Virtual Preconferences open to all (FREE with Conference registration)!

NJLA is offering three virtual preconference sessions open to all library staff on Wednesday, May 30, 2018!

These programs are designed to appeal to many types of library workers -- professionals, paraprofessionals and administration -- across a wide variety of libraries. Presenters include individuals from public libraries, colleges/universities, museums and private organizations.

• Scheduling Using a Web-Based Shared Calendar: How Teamup Enhances Departmental Planning and Communication Sponsored by the Emerging Technologies Section
• Organize and Advocate: Positioning Your Professional Path Using an ePortfolio Sponsored by the College & University Section and Professional Development Committee  
• HarperCollins Adult Book Buzz Sponsored by the Reader's Advisory Roundtable 

The cost for all three sessions is only $25. Once registered, a link and instructions will be emailed to you prior to May 30, 2018. All sessions will be held online via Adobe Connect, and all three will be recorded.

If you are already registered for any portion of the 2018 NJLA Conference at Harrah's, these sessions are INCLUDED in the cost of your attendence! A link will automatically be emailed to you prior to May 30, 2018.

Not planning on joining us in AC? Register for the NJLA Virtual Preconferences here today to access this superlative, affordable professional development opportunity from the comfort of your workplace or home! The deadline to register online for Virtual Preconferences only is May 30, 2018.

This virtual preconference opportunity is open to all library workers, both in and out of New Jersey. Help us spread the word to your out-of-state colleagues by sharing this information with them, and be sure to let them know that NJLA offers reciprocal member rates for members of other state library organizations to attend the Annual Conference in Atlantic City!

- 2018 NJLA Conference Committee

Program Spotlight from the History and Preservation Section

Put your hands in the air for HISTORY & PRESERVATION!

At this year’s conference, there are three History & Preservation Section co-sponsored programs. Make sure you check them out!

On Thursday, May 31st from 11:30 AM - 12:20 PM in Wildwood 8 & 9, CUS and History & Preservation are presenting Raise Your Voices: Award Winning Authors. Award-winning authors Kathryn Watterson from the University of Pennsylvania (I Hear My People Singing: Voices of African American Princeton) and Dorothy Cobble from Rutgers University (Feminism Unfinished: A Short Surprising History of the American Women's Movements) will provide insight into two incredibly important topics.    

On Friday, June 1st, from 11:30 AM – 12:20 PM in Wildwood 8 & 9, the Technical Services and Collection Development Section, CUS, and the History & Preservation Section are sponsoring Digitization on a Dime. Annamarie Klose Hrubes from William Paterson University and Isaiah Beard from Rutgers University will discuss low-budget strategies to handle digitization while ensuring quality. The session includes specific examples with tips and tricks on when to splurge and when to pinch your pennies.

Lastly, on Friday, June 1st, from 3:40 PM – 4:30 PM, in Wildwood 12 & 13, you can catch We Go Way Back: Libraries & Communities Web Archiving, sponsored by the Reference Section, Emerging Technologies Section, and History & Preservation Section. Jacquelyn Oshman of New Brunswick Free Public Library, Natalie Milbrodt of Queens Public Library and Diana Bowers-Smith of the Brooklyn Public Library will talk about the Internet Archive, creator of the Wayback Machine, that awarded New Brunswick Free Public Library and 27 libraries across the country a grant to begin digital archiving of websites that relate to local history, culture and social events. This updated version of creating vertical file collections comes with challenges like learning a new technical language, but overall it will expand collections for patrons around the world to view and capture news as it is happening. An interesting way to end your conference experience this year!

-  Kimberly Paone and the 2018 NJLA Conference Committee

A message from CUS Luncheon Speaker: ACRL President Cheryl Middleton

The NJLA Conference Committee is pleased to share a personal message from our CUS Luncheon speaker, ACRL President Cheryl Middleton, to NJLA Conference attendees.

Hi, I’m Cheryl Middleton, the current president of the Association of College & Research Libraries. At my day job, I am the Associate University Librarian for Research & Scholarly Communication at Oregon State University Libraries. My portfolio includes research services, resource sharing, collections and acquisitions, and emerging library technologies. I am one of the rare birds that has spent all of my professional life at one institution. I started as a science reference librarian, worked as a department head of reference and undergraduate services and did a stint as the head of access services. In 2013, I changed gears and accepted my current appointment. No matter where I am placed in the library, my passion has always been about supporting lifelong learning to enable citizens to make informed decisions that benefit their lives and contribute to the good of society.

I am very honored and excited to be coming back to NJLA. Believe it or not, when I was a paraprofessional, I attended a NJLA conference that was held at Seton Hall University. It was one of the highlights of my professional development at the time.  In anticipation of my return to NJLA and your membership getting to know me, I have been asked to let you know what I think the current challenges are for all types of libraries. From my perspective, the biggest challenges libraries face in today’s climate are continual threats to our federal and state funding and keeping access to information from all perspectives balanced and open. Today’s libraries are grappling with issues of social justice, equity, diversity, and inclusiveness, and we are working to provide safe spaces for all users while upholding our professional values. As I think about the challenges and how libraries might address them, my mind immediately focuses on how important it is that librarians craft those safe spaces. We need to continue to nurture hard conversations and build collections that represent diverse points of view, as well as share our successes and failures across our profession to address these complex issues of social justice, EDI and safe spaces.

So, what do I do for fun?  I live in the beautiful Pacific Northwest and love to garden, camp and fish with my family during the non-rainy season and during the rainy season, I read a lot and knit and quilt a little!

See you all in Atlantic City!

-- Cheryl Middleton

Program Spotlight from the Young Adult Services Section

YASS always puts on amazing programs at the annual conference, and this year is no different.

This year, YASS is cosponsoring a Preconference featuring librarians from around the state. Social Justice and Children’s Rights in the Library is an afternoon Preconference session that will be held from 2 -5 PM on Wednesday, May 30. Go more in-depth about what it means to advocate for social justice in libraries and whether libraries should push “both sides” if one side is inherently harmful.

The conversation continues in Whose Voices Count? How Awareness of Harmful Stereotypes is Changing Collection Development. Librarians will chime in, including Carol Phillips, who has served on the Batchelder Committee for selecting the best translated literature from around the world. Exercise your voice on how to be the best advocate you can be for the children in the library. Thursday, May 31 9:00-9:50 AM 

A Teen’s Guide to Life

Is your library ready to offer “adulting” classes? Librarians from Cherry Hill Public Library are teaching their teens “real-world readiness,” from email etiquette to sewing and more. Lack of real world skills can put teens behind when they go off to college, or unsure of how to do something as simple as write a check or address an envelope. Come find out how to host a series of real world readiness programs at your library! Friday, June 1 9:00-9:50 AM

This, of course, is only a small taste of what the Young Adult Services Section is offering, along with the Children’s Services Section and other NJLA committees. Check out the full schedule of YASS sponsered programs here. Hope to see you at the Garden State Book Awards luncheon, featuring keynote speaker Marc Tyler Nobleman.

-- Stacey Shapiro and the 2018 NJLA Conference Committee