SLA Blog

Online Conference Planner

The problems that some attendees were experiencing with the "My Itinerary" function of the online planner have now been resolved.  Items that you save should no longer disappear.  We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience as we worked with our vendor to get fix the problem.  

Next week, we will also be rolling out a mobile phone application that will allow you to view the information on your mobile device.   This is separate from the online planner.   We look forward to seeing you in New Orleans at SLA 2010!

Don't Miss Out on the SLA 2010 Virtual Conference Component

Sign up while there is still time for the SLA 2010 Virtual Conference Component. 

Register for the SLA 2010 Virtual Conference & INFO-EXPO and you can view and participate in the conference’s two general sessions, where you will hear from political pundits James Carville and Mary Matalin and controversial author Nicholas Carr.  You will also have access ten exciting Spotlight Sessions on an array of subjects, from emerging technologies, contract management, and social networking to “The Science of Hot Sauce.”  Registration is only $200, but you can save $50 by using the secret promotional code SLA10V. 

And there’s more!  You can participate live or access recorded sessions for 30 days.  That makes Virtual Conference Component registration attractive not only to those who can’t join us in New Orleans, but also those who will be there and can’t be everywhere at once! 

Because of the considerable expense involved, SLA reserves the right to cancel this offering, and refund registration fees to those who have already signed up, if registrations are inadequate.  So sign up today and join SLA in forging ahead with this exciting new way to enrich our trendsetting conference for everyone.

Remembering Catherine "Kitty" Scott, Former SLA President & 54-Year Member

Dear SLA family,

It is with heavy hearts that we share the news that Catherine "Kitty" Scott passed away on May 17. 

"Kitty," as we all knew her, was an SLA member for 54 years and served as President of SLA in 1992-1993.  She was a true pioneer in the field of special libraries and a mentor and trusted adviser to many. Those who had the pleasure of knowing her will surely miss her sharp wit and her deep care for this association and profession. Kitty was truly one-of-a-kind and her impression on SLA will remain for many many years into the future. She was inducted into the SLA Hall of Fame in 1996. Her obituary ran on Sunday, May 23 in the Washington Post. 

"Kitty was an amazingly successful professional, and I will always be inspired by her dedication to her profession and to SLA.  She obviously recognized the importance of not just belonging to a professional association, but how critical it was to be active, to mentor, to network, and to keep learning," said CEO Janice Lachance.  "Kitty recognized how important these things were when she joined as a member more than 50 years ago, and even long after her retirement she remained a fixture on the SLA scene, continuing to give back, to share, and to shape generations of SLA members that now stand on the shoulders of her legacy. She will be greatly missed."

The staff here at SLA Headquarters request that you share your memories and thoughts about Kitty in the comments section of this post. We will be working over the coming days to create a lasting and fitting tribute to this amazing woman who touched so many of you, in so many ways.  Your memories will be an important part of our tribute, so thank you in advance for sharing them. 

SLA President Anne Caputo interviewed Kitty in May 2009 for the Voices of SLA Oral History project; this detailed look into the career and accomplishments of a former SLA and DC Chapter president is a must-read for all.

Memorial Service for Kitty Scott

Tuesday, May 25^th – 10:00 a.m.

Mary Mother of God Church
725 5th Street NW
Washington, DC 20001

The family has asked that in lieu of flowers that donations be made to SLA or the Smithsonian Instituttion Libraries in her name. 

San Diego Chapter Celebrating 50th Anniversary in 2010

The San Diego Chapter (SLA-SD) is celebrating its 50th anniversary at the Corvette Diner at Liberty Station in San Diego’s Point Loma neighborhood on Saturday, May 22!

“We’re all delighted to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the San Diego Chapter” said SLA-SD President Bobbi Weaver. “We’re proud of all our local chapter has accomplished, and we look forward to building on that success and continuing to serve area specialized librarians and their employers. SLA-SD’s goal is to help ensure that San Diego remains a strong force in terms of economic and intellectual output.”

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders and County Supervisor Greg Cox have issued proclamations honoring the chapter. Supervisor Cox is scheduled to present the County proclamation at the event.

On April 5, 1960, a Western Union telegram from SLA headquarters gave San Diego official chapter status. Established by W. Roy Holleman, the library director at the Scripps Instituttion of Oceanography in La Jolla and the instituttion's first library director with a master’s degree in library science, the San Diego Chapter today serves a membership of over 100.

