The ABOS Conference Program Committee will review all submissions. Selected programs may be scheduled twice; therefore, presenters should be prepared to deliver the program twice during the conference.

Conference attendees range from new library employees to managers with years of experience; therefore, our program offerings need to cover a broad range of topics.

The ABOS Conference Program Committee is also willing to consider proposals from individuals outside of the organization.  If you can recommend someone, please forward this email to them, or reply with the individual’s contact information and his/her area of expertise, and the committee will contact him/her directly.

 The deadline for program submissions for ABOS is April 15, 2013.

You have valuable information to share with your colleagues, so please consider submitting a program proposal today!You may submit your proposal by clicking here. If you have any questions regarding the form or require more information regarding the conference, please feel free to contact me.

The ABOS Conference Planning Committee is looking forward to reviewing all of your conference proposals - see you in Baton Rouge!

ABOS is an affiliate of the American Library Association.

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) is asking for your help to spread the word about the Día Celebration on or around Monday, April 1st.
 
El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Children's Day/Book Day) is a celebration every day of children, families, and reading that culminates yearly on April 30. The celebration emphasizes the importance of literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds.
 
Below are ALSC’s examples of how you can help spread the word via your organization’s social media accounts.
 
Thanks!
 
Twitter:
 
Celebrate diversity on April 30th with Día! Diversity in Action. Register your program today at: http://dia.ala.org #dia13alsc
 
Facebook:
 
The Día! Diversity in Action 2013 Celebration is only a month away!  Celebrate diversity and connect children to the world of learning through books, stories and libraries by hosting a Día 2013 program on or around April 30th. Learn more about creating a program at http://dia.ala.org. Register your celebration today in the Día National Program Registry and receive free bookmarks, stickers and buttons!
 
Email or website announcement:
 
The Día! Diversity in Action 2013 Celebration is only a month away, have you registered your library or school’s program yet?  Register your Día Celebration in the 2013 Día National Program Registry to build a national database that showcases all types and sizes of Día programming and receive free bookmarks, stickers, and buttons!
 
Visit the Día website at http://dia.ala.org to learn more about how you can celebrate diversity and connect children to a world of learning through books, stores and libraries.  Explore and download the free bi-lingual Día booklist, poster and resource guide to help make your program a success!
 
Día is a daily commitment to linking children and their families to diverse books, languages and cultures.  The celebration is intended to be year-round, culminating on April 30th.
 
Thank you for your support of the Día Celebration!

Come Hear About the University of North Texas Online Master's Degree Program at Information Sessions to be held this week in the Salt Lake City area. Are you interested in becoming a librarian or earning your certification as a school librarian, want to learn about new information technologies –virtual reference, online storytelling, digital libraries, graphic novels, web site development, database management, metadata, or about different types of libraries? Through the University of North Texas Department of Library and Information Sciences MLS Program, you can earn your MLS degree by completing blended and online courses.

Come hear about the MLS degree program, School Library Certification, opportunities to earn a Graduate Advanced Certificate, and scholarships from UNT Professor Dr. Yvonne J. Chandler at an Information Session to be held in the northern Utah area and Salt Lake City from March 20 - 22, 2013.

Wednesday, March 20, 2013
10:00 a.m.- 11:00 a.m.
Weber State University – Stewart Library
WSU Stewart Library, Room 55
University Archives Reading Room
2901 University Cir
Ogden, UT

1:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Utah State University – Merrill Cazier Library
Room 249
3000 Old Main Hill
Logan, UT

4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Weber County Public Library – Southwest Branch
Conference Room
1950 W 4800 S
Roy, UT 84067

6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Salt Lake City Public Library
Conference Room
210 East 400 South
Salt Lake City, UT

Thursday, March 21, 2013
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Brigham Young University
Sixth Floor Conference Room
Provo, UT

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Utah Valley University Library
Computer Lab LI206
Orem, UT

6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
West Jordan Branch
8030 S 1825 W
West Jordan, UT

Friday, March 22, 2013
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
University of Utah
J. Willard Marriott Library
Room 5201
295 S 1500 E RM 5010
Salt Lake City, UT
 

CHICAGO - The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is launching the 2013 Teen Summer Reading Programs website. As the hub for summer reading and summer learning, the website offers a place to go to exchange information and ideas to help them implement programs for and with teens.
The website is funded by the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, which also provides grants for summer reading programs. To join and access the materials available on the YALSA Teen Summer Reading Programs site, visit www.summerreading.ning.com. The website will continue to be updated throughout the spring and summer and a great place to share ideas and brainstorm with fellow teen services librarians and library workers.
“Even though it may still be cold out in certain parts of the country, it’s never too early to start thinking about summer reading programs for the teens at your libraries,” said Jack H. Martin, YALSA president. “This cool new website will hopefully help you formulate, plan and share awesome summer reading ideas to help you keep teens in your community reading and learning all summer long.”
Libraries play a critical role in helping young people maintain and build literacy skills.  According to the 2010 “Public Library Summer Reading Programs Closing the Reading Gap” study from the Dominican University, students who participated in a public library summer reading program scored higher on reading achievement tests at the beginning of the next school year than those students who did not participate.
About Dollar General
Dollar General is a leading discount retailer with 10,000 stores in 40 states. Dollar General stores provide convenience and value to customers by offering consumable basic items such as food, snacks, health and beauty aids and cleaning supplies, as well as basic apparel, house wares and seasonal items at everyday low prices. The company has a longstanding tradition of supporting literacy and education. Since 1993, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation has awarded more than $71.2 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 4.1 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy, a general education diploma or English proficiency. To learn more about Dollar General, visit www.dollargeneral.com.
For more than 50 years, YALSA has been the world leader in selecting books, videos, and audio books for teens.  For more information about YALSA or for lists of recommended reading, viewing and listening, go to www.ala.org/yalsa/booklists, or contact the YALSA office by phone, (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390, or e-mail, yalsa@ala.org.
 

