues as to what type of programming might be helpful in the region. Since so many meetings are now done online, conference season allows face-to-face contact with people in your network.  Face-to-face is still best for building relationships and hearing about your needs.  As several of us talked about this, we noted how much we miss the face-to-face, as it bonds people in ways that online meetings struggle to produce. A few of my highlights of the MLA Conference included:

  • Things in a Flash Breakout Session: Bursting to capacity, this fast paced session was populated for the most part with the “tablet crowd”, or the wannabes! I still had not upgraded my iPad to iOS7, as I feared I would not have the needed gift of time to figure out some fairly significant upgrade changes. This session gave me the highlights for navigating this brave new world, which gave me the confidence to download the upgrade. We also heard about many apps that fulfilled a number of professional and personal needs. Out of the twenty or so covered, my two favorites were CamMe, an app that helps you take photos of yourself without the “fully extended arm method” while using your phone! I also really liked Quixey, a search engine for apps. Read last week’s blog post about Quixey.
  • Sessions on Change Management and Mindfulness: Staff from the Minneapolis Community and Technical College (MCTC) did an excellent session (Conducting Change: Leading a Mindful Tune) about bringing mindfulness into the workplace. Presenters acknowledged that we are living in a time of unprecedented change. We need tools to help us work well in teams and embrace change rather than burrow away from it. Identifying and understanding  our strengths, and those of our team members, also makes us better. They talked about WOO (winning others over), working in “flow state”, and the pitfalls of extreme multitasking. At one point in  time, multitasking was considered the much preferred option, but it appears it can actually have negative connotations these days. Does multitasking just make us do many things in a superficial, haphazard way? If we focus and/or reflect, can we do a better job?

And, we need tools to help us in letting go of emotions. Acknowledge the emotion, let go of how things should be, and recognize that  too much attachment to the end goal can make you miss better things.  The presenters showed a hysterical, yet poignant video of C.K. Louis on the Conan O’Brien show to illustrate what they mean about acknowledging your emotions. MCTC created a meditation room in their library this year to allow anyone to engage in 20 minute segments of seated mindfulness (pillows on the floor). Every 20 minutes a chime signals when to enter or leave the room.

Mindfulness and reflective thinking are showing up in both the education and library literature. These practices not only help manage work-related stress, but also improve the quality of library services. Kristen Mastel, MLA president, recently published an article on the topic, Insights and Practical Tips on Practicing Mindful Librarianship to Manage Stress.

  • After little sleep and a hastily read breakout session description, I stumbled into Roll With the Changes: A Percussion-Based Experiential Approach to Change Management. I will admit I almost backed out of the room when I saw a circle of chairs with a variety of drums and rattles placed in front of each chair. We were quietly instructed by two academics to “sit near the drum that speaks to you.” Okay…I sort of felt like I needed someone to work some WOO on me! However, I pushed through my discomfort while chiding myself for not reading the session description well enough. I have little musical ability and what if I needed to perform solo?  But then, I remembered that I could be mindful about my discomfort, embrace it and own it, then let it go, which is exactly what I did! This session began with a review of the research on group drumming or drum circles, some simple rhythmic exercises, and culminated in a full blown structured drumming exercise and debrief as the exercise relates to facilitating change and positive growth in work teams. It was energizing, easy and fun. I left the session smiling and energized to keep exploring new ideas!

I always roll out of Fall conference season on an adrenaline high about what I have learned and whom I have met. Then, I get back to the office and see the piles of work left undone as a result of attending the conference. By writing this blog post, I got my “conference high” back, which felt great.

What about you? Can you share conference high points with others to increase the learning and show the value in developing yourself professionally?

Tip 1: To mine the comments (tweets) of Twitter users at the conference, go to Twitter. Use the search window to type in the #mnlib13 hash tag. By doing this, you may pick up other useful links to materials others shared as a result of  breakout sessions they attended.

Tip 2: Were budgets too tight to allow you to attend a conference this Fall? If you work in an academic, public, special or school library in Aitkin, Benton, Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, Morrison, Pine, Sherburne, Stearns, Todd or Wright counties in Minnesota, you are eligible to apply for a CMLE scholarship. Watch our blog posts for other upcoming conferences that might be a good fit for you!

MILE Participant: CMLE Scholarship Recipient!

Minnesota Library Association (MLA) Institute for Leadership (MILE) encourages and promotes leadership regardless of the position a person holds with in a library . The following post was submitted by CMLE scholarship recipient Sarah Seeley, Branch Assistant, Great River Regional Library-Buffalo. 

My experience at MLA’s Institute for Leadership Excellence (MILE) exceeded my expectations on every level.  I met fantastic people, both attendees and presenters, and discovered leadership skills I had never identified. I also learned new techniques and forums for library leadership that I know will serve me throughout my library career.

The most valuable part of the retreat for me was identifying and understanding my own personal leadership themes, discussions of how those themes interact with other individuals, and strategies for building good teams with various leadership styles.  I have already begun using this new understanding back at my job, and know it will continue to benefit me in the future.

I enjoyed learning about various forums for library advocacy and techniques to get the message out about libraries in Minnesota and the nation.  We also had a great coach who led discussions and exercises about keeping yourself and staff engaged and effective at work and in life.

