As the conference quickly approaches, I am excited to share some updates from the 2021 Conference Planning Committee. The CPC has been hard at work putting together a conference that allows for networking, learning opportunities, inspiration, and time to honor our colleagues for their hard work in the last year.

Early bird registration just wrapped up but registration remains open till Oct. 15^th. The cost is only $30 for members, and the conference is free for students. We are also offering scholarships, and applications are due on September 27th. All of the registration and scholarship information can be found on the conference website.

We are planning lots of fun social events for the conference this year! A special Ask Me Anything – Working with Art and Cartoons will be held the week before the conference on October 21^st. There will be a short orientation session for those new to ALAO on Wednesday Oct. 27^th after the pre-conference, as well as a trivia social event on Thursday evening. The awards ceremony will be held during the lunch hour on Thursday Oct. 28th. More information on these events will be coming out in the following weeks.

Our conference service project for this year – Free Press, is an organization that promotes equitable access to trustworthy news and information. Free Press advocacy areas include media and platform accountability, net neutrality and affordable high-speed internet access, and diversification of media ownership. We ask that you consider donating to this worthy organization.

And finally, a huge thank you to this year’s Conference Planning Committee for their hard work planning this year’s conference. In these stressful and chaotic times, this year’s conference is a special opportunity for us to connect with our colleagues and share our good ideas. I hope to see everyone there.

Register to attend the ALAO Annual Conference, October 27-29th

The 2021 conference will take place online and consist of a selection of engaging workshops, live keynote sessions, pre-recorded presentations, and interactive poster sessions. As in years’ past, a pre-conference will kick off the event.

Conference registration deadline is October 15^th.

Pre-Conference (Oct. 27th) events include:

• A free afternoon workshop led by Fobazi Ettarh, Loving thy Neighbor: Creating Coalitions and Deconstructing Vocational Awe. In this workshop, we will learn about vocational awe, how it impacts the work-life balance of library workers, and how to deconstruct it so that we can all truly learn how to love ourselves as much as our neighbor.
• Included with conference registration
• New member welcome!

Conference (Oct. 28th & 29th) events include:

• Opening keynote address by Sofia Leung, a librarian, facilitator, and educator who works towards fulfilling the promise of social justice in libraries and higher education
• Closing keynote address by Nicole Cooke, associate professor at the University of South Carolina, presenting on Re-Envisioning LIS: Activating Social Justice
• A choice of 18 pre-recorded, informative, and inspirational breakout sessions from your colleagues in Ohio and surrounding states (program available soon).
• Approximately 20 virtual poster sessions to browse
• 10 lightning talk sessions
• Trivia Night!
• Opportunities to network and connect with colleagues virtually

ALAO thanks our conference sponsors for allowing us to keep registration costs low.

Registration Rates (includes pre-conference):

• $30 ALAO/MiALA/OELMA Members
• $35 Non ALAO Members
• $15 ALAO Retirees
• FREE Current LIS students

To register, or for more information, visit: https://www.alaoweb.org/event-4300937

We look forward to seeing you in October! #2021alao

2021 Executive Board Retreat Report

The 2021 Executive Board held its annual retreat on Friday, July 16th, 2021. Like in 2020, this year’s retreat was held virtually, but that didn’t prevent us from having productive conversations, sharing ideas, and training new Board members. Every year, the board retreat is an opportunity for the newly formed Board to conduct strategic planning for the year ahead, and this year we continued revisiting our 2019-2024 ALAO Strategic Focus Areas and Objectives.

Focus 1: Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Goal: ALAO will exemplify equity, diversity, and inclusion in daily practices, foster those practices in its membership, and position members to become effective advocates on important issues facing the profession.

Focus 2: Expanding our Horizons

Goal: ALAO will position itself as a regional leader for an array of professional development activities, expanding and innovating upon its well-revered suite of programming.

Focus 3: Efficient and Purposeful

Goal: ALAO will build upon partnerships, management best practices, and sound organizational strategy to refine practices that position ALAO as current, efficient, and valuable.

Continuing the efforts of the 20-21 Board, we will be focusing on areas 1 and 2 in the coming year, and the Board identified several projects in these areas to channel our energy. As specific goals in these areas are formulated in the next couple of months, we’ll keep you updated on the projects that we will tackle.