Katy Kelly, Vice President/President Elect

The academic year is winding down for many, but ALAO conference planning is in full swing! 

Session, poster and roundtable proposals are under review by the conference planning committee. We are pleased to present a full slate of 28 programs as well as a diverse group of posters and roundtables to choose from on Oct. 27.

The conference program will kick off with a great keynote: New York University scholarly communications librarian April Hathcock, who educates the campus community on ownership, access and rights in the research lifecycle. She received her J.D. and LL.M. degrees in international and comparative law from Duke University School of Law and her M.L.I.S. from the University of South Florida. Before entering librarianship, she practiced intellectual property and antitrust law for a global private firm. Her research interests include diversity and inclusion in librarianship, cultural creation and exchange, and the ways in which social and legal infrastructures benefit the works of certain groups over others. She is the author of the article “White Librarianship in Blackface: Diversity Initiatives in LIS” and the blog At the Intersection, which examines the intersection of feminism, libraries, social justice and the law.

The evening before conference, we’re bringing back the free Thursday-night social. ALAO conference attendees are invited to celebrate OhioLINK’s 25th anniversary from 7 to 10 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26, in the Grand Ballroom at Nationwide Conference Center. Hors d’oeuvres, beer, wine, cocktails and nonalcoholic beverages will be available, as well as fun activities to celebrate our libraries’ cooperation. It’s casual dress, so no top hats necessary. You can RSVP to this event when you register for conference. Thank you to sponsors OhioLINK, EBSCO, Innovative Interfaces, OCLC and Ex Libris.

Conference registration opens in late June; more information about preconference activities will be available at that time. Stay tuned to the ALAO listserv for registration announcements. Check out the conference website for complete information: https://www.alaoweb.org/conferences/2017/about

Or, contact me with any questions: kkelly2@udayton.edu