Tag Archives: MLA Conference

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

MLA Annual Conference

MLA-2015-Conference-LogoThe 2015 MLA Annual Conference is fast approaching. This year’s event will be at the St. Paul RiverCentre on Thursday-Friday, October 8-9, 2015.

REGISTER NOW!

Search, Create, Inspire, this year’s conference theme, chosen by MLA President Maggie Snow, is an opportunity to showcase and share the work we do every day – searching for answers, creating learners, inspiring minds to grow and communities to take action! Other features will include:

  • Keynote and featured presentations by authors
  • More than 60 breakout presentations
  • Sessions tailored to your area of interest, including academic libraries, children and young people, Friends of the Library, diversity, intellectual freedom, government information, leadership excellence, paraprofessionals, public libraries, reader advisory, reference services, rural libraries, technical services, and trustees/advocates. View the Schedule now!
  • An exhibit hall with 50+ vendors showcasing library products and services
  • Hundreds of library professionals to network with

No Money? A CMLE scholarship of up to $200 is yours to use for registration, hotel, mileage, meals, or to subsidize the cost of your employer hiring a substitute worker so you can be away. If you approach your boss to say you have found a way to contribute  $200, they will know you are invested and have taken initiative. The application process is easy, CMLE would love to exhaust its scholarship budget this year, so go for it!

Finally, remember you can stay up to date with upcoming events in our events table.

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

MLA Conference Recap

better_together_-_smallAs the legion of librarians descended on Mankato, MN for the 2014 MLA conference, there was excitement in the air. Several commented on how they couldn’t quite believe that they had physically disengaged from their workplace, but having done so, felt excited about two days of learning.

The event began with keynote speakers Tiffany Eatman Allen and Susanne Markgren. They focused on simple and painless steps to add professional development into (and change up) library careers. They engaged the audience in live polling, and offered a rich resource list too.

  • Their presentation includes ten professional development action steps along with the results of the live polls.
  • While the presentation is good, they also shared a wonderful pdf authored by Educause titled, Creating a Professional Development Plan, which is enormously helpful in many ways. It includes skills and values assessment check lists, which can help you focus on the type of job you may thrive in! It also includes helpful exercises in forming an action plan for further developing yourself.
  • Got a question you want to ask about your library career? Tiffany and Susanne are part of the Library Career People team, so use their web form to get their advice!
  • Follow them on Twitter: @LibCareerPeople

Other Helpful Conference Links  and Takeaways:

 

Session participants were asked to sum up the 23 Mobile Things program in one word or phrase.

  • “Refreshing, invigorating!”
  • “Much better than a poke in the eye” (spoken by a possible luddite!)
  • “23 Mobile Things keep you 23 steps ahead of your patrons.” That’s the idea folks….

https://twitter.com/valeriehorton/status/519959132242472960

Are you sad that you were unable to register for, or finish the 23 Mobile Things program last year? No worries, due to popular demand, we will be doing a second round of the program beginning in mid-January 2015. Now is a great time to get a strategy for securing  a mobile device so you can easily do the program. Put that smart phone or tablet on your Christmas list soon!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

MLA Annual Conference

better_together_-_smallThe 2014 MLA Annual Conference is fast approaching. This year’s event will be at the Verizon Wireless Center in Mankato, MN on Wednesday-Thursday, October 8-9, 2014.

REGISTER NOW!

Better Together, this year’s conference theme…, will focus on creating partnerships and building communities. Other features will include:

  • Keynote and featured presentations by authors
  • More than 60 breakout presentations
  • A conference-within-a-conference titled: We’re All in This Together: Strengthening Libraries Through Professional Development
  • Sessions tailored to your area of interest, including academic libraries, children and young people, Friends of the Library, intellectual freedom, government information, leadership excellence, paraprofessionals, public libraries, reader advisory, reference services, rural libraries, technical services, and trustees/advocates
  • An exhibit hall with 50+ vendors showcasing library products and services
  • Hundreds of library professionals to network with

 

No Money? A CMLE scholarship of up to $200 is yours to use for registration, hotel, mileage, meals, or to subsidize the cost of your employer hiring a substitute worker so you can be away. If you approach your boss to say you have found a way to contribute  $200, they will know you are invested and have taken initiative. The application process is easy, CMLE would love to exhaust its scholarship budget this year, so go for it!

Finally, remember you can stay up to date with upcoming events in our events table.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist

Reluctant Reader Session at MLA

Image by Rob Boudon. Retrieved in Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Rob Boudon. Retrieved in Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

Last month, I blogged about my son who had become disengaged with reading in a post titled, Books & Boys. So, at this year’s MLA conference when I saw they were hosting a session titled: Reaching the Reluctant Teen Reader: From Creation to Circulation, I knew immediately that I wanted to attend. Because of the popularity of this session, I thought our readers would also find this information helpful. Here are my session notes.

This session was a structured panel discussion with an author, librarian (public) and editor.  First the panelists talked about why some teens aren’t reading which included the following;

  • Active adolescents are unable to sit still for long periods of time.
  • Some  teenagers struggle to make connections between the reality of their world and the world of books.
  • Books don’t have as strong of a pull than other forms of media (TV, video games, internet, etc.)
  • Reading may be perceived as uncool, anti-social or too much like an adult.

Another important conversation that occurred was the identification of books struggling readers might be more prone to read. The physical appearance of these books are generally catchy, action oriented, with larger print and greater amounts of white spaces on each page. In terms of fiction books, reluctant readers have a tendency to gravitate toward books that they can relate to, with a touches of humor, action rather than descriptive text, with limited but well defined characters. The panel also suggested ways in which librarians can help get books in the hands of reluctant readers through displays, shelving “quick reads” together, posting student book reviews, hosting book talks, taking the library (on the go) out into the community, and developing efficient electronic assess to books.

As a result of this session, CMLE would like to bring a reluctant reader event to our area. Watch for it in upcoming events with CMLE this December!

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Branch Out Conference This Summer!

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Branch Out 2013!
Branch Out 2013!

Save the Date!

The 2013 Branch Out Conference will be held July 31-August 1, 2013, in Maple Grove, Minnesota.

Branch Out is a biannual conference, which began in 1992, designed by and for library paraprofessionals, support staff, and media specialists. Its purpose is to bring library staff from around Minnesota together for career development and networking opportunities.  Learn more on the Branch Out Conference Blog »