Shop The ISLMA Conference Store

As you plan your Conference schedule, be sure to make time to visit the 2007 ISLMA Conference Store, located in the Plaza E room.

 It’s like a mini-mall right in the center of Conference. You can purchase the latest exciting posters and bookmarks for your library. Check out the candy bar reading poster and the giant-size Abraham Lincoln for starters! Decorate your office with book-themed desk accessories, including perpetual calendars, pencil cups and even wastebaskets. Cuddle up in warm book-design throws.

Remember, too, that the holidays are coming up! Do your shopping for colleagues, administrators and friends at the ISLMA Store. We have attractive pins, scarves, ties and even socks! (EVERYBODY needs socks in their holiday stocking!) 

Be sure to bring your school tax exempt number for school purchases. The Store accepts VISA, Discovery, Mastercard, checks–and, of course, cash!

 The Store will be open from 7:30-10 Thursday night, from 9:00-5 on Friday and from 9-1 on Saturday. Shop early for best selection–and shop often!

While you’re visiting the ISLMA Store, be sure to patronize the Conference Book Store, located in the same room and supplied by Anderson’s Bookshops of Naperville and Downer’s Grove. Get the newest books by the top authors–including our Conference authors.

 See you at the Store!

Elaine Knight, Lincoln, IL

Store Co-Chair

Future Directions for ISLMA

As a member of ISLMA, you have the power to help shape where our organization is headed within the next five years.  A task force has been assembled to design our first Strategic Plan!  This document has to reflect the member’s thoughts, concerns and hopes for what you need from your professional association.  It has been said that the most important aspect of a long range plan is not the document itself, but the process of collecting the data for the document.   Conference offers us the chance to hear from all of you by asking a few key questions and really listening to the answers. 

An important questionnaire will be included in your conference registration packet and distributed at the membership meeting on Thursday night’s Annual Membership Meeting.  We hope you give these questions some serious time and thought.  There will be a spot to return these questionnaires at the registration table, or you may mail them to the ISLMA corporate office.  Plan are underway to add this form to the ISLMA website so you can submit your answers electronically. ISLMA’s Strategic Plan will be released in 2008.

 The goals and strategies of this organization need to reflect the changes in our profession, state, communities and school libraries.  Thank you for taking the time to tell us your opinions on what ISLMA should set as priorities. We are listening!

 Becky Robinson, Chair of the Strategic Plan Task Force

Galesburg High School

 

20 Years and Counting!

Wow! It’s been almost 20 years since ISLMA became a reality. It began at a Triple I Conference on March 3, 1988 when a small group of “Friends of School Libraries” met and made a decision to form a new organization to support the school library media profession. This small group of determined “friends” worked rapidly to form a new organization, become a legally recognized entity, gain members and hold our first conference in the fall of that same year. Remember that this was before the widespread use of the Internet for communication via email, blogs, wikis and other services, so we had to rely upon the U.S. postal service and the telephone to accomplish all that we did in a very short time.

Remarkably, by the end of that first conference we had grown to 500 members, had most of the infrastructure in place, and a very dedicated and untiring group of people serving as leaders. We never doubted that we would succeed and, although over the twenty years we’ve had some ups and downs, we have continued to grow and flourish. Today, our 1100 plus members continue to support our efforts and have come to expect our conferences to be wonderful opportunities for learning and sharing.

While attending our 20th conference you will have the opportunity to attend numerous sessions, hear some noted authors, visit with vendors who will offer you ideas about potential purchases, share ideas with colleagues and do some “after hours” partying if you desire. The Crowne Plaza hosted our 10th anniversary celebration and we are delighted to have the opportunity to come here to celebrate our 20th anniversary.

This organization has grown and changed over the 20 years of our existence, but we have never lost sight of our original goal of supporting the school library media profession. Please help us to continue to grow and change to meet your needs! Come to the conference to learn and share. Encourage your colleagues to become members. Support our efforts to help administrators, other teachers, legislators and the general public to understand what we do as participants in the education process. And, let us know what we should be doing to continue our efforts to support YOU.

I hope to see all of you at the Crowne Plaza in Springfield next week!

Kay Maynard, ISLMA Executive Secretary

2007 Conference is Going Places!

Hello!

Welcome to the ISLMA Conference Blog.  We hope you will take a few minutes to read some of the posts to this blog – maybe add your own comments – and share it with your colleagues.

This year’s Fall ISLMA Conference is loaded with wonderful speakers, special events, and many opportunities for you to develop professionally and personally.  This year’s EXHIBITS are going to be AWESOME with more than 80 vendors.  We have authors everywhere and free books for EVERY ATTENDEE!

On Thursday evening, November 1st we will have our Annual Membership Dinner Meeting – at which time we hope ALL MEMBERS can come, share the meal, and get an insiders view of the workings of our association.  Every person who registers for the full conference IS a member, so please plan on coming to the meeting!  We need you.

For the first time ever, ISLMA offers an Internet Cafe (in the Topaz Room) for attendees to keep in touch with their office.  Thanks to the generosity of Rosen Publishers and Big Bang LLC, we will have a mini-network with full Internet access from Thursday noon through Friday at 5 pm.  AFTER 5, Internet wireless service will still be available in the Cafe area, but you will need to bring your own computer.

Friday’s Annual Awards Banquet will also be our big 20th Birthday Party.  Don’t forget to order your ticket  so you can take home your own birthday present too!  Following the banquet everyone is invited to a special Speakers’ Reception where our guest author/speakers will be autographing their books and mingling with us all.

 One final note, since our theme is “Making Powerful Learners Virtually Everywhere – 20 years and counting!” we wanted to offer that virtual environment to those who are unable to physically join us.  We are having our first ever Virtual Conference – with four terrific sessions being broadcast live to those who cannot come to Springfield.  Go to the ISLMA website (www.islma.org/conferences.htm) to register.

 Hope to see you in Springfield, but at least join us online!

Jane A. Sharka, President of ISLMA