SLA: St. Louis SLATE Newsletter

Message from the President

 Greetings St. Louis Metro Area Chapter members!

Happy 2011. I hope everyone is keeping warm and safe during our snowy/icy/cold winter. Personally, I’m not a fan of this stuff, and look forward to spring.

During our first big snow storm in January, Chris Pryor and I were in Washington DC, at the SLA Leadership Summit. The theme of this year’s Summit was “Future Ready”. We as information professionals need to look into the future, to what our profession will be in five years, and be ready for that, to be those people, now. Much of that has to do with how our profession has changed, and is changing. Where will we be in 2016? How much more will we change?

Another aspect of “Future Ready” is finance. In light of our recent economic times, SLA Headquarters wants chapters and divisions to concentrate on being financially stable. SLA National has had to make some cuts in their own budget, but pointed out that they are still offering SLA members wonderful benefits. Be sure to log in and check out the SLA page regularly.

A time-honored tradition...

 
Patrick Hendershot, 2010 chapter president, passes the gavel to Renee Gorrell, 2011 chapter president, at our annual Holiday Happening at the Forest Park Golf Course Clubhouse.

Message from the Past-President

Hello St. Louis Metro SLA Colleagues,

It was a pleasure to serve as your President in 2010, and it’s hard to believe how quickly the year went by.  In turbulent economic times it is often easy to lose focus.  I’m very proud the St. Louis Metro Area Chapter has remained on course providing programming and networking events for information professionals and students in the area.  Our chapter provides educational opportunities and support for those seeking jobs.  Our chapter reaches out to students and provides its members with an opportunity to travel to the SLA Annual meeting via our annual scholarship.  Our chapter continues to foster a networking environment in which you can easily call someone for help when you need it.  SLA has many membership benefits at your fingertips and it’s time to GO GREEN in 2011!

2011 Programming Overview

The chapter started the year off with happy hours at the Pin-Up Bowl in January and Robust Wine Bar in February. The programming committee has some great programs in the works for the rest of the year. A program on social media tools for our chapter is being developed. In April, we'll have a program about libraries in the UK, presented by Dr. Genie McKee from Maryville University.

Based on discussions at the Leadership Summit in January, several chapters and divisions are producing remote programs and this year’s programming committee is investigating this option for the St. Louis chapter.

Mid-year, we are coordinating a program on the very trendy topic of ebooks and ebook readers. Don’t forget that this is our chapter’s 70^th anniversary, and that to help us celebrate this milestone, SLA President-Elect Brent Mai will be joining us. 

We have other ideas in the works so stay tuned for more details.

Christina Pryor

President-Elect and Programming Chair

Rising Star--Christina Pryor!

St. Louis Metro Area Chapter member Christina Pryor was awarded a 2011 Rising Star Award at the SLA Leadership Summit (Washington, D.C., January 19-22, 2011).  Christina joins an elite group of only 15 SLA members who have been honored with this national award since its inception in 2009.  She will receive a complimentary registration to the Annual SLA meeting in Philadelphia, PA, where she and her fellow nominees will be honored. 

The Rising Star award is designed to recognize talented new SLA members of less than five years starting out in the information profession.  Criteria for the award (as listed at http://www.sla.org/content/SLA/awardsrecognition/risingstar/index.cfm) include:

• Outstanding work and professional activities on behalf of SLA
• Develop notable innovations on the job
• Actively participate in SLA units and association programs
• Promote the visibility of SLA or the value of information professionals

In 2008 Christina was nominated as the Fundraising Chair of the St. Louis Metro Area SLA Chapter, a newly created position.  Facing economic stresses, our chapter benefitted greatly from Christina’s marketing ideas and technological savvy.  Her creativity produced a silent auction, student-oriented fundraisers and a large scale trivia night which allowed the chapter to establish an annual Scholarship Fund for travel to the Annual SLA Meeting.  In 2010 Christina served as the chapter Public Relations Chair and in 2011 accepted the President-Elect position in which she continues to develop her leadership skills. 