Free webinars to Engage! young adult audiences through visual arts programming
CHICAGO — The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office and ProgrammingLibrarian.org are pleased to announce a free, three-part series of webinars for school and young adult librarians that introduces the Engage! programming model. Developed by ALA and piloted in ten Illinois libraries in 2010, “Engage! Teens, Art, and Civic Participation” introduces young audiences to themes of civic participation using the visual arts as a springboard for discussion and action. This project is funded by the Searle Funds at the Chicago Community Trust and the Terra Foundation for American Art.
During these three free webinars, participants will:

• Hear from librarians who participated in the Engage! pilot program, who will share what worked and what didn’t with teens.
• Be introduced to a free PDF guide to the Engage! model, featuring detailed instructions on how to get started.
• Learn how to formulate effective “looking questions” that will elicit participation and engagement with art and thematic content.
• Learn how to select images that will illuminate relevant civic participation issues for teen discussion and learning.

Engage! Teens, Art & Civic Participation: An Introduction
Thursday, March 21, 2013, 2:00 p.m. Central time - Registration
In this first session, learn more about this program model for young adults that uses visual art as a springboard to civic engagement. Three librarians who participated in the pilot project—Marcus Lumpkin, Youmedia, Chicago Public Library; Tom Spicer, Arlington Heights (Ill.) Memorial Library; and Nanette Freeman, Portage-Cragin Branch, Chicago Public Library—will share their programs and how they can be adapted for other libraries; in addition, a free project resource guide will be debuted during this webinar.
Engage! Teens, Art & Civic Participation: Creating Compelling Discussion through Art
Wednesday, April 17, 2013, 2:00 p.m. Central time – Registration
This second session will delve in to how to present and look at art. Sarah Alvarez, director of Teacher Programs at the Art Institute of Chicago, will discuss how to ask looking questions and frame issues and activities. Brandy Morrill, an Engage! pilot librarian at the Chinatown Branch of the Chicago Public Library, will share how this adaptable approach worked in her library.
Engage! Teens, Art & Civic Participation: Creating Local, Issues-Based Programming
Wednesday May 15, 2013, 2:00 p.m Central time – Registration
This session will focus on issues-based discussions for teen audiences, using the Engage! Teens, Art & Civic Participation model. Adam Davis, director for the Project on Civic Reflection and an advisor to the Engage! project, will walk webinar participants through how to identify locally relevant issues and images for issues-based teen programming, and Christie Chandler-Stahl, formerly of the Evanston (Ill.) Public Library and currently at the Rakow Branch of the Gail Borden Public Library District in Elgin, Illinois, will share her approach in her former library and how she would adapt it for her current one.
The Engage! Project builds on the NEH’s Picturing America art initiative through the development of supplemental resources that utilize the visual arts as a springboard to civic engagement for young adult audiences. The objective for these resources is to deepen participants’ knowledge and appreciation of American art and its relation to American history and civic life, and to contribute to the development of informed and discerning voters. Through the thematic selection of visual arts resources as points of engagement, participants are led in facilitated discussions on and interactions with the depth and history of American civic life. Resources have been specifically designed for opt-in youth audiences in public library settings.
The ALA Public Programs Office promotes cultural and community programming as an essential part of library service in all types and sizes of libraries. Successful library programming initiatives have included Let’s Talk About It reading and discussion series, traveling exhibitions, film discussion programs, the Great Stories CLUB, LIVE! @ your library and more. Recently, the ALA Public Programs Office developed www.ProgrammingLibrarian.org, an online resource center bringing librarians timely and valuable information to support them in the creation of high-quality cultural programs for their communities. For more information about the ALA Public Programs Office, visit www.ala.org/publicprograms.

ALSC releases Spring 2013 Online Course schedule
CHICAGO - The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) has released the schedule for spring 2013 ALSC online courses. Registration is open for all courses. Classes begin Monday, April 8, 2013.
The schedule includes courses which are eligible for continuing education units (CEUs), certified by the International Association of Continuing Education and Training (IACET). There is also one new course for 2013, Integrating New Technologies into Your Collections.
ALSC online courses are designed to fit the needs of working professionals. Courses are taught by experienced librarians and academics. As participants frequently noted in post-course surveys, ALSC stresses quality and caring in its online education options.

 
Registration now open for PLA’s online train-the-technology trainer course in April
CHICAGO - The interactive online course “The Accidental Public Library Technology Trainer” April 8-May 3, is now open for registration. This four-week blended-learning program presented by the Public Library Association (PLA) is designed for library professionals who have unexpectedly found themselves responsible for technology training of users or staff at their library.
Librarian, author and trainer Stephanie Gerding will guide participants through an engaging combination of live webinars, independent assignments and online discussions. See the full syllabus here.
As a result of taking the course, participants will learn practical tools and techniques to help others learn; will be able to lead activities that increase learning, participation and retention; will be able to design and share workshop materials to create a learning community; and will receive helpful, personalized advice from Gerding's years of coordinating and providing training for public libraries.
Pricing for the four-week “The Accidental Public Library Technology Trainer” is $129 for PLA members, $159 for ALA members and $179 for nonmembers. The deadline to register for this course is April 5.
PLA is a division of the American Library Association. PLA’s core purpose is to strengthen public libraries and their contribution to the communities they serve. Its mission is to enhance the development and effectiveness of public library staff and public library services.