What would you want to talk about at an ALA Membership Meeting at Midwinter 09? The question was asked on the Council list, and I immediately thought of you. Some suggestions were included – but what would *you* want to discuss?
Membership meetings are where the Membership gets together to “formally” tell the Council and the Association where to go (yes, occasionally “like that” but not usually)
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The Committee on Membership Meetings, chaired by Stefanie Warlick, is trying to come up with a topic for the Membership Meetings at Annual Conference that will both draw members and be informative. They’d like to get suggestions from members of Council.
Please suggest a topic of interest to you or a new slant on one of the topics they’re already considering:
1. “Value of ALA membership” – I think a major campaign is needed by ALA on this, but I’m not sure it will draw people who are at the conference; they’re more likely to know the value.
2. “ALA/library profession response to economic downturn” – this might be combined with advocacy; something like: “Grassroots Advocacy: How to Promote Libraries in Hard Times”
3. “E-Participation Update”: E-participation was what we did last year, but by annual the Task Force Report will be being debated. Having it again may be helpful, but this wouldn’t be my first choice.
4. “Socially Responsible Investing: Can We Afford It in Hard Times?”
5. “Is ALA Too Liberal?” Although SRRT and other groups might prefer it to be “Is ALA Too Liberal or Too Conservative?” This would bring bigger crowds, I suspect. We did something like it a couple of years ago relative to the War on Iraq.
6. “Core Competencies of Librarianship: What do library school graduates really need to know?” Just passed by the Executive Board, developed by the Presidential Task Force on Library Education. Must be approved by Council, but may be a done deal by Annual.
The meetings will also feature a “Talk to the Leaders” segment, and resolutions take precedence for the last half of the meeting.
Aaron the Librarian 