DSOL Conference Blog

SLA @ 100 stimulus... fading...

If you haven't yet registered for the upcoming Annual Conference, you only have 2 more days before the $45 stimulus discount disappears forever and ever!  That's right - after January 31, you will be stuck paying the regular old early bird price.  Which is still less expensive than the standard price, but who wouldn't want to save $45?

Head to http://www.sla.org/content/Events/conference/ac2009/registration/index.cfm to register online.  Don't forget to add the Solo Business Meeting and Lunch to your registration, as well as ticket #205 - Best Practices for Information Services: Achieving Operational Excellence with instructor Liz Blankson-Hermans from Dialog, the Division's CE course on Saturday, June 13th, from 8 until 12.

--Julie

Help Capture Our Centennial Celebration on Flickr

Did you know that SLA has a Flickr group for photos of SLA events spanning the last 100 years?  No?  As of this post's writing, there are already three hundred and fifty eight items posted!

If you have photos from any SLA event, whether it's an annual conference, a chapter event, or anything in between, please consider posting it for the group.  If you have a Flickr account, or if you would like to sign up for an account, you can join the group at http://www.flickr.com/groups/sla100/ and post directly (please tag all images with sla100 at the very least, and be sure to add a solo division tag too, if appropriate).  If you would rather not join Flickr, but still have photos to post, send your photos via e-mail to slawebsite <AT> gmail <DOT> com, with a subject of "Flickr photos."  As this is a public group, you do not need to join Flickr in order to see the photos, which are all available at http://www.flickr.com/groups/sla100/.

And, of course, keep it clean, people!  All photos will be reviewed, and deleted if deemed inappropriate.

--Julie

Highlights from the SLA Leadership Summit

While I'm sure that Hildy Dworkin, our Solo chair, attended / saw / participated in far too many things to list on this humble blog, here are a few of the highlights from the most recent SLA Leadership Summit:

• Click University: Self-paced seminars: these live courses and replays are now FREE! Yes, the $199 fee has been eliminated. (Note that there is still a fee for certificate programs and other University courses.)

• SLA membership is $35 for those earning $18,000 and less. Read the full press release: http://www.sla.org/content/SLA/pressroom/pressrelease/08pr/pr2822.cfm.

• Research findings from the SLA Alignment Project will be posted on the SLA website very soon. The findings presented at the summit generated a lot of positive excitement from conference attendees. For background info on the project see http://www.sla.org/content/SLA/alignment/index.cfm.

And of course, like everyone else, SLA is finding ways to cope with today's current economic "challenges" - Information Outlook will now be published 8 times a year, and there will be no salary survey this year.  Also, sadly, SLA staff will not be receiving any salary increases, which is all the more reason to show your appreciation for everything that they do in other creative ways when you see them at the upcoming Annual Conference.

If you attended the Summit and have stories to share, please respond to this post!

--Julie

SLA Centennial Video Contest - Deadline Extended!

The deadline for the SLA Centennial Video Contest has been extended to FEBRUARY 23rd, 2009!  HOWEVER, if you are planning on submitting a video, you must notify the Video Contest authorities of your intent to do so by JANUARY 23rd.

Information about the contest can be found at http://www.sla.org/content/Events/centennial/video.cfm.

--Julie

Show off those creative video skills in the SLA Centennial Video Contest

From the SLA site...

Celebrate SLA's Centennial with your video representation of SLA's information professional of the future

You can enter either as a Student or a Professional, and have the chance to win travel stipends to the 2009 Annual Conference in DC, programming funding for your chapter or division, or cold, hard cash.

IMPORTANT DATES:

Contest entry period - 1 November - 23 January 2009

Finalists chosen by Centennial Commission (and contest sub-committee) - 9 - 16 February 2009

Finalists announced - 18 February 2009

Judging of finalists by SLA members - 23 February - 9 March 2009

Winners announced - 16 March 2009

Winners presented and all entries displayed at Annual Conference - 14 - 17 June 2009

For more information, including contest rules and a link to a promotional video, please head to http://www.sla.org/content/Events/centennial/video.cfm.

--Julie

Food? "Capitol" idea!

Please pardon the pun, accept alliteration, and start thinking of restaurants that you might like to go to for Division no-host dinners.  Yes, I know that it's early, but it has been suggested that starting now may lead to more participation (thanks, Jacie!).

