ALA's First (Annual?) Icebreakers on Ice

 

Hello Future Information Professionals,

Don’t let the look on my face fool you (I am the one in the Ramones shirt). I am still thrilled about ALA’s first event of the academic year! If you all don’t mind, I’d like to tell you a little more about ALA’s Icebreakers on Ice, which occurred this past Sunday. As I stated in my previous post, I want our ALA student chapter to be a fun mixture of both profession-building and social events. I originally saw Icebreakers as an opportunity for students to interact with their classmates outside of the classroom setting. What I have come to realize, during my short time at UCLA, is that our profession is quite small. The people in our classes today, will be our co-workers and colleagues tomorrow. Our internship supervisors and future employers were once, like us, struggling with information theory! Another unfortunate thing that I have noticed is that life (work, school, family, and relationships) often prevents us from getting to know the people in our program. To remedy this, I conceived the idea of Icebreakers on Ice.

 

My thinking behind this was that by having students step out of their comfort zones, from the library to the ice, I thought that ice skating might break down any barriers to meeting new people and would hopefully be a fun way for people to bond. While I did not get as many people as I had envisioned (I think that a lot of people were a little scared of skating and two people had to cancel due to illness), I do think that Icebreakers provided MLIS students with a good opportunity to interact with their classmates. The initial number of RSVPs may have been discouraging but my spirits immediately lifted when a group of four students decided to visit the ice arena after working on a group project. I did wish that I was able to reach more first-year students but I hope that of the ones who did attend, they were able to make a couple new connections with people in the program. If not, I will be more than happy to introduce them!

 

 

This was my own personal attempt at event planning and I am satisfied with the results. With this task completed, I will use my experiences to better understand what students want from ALA programming and to better advertise these events in the future. I am confident and even more excited that ALA’s two planned university panels will be a smashing success!

 

Until next time,

Nick Auricchio

ALA President

 

A Word From Your New President

Greetings New MLIS Students,
My name is Nick Auricchio and I will be ALA president for the 2013-14 academic year. I would first like to welcome you all to the program and congratulate you on devoting your lives to fighting the good fight...for information equality. I think that once you get to know me a little better, you'll understand why I say this...but seriously, librarians are superheroes!  Unfortunately, our student chapter was inactive last year and as a result, I am really scrambling to get everything prepared for the coming year. That's where you all come in! Though we may not have a model on which to run this club, I know that this can only work to our advantage. I am open to listening to new ideas and to trying a number of new things. My dream is to make ALA into the fun, yet professional, student organization of the MLIS program.

As you will quickly learn, the field of librarianship is currently trying to redefine itself as the nature of information, as well as the ways in which people access/interact with it, is rapidly changing. Things that may have worked in the past, may no longer work in the libraries of the future and it is up to venture into the unknown. Despite the explosion of Google and other search engines, you will see that librarians are still the superior source of navigating through the forever-expanding amounts of information, locating the quality sources, and MAKING them available to the masses. In times when more and more groups are challenging the content of reading materials, librarians are leading the charge against organizations that infringe on the first amendment rights of others. As you can see, we are on our way to becoming superheroes.

Because we are almost starting over, the new crop of students will have the opportunity to really shape the course of the ALA student group and build it into a fun, informative, and, most importantly, professional resource for future students. We were once the "Student Chapter of the Year" and I am hoping that we can once again claim the title...but none of that will be possible without the help of new students like yourselves. I look forward to working with and getting to know you all better.

Wishing you all the best,
Nick

Fall Quarter Wrap-Up

Eek! After a woeful blogging hiatus, we've finally posted pictures from last quarter's events. We began the school year with a general meeting, at which first- and second-year members gathered to set the course for the 2011-2012 academic year.

Co-presidents Julia Glassman and Cynthia Orozco facilitated the meeting, asking members for input on events, professional development, and other activities. New members also got a quick rundown of what exactly ALA is all about.

As everyone settled into their classes, first-year ALA members got their first taste of the library world with a tour of the Santa Monica Public Library, hosted by docent Nancy Varat. The US Green Building Council recently gave SMPL a Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Rating, and Nancy guided us through the library's sustainable features. Most notable is the garden in the central courtyard, which uses native plants to create an underwater atmosphere reminiscent of the beach six blocks away. PIC 3 Nancy also took us through the library's collections, paying special attention to its various murals. Afterwards, we headed to the King's Head Pub for food, drinks, and a pub quiz!

Finally, as the quarter began to heat up and the due dates for our final papers

grew uncomfortably close, we took a break from work with our second annual awkward sweater party. While last year's party centered on decorating cookies, this year we turned our attention to holiday ornaments, decorating clear bulbs with snowflakes, glitter, and other designs. There was a curious dearth of awkward sweaters, but mentors and mentees still enjoyed the chance to meet and discuss which classes to take Winter Quarter. (Data Curation was a popular choice.)

Our events have continued throughout Winter Quarter--stay tuned!

"How to Publish" with Esther Grassian

This past Thursday, UCLA ALA Student Chapter members attended a talk with insider tips and guidance on how to get published. Esther Grassian, the Information Literacy Librarian at UCLA's College Library and an accomplished writer, spoke to her audience about a wide range of publishing options ranging from blogs to textbooks. To view the slides from this presentation visit this link. Go to "26 May 2011, What Me Publish?." Notes View will reveal her talking points as well.

For those members who couldn't make it, here are some of the highlights from the informative and well organized presentation:

1) When selecting a topic to write about, make sure you have something new to say by doing research on what has been said before.

