Hi ALAO! I’m now coming to you from Indiana. At the beginning of the fall semester, I started a new job as Head of Acquisitions at IU-Bloomington. As I was gearing up for my Vice President year and the 2025 Conference, it felt bittersweet to leave Ohio, but I am so glad that I am an ALAO member and that I got to see so many of you at the conference in November! It was great that we got to explore using a second hybrid track and refine the use of the overall space. 

I’m looking forward to the next year, the 2026 conference, and continuing to support the ALAO community. Right now, I’m still doing some of the PR Coordinator work, but if you would like to try your hand at PR for ALAO please reach out! Diane Schrecker has been making some fabulous graphics for the conference, templates to build on, and has gotten our socials to a good place, so the role isn’t as large or daunting as it has been in the past. I know I’ve had fun making posts and learning new skills.

Now to switch gears, the ALAO 2026 Conference will take place at the OCLC Headquarters in Columbus, Ohio on October 29-30, 2026!  

The call for conference proposals will be coming out towards March of 2026, but we are assembling the conference planning committee now! Please reach out to me (cmcalabr@iu.edu) if you have questions and if you would like to serve on the 2026 Conference Planning Committee (CPC) fill out this form. The form also has additional info on time commitments and such. Conference planning is really fun! Whether this is your 1st committee or you’ve helped plan multiple conferences, I’m excited to work with you!