In the five decades since, SLA-SD has fostered opportunities for information professionals working in public, academic, corporate, government, medical and legal institutions to share and learn from each other, as well as sharpen their competencies and so deliver greater benefit to their employers.

Today, the chapter’s more than 100 members work in a variety of specialized libraries that literally represent the San Diego region from A to Z: from Amylin Pharmaceuticals to the Zoological Society of San Diego. Like all chapters across the globe, the SLA-SD members work in many diverse roles. For example:

• Cindy Shamel works as an independent information professional and the head of her own business, Shamel Information Services, which she founded in 1998 to provide research, competitive intelligence and consulting services.

• Linda Coates serves as the director of the Zoological Society of San Diego’s Library Services , and as part of her work produces “The Weekly Roar,” a value-added online news feed that goes to zoological professionals and researchers around the world.

• Grace Viola, representative of the up-and-coming next generation of librarians and the 2008 recipient of SLA-SD’s annual scholarship given to a library and information science (LIS) graduate student, serves as an information resources coordinator for the law firm Latham & Watkins LLP, with offices in San Diego and other locations across the globe.

As libraries across sectors have embraced the digital revolution and as library users’ information needs have evolved, SLA-SD has continued to support and guide specialized librarians.

“Thanks to SLA-SD, I’ve gained new knowledge making me a better information professional and I’ve stayed in touch with trends and developments important to my work and my career,” said Barbara Busch, who served as the chapter president in 1975-1976 and who has worked as a US Navy librarian for 40 years. “SLA-SD has helped me remember that it’s about more than enduring: It’s about excelling as the times change.”

For more information on SLA-SD professional development workshops, job listings and networking events, visit the SLA-SD Blog.

Memorial Service for SLA Past President Catherine "Kitty" Scott

Catherine “Kitty” Scott, an active SLA member since 1955, and 1992/93 SLA president, passed away on Monday, May 17.  Ms. Scott’s memorial service will be held Tuesday, May 25, at the Mary Mother of God Church, 725 5th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20001.  All are welcome to attend. Ms. Scott’s family has requested that donations be made to the Special Libraries Association in lieu of flowers.

More details will be posted as they become available.

Nancy Snell Selected as 2010 DLDP Award Recipient

 Nancy Snell, a hearing-impaired information professional at Kurt Salmon Associates in Atlanta, is the recipient of the 2010 Special Libraries Association (SLA) Diversity Leadership Development Program (DLDP) Award.  The award, sponsored by EBSCO, includes a $1,000 travel stipend and complimentary registration to attend the 2010 SLA Annual Conference & INFO-EXPO (SLA 2010).

The DLDP Award was developed by SLA to promote the advancement and visibility of members who represent the diversity of the association by providing them with a structured mentoring program and a stipend to attend the SLA Annual Conference.  Recipients must have an interest in and potential for leadership in SLA, have been a member of SLA for at least one year, and have between three and ten years of professional library and information experience. 

“Face-to-face is my favorite social media.  It’s what I do best, especially one on one.  It’s also why I’ve gotten involved in SLA, and why attending SLA 2010 is so valuable to me. Not only does it provide me with the ability to network, expand and learn in my industry, it provides the opportunity to interact face-to-face in an increasingly digital world,” said Snell in her award application. 

Snell continued, “I am also interested in providing a perspective to SLA through a leadership role that can add a layer to the organization’s depth,” Snell wrote. “I offer a lifelong perspective on physical disability through my hearing loss, one that is always changing to adjust and adapt to changes in the profession and technology, just as SLA has over the years.” 

Snell is a research analyst for Kurt Salmon Associates, a global consulting firm. She works in research and knowledge management (KM), providing competitive intelligence, KM and research services.  She worked in journalism and real estate market research before transitioning to a career that was more information-oriented.

An SLA member since 2006, Snell has been very active in the Georgia SLA Chapter, serving on its Board of Directors since 2007. She is currently the chapter’s treasurer and previously served on the Host Committee for the SLA 2009 Leadership Summit and as the chapter’s membership chair in 2008. Snell holds a master’s degree in library and information studies (LIS) from Florida State University and another in technical and professional communications from Southern Polytechnic State University. She received her bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Georgia.

Snell will be honored at the DLDP Breakfast on June 15 during SLA 2010. The breakfast is sponsored by Dialog & ProQuest, EBSCO and Morgan & Claypool Publishers and will feature Art Munin, an author, educator and consultant. Munin says his presentation, White Privilege 101, “will uncover how White Privilege has evolved, how it is perpetuated today, and what SLA members can do in their work and personal lives to unhinge its power.” To learn more about the DLDP breakfast and the speaker visit SLA Conference Connections.

