mnlib15 – CRPLSA

MLA Appreciation

From Margaret Stone, MLA President – Elect and 2015 Conference Sponsor Chair

Thank you for sponsoring the 2015 Minnesota Library Association Conference! Thanks to your support MLA had a hugely successful conference with 576 attendees. Through our 2015 sponsors we were able to bring in two very engaging and thought provoking keynote speakers. In keeping with our theme of Search, Create, Inspire, we held Creation Station, which offered conference attendees the opportunity for some networking and to try out some of the fun technology being used in some libraries. In addition, this year according to the evaluations, we had a high number of top rated program sessions. Your support through financial sponsorship helped us produce a very well received conference.

In 2016 the association will celebrate its 125th anniversary. The conference will be held in Duluth on September 29th and 30th at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center. I hope you will consider sponsoring the 2016 conference. With your assistance, it is certain to be another excellent conference.

Thank you once again for sponsoring the 2015 conference. We greatly appreciate your support of the Minnesota Library Association.

MALF Best: Austin Public Library Friends

Austin Friends and Evy Nordley Award 2015 — Sue Grove, President of the Austin Public Library Friends, and Mary Ann Bernat, MALF President

The Friends of the Austin Public Library were recognized for outstanding library support at the recent MLA annual conference. The Austin Friends received the 2015 Evy Nordley Award for Best Project by Friends of the Library, the most distinguished award from the Minnesota Association of Library Friends (MALF).

The project grew out of a local need for new reading materials after the closing of a local bookstore. The Friends negotiated a partnership with the Rochester Barnes & Noble and offered buying opportunities for community members which coincided with special holidays.

Of the award, Friends President Sue Grove stated, “Winning the Evy Nordley Award is an affirmation that what our Friends group is doing is providing real services and benefits to our community. The $1,000 grant attached to the Evy Nordley will serve as ‘seed money’ as we explore other innovative projects.”

Click here to read more about their award-winning project and how the Friends of the Austin Public Library created a new and replicable holiday book sale model.

Call for MLA Silent Auction Items

The Silent Auction is a fun annual tradition at the MLA Conference that has been supporting the Minnesota Library Foundation and in turn, the local library community, for twenty years.

Help make this year another success!

While there are always some great donations from local businesses, authors, and even Etsy artists, the auction still needs generous individuals like you to help fill the tables. As librarians, board members, and Friends are well-rounded and multi-talented people — Do you have a skill, creative hobby, or knack for shopping? Please consider donating an item or service! We also know everyone is human — Are your closets full of barely-touched impulse purchases or unwanted gifts? Bring them in and write them off on your taxes! (No one will tell your Great Aunt you never used that Bundt pan…promise.)

When you’re done searching your closets and tapping into your creative genius, please alert the auction planners, Allison Current and Erica Ross an, an email heads-up at mnlibfoundation@gmail.com as soon as possible. Then mail or drop off your items with a donation form at the CLIC Office by September 24th:

1619 Dayton Avenue Ste. 204
St. Paul, MN 55104

The Minnesota Library Foundation helps fund the Minnesota Leadership Institute for emerging leaders, supports the Minnesota Book Awards and provides small grants to libraries across the state.

MLA Conference Registration Open

Consider participating in the Minnesota Library Association’s annual conference. This year’s location will be the St. Paul Rivercentre on October 8 and 9.

Register Now

Complete conference schedule

MLA 2015 – Save the Date!

Come to St. Paul on October 8 and 9, 2015 for the annual Minnesota Library Association Annual Conference!

Online Registration opens August 3

In the world of libraries, we SEARCH for new ways to engage our patrons and to enhance the user’s experience!

Let’s all work to CREATE a lasting experience and take that energy back and share it with our colleagues.

The Minnesota Library Association Annual Conference will INSPIRE you as you head back to your local library. You will be ready to experiment with new ideas and attack any problem from a new perspective!

Recharge your passion for libraries by attending a wide variety of engaging breakout sessions and the keynote presenters:

Miguel Figueroa, American Library Association, Libraries of the Future: Learning with ALA’s Center for the Future of Libraries
Eli Neiburger, Deputy Director of the Ann Arbor District Library, with FLATLAND: A Romance of Many Dimensions
More details about the keynote speakers

CRPLSA is a proud sponsor of the 2015 Annual MLA Conference.

MLA Annual Conference Call for Proposals

It’s time to start thinking about the MLA 2015 Annual Conference!

The Minnesota Library Association 2015 Annual Conference will be at the RiverCentre in St. Paul October 8-9. Search, Create, Inspire, this year’s conference theme chosen by MLA President Maggie Snow, is an opportunity to showcase and share the work we do every day — searching for answers, creating learners, inspiring minds to grow and communities to take action.

The MLA Annual Conference equips library staff with new ideas and tools to stay up-to-date, innovate, and succeed in their careers. A presentation at the conference can have an immediate and lasting impact on local libraries. Please help shape the program at the 2015 conference.

Please complete the proposal submission form if you have a great idea for an MLA 2015 Annual Conference session. Everything you need to know about submitting a session proposal can be found on the MLA website.

Deadline for session proposals is Friday May 1, 2015.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact the MLA Conference Program Committee Chairs.

Michele McGraw and Barbara Svoboda