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DECEMBER MIDWINTER 2016 PREVIEW COGNOTES 9
Get Involved with Reference and User Services
RUSA Workshops
The Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) is proud to be kicking off the Midwinter Meeting with two noteworthy workshops.
“History Genealogy” from 9:00 a.m. — 1:00 p.m., is designed to help librarians of all types learn techniques for a better understanding of genealogy research methods and sources. “History Genealogy” is a free workshop and lunch is provided, but you must register. Join us Friday January 8 at the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, room 151B. Sponsored by ProQuest. Please register here.
Deep Dive Session “We are all user experience librarians: Creating change from the trenches.”
This Deep Dive workshop will focus on user testing and understanding your users’ experience through a mix of discussion, presentations, and interactive experiences. Our five presenters will offer design strategies and tools from throughout the life cycle of a user experience design project, and they will also join together as a panel to provide a spirited, entertaining look at pitfalls to avoid and lessons learned. Unlike other sessions about user experience design, the proposed workshop will focus on providing attendees with concrete skills and techniques they can apply at their home institutions with relatively little expense or pre-planning. Ticket information and more details can be found here. Learn more about the division at www.ala.org/rusa.
Learn more about the division at www.ala.org/rusa.
RUSA Membership Social
Kick off the 2016 ALA Midwinter Meeting in style with the Reference and User Services Association's (RUSA) Membership Social — an opportunity to eat, drink, network, win door prizes, and learn more about RUSA. RUSA serves a broad range of library professionals, including reference and business reference librarians, as well as those in the fields of collection development, readers advisory, genealogy, bibliography, historical reference, resource sharing, and computer-based reference, to name a few. All attendees will have the opportunity to win fantastic door prizes. The RUSA Membership Social is an excellent opportunity for new members and non-members to connect with fellow RUSA members and with each other, as well as get involved with the division as a committee volunteer. The social is open to past, present, and future RUSA members, friends of RUSA, and those meeting attendees interested in learning more about the association and networking with peers.
Meet the RUSA board members, committee chairs, and volunteer leaders, and have a little bit of fun on Saturday January 9, from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Boston, Grand Ballroom B. Appetizers and drinks will be available. Learn more about the division at www.ala.org/rusa.
RUSA Book & Media Awards Ceremony and Reception
Join us as we unveil the year's best in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and reference for adult readers. This year, in addition to the Listen List, Reading List, Notable Books list, and more, we will also be announcing the winners of ALA's Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction, cosponsored by RUSA and Booklist. All Midwinter attendees are invited to this event on Sunday January 10, from 5:00 — 6:30 p.m. at the Boston Park Plaza Grand Ballroom B. a conference hotel, which will be announced in mid-November. Light refreshments provided. The event is sponsored in part by NoveList. Learn more about the division at www.ala.org/rusa.
RUSA Speed Mentoring Session
Join a group of experienced Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) division leaders to engage in a fun, interactive “speed mentoring” session. Similar in format to “speed-dating,” MLS students, new librarians, and mid-career librarians are invited and will have the opportunity to gain leadership advice from a number of senior librarians and RUSA leaders. This fun event is on Saturday January 9, from 3:30 — 5:30 p.m. at a conference hotel, which will be announced mid-November. Learn more about the division at www.ala.org/rusa.
A statue of Paul Revere welcomes visitors to Boston. Courtesy of Greater Boston Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Deep Dive Sessions Launch at 2016 Midwinter Meeting for In-depth Learning
Three immediately applicable topics kick off the first-ever ALA Midwinter Meeting Deep Dive half-day professional development courses in Boston: “We are all user experience librarians: Creating change from the trenches;” “Trust and Opportunity: Transforming Libraries, Transforming Communities in Mid-Size Urban Settings;” and “Creating Out-of-This-World Children's Science Programming with Free NASA Resources.” These Deep Dive programs will offer active, participatory learning in an intimate, interactive workshop-style setting, with a maximum attendance of 30 each, and participants can earn CEUs. Details about the Deep Dive sessions can be found on the Midwinter Meeting website.
Advance registration is required for Deep Dive sessions, which can be included with initial Midwinter Meeting registration or added later using the unique link in your registration confirmation email. To receive CEUs, a participant must attend the entire course and complete a post-session evaluation. Each session is $95 per attendee and requires Midwinter registration — at minimum for an exhibits-only pass. If you have mislaid your Midwinter Meeting registration confirmation details, email alaregistration@compusystems.com to request a copy.
We Are All User Experience Librarians: Creating Change From the Trenches
Saturday January 9, 1:00 — 4:15 p.m., Event Code: DIVE3
A workshop with a mix of discussion, individual presentations, panel presentations, and interactive experiences, focusing on user testing and understanding your users and aimed at participants with no or limited experience in user testing and with limited budgets. Lead presenter Courtney Greene McDonald will begin the workshop with an overview of the need for user testing and general principles of user experience design. Pete Coco, Deirdre Costello, Lauren McKeen, and Heidi Steiner Burkhardt will then provide 20 to 30 minute sessions featuring the following design strategies and tools:
- General principles of User Experience Design
- Identifying a need for user testing
- Writing for the Web
- Content Strategy
- Stakeholder assessments
- User journeys
Trust and Opportunity: Transforming Lives, Transforming Communities in Mid-Sized Urban Settings
Sunday January 10, 8:15 — 11:30 a.m., Event Code: DIVE4
All communities have challenges. Libraries can help conquer them — given the right tools. Learn how two mid-sized, urban public libraries — Hartford (Conn.) Public Library and Springfield (Mass.) City Library — are bringing residents, local organizations and city leaders together to tackle daunting issues, including public safety. In Hartford, the library has convened a task force to improve relations between residents and police in the city's underserved North End; in Springfield, the library has partnered with a nonprofit to offer trainings in nonviolent conflict resolution. And that's just the beginning. Representatives from both libraries will explain how they adopted and adapted the “turning outward” approach, created by The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation, to meet their communities’ unique and changing needs.
Creating Out-Of-This-World Children's Science Programming With Free NASA Resources
Sunday January 10, 1:00 — 4:15 p.m., Event Code: DIVE1
Participants will undertake a selection of hands-on NASA activities designed to engage children and their families in the library environment. Inexpensive, common (and even recycled) materials will be used to investigate our solar system. Activities will highlight creations that children take home to extend learning, and participants will receive guides to upcoming celestial, Earth, and NASAmission events. They will take home one-page guides designed specifically for library staff, families, and teachers relating to events in the coming year. Discussions will highlight how NASA resources can be used to connect with the community, to the nation, and beyond. Participants will walk away with information about connecting with potential partners, including members of NASA's Night Sky Network and Solar System Ambassadors.
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ATTENDING THE ALA MID-WINTER MEETING?
Join us at Harvard University Graduate School of Design for The Planning and Design of Public Libraries
January 12-14, 2016
