All Sessions

Learn first-hand from the librarians on the front lines of Occupy Wall Street. Betsy Fagin, Mandy Henk, Zachary Loeb, Daniel Norton, and Jaime Taylor share their experiences participating in the Occupy Wall Street movement and building the People's Library.

Betsy Fagin was an ALA Spectrum Scholar in 2004 at the University of Maryland where she received her MLS degree. She has also received degrees in Creative Writing and Literature from CUNY - Brooklyn College and Vassar College.

Mandy Henk has been a librarian since 2003. She has experience working reference and doing instruction, but her main focus has been Access Services. Mandy's research interests include sustainable librarianship and the political economy of academic publications.

Zachary Loeb earned an MSIS from the University of Texas at Austin in May 2011. His areas of interest include archives, library technology, young adult services and the democratization of the public record.

Daniel Norton: Student, advocate and pre-professional librarian, Daniel serves as a liaison for educational outreach with the People's Library of Occupy Wall St. As an activist employed in NYC, he engages with the practice of librarianship through a fresh lens and a desire to impact the profession with forward-thinking ideas.

Jaime Taylor earned her BA from Smith College in 2006 and her MLS from Simmons College in 2009. She is the art librarian and archivist at Poster Auctions International in New York City, and one of the People's Librarians at Occupy Wall Street.

Dallas Public Library is rethinking everything as it transitions out of the Great Recession of 2008. Mobile technology allows staff to deliver service at point of contact; an innovation incubator provides opportunities for assistance to those wanting to start a micro-business; and a renewed commitment to library services in a digital age has staff focused on the customer’s experience.

Hosted by YALSA Past Presidents and co-sponsored by the Office for Literacy and Outreach Services (OLOS) Advisory Committee. This event will feature a paper presentation from Jeanie Austin called "Critical Issues in Juvenile Detention Center Libraries." The paper will explore the tensions present in juvenile detention center library services (such as institutional limitations and access to technologies) and how youth and librarians can and do navigate these tensions within the library setting. Ms. Austin is a Certificate of Advanced Study student at the Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

ALA’s Committee on Literacy and ALA’s Office for Literacy and Outreach Services (OLOS)announces the release of an essential resource for public libraries interested in reaching adult learners. This new toolkit, Adult Literacy @ your library, provides tips, tools, and resources for adding, expanding, and advocating for adult literacy services @ your library. This open forum is an opportunity for librarians to join a panel of literacy experts and advocates for a discussion of current and emerging issues, promising practices, and next steps.

Open discussion about how this new interest group can assist librarians to provide service for the incarcerated and detained.

World Book Night is a one million free book giveaway to underserved readers across America on April 23, 2012. Librarians, as well as booksellers, will be asked to be volunteer book givers, AND libraries and bookstores will be the drop points for the books. Come hear how you can be a part of this important campaign. Read more now at http://www.worldbooknight.com .

Meeting will provide academic librarians with a forum to present on and discuss issues related to providing various types of library service to international patrons. Current ongoing project examples for providing quality services to their international constituencies will be discussed.