Inside the Box

SLA Honors 12 Green Champions With Special Presidential Citation

Individuals and Organizations Planting the Seeds of Change by Providing “Knowledge to Go Green”

In recognition of Earth Day, SLA is proud to announce the 12 recipients of the 2008 SLA Presidential Citation honoring SLA “Knowledge to Go Green” Champions. The 2008 Green Citation, presented in early 2009, was a special one-year citation created by Past President of SLA Stephen Abram in recognition of the association’s commitment to green practices through the “Knowledge to Go Green” initiative.

“I am so impressed with the diversity of contributions that SLA members have made to demonstrate their commitment to being SLA 'Knowledge to Go Green' Champions,” said Abram.  “We are planting the seeds of positive change with this initiative in order to show that librarians and information professionals can use their skills and collective power to make a positive difference and protect the environment for future generations.”

The SLA “Knowledge to Go Green” Champions are listed here in three categories, along with the text from each citation. 

“Making an impact with this initiative requires innovation, dedication, and willingness to change from each and every one of us. I created this citation because I wanted to reward those members and leaders who embody the ‘Knowledge to Go Green’ mentality and have put a priority on greening the way they work, live, learn, and play.  We all have it in us to change and become Green Champions, and I was thrilled to be able to recognize these inspirational early adapters already making a difference, and I thank them for their efforts,” said Abram. 

 

Inside the Box: Final Post

About this time last year, SLA made the switch from a monthly e-newsletter to the new, now weekly, blog-driven format of SLA Connections.  

Over the last 11 months we have added new SLA blogs, updated them frequently and even got about 70% of HQ staff members blogging and sharing news and thoughts with members around the globe! What a difference a year makes!

As we start our second year using this format, SLA will be consolodating two of our blogs. 

Starting next week I will stop posting SLA news and announcements on Inside the Box and the SLA Blog will become the primary source for all SLA news and announcements. We have already folded all previous Inside the Box posts into the SLA Blog and you will now have a one-stop-shop for all your SLA news. 

Tuition Discount: Kent State Online Master's in KM

SLA members are now eligible to receive a 10 percent discount on tuition for Kent State University online master’s programs through the School of Library and Information Science (SLIS). 

"Organizations around the globe recognize that success in today's sagging economy requires hiring smart and savvy professionals to provide actionable information as a cornerstone of their business strategy," said SLA CEO Janice R. Lachance. "I am extremely pleased that Kent State is making an advanced degree in this important information field more affordable for SLA members.”

According to the 2008 SLA Salary Survey and Workplace Study, 78 percent of surveyed hiring professionals identified knowledge management as an “important” or “very important” skill set.  Additionally, information professionals working in knowledge management specialty roles in all types of organizations enjoy higher-than-average salaries across the board. The 2008 survey results indicate that knowledge management professionals earned an average of US$ 85,039 annually, compared to US$ 71,812 for all survey respondents.

”The master’s degree in knowledge management from Kent State will position graduates for success in today’s economy. It can be an especially valuable complement to business, computer science, library or information science, management, and other similar degrees,” said Thomas Froehlich of the Kent State School of Library and Information Science IAKM program.

Froehlich added, “Graduates with knowledge management training are sought after by employers because they can close the gap between technology and the day-to-day knowledge user. This online program will prepare students for a field that is extremely relevant in today’s corporate landscape.”

For information on the SLA member tuition discount, knowledge management program and interdisciplinary IAKM degrees, visit http://iakm.kent.edu/sla, contact iakm@kent.edu, or call the program office at 330-672-584

Living Large Through Your SLA Member Benefits

In her Searcher article Living Large in Lean Times (March 2009) Mary Ellen Bates reminds all info pros out there, that NOW is the time to sharpen and add to your skills. 

What better way to do that than through your SLA member benefits?

Remember, in addition to the SLA Innovation Lab and 23 Things, Click U online courses are now included in your membership dues for no extra charge!

From the Searcher article...

"Staying on top of new technologies, particularly ones that don't appear to have much relevance to our day-to-day lives, can be challenging in the best of times. But the info pros who are going to thrive are the ones who embrace technologies that they suspect will some day be ubiquitous in the workplace. That's why I have a Second Life avatar, why I Twitter, and why I text message my siblings. I know that, as more people of the Millennial Generation join the workplace, I will need to be familiar with the technologies that are second nature to them. Investing my time in staying cutting-edge is one way that I keep myself prepared for whatever way the economy goes."

Call for Nominations: 2009 SLA Rising Star Award

Do you know someone who is new to the information profession and shows exceptional promise for leadership, innovation and success?  Please consider nominating that SLA member for the new SLA Rising Star Award.

The 2009 SLA Awards and Honors Committee currently seeks nominations for a new award aimed at recognizing the best up-and-coming members in the association. The deadline to submit a nomination for 2009 is May 6.

Nominees must be SLA members with fewer than five years of professional experience and must meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Outstanding work and professional activities on behalf of SLA

• Develop notable innovations on the job

• Actively participate in SLA units and association programs

• Promote the visibility of SLA or the value of information professionals.  