On the last day we set a number of goals for ourselves to be achieved in the next eighteen months.  Going forward I will be working with a mentor for advice, coaching, and accountability toward those goals.  I am thrilled with the mentor I have been assigned and have already begun work on my goals, all of which will have a great effect on my work and within our library system.

I appreciate the support CMLE has provided for my attendance at the MILE program. I recommend it to anyone interested in leadership in the library field.

Sarah Seeley

MN Library Legislation: House Legacy Conferees Named — Please Contact!

**This legislative update was originally  written by Elaine Keefe, lobbyist for MLA/MEMO, slight modifications by Patricia Post** (Received on Thursday, May 16, 2013 11:08 AM)

The House conferees for the Legacy bill were appointed on Thursday , May 16th. 

Legacy Funding Background:  The House Legacy bill passed on the floor on Friday (10th). The Senate Legacy bill was unveiled in the Senate Legacy Subcommittee on Thursday (9th).  It includes $300,000 per year for the Minnesota Digital Library (the amount requested) and $1 million per year for regional public libraries.  This is a huge reduction from the $3 million per year currently allocated to regional public libraries.  Senator Dick Cohen, chair of both the Senate Finance Committee and the Legacy Subcommittee of the Senate Finance Committee, has historically opposed Legacy funding for libraries. His position has been that only those who advocated for the constitutional amendment should share in the funds generated.  Other recipients can be viewed as interlopers, including libraries.  Senator Cohen’s goal has been that 50% of the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund is to be allocated to the State Arts Board.  Currently about 43% is allocated to the State Arts Board.  The Senate bill includes a provision requiring that in the future 50% of the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund shall be allocated to the State Arts Board.  The initial version of the Senate Legacy bill distributed the funds to regional public libraries under the RLBSS formula, as has been done the past two biennia.  I subsequently spoke with Senator Cohen and he agreed to amend the bill to change the formula in accordance with the MLA/MEMO platform and to require that the funds be distributed in 10 equal payments.  That amendment was adopted on Friday (10th) and the bill was passed out of the subcommittee.

Please contact the Conferees and urge them to support the House position on Legacy funding for regional public libraries.

The House maintains the current funding level of $3 million per year, whereas the Senate reduces it to $1 million per year.

Rep. Phyllis Kahn
651-296-4257
rep.phyllis.kahn@house.mn
Rep. Leon Lillie
651-296-1188
rep.leon.lillie@house.mn
Rep. Mike Freiberg
651-296-4176
rep.mike.freiberg@house.mn
Rep. David Bly
651-296-0171
1-800-920-5882
rep.david.bly@house.mn
Rep. Anna Wills
651-296-4306
rep.anna.wills@house.mn

Elaine Keefe

Capitol Hill Associates
525 Park Street, Suite 310
St. Paul, MN 55103
office 651-293-0229
fax 651-293-1709
cell 612-590-1244
elaine@capitolhillassoc.com

MN Library Legislative Update

**This update was written by Elaine Keefe, MLA/MEMO Library Legislative Lobbyist** (Received on Monday, April 29, 6:09 pm)

The Legislature must adjourn three weeks from today.  Most of the omnibus budget bills were passed on the floor of the House and Senate last week.  Conference committees are in the process of being appointed and will begin meeting later this week. Here is the status of the major bills affecting libraries:

Omnibus Higher Education Bill (SF 1236):  The bill has passed both the House and the Senate.

The Senate higher education bill includes a $300,000 per year increase in funding for Minitex/MnLINK.  The House maintains current funding.

Please contact the conferees listed below and ask them to support the Senate funding level for Minitex/MnLINK:   

Omnibus E-12 Education Bill (HF 630): The bill has passed both the House and Senate. Here are the highlights for MLA and MEMO:

  • Both the House and Senate versions of the bill maintain all library appropriations at current levels.
  • Both the House and Senate change the terminology in statute from “grant” to “aid” for Regional Library Basic System Support and Multi-type funding.
  • The Senate includes language clarifying that total operating capital can be used by schools to purchase computer, software and annual licensing fees. I expect the House to accept this language in conference.
  • The House increases the general education formula by 2% in FY 14 and 2% in FY 15. The Senate increases the general education formula by 1% in FY 14. The House had more money to spend than the Senate did.

House conferees are Reps. Paul Marquart (DFL – Dilworth), Carolos Mariani (DFL – St. Paul), Kathy Brynaert (DFL – Mankato), Will Morgan (DFL – Burnsville) and Dean Urdahl (R – Grove City). Senate conferees are Senators Chuck Wiger (DFL – Maplewood), Patricia Torres Ray (DFL – Minneapolis), LeRoy Stumpf (DFL – Plummer), Alice Johnson (DFL – Spring Lake Park) and Kevin Dahle (DFL – Northfield).

Omnibus Tax Bill (HF 677):  The bill has passed the House and is currently being debated in the Senate. Both bills raise a substantial amount of new revenue via increases in income taxes, sales taxes and and cigarette taxes. The House also raises taxes on alcohol.  Both bills include property tax relief.

The House bill increases aid to cities by $80 million and aid to counties by $30 million.  The Senate bill increases aid to cities by $80 million and aid to counties by $40 million.  These increases will be helpful to public libraries.

Legacy:  The House Legacy bill was scheduled to be taken up on the House floor 10 days ago and then was pulled.  Rumor has it that controversy over the outdoor heritage appropriations have made it questionable whether the bill can pass.  The Senate has not yet put its bill together.