announcement

Have a thorny issue? NILRC members can help!

Dear Members,

Do you have a thorny issue to discuss, but aren’t sure if you can attend NILRC’s Council of Delegates Meeting on May 9?

You can! ALL employees of NILRC Member Institutions are welcome to attend the Council of Delegates Meeting.

In addition to holding our annual business meeting, we also have some great professional development programming planned. Converse with wonderful people and see if you’d like to become more involved by serving on a NILRC committee or the Board.

Please reach out to me, any member of the NILRC Board, or our fabulous Business Manager, Lisa Sikora, if you have questions.

Thanks,

Hilary

CALL FOR THORNY ISSUES

Listserv Live!

Thursday, May 9, 2019

NILRC Council of Delegates Meeting
Lincoln Land Community College
Springfield, IL

Do you ever wish you could have a listserv discussion in person?

NILRC will be flipping the script this year on conference presentations. With Listserv Live!, you are invited to engage in a lively f2f discussion with many of your listserv bffs. Obtain the collective wisdom synchronously and avoid having to apologize for cross-postings, wait for follow-ups, or accidentally hit the dreaded “reply all.” NILRC will even collect and share all of the responses with the group, so you don’t have to.

How to submit your thorny issue:

Please complete the following, and send via email to NILRC Chair Hilary Meyer by March 22:

Dear Collective Wisdom:

· The objective I'm trying to meet is:

· My thorny issue is as follows:

· I need specific advice on:

· Name and Institution:

That’s it! You don’t have to prepare slides, handouts, a presentation, or even anticipate questions. Just come ready to engage.

Deadline for submissions is Friday, March 22, 2019.

Notification of acceptance by Wednesday, March 27, 2019.

Questions? Clarifications? Concerns? Let’s talk.

Professional Development Committee Reinstated

NILRC Members,

We heard you! Based on the wonderful, robust feedback we received both at the NILRC Allerton Conference and at this month’s virtual Town Hall, we saw a great need to provide training and development opportunities to all of our members throughout the year.

As a result, the NILRC Board has reinstated and revised the Professional Development Committee to meet the needs of today’s library and LRC employees:

The Professional Development Committee coordinates and creates training and development resources for all levels of library employees. Delivery methods include asynchronous education models, such as recorded webinars and moderated listserv discussions, in addition to synchronous methods. The Professional Development Committee is expected to communicate with other NILRC committees to avoid duplicative efforts and maximize the diversity of topics covered across the modes of delivery.

Micheal Kott of Morton College has agreed to serve as inaugural committee chair.

We are currently seeking committee members! Committee membership should reflect the diversity of functions, employee groups, and departments that comprise our libraries and LRCs across the state. If you work in a library or LRC, you are eligible.

We are aware that this listserv does not reach everyone—please pass along this message to talented people you know and invite them to join the committee.

Reach out to Micheal or myself to indicate interest or ask questions.

This is an exciting time at NILRC, and we’d love for you to be a part of it.

Please inform us of your interest by Tuesday, December 11.

Thank you.

Regards,

Hilary
NILRC Chair

NILRC News: An Exciting Academic Year

August 21, 2018

Dear NILRC Members,

Hello from the NILRC Board, and here’s to the start of another exciting academic year.
As Chair, I’m thrilled to share some of the exciting initiatives our board, committees, and working groups are tackling this year.

In the second year of our Strategic Plan, we’ll be continuing our work on professional development as well as benchmarks, best practices, and metrics, with a special focus on networking and collaboration.

To that end, we’ll be hosting a virtual Town Hall for all members on Thursday, November 8 at 11 am. We’ll share a full agenda soon, but I’m most looking forward to a discussion on staff programming and engagement.

Until then, please encourage all employees at your institution to engage with NILRC in whatever ways they can, whether it’s joining the NILRC listserv or NILRC Facebook Group, attending a webinar or in-person workshop, or volunteering on committees or working groups (send a note to Lisa Sikora if interested).

We are developing webinar topics applicable to staff at all levels. Please share your topic ideas on this listserv or on our Facebook Group.

Another great opportunity for staff to get involved in a leadership capacity is to serve as the Delegate for their institution. NILRC Delegates do not have to be the head of their library or learning resource center. Any employee from a member institution can (and does) serve. If you are interested, or know someone who would embrace this opportunity, contact Lisa for more information.

Finally, as we all continue to work with ever-tightening collection budgets, please reach out to Lisa if you are interested in subscribing to a new eresource or want to see if NILRC can negotiate a better deal on your behalf. There is no minimum institution involvement—Lisa will reach out to vendors on behalf of a single institution.

I hope to see many of you at NILRC’s Allerton Conference on Thursday, September 27 and Friday, September 28. Look for the registration link soon.

You’ll be hearing from me periodically throughout the year as we have news to report and share, but NILRC is only as good as its members—so let’s keep the conversation going. What are you struggling with? What are you proud of? We can’t wait to hear from you.

Thank you on behalf of the entire NILRC Board.

Regards,

Hilary Meyer
NILRC Chair