While I won't guarantee that I'll be able to go each night, I would be happy to maintain a list of options.  For places that require reservations, even though it will remain officially "no host," I would like to have one person designated as the Keeper of The Reservation for each restaurant.  The "Keeper" can be decided upon later, as well as where exactly the group will meet up beforehand.

I'll start the ball rolling with Jaleo - http://www.jaleo.com/downtown.htm
480 7th St. NW
Tapas

Please post suggestions to the blog, or send them to me at snyder <underscore> julie <at> shure <dot> com.

--Julie

SLA 2009: Solo Division Conference Sessions

Just in from Hildy Dworkin, our intrepid Chair, here is the latest list of Solo Division conference sessions:

Saturday, June 13, 2009

8:00AM - 12:00PM

CE Course (Ticketed event)

Best Practices for Information Services: Achieving Operational Excellence

Instructor: Liz.Blankson-Hermans from Dialog

 

Sunday, June 14, 2009

12:00PM - 1:30PM

Solo Librarians Division Board Meeting (open to all members)

 

Monday, June 15, 2009

9:00AM - 10:30AM

Diversity in Leadership: Generation X--The Changing Paradigm in a Knowledge-Based Society

Solo Librarians Division's 2nd Annual Gerry Hurley Memorial Leadership Session

 

1:30PM - 3:30PM: Spotlight Session!

How Do You Move Up the Ladder if There Is No Ladder to Climb?

 

3:30PM - 5:00PM

The New Face of the Special Librarian: Embedded Librarians

 

8:00PM - 10:00PM

Solo Librarians Division Open House

 

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

11:30AM - 1:00PM

Solo Librarians Division Annual Business Meeting & Luncheon (Ticketed event)

 

1:30PM - 3:00PM

Preparedness for Info Pros: Lessons Learned from Recent Disasters

 

8:00PM - 10:00PM

Joint Open House w/ Government and Petroleum & Energy Resources

 

Wednesday, June 17, 2009: Spotlight Session!

8:30AM - 10:00AM

Mary Ellen Bates: Creating Groupies: How to add value, make yourself irreplaceable and beat the pants off Google

Mark your calendars!

--Julie

Call for Posters: Inspiration and Diversity - SLA Around the Globe

Our fellow SLA members in the Social Science Division have sent out an invitation to participate in a poster session that will be held by their division, along with the Museum, Arts, and Humanities Division and the Education Division during their open house at SLA 2009, which is on June 14, 2009, from 8 to 10 PM.  The theme for this session is "Inspiration and Diversity - SLA Around the Globe."  Proposals on any topic will be welcomed, but priority will be given to those that touch on diversity or international issues in the information world.

First prize for the best poster?  A one-year membership in SLA!

Examples of posters from the 2008 conference can be found at http://sla.dsoc.googlepages.com/2008slaconference (scroll down a little bit to the section that begins with "Social Science and Museums, Arts, and Humanities Open House and Poster Session").

Please send proposals for posters to Tara Murray by e-mail at murray <at> pop dot psu dot edu, or by snail mail at Population Research Institute, Penn State, 601 Oswald Tower, University Park, PA, 16802 by MARCH 1, 2009.  Proposals should include a title and a ~250 word description, as well as your name, institution, and address (both street and e-mail).  Applicants will be notified of the reviewing committee's decision by April 1, 2009.  Please contact Ms. Murray if you have any questions.

--Julie

Where and When?

While the room assignments and locations for Solo / Solo-relevant activities at SLA 2009 haven't been pinned down quite yet, I'll post them here as soon as I get them.  Please post event notices to the Solo listserv, or send me a message at snyder <underscore> julie <at> shure dot com.

--Julie

Let the Registration Begin!!!

You've probably seen the e-mail by now - registration for SLA 2009 is open, and the first 100 people to sign up will receive the benefit of the SLA Stimulus Plan, $100 off!

Oh, wait.  If you didn't act within the hour of receiving that message, you are out of luck.  Or are you?

If you register before January 31, 2009, and use the super-special SLA Stimulus Plan Part 2 offer, you can save $45 off of the Member Early Bird registration price.

Check your e-mail, and register soon.  It's not like you would ever want to miss the annual conference, but this is the 100th anniversary conference, and it promises to be extra fantastic.

--Julie