Christina uses her skills and boundless energy in other local library organizations and actively participates in several SLA Divisions.  She has developed and presented numerous presentations and classes in the past few years.  Her impressive list of affiliations and acceptance of progressively increasing leadership roles demonstrates her dedication: 

• St. Louis Metro Area Chapter 7/1/2007-Present
• St. Louis Metro Area Chapter PR Chair 1/1/2010-12/31/2010
• St. Louis Metro Area Chapter Fundraising Chair 1/1/2008-1/1/2010
• Competitive Intelligence Division
• Information Technology Division
• Pharmaceutical & Health Technology Division
• Communications Section
• IT Division Blogging Section
• Digital Content Section of DITE
• Information Systems Section
• Webmaster Section of DITE
• Missouri Library Association Public Relations Chair 2011
• Missouri Library Association Public Relations Committee Member 2008-2010
• St. Louis Medical Librarians, 2009-Present

As a former co-worker with Christina, I can attest to her ability to uniquely identify relevant information sources and take advantage of the latest technologies to provide access to them.  Her knowledge of telecommunication tools, information technology and marketing skills combine to create a unique librarian capable of inspiring those around her.  She exemplifies the innovative spirit of SLA’s Rising Star award.  I hope you will join me in congratulating Christina in her accomplishment.  This national SLA award testifies to our chapter’s professional stature and is truly a feather in our collective cap!

Patrick Hendershot

Past-President

 

Membership...What's in it for me?

SLA membership definitely has its benefits. As a new librarian, I made getting involved with the St. Louis chapter my priority. By attending chapter events and participating in the mentoring program, I learned a lot about the profession and made some great connections with local information professionals. However, I have to admit that I am just beginning to explore the benefits available at the national level.

Here are some benefits, available at the local level and the national level, that should not be overlooked:

St. Louis Metro Area Chapter Benefits

Resume Review
If you are a current chapter member or Library and Information Science graduate student, and would like a professional review of your resume, please e-mail it to: career@stlsla.org.

To learn more about the process and to get instructions of what information to include with your resume, visit http://units.sla.org/chapter/cstl/resume.html.

Mentoring
The Mentoring Program is open to SLA members from all types of libraries. Each participant will be assigned to a member whose profile matches, as closely as possible, his or her request for the period of one year.  The program is meant to provide an informal, personal source of information for newer members, to provide an avenue by which experienced special librarians may meet promising new members of the profession, and to provide a network for members who are contemplating a move to another type of library. Applications for mentees and mentors can be found at http://units.sla.org/chapter/cstl/mentoring/mentoring.html.

Networking, Networking, Networking!
Come to our chapter meetings and social events. Meet new people, make new friends. Are you looking for a job? Do you need some advice about collection development, library policies, or other professional situations? The connections you make can be incredibly valuable!

Happy Anniversary!

We had several chapter anniversaries this past year, 2010:

          25 years     Margaret Ganyard

                           Mary Anne Walton

          15 years     Karen Goddard

                           Patrick Hendershot

          10 years     Katharine Hayes

                           Susan Von Schrader

Congratulations!!!

2011 Conference Travel Grant

Remember to submit your application for the 2011 Annual Conference Travel Scholarship. The deadline is March 7, 2011. Send your application to awards@stlsla.org . The application was sent via the chapter listserv, but if you need an application or have any questions, contact Karen Goddard at 314-694-1490 or send an e-mail to awards@stlsla.org. If you're a student on a budget, or a veteran member whose organization no longer pays for conference travel, then you should take advantage of this opportunity!

Karen Goddard

Awards Chair

                                               

Report from the 2010 Annual SLA Conference

Keir Haug received the chapter's travel scholarship to attend the SLA Annual Conference in New Orleans in 2010. He was a student member at the time, and now he's the Secretary for our chapter! Keir submitted this report, and it's great reading, especially if you've never had a chance to attend the annual conference! 

Knowing that I was leaving the heat of Saint Louis for the heat of New Orleans did not begin to prepare me for the humidity that would beset me upon arrival.  A friend refers to this type of humidity as the air being “close.”  I fully understood her meaning as it felt like the humid air was wrapping around me like a heavy down comforter.  Knowing that I would be spending a great deal of the time in a climate controlled convention center eased my mind as I rode from the airport to my hotel in the French Quarter.

Book & Music Picks

Not sure what to read or listen to next? SLA members have a few suggestions!