2) Publishing will help you build a name for yourself, boost a resume, and advance the field.

3) There is a writing progression from free and unmoderated (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and listserves) to a midpoint of control and difficulty (i.e. poster sessions, conference presentations, and magazine articles) to the most restrictive in terms of peer review and standards (i.e. book chapters, journal articles, and books). While students in grad school and new information professionals might not be ready for the high end of the progression, the best approach is to get started building expertise and gaining recognition as a voice in the field.

4) Resources: "LibGuides" (short for library research guides) are a community of consolidated resources organized by subject to assist university courses and special subjects. UCLA has a great collection, and they are readily available to all. Esther has produced several on information literacy instruction. Writer's Market is a book with topic listings of magazine publications, including the requirements for submission, pay, and the types of content a given magazine is soliciting.

5) If you publish, retain your copyright!

6) Calls for book chapters are disseminated via listserves. While new librarians are still early in their careers and low on experience, this is something to keep in mind for the future. A call will contain details of the chapter proposal and the deadline. To respond a writer must give a detailed outline. Those submissions with visuals such as check lists, images, and charts fare better.

7) If you want to write a book, make sure you have administrative support. Approval from the department head can mean time off to work on it as well as grant opportunities. Solicit feedback from the publisher and your colleagues. Acknowledge their help in the book.

Esther's sound advice and practical tips are useful to novice and experienced librarians alike. Cross-reference the 2010-2011 membership list with the new names in publication in a few years and see how many hits you get!

ALA Student Chapter reveLs in a Measure L Victory

This past Tuesday, March 8th, 64% of Los Angeles voters said yes on Measure L! This means great things for Los Angeles libraries, Los Angeles citizens, and UCLA library school students. ALA Student Chapter members worked for several weeks on the campaign, but no future librarian worked harder than ALA Student Chapter Co-President, Britt Foster. Not only was she the brains behind the student operations, organizing phone banking and flyering schedules, but also, she put in many work hours hitting the pavement and dialing voters. Additionally, Britt served as the liaison between the student chapter and City Librarian, Martin Gomez, as well as the Librarian's Guild.

This past Sunday, Measure L supporters convened outside a beautiful library, the Memorial Branch, to have one last rally before voters entered booths on Tuesday. The rally included speakers, authors, musicians, and a magic act. A crowd of around 150 people gathered in front of an antique door in the park outside the library. The library was closed for the day due to budget cuts, and the statement made by the setting was poignant. Some of the speakers were well known to the UCLA MLIS program. Eva Mitnick, an adjunct professor in the area of children's services, spoke to community members about the importance of L through alliterations featuring -you guessed it- the letter 'L.' In recognition of her passion and commitment, Britt was also invited to speak at this final rally for Measure L. Britt's speech was heartfelt and sincere (see below). Four ALA Student Chapter Officers appeared at the event to cheer on Measure L and cheer on Britt. On the whole the event was well attended, and the magician was a raving success with the numerous children present. March 8th: After an anxious day at the polls, confirmation that Measure L had passed came in around 10:30 pm. Since then, students and librarians alike have been riding high on an L shaped cloud. Measure L was crucial for Los Angeles libraries, but as one of the largest and most diverse library systems in the county, it was also an important vote for sending a message to the country about libraries and their value. Los Angeles voters rose to the challenge, and ALA Student Chapter was a part of this momentous occasion. We gave 'em heLL!

Britt Foster's Heartfelt Speech:

I feel I should share with you what it is I’m doing in Los Angeles, and to do that, I’ve got to go back a few years. I visited L.A. for the first time in 2007, and a friend from college offered to give me a tour. After navigating the 101, which is part of the L.A. experience, for sure, we went-- not to the beaches, not to Hollywood, but to the place my friend felt was one of the shining examples of L.A.-- the Central Branch of the Los Angeles Public Library. It felt like a religious experience-- I kept telling people that I had visited the “cathedral of books.” Two years later, I sent out applications and was accepted in library schools across the United States, in Brooklyn, in Seattle. But I was waiting for one: when my acceptance letter to the Master’s of Library and Information Science program at UCLA came, I-- I’m not kidding-- screamed and did a happy dance in the kitchen. All I could think about was working for Los Angeles Public Library.

When I asked my fellow library school students what they felt was important for all of you to hear, L.A. natives often started their ideas with their own story about LAPL-- visiting the Chinatown branch on Hill St., what it meant to them to intern in the library they grew up in, serving kids just like they once were. Some of them talked about wanting to work for LAPL, but are looking at jobs in northern California, on the East Coast, because they know it’s not possible with the current state of the library. I don’t want to diminish what it means to myself and my fellow students to leave the library system that is often host to our first professional experience, through internships and research projects, but I think the bigger issue is what it means to the communities of Los Angeles to lose librarians, both those recently graduated, and those that have been laid off after serving the city through LAPL. I think that I love librarians, and libraries, because they believe in people. Los Angeles needs people and places that believe in people: believe in people like the kids who come to the library after school because it is the only safe option for them; believe in people like adults who never learned to read as kids, and are taking literacy classes so that they can read to their kids; believe in people who come to the library to find jobs, to meet with other people, to find that movie or book that reminds them that, as people, we’re all in this together.

I graduate from UCLA in three months, and since I am wholeheartedly committed to becoming a public librarian, I believe in people, too. I believe in the power of the people of Los Angeles to pass Measure L with a “yes” vote on March 8.