In addition, we will brainstorm ideas for ALASC-sponsored events and solicit
interest in ALASC officer positions for the '07-'08 school year
(resume-builder alert!). So come, meet some fellow GSLIS students, eat some
free pizza and find out what the ALASC is all about. See you Wednesday!

Charley Pennell from NCSU envisioned three different kinds of searches: the simple search (author, keyword, etc.), simply navigating by facets, and a combination of the two. He discussed the idea of ranking facets: author might be more important in a public library, for instance. He also talked about mining MARC records for some facets; one danger of removing single words and phrases from fields and subfields he pointed out was that context and relationships can be lost; for example, Canada - Relations - United States. Any three of these singly doesn't convey the relationship among them.

2. Ambient Findability: Librarians, Libraries, and the Internet of Things (ALCTS President's Program)
Ah, organizing the Internet. It seems to be a perennial topic. This program broke it down in a couple of ways. It was interesting to see non-librarians as presenters at this and several other programs.

One presenter talked about organizing one's own organizational website - about balancing user goals with organizational objectives. (You want people to find the library programs they want, for example, but you also want to promote certain ones.) Information is better found when there are multiple paths to the same information. His contention was that users should be able to find information without necessarily having to think about what category it might be in. This is sort of an anti-drill-down stance, and it touches on what I hear more and more: that while librarians organize information according to certain principles and categories, people should be able to find information without knowing or caring about the structure behind it.

The real idea of "ambient findability" - being able to find anything at anytime - was acknowledged across the board as being impossible.

3. Time Odyssey: Visions of Reference and User Services (RUSA President's Program)
I have to admit, I didn't have a whole lot of patience for this program. The conceit of the presentations was that it is the year 2017 - how have reference and user services changed? A lot of what was said didn't seem to me to have anything to do with reference, and I thought the whole exercise was a little bit odd. The presenters were:

Genevieve Bell, anthropologist. She posited that the current surge in library use will continue, and that people weary of feeling isolated will come to use the library as a community space. She also thought that, akin to other times when there were large class divides, people will begin amassing their own personal libraries, and that possibly librarians will hire themselves out to organize and provide reference for these private collections.

Lee Rainie, from the Pew Internet Trust. He had this vision of metadata in everything - chairs, books, doorknobs - without mentioning how this glut (even bigger than the current one) would be managed or organized.

Allen Renear, from the University of Illinois. He thinks that in ten years, researchers (especially students) won't be reading articles anymore; they'll just be "bouncing and flicking" across articles and information, using text mining to gather information from the amount that he thinks is surpassing the human capability to read, interpret, and synthesize. This is a frightening thought, and I'm not sure if it's true.

Wendy Schultz, who called herself a "professional futurist." I had to leave early, and I was glad, because she honestly didn't say anything - she just used a lot of buzzwords like "dynamic exchange" and "environmental scanning" without saying anything of substance. She also kept calling Genevieve "Gertrude," which was awfully embarrassing.

-Don't be afraid to sit in on any open session. I was sort of pushed into sitting in on a literacy committee meeting because I was volunteering, but it's something I might have been intimidated by otherwise, and I learned a lot about literacy projects around the country.
-If you're set on hearing big-name speakers, get there early. I missed out on Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and Julie Andrews because I got there too late and the fire-code capacity of the auditorium had been reached.
-In that vein: have alternate events in mind that you can go to, if yours is canceled or full (...or not what you thought it was going to be). People leave late and arrive early frequently to events.
-Definitely use the resume review service, and sign up for an appointment early in the conference. I was lucky to get one - and the reviewer was thoughtful and constructive.
-Some of the roundtables and divisions offer a mentor/mentee program. If you're a member, definitely take advantage.
-If you're in a city with public transportation, you don't have to rely solely on the shuttles to and from the hotels (which can take awhile). Get a map of the subway before you go.
-The line at the Internet Cafe was long but not interminable. I brought my laptop, but I sort of wish I hadn't (because it's heavy).

Okay, I will post notes later on. I just want to say thanks here to ALASC for helping me to attend conference; it's been a really good experience.

The conference is overwhelming, especially the exhibits portion, but I've hit some good events and meetings thus far. I really enjoyed The Hollywood Librarian; it's not just about librarians in film, but about their importance in general to people's lives, and to a democratic society. The writer and director, Ann Seidl, is trying to get it out during Banned Books Week by showing it in libraries; I've gotten on her email list, and I think it might be a promising project for Simmons student groups.

At the OLOS Diversity and Outreach Fair, where I volunteered, there were a lot of really exciting programs highlighted, including Circle of Literacy, a program to support literacy for the incarcerated. The Office of Literacy and Outreach Services is pretty amazing, actually; it's very small, but they coordinate a lot of programs making a lot of local impact.

I went to two presentations today, one on marketing reference services to Generation X and one on the intersection of authority control and faceted browsing in catalogs. Both were standing room only, which frankly surprised me, but there are a lot of people here, and I guess they're all here to try to mine some new ideas in different fields. One thing that's definitely clear is that there are committees, or sub-committees, or discussion groups, for everything. No matter how narrow a field of librarianship you want to go into, I guarantee there's a group about it.

It's also pretty clear that you can get a lot professionally out of conference, or not. There are all these meetings, but there are also lots of product promotions in the exhibits area, and plenty of more "celebrity"-type speakers. I'm not saying I'm doing any of that; I got to see Nancy Pearl speak today, and I'm going to see Julie Andrews tomorrow. But it's a balance to be struck. And it's tiring! Hopefully I'll get another entry in before I leave.

