What if… you have a blast with ACRL MD at MLA/DLA 2019?!

ACRL MD is thrilled to sponsor seven programs at the MLA/DLA 2019 annual conference, May 1st – 3rd in Cambridge, MD. Each week leading up to the conference we’ll feature one of our programs. Can’t wait? Here’s a complete list of ACRL MD-sponsored programs.

What if…

• …you could write a winning grant application? (Pre-conference session)
• …students didn’t need to purchase expensive textbooks? Building an open educational resources (OER) community on campus
• …you can overhaul information literacy competencies, outcomes, and rubrics all in a single summer?
• …you need to create engaging multimedia and don’t know where to start?
• …we challenge our weeding assumptions? Critical thinking for balanced collection management
• …all librarians need to learn how to teach online?
• …you could do serious good for your library through play?

Ready to join us?!

See the full program schedule, and register to attend, on the MLA/DLA 2019 conference site.

Deadline Extended! Submit your proposals for ACRL-MD programs at MLA/DLA 2019

Are you excited to plan for next year’s conference? ACRL-MD is, too! We’ve extended our proposal deadline – more information about the conference theme, etc. will be forthcoming from the MLA/DLA conference committee, but we thought we’d give you a head start on your session brainstorming.

ACRL-MD Call for Proposals: ACRL-MD sessions for the Maryland Library Association and Delaware Library Association Conference 2019

Deadline: September 3^rd EXTENDED to September 10th, 2018, 11:59pm

Submit your proposal here!

The Maryland chapter of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL-MD) is excited to invite proposal for our division to sponsor at the Maryland Library Association & Delaware Library Association Annual Conference, on May 1 – 3, 2019.

Proposals are due by 11:59pm on September 3rd 10th and will undergo a double blind peer-review.  If you have any questions about ACRL-MD’s proposal process or our programs for the annual conference, please contact Kimberly Miller (kimberlymiller@towson.edu or 410-704-6324).

Submit your proposals for ACRL-MD programs at MLA/DLA 2019

Are you excited to plan for next year’s conference? ACRL-MD is, too! Here’s our first call for proposals – more information about the conference theme, etc. will be forthcoming from the MLA/DLA conference committee, but we thought we’d give you a head start on your session brainstorming.

ACRL-MD Call for Proposals: ACRL-MD sessions for the Maryland Library Association and Delaware Library Association Conference 2019

Deadline: September 3^rd EXTENDED to Sept 10th, 2018, 11:59pm

Submit your proposal here!

The Maryland chapter of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL-MD) is excited to invite proposal for our division to sponsor at the Maryland Library Association & Delaware Library Association Annual Conference, on May 1 – 3, 2019.

Proposals are due by 11:59pm on September 3rd 10th and will undergo a double blind peer-review.  If you have any questions about ACRL-MD’s proposal process or our programs for the annual conference, please contact Kimberly Miller (kimberlymiller@towson.edu or 410-704-6324).

2016 Conference Highlights – Adjuncts: Valuable Assets When Planning to Enhance Student Success

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Adjuncts: Valuable Assets When Planning to Enhance Student Success
Friday, May 6th
10:45-11:45am
Presenter: Pamela Flinton, Goucher College

Adjunct faculty account for 50% of the workforce in U.S. higher education, 70% at 2-year colleges! According to the American Federation of Teachers, adjuncts teach 37% – 53% of college students every year. Individually and collectively, adjuncts are an invaluable asset as we, librarians and library staff, strive to enhance student success through a good grounding in information literacy (IL) concepts. Learn what support adjuncts need from us and how to create successful programs to engage adjuncts in the struggle to ensure every student has IL concepts to support life-long learning. Gain an understanding of adjuncts that will help to create powerful relationships with members of this group. Question and answer time to delve into the issue and share what your experiences have been in making the most of the vast human capital that adjuncts bring to our students and our institution.

2016 Conference Highlights – Making Connections with the One Button Studio

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Making Connections with the One Button Studio

Friday, May 6th
10:45-11:45am
Presenters: Michael English, Jason Byrd & Patricia West, George Mason University

In 2014 George Mason University’s Gateway Library implemented the One Button Studio (OBS), a simplified video recording space that allows users with no knowledge of lights, cameras, or video production to create high-quality video projects with the push of a button. Originally created in 2012 by Penn State University Libraries, the OBS relies on the OBS app and can be replicated by other libraries with customized configurations. We will discuss how the OBS is being used to support unique user populations, such as distance students and instructors, and wider applications of the OBS, such as student presentation practice. We will also address challenges of using this technology and the marketing potential of the OBS for your library. The OBS has equally great potential to assist populations in the public library setting, and we will discuss applications for several public library user populations such as Toastmasters, English-language learners, and job seekers.

