No not the Academy Awards! It is time to nominate someone you know who is a star performer for either the Oberman-Rich Award or the Doyle Award.

What is a star performer? The person who tends to say yes, with a smile. The quiet leader who manages to get everyone enthused about a project. The not so quiet staff member who says, “Who says we can’t do it? We can do it!” They are out there. We all work side by side with them. We miss them when they are sick. We love it when they are back. Perhaps you are that very person!

This is the time to give credit where credit is due, to acknowledge and honor our co-workers, our staff members, our supervisors. Acknowledge it to yourself.

Nominations are now being accepted up to March 31, 2012 for either the Oberman-Rich Award or the Doyle Award. You can nominate a deserving someone or you can nominate yourself. (Oh, yes you can!) That is called tooting your own horn!

The Oberman-Rich Award recognizes an individual who has demonstrated personal and professional growth to advance themselves to a position of leadership within their own library, library system, the Illinois Library Association, or the library community at large. This individual has made a significant impact on the support staff working in Illinois libraries. The nominee must be a support staff member working in any type of library without an advanced degree in library science. ( NEW INFO)The recipient(s) will receive a free registration to the current year Reaching Forward Conference, an overnight stay at the Reaching Forward conference hotel, $50 for expenses, and a framed certificate.

The Doyle Award was established in 1999 in honor of Robert P. Doyle, Illinois Library Association Executive Director, who has been instrumental in the support of library assistants. The recipient will receive a one-year ILA membership and full registration plus expenses to the annual ILA Conference, not to exceed $800, and a framed certificate. This award is open to all support staff working in all types of libraries.

Additionally, those who send in nominations will be entered into a drawing for a free registion to the Reaching Forward Conference.

Please see the Awards section on this site for details on submitting a nomination. If you have any questions feel free to send me an email.

It is a wonderful thing to see how a person blossoms when he or she has received the gratitude and recognition of their peers!

We have some great authors in mind for this year’s Author Conversations. However, we had to look at last year’s format first to decide what worked and what didn’t.

The main thing we realized is that asking an author to give the same talk 12 times in 2 hours was a bit much. Since we love the Speed-Dating concept, we decided to tweak the format.

This year the authors will give their introduction to the whole audience. Each will have a few minutes to talk about themselves and their books. You will again be seated at tables. The authors will then go from table to table answering your questions and giving you a bit more time to get to know them.

You may want to ask these authors to speak at your library. Or, you may just love meeting authors. Whatever your reason for choosing Author Conversations, it will be an educational, entertaining hour.

In case you wondered….Reaching Forward 2012 will offer Back to Books, presented by Carolyn Muci, Head of Marketing and Public Relations at Mount Prospect Public Library, Jason Smith, owner of The Book Table in Oak Park, and Becky Spratford, Reference Librarian at Berwyn Public Library. This workshop was given for the Reference Library Association for Continuing Education and highlights some of the best ways to bring focus back to books and how technology can help us promote books more effectively by introducing books into the community, (Carolyn Muci) making use of social media, (Becky Spratford) and sharing marketing secrets (Jason Smith)!

However, we still have a few months to go until May 4th! So, until then, enjoy this! (see link at top of post)

Happy New Year everyone! Well, as you know plans are well on the way for Reaching Forward 2012. I got to thinking about reaching and all the meanings and uses it has… like “Reach for the sky!” (Hooray Woody!) or “ Reach right out, time is here…you’re an honorary Mouseketeer!” Or reach up or reach for my hand. Reaching a conclusion. Reaching your goals. Reaching your destination. They all imply movement. Usually movement towards….what? Up and out! Which brings me back to Happy New Year… often a time of reflection and resolutions. I firmly resolve to stop eating (fill in the blank)! Ok, forget that one! Goals for uncluttering. Goals for learning. How about getting truly organized? Or getting involved? Perhaps becoming part of a team or project at work? Maybe starting on your LTA…. The sky’s the limit! Reaching Forward is a tool that you can use in your life and in your career. A tool, or maybe even a toolbox to help you sort out your ideas, experiment, and build something new. Something new this year. Let’s make that a goal to reach toward. Reaching Forward 2012. Be there!

The Reaching Forward Committee leaders recently invited library directors to a focus group. Gail Johnson and Pam Parr, Face to Face Communications and Training, lead the group through a discussion about ways to make Reaching Forward better and even more relevant.

With the systems providing limited opportunities for professional development, Reaching Forward is ready to give all library staff members an avenue for learning new things.  Discovering what directors want the Conference to deliver will help us move forward. We are already the best one-day library conference in the country, but we are not willing to stop there.