New Orleans food and drink terminology

New Orleans has its own cuisine, and its own terminology for food and drink.  Here are some terms that are sometimes confusing to the newcomer.  Please add to the list!

Beignets—Rectangular pieces of deep-fried dough served with powdered sugar.  Café du Monde is the most famous place to get them.
Chicory—A roasted root that is ground and added to flavor coffee.
Crawfish—Crayfish; small crustaceans that taste much like tiny lobster tails.
Dirty rice—Seasoned rice that usually includes minced onions, pepper and celery and sometimes bits of chicken liver.
Debris—The bits of meat that are left in the pan after roasting meat; served by request on po’ boys, especially at Mother’s.
Dressed—A burger or sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise.  If you don’t want them, ask for your sandwich undressed.
Go Cup—Plastic cup.  Drinking on the street is perfectly legal, but ask that your drink be put in a go cup because glass and metal containers are illegal.
Hurricane—A sweet rum punch usually served in a tall glass shaped like a hurricane lantern.  Pat O’Brien’s is famous for its hurricanes.
Loaf—See “po’ boy”
Meunière--brown butter and lemon sauce used in Creole cuisine, often served with fish that has been dredged in flour.
Muffaletta—A special New Orleans sandwich made on round bread stuffed with cold meats, cheese and olive salad.  Central Grocery, across from the French Market, is famous for theirs.
Po’ boy—A submarine sandwich.  Also called a loaf, especially when it’s made with fried shrimp or oysters.
Remoulade--A tangy red sauce somewhat like tartar sauce, usually served cold with shellfish in Creole cuisine.

Brent Mai - Candidate for President-Elect - Question #1 Imagine you have just finished your term on the SLA Board of Directors, what did you accomplish?

What a marvelous year! I see: (1) members who can easily and enthusiastically identify numerous ways that SLA has helped them thrive and succeed in their careers; (2) an expanding array of information professionals represented within our membership which has led to 15% growth in overall membership; (3) an SLA that has become the preferred professional association among new graduates of library and information science degree programs; (4) increased participation in SLA-sponsored CE opportunities; (5) healthy, robust relationships with a wider variety of collaborative industry partners; (6) unquestionable fiscal responsibility; and (7) a panorama of SLA members who have made outstanding contributions to their organizations by aligning their SLA-built professional competencies with the organization’s requirements. With gratitude to the teams of tenacious and dedicated fellow SLA members who made these achievements possible, what a privilege and honor it’s been to serve as your president!

SLA members invited to participate in survey

SLA has been invited to participate in an upcoming survey with our partner, FreePint, about the current buying patterns of information users. FreePint, a publisher of sites and resources for the business information industry, is conducting a survey that examines how information centers have adapted under the indelible changes that mark buying patterns and budgets for business information and premium content in the current economy.

It's free to participate, and everyone who does so will get a free copy of the resulting report. Here’s the information that FreePint provided, and you can learn more at http://web.freepint.com/go/how/buying/

The marketplace for buying and selling business information and premium content has changed dramatically in the past two years. Information centers are doing more with less -- fewer staff, reduced budgets, while simultaneously responding to increased demands for quality information on which to base critical business decisions.

To establish a clearer understanding of how these changes are having an impact on deployment of budgets, preferred resources and decision-making processes, FreePint is surveying information managers and learning:

* How is their information function structured? Has it changed recently?

* Which individual or departments hold primary responsibility and accountability for the content budget?

* What challenges do information managers face in making the case for spending money on particular products and services?

* How significant are pay-per-use resources and no-cost resources in today's information portfolio?

* What factors influence professional use of these resources?

All survey respondents will receive a free copy of the results, making a valuable benchmarking resource against which to measure their organisations' approach to portfolio and budget management.

Participate now: http://digbig.com/5bbpbr

Nominations for 2010 Student Group Merit Awards are now open! Nomination Deadline is May 17, 2010

The SLA Student and Academic Affairs Advisory Council (SAAAC) seeks to recognize and honor those Student Groups whose: (1) outstanding leadership, (2) innovative programming, or (3) creative use of electronic resources signal their contributions toward increased membership and expanded professional development from the current SLA membership year.  For more information and nomination form Click here.