Nominate an SLA Rising Star using the online form today!

More information is available at SLA Rising Star Award Criteria and the SLA Awards & Honors web pages.

San Jose and SLA Form Members-Only Cohort for Executive MLIS Program

Executive MLIS Degree Program Focuses on Business and Management Skills

A unique learning cohort is now available for information professionals who want to earn a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) with a focus on business skills and executive-level training. This cohort is the result of a partnership between SLA and San Jose State University (SJSU) School of Library and Information Science. SJSU’s Executive MLIS program is designed for library or information science professionals with at least three years of experience who do not already hold an MLIS. The SLA cohort is scheduled to start in June 2009. 

The SLA members-only cohort will study broad-based library as well business and management skills in a team-based and project-focused program.  The SJSU Executive MLIS is especially appropriate for SLA members--special librarians and information professionals--who require unique skills to thrive in a government, corporate, legal or other specialized information management setting.

As the SLA member cohort works toward the MLIS degree, the group will explore leadership topics such as program evaluation, human resources management, marketing and financial management-- all areas that are not typically included in MLS/MLIS programs.

Applications for the SJSU Executive MLIS program are now being accepted. The deadline to apply for the 2009 Executive MLIS program is March 30, 2009, but earlier application is strongly encouraged.  To learn more about the program, visit SJSU site here.

Discount to Information Today’s Buying & Selling eContent Conference

As we charter through these uncertain financial times, we understand the value of networking within the information community. That is why SLA is working harder than ever to bring you affordable opportunities to stay on top of developments in the profession.

As a Learning Partner for Information Today's tenth annual Buying & Selling eContent conference, SLA has negotiated an exclusive member discount of US $600 off the standard registration rate!

When you register as an SLA member, you will pay only US $ 995. Be sure to register for the special Sunday, session “Maximizing the Rules of Engagement and Usage for Cost Optimization,” followed by a reception for SLA members and special guests co hosted by SLA and Information Today. In the session, content buyers will present five hot topics in content licensing and distribution for enterprise buyers.  Please view the Buying & Selling eContent 2009 program for additional information about the conference.

SLA CEO Janice Lachance and Director of Business Development, Stacey Bowers, will be in attendance and hope to see you there!

SLA Announces 2010 Board of Directors Candidates

SLA has nominated eight candidates to run for election to the 2010 SLA Board of Directors. The candidates were identified by the SLA Nominating Committee, which annually solicits names of potential candidates from the membership, and is responsible for putting together a slate of candidates that has exceptional talent, is professionally diverse, and provides regionally balanced representation.

Members will have several opportunities to hear from and get to know candidates at the SLA 2009 Annual Conference & INFO-EXPO in Washington, D.C. The election will be held electronically in mid-September 2009.  The elected candidates will take office on January 1, 2010.

The candidates running for election to the 2010 SLA Board of Directors are:

For President-elect

• Agnes Mattis, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, New York City
• Cindy Romaine, Romainiacs Intelligence Research, Portland, Ore.

 For Treasurer

• Karen Kreizman Reczek, Bureau Veritas, Buffalo, N.Y.
• Dan Trefethen, The Boeing Company, Seattle

 For Chapter Cabinet Chair-elect

• Elizabeth Blankson-Hemans, Dialog, London, U.K.
• Debal C. Kar, The Energy and Resources Institute, New Delhi, India

 For Division Cabinet Chair-elect

• Mary Ellen Bates, Bates Information Services, Longmont, Colo.
• Stacey Greenwell, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky.

For more information about SLA’s governance practices and leadership, please visit the Board of Directors section of our Web site

LinkedIn and Facebook SLA Groups

For those members who are out there in the 2.0 world making connections and having discussions with your colleagues, don't forget to join any SLA groups that are available for all!

Most SLA Units (chapters and divisions) have created special groups online. SLA HQ has also created association-level groups on Facebook and LinkedIn, so that you can expand your network beyond your chapter or division! 

Special Libraries Association (SLA) Members on Facebook

SLA- Special Libraries Association (LinkedIn Professional Group)

If you haven't yet jumped in to social media and web 2.0, now is the perfect time to start!  SLA's 23 Things is designed to train you and get you more comfortable with operating in these online environments!  

Face of SLA Leadership Summit "Headshots" now available for download

If you were kind enough to allow the SLA PR Team to take your photo in front of the "blue screen" at the SLA Leadership Summit in Savannah, the images are up and ready for viewing and download.

Please download these images ASAP! They will not stay up forever, and will be pulled down in the next 30 days. Act now! 

Here’s how to access them:

1) Go to the Web site www.thephotogroup.com

2) Select online proofing and enter the password in the “event password” prompt:  savannah

3) You’ll see two categories: Blue Screen and Board Group Shot.  Click on either one of these to view the thumbnails.

4) Click on a thumbnail to view a larger image and see download options.

Please contact SLA PR Director Cara Schatz with any questions: cara@sla.org