Approximately 40 directors attended the focus group; they had lots of ideas for the conference.  The directors were divided into smaller groups. Each group put together suggestions which were announced and posted. Everyone voted for their five favorites among all of the ideas listed. Those suggestions with the most votes are at the top of the list. The Reaching Forward Conference should:

• teach staff to be an ambassador in the community
• provide hands-on technology training
• develop programs that cast the future, giving the big picture
• teach how staff to teach: train those training different populations, social media,  and other competencies
• provide programs about incorporating— attracting, managing, and training—volunteers into the library
• provide supervisor training
• teach ways to avoiding turf wars
• provide ways to deal with change—to make friends with it
• teach core competencies: how to do a reference interview, use Google, etc.
• have round-table-themed discussions for support staff
• take the best of Reaching Forward on the road to regional sites
• help staff develop the concept of the elevator speech: when and how to use it
• train staff in technology trouble-shooting
• develop information about current reality
• teach learning from within
• provide leadership coaching
• train staff to navigate the privacy landscape
• develop interpersonal skills
• provide sensitivity training
• develop a stress test  to help staff manage situations when everything comes at them at once
• teach eSpeak—what do words mean?
• show how to obtain and use marketing data from customers
• provide interactive interviewing skills, i.e., customer relationship skills with follow-up
• provide information about social service issues
• show how libraries have the ability to assist with local, state, and federal agencies
• provide updates on new sources or channels of information

Because so many of the programs have already been set for 2012, many of these suggestions will not be incorporated until 2013. One idea you will see in May is round-table-themed discussions. Gail and Pam will lead these. The topics will be listed on the Website with the programs for 2012. We have also added a page supervisor training workshop.

We plan to make some changes on the Web listing to make it easier for you to determine the area of professional development the program addresses. For the first time, you can earn Continuing Education credits.

We thank the directors for their time, enthusiastic input, and support of Reaching Forward. We also appreciated the time Gail and Pam spent putting all this information together. Future blogs will give the directors’ insights on what changes libraries have faced in the last 10 years and where we will be in 2030.

The committee is working hard to get an interesting and varied lineup of programs for the May 4, 2012, conference. Many of the programs should appeal to everyone who works at a public service desk and cover topics from autism to technology.

The keynote speaker is James Feldman whose topic is “Shift Happens!” As you all know, change is something we encounter on a daily basis. Learn how to embrace it!

As we get information about the programs, we’ll be adding information to the Website.

Comments about Lunch

“Couldn’t find seats at lunch, there were only 6 of us, it would have been easier if you assigned tables by libraries”….
“Coming into lunch was very chaotic, trying to find your group…..”
“….uniform way of seating at lunch, it was a shame I couldn’t sit with my….”
As opposed to “….we had a fantastic time of getting to know people from other libraries at lunch…we had such a great interchange of thoughts and ideas!”
“I had such a great time sitting at a table hosted by one of the authors…” 

As you can see, comments about lunch and the seating were all over the board. One of the ideas we encourage and foster, is at Reaching Forward, you step a little out of your comfort zone, and meet someone new. Find out about their library, and what they do there. Exchange ideas and learn something new that you can take back with you.  With over 100 libraries sending staff, it would be close to impossible to assign tables to each library.
Some of you missed our having a speaker at lunch, and many of you did not, and enjoyed the time to relax, and carrying on a conversation. The committee after trying both ways several times, has come to the conclusion that no speaker at lunch, gives everyone a little down time to socialize and enjoy each other’s company
Comments about the exhibition area ranged from “loved it”, to “hated it”. “too much jewelry”, too stereotypical of women”…”found great things”, “can we have a tea seller next year”…..or “can we buy books at a discount”…
Just as some felt the “shopping” atmosphere was too much, others enjoyed themselves and look forward to that part of the day. To address the different exhibitors, the committee is always willing to work with someone, but many exhibitors simply do not sell enough product to make it worth their while attending.
Tables and bags brought many comments as well. In the morning the room is set for more than the actual number of attendees. However there are bags for only the number of attendees and a few extra. Many people sat at the tables with no bags, instead of find a seat with a bag. At the end of the keynote address the extra bags were collected and could be gotten at the help/information tables just outside the door.

Over the summer months, several of the Reaching Forward Committee will try and respond to and answer the questions that showed up on our annual survey after the Conference.

With over 800 library staff attending the Conference many discrepancies appeared in the survey.   Not surprising,  just hard to respond to.

Why we are at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center, and not somewhere else?

We have an established relationship with the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center and get excellent service from their staff. Additionally they have held or minimally increased the rental prices for the facility and food service for several years.