2016 Conference Highlights – Turning Reflection into Action: Talking it Out, Making it Work

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Turning Reflection into Action: Talking it Out, Making it Work
Friday, May 6th
9:30-10:30am
Presenters: Mason Brown, Stephanie Margolin & Sarah Ward, Hunter College-CUNY

This information literacy instruction action research project began with two simple goals in mind: (1) use comics to (2) help our students focus on the process of asking answerable, engaging and well thought-out research questions. Refining the curriculum through the reflective practice of action research was not part of our original plan, although it became central to the execution of this program. The presenters developed the comics-based curriculum and then, due to a larger-than-expected enrollment (and interest among our librarians), recruited seven additional librarian-instructors to teach 157 students in three simultaneous sessions over eight days. Like true action research, it was in the daily pre-workshop planning meetings and post-workshop reflection sessions with the coordinators and librarian-instructors that the real innovation took place. Not only did this reflection and collaboration make our summer program stronger, but has proven extremely beneficial to our overall library instruction program. By creating our own “community of practice” through reflection and feedback, we have seen an increase in communication with and collaboration among our colleagues, leading to new projects and fruitful discussions about teaching.

2016 Conference Highlights -Training the Trainers: Successful Reference Referral Training Using the READ Scale

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Training the Trainers: Successful Reference Referral Training Using the READ Scale
Thursday, May 5th
3-5pm
Presenter: Lisa Vassady, Radford University)

This academic library has been developing a training program in the reference referral system for student assistants (SAs) over 3 academic years. The program’s goal is to effectively instruct SAs in balancing high quality customer service with the importance of appropriately referring users to librarians. The trainers met these goals through incorporating a modified version of the Reference Effort Assessment Data (READ) Scale, a reference transaction assessment tool developed by Bella Karr Gerlich, into the student training program.

Workshop attendees will learn about the READ Scale, understand how a referral model can optimize service and allow trainers to assess the effectiveness of their training programs, actively participate in several READ Scale training games and activities, and then brainstorm other ideas for creating READ Scale related training techniques.

2016 Conference Highlights – Act to the Future: Utilizing Scenario Planning to Shape a Strategic Plan

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Act to the Future: Utilizing Scenario Planning to Shape a Strategic Plan

Thursday, May 5th
1:45-2:45pm
Presenters: Christopher Lawton, Ashley Brewer & James Rhoades, Old Dominion University

As organizations strive to innovate and evolve, librarians are tasked with constructing strategies on how to move into the future. Hypothetical scenarios, in which “early indicators” are extrapolated to logical extremes, can both free the imagination and ground discussion in concrete ideas.

In summer 2014, the Old Dominion University Libraries and cross-university partners embarked on a scenario planning process using the ARL 2030 scenarios, four divergent visions of the future information environment. Strategies identified across multiple scenarios to keep the Libraries relevant in changing times were then incorporated into the Libraries’ future plan.

Scenario planning can be applied from the institutional level to the smallest projects. Come hear facilitators discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly of this innovative approach to idea generation. They will share their preconceived assumptions, anecdotal experiences, and post-assessment data. Discussion will focus on strategies for developing, facilitating, and analyzing a scenario process at your institution, and the application and benefits of incorporating scenario planning into your project plans. Leave with concrete ideas for using scenarios in your future projects, and the tools to make it happen.

2016 Conference Highlights – Unleashing Staff Potential: Professional Development Through Self-Directed Achievement

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Unleashing Staff Potential: Professional Development Through Self-Directed Achievement

Thursday, May 5th
10:30-11:30am
Presenters: Beth Roszkowski & Megan Hunt, George Mason University

Looking for a way to reinvent staff development and get your team excited about new learning opportunities? The self-directed achievement (SDA) model allows staff members to take charge of their own professional development by foregoing one-shot, synchronous staff training in favor of a customized approach to staff development – tailored to individual interests and job responsibilities. One year ago, George Mason University’s Arlington Campus Library adapted the SDA model introduced by Tooele City Library (UT) for the academic library environment and staff development has been at an all-time high. SDA establishes a professional development system where new skills can be learned in just one hour per week. The potential development opportunities are unlimited: library staff have increased their familiarity with research resources, expanded their tech skills, and explored their leadership capabilities. Presenters will explain the SDA
model in the academic library environment, highlight opportunities for staff skill augmentation, and discuss potential implementation roadblocks and supervisor responsibilities.

2016 Conference Highlights – Engaging with Empathy to Unlock Community Connections

Each week between now and the 2016 MLA/DLA Conference, we’re highlighting one of the conference sessions sponsored by ACRL MD. The conference will be held May 4-6 at the Clarion Resort Hotel in Ocean City, MD.  For more information on the conference, please take a look at the conference program (PDF). To register, visit the MLA conference page. And follow along on social media at #MLADLA16

Engaging with Empathy to Unlock Community Connections

Thursday, May 5th
9-10am
Presenter: Kimberly Miller, Towson University

“Empathy,” or cultivating a shared understanding and experience with others, has emerged as a central component of innovation, communication, collaboration, and problem solving – skills all librarians rely on to provide successful services and create welcoming environments. In this session, attendees will explore an adaptation of the User Experience (UX) method “Empathy Mapping.” After a brief introduction to the history and importance of “empathy” as a concept, attendees will learn the basics of creating an Empathy Map, a visualization technique for organizing data about what user groups think, see, feel, and do. Insights from the finished map provide a new perspective into community wants, needs, and motivations, which can be used to design user-centered library services. Attendees will work together to practice creating an Empathy Map for a library user group of their choosing. This is a hands-on session, so come prepared to explore the potential in your library!