How to use this Page

Recently, two ALA projects have come to my attention that could be perfect for some YALSA blog readers.

• Do You ALA? is a project of the Young Librarians Task Force of ALA. The group is asking young librarians to create videos that answer the questions do you belong to ALA, if so why, and if not why not? If you are a member of ALA and YALSA why not produce a video that explains what you value in those memberships? If you do not belong to either, a video on your reasons for not joining would also be useful to the young librarians group.
  
  
• A couple of weeks ago, ALA President, Camila Alire asked ALA Divisions to submit names to her for possible inclusion in a new ALA member group that will focus on the impact of the Google book settlement on libraries and librarians. Division leaders need to submit names to Camila by the end of this month and YALSA would like to submit a couple of names for consideration. As teens are consumers of digital media it could be important for YALSA to participate in this discussion. While not every name nominated will be selected for the group, it would be good to put forward a couple of names for possible appointment. Google Book group members will be involved in regular telephone conference calls, as well as face to face meetings at the 2010 Midwinter Meeting and the 2010 Annual Conference. If you know someone who might be a good match for this work, please send me an email by Monday, October 26, and I will follow-up with details about information needed for the submission to Camila. You can email me at [email protected]

YALSA is seeking a Member Manager for its upcoming YA literature-focused blog (whose exact name is still to be determined) with the mission to provide an online resource for teens to use to find reading recommendations. This blog will focus solely on young adult literature and will provide teens with a definitive web connection to blog posts, images, booklists, and videos and more all related to teen reading.  The deadline for applications is October 30, 2009.

The Member Manager will lead an advisory board and together the group will be responsible for the content of the site. In addition, the Member Manager and the advisory board will solicit content submissions from the YALSA community.

List of Qualifications:

1. Excellent verbal and written communications skills, in order to develop content and communicate with potential content providers and developers. Experience in web publishing with responsibilities including but not limited to: utilizing video clips and video streaming technology, maintaining a high standard of writing, and ensuring compliance with policies created for the maintenance of the site.
2. HTML proficiency
3. Familiarity with content management software including WordPress used for administration of blog sites
4. Dynamic, self-motivated individual
5. Ability to delegate work and to manage a variety of contributors and volunteers
6. Strong organizational skills
7. Ability to set and meet deadlines
8. Experience in library services to young adults
9. Ability to work well in a team environment
10. Membership in YALSA

General Responsibilities:

• Communicate with the Advisory Board and the YALSA Office on a regular basis in order to generate ideas for content, assign tasks, discuss marketing and sponsorship strategies, and discuss site management
• Work with the Website Advisory Committee and the YALSA Blog Manager to create cross-promotion of all YALSA’s web presences
• Maintain communication with YALSA member groups whose work relates to young adult literature
• Maintain a YALSA channel on Blip.TV and YouTube to host and share video content
• With the Advisory Board review and edit audio and video content submitted to the site to make sure the quality is acceptable and that it includes YALSA branding prior to posting
• With the Advisory Board manage postings regularly to guarantee quality of content and appropriate tagging and category identification
• Manage comments and spam daily in order to guarantee that the blog content is appropriate
• With the Advisory Board recruit contributors on a regular basis, which may include but is not limited to: YALSA members, publishers, authors and teens
• Meet with and provide any necessary training to contributors as needed, including at ALA’s Annual Conference and Midwinter Meeting
• Attend the All Committee meeting at Midwinter and Annual to recruit contributors and inform member groups about the site
• Effectively motivate, support and manage a large and fluctuating group of contributors and volunteers
• Write reports prior to the Annual Conference and Midwinter meeting for submission to the YALSA Board
• Work with YALSA staff as appropriate to update and manage blog software
• Monitor new technologies as they impact the site: add-ons and plug-ins to blog software, widgets or applications for hand-held devices, etc.
• Work with the YALS and YAttitudes editors as appropriate to coordinate dissemination of information to members and the library community.
• Answer questions and inquiries about the site
• Follow all established policies and guidelines, enforce them as necessary and periodically conduct a review of them to ensure currency

The Member Manager will be selected by the YALSA Executive Committee by January 31, 2010. The term of the appointment is two years beginning in February 2010.  The Member Manager will receive an honorarium of $500 per year plus $500 towards travel to each Annual Conference and Midwinter Meeting while serving as Member Manager. Candidates should send a cover letter and resume, which includes management, writing and web publishing experiences to [email protected].  All resumes, etc. must be submitted via email.  The deadline for submission is October 30, 2009.  Please note that this is not a salaried staff position.  It is a member volunteer opportunity.

Please direct questions to Beth Yoke at [email protected] or 1-800-545-2433, extension 4391.

The Bookshop Blog is looking for a few bookshop owners, book hobbyists to join our writing team. Some of the benefits of submitting with us are: An audience for your writing and your business, currently approximately 12 000 ...

By Arthur Smith
Every time I glance at my RSS feeds I'm up over my boots in discussions about network effects. The example people give is the original Bell telephone concept (1908) that more telephones make each telephone more valuable. The positive effects of more telephones, eventually extend to people who don't own telephones. That is, networks create effects for those who don't directly contribute to the networks themselves. WorldCat.org affects every non-network child who listens to a book read by the librarian who found the book on WorldCat.

Working outside the USA, I'm often reminded of how our members, quite independently of OCLC itself, have the potential to extend the benefits of the cooperative resources to non-member librarians. Often, in fact, to people who may never have heard of OCLC.

Recently David Hirsch, Librarian for Middle Eastern Studies at UCLA, was a guest lecturer in Dakar. David's subject was not OCLC, but, more generically. cataloging, ILL, reference, etc. However, David chose Connexion and WorldCat.org as the platforms for his discussions, to give the librarians in Dakar their first introduction to OCLC.

William Kopycki, Middle East Studies Bibliographer at the University of Pennsylvania, was recently asked to teach courses in Armenia about WorldCat services. This was something the Armenian librarians had been introduced to through their participation in a consortium of multinational libraries called AMICAL. William also "taught OCLC" as part of the IFLA Meetings of Experts on an International Cataloging Code (IME ICC) in Cairo.



Thanks goes out once again to OCLC members who continue to generate positive network effects for the extended global community of libraries and library users.