Another reason is that the Stephens Convention Center is easily accessible by public transportation from Chicago and the surrounding suburbs. It’s hard for those of us who live in the suburbs to think of, but there are many attendees living in the city that do not own their own car. Hence public transportation is their only option. The Convention Center is centrally located for attendees coming from the north, the city, and the western and southern communities.

There were some comments that the programming is not relevant to libraries, or the jobs being done, “…not relevant to what I do every day…”, “My director and I feel that there are too many programs not about libraries….”

Of course there were also many comments that our programming was very relevant. This is the perfect opportunity to share Reaching Forward’s philosophy, with you. Part of our mission is for Reaching Forward to be a conference that “speaks to the whole person”, not just the 9-5 staff person at the library. It is our belief that a healthy, well-rounded individual makes for a better staff person.

What we cannot control ….there are several things that are beyond our control; we cannot change the parking garage; its signage, or the parking fee. For as many attendees that didn’t care for the food, the same number really enjoyed the food. There were several comments about traffic, and that is beyond anyone’s control…..

If you are a regular reader of our blog, please pass this information on to co-workers, and get them to read it, too. One criticism was there wasn’t enough information put out before the conference. BUT all the information was on the website and the blog well ahead of the Conference, it just needed to be

R E A D

One of the vendor tables at Reaching Forward 2011 was for a fledgling group, the PALA.  The following was reported to me by Aldona Salska, of Prospect Heights Public Library District.  Reaching Forward is so pleased to help spread the word for this amazing new group!

At Reaching Forward 2011, the Polish American Librarians Association (PALA) gained lots of interest from the event attendees. They were interested in the organization history and mission. The Polish American Librarians Association is a young organization –about a year and a half ago, a small group of Polish American librarians had an idea: to create a national forum for Polish American librarians, that would play a prominent role in fostering a better understanding of Polish history and the Polish Diaspora. In February 2010, PALA established its first Executive Board.  Members included: President, Aldona Salska, Vice-President, Elizabeth Marszalik, Secretary, Ursula Zyzik, and Treasurer, Malgorzata Bylinska. On February 18, 2010 the group  was officially incorporated in the state of Illinois with the name Polish American Librarians Association (PALA).  PALA’s mission is to positively impact services provided to library patrons of Polish descent and individuals interested in Polish culture.

The PALA website www.palalib.org says it all. It colorfully conveys the wide range of services and future projects the organization has developed and the enthusiasm which the members of the organization have brought to their original idea. PALA’s vision is to create a network of librarians who can share their skills and experience, their successful ideas and programs, their questions and concerns, both electronically and in person. “Most of all we want to develop a bank of reliable, thorough information about books and other media, programming ideas, and networking opportunities,” says PALA President Aldona Salska.

PALA directs its primary attention to library staff working with Polish collections and patrons of Polish origin. By providing bibliographical resources and translation aids it opens the riches of the Polish heritage to a much broader audience in America. Beyond this, PALA sees itself as a premier source for access to reliable, current information about Polish and Polish American culture. And in an age where libraries must increasingly attend to patrons of many different cultures and languages, PALA provides opportunities for cooperation with other library associations and related organizations to promote understanding and respect among all cultures.

PALA also has its international face. After a meeting in March, 2010, between PALA’s president and the President of the Stowarzyszenie Bibliotekarzy Polskich (Polish Librarians Association) at the National Library of Poland in Warsaw, the Newsletter published through the National Library regularly reports on the plans and events of its American partner.

On February 20^th, 2011, the Polish American Librarians Association celebrated its first Annual Meeting. The meeting was a great success; it was attended by almost 100 people—librarians, library students, and supporters of PALA’s mission. Leonard Kniffel, the former Editor-in-chief of American Libraries, began his keynote address with this question: “Why do we need a Polish Librarians Association in the United States today?” The way he asked the question reflected some of the concerns that contemporary American society is having as it struggles to deal with “multiculturalism.” The way that he responded to his own question carried as many challenges as it did reasons why he thought the formation of PALA was the right move at the right time.

In fifteen short months PALA has come a long way, and its plans for the future are bright. PALA’s membership increases steadily. As of May 2011 PALA has 60 members in five U.S. states. The newest development is the establishment of a significant scholarship fund. The scholarship will be granted for the students of library schools. The future plans of PALA include a campaign to increase membership, networking, local chapters and forums across the United States, most especially in those areas where there are concentrations of Polish American patrons or where libraries have, or are seeking to have Polish collections. PALA is open to everybody who supports its mission.

The PowerPoint presentations for
Delivering on Yes

RDA, the Next Phase

RDA Resources List