Last night I met all the other student-to-staff-ers; about thirty or so students from different library schools around the country. We got oriented to the overwhelming amount that's going on at the conference - from all the preconference meetings of different divisions and roundtables to Placement Services, where you can get your resume critiqued or even interview for jobs on the spot.

I'll be working for the Office of Literacy and Outreach Services while I'm at the conference; I attend my first meeting this afternoon, of the Committee on Literacy. After that, I'm looking forward to the "world premiere" (I guess I shouldn't put that in quotes; it is) of The Hollywood Librarian, a documentary that looks at representations of librarians in film.

Once the conference really gets going, I'll post some more substantial updates. I only have a disposable camera, so pictures will have to wait until I get back to the GSLIS lab and its scanner.

The ALA's National Conference is June 23-26 in Washington, D.C. Please feel free to contribute to the ALASC wiki if you're interested in finding a rideshare to D.C., looking to share a meal with another Simmons student, or just wondering what kinds of sessions other will be attending.

For those of you continuing on into the Summer Sessions at Simmons, keep an eye out for the ALASC.

We are seeking officers for the coming year! Please consider taking advantage of a great leadership opportunity while you continue with your studies at Simmons. Please contact Em Claire Knowles if you're interested in learning more about becoming an officer.

Finally, be sure to check the ALASC flickr page for entries in our library photo contest; the photos will be used to create MOO cards for the student group in the coming year. Thanks to our library photographers. Students are encouraged to submit photos to include on our flickr page at any time; so if you've attended a conference or would like to share a particularly bookish shot, send it our way at alascsimmons@gmail.com.

Have a fantastic spring & summer!

At EHS, I oversee all library functions in my position as Library Director. In addition, I serve on the Instructional Leadership Team and the Teacher Leadership Team. I served as Co-chair of the committee that rewrote the Mission Statement and Expectations for Student Learning and as Co-chair of the Accreditation Steering Committee.

In the library profession, I sit on the Executive Committee of the Massachusetts School Library Association in the capacity of Co-chair of the Legislation Committee and previously as Constitution and Policy Chair. In the American Association of School Librarians (AASL), a Division of ALA, I serve on the Legislation Committee and the Publications Committee. Both of these 2-year appointments terminate at the time of the ALA Annual Conference in June. The AASL recently reorganized its committee structure. I have not heard what my upcoming appointments will be although I hope and expect that they will be in the areas of advocacy for school libraries and the interactions of a school’s library program with teaching and learning throughout the school’s curriculum. The AASL sponsored me and the ALA selected me for the Emerging Leaders Project."

Light refreshments will be served. See the ALASC wiki for more about the panel & further resources. Also, check out some leadership-related titles on display this month at Beatley.

See you there!

These events, among others, are now available to the world through GSLIScast, a new podcasting service offered by the Graduate School of Library and Information Science. The podcasts can be accessed directly over the Web at http://gslis.simmons.edu/podcasts. They can also be downloaded for later use on an iPod, Zune, or other portable media device, and are accessible through Apple's iTunes music store.

The new service, operated by the GSLIS Technology Group and supported by a $2500 Staff Technology Support Grant from the Pottruck Technology Resource Center, is focused on expanding the audience for educational events, workshops, and lectures here at GSLIS, as well as exploring how new multimedia distribution technologies can support the educational mission of the school.

A key audience for the service are commuter students and students enrolled in the GSLIS West program at Mount Holyoke College who may be unable to attend events on the Boston campus. GSLIS alumni and others in the LIS field are also potential listeners of GSLIScast.

As part of the grant program, the GSLIS Technology Group will report on the project, assessing its overall success and making recommendations for others interested in implementing educational podcasting programs. We are evaluating methods of access for the hearing-impaired and looking at different transcription services as part of the project. Transcriptions are already available for some of the podcasts -- see, for example, Crimes of War, Crimes of Peace.

We welcome your feedback on the project -- please e-mail us at gsliscast@simmons.edu.

Best,

Linnea Johnson, David Dwiggins, Cindy Fisher, Terry Plum, and the GSLIS Technology Group Team

The presentation and discussion has been organized in belated observance of the National Freedom of Information Day on March 16th, 2007. Annually held on the birthday of James Madison, National FOI Day is celebrated primarily through "an annual, daylong program of speaking and discussion by specialists in various aspects of freedom of information," sponsored this year by the Freedom Forum's First Amendment Center in Washington, D.C. The ALA participates in the event by bestowing its James Madison Award, "an honor granted to those who have championed, protected and promoted public access to government information and the public's right to know."

The following online resources represent a random compilation of articles and sites that may serve as an introduction to FOI organizations, history, and policy.

Falling under the "attending" category are two biggies: the American Library Association's annual conference in Washington, D.C. (June 23-26) and the Massachusetts Library Association's annual conference in Sturbridge, Mass. (May 2-4)

For general conference information (such as schedule of events, how to register) and logistical information (where to stay, transportation), be sure to check our ALA conference wiki page and MLA conference wiki page. We've also got a discussion board going on the ALA page, where all should feel free to post and respond to information about ride sharing, offering of/looking for places to stay and overall tips and comments about what to do in the D.C. area.

Conferences are a great way to meet other people in the library world, learn about the most up-to-the-minute advances in the field, and maybe even snag a job (or at least establish connections that may lead to eventual job-snagging). Plus, from what I hear, they can be awfully fun. We encourage everyone to attend!