Category Archives: News from the Field

ALA’s Online Virtual Membership Meeting

Mark your calendar and register now.

You are invited to participate in ALA’s annual online Virtual Membership Meeting (VMM15) on Thursday, June 4, from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. (EST). 

This interactive forum is a terrific opportunity for your voice to be heard by your ALA leadership and your colleagues. It is your chance to contribute, connect and engage! You will discuss topics of interest identified and ranked during the registration process, vote on proposed resolutions, and receive updates on ALA’s strategies and finances. Live captioning will be provided so that all registrants can participate.

Preregistration is required because the online meeting space is limited to 1,000 participants. Registration is now open and continues even after the meeting starts.

A dedicated VMM15 ALA webpage and the ALA Members group on ALA Connect each contain all relevant documents, including the Procedures Governing VMM, the Guidelines for Submission of Resolutions for VMM15 Meetings, plus plenty of opportunities for pre-meeting conversations via ALA Connect. Remember, only current ALA personal members may vote.

The meeting concludes promptly at 2:30 p.m. (CDT). The chat session will remain open for an additional 15 minutes to allow participants to wrap up their conversations.

Day by Day NY Family Literacy Calendar

DaybyDayNY is a website for young children and their families. It is part of the New York State Library early literacy initiative Ready to Read at New York Libraries.

The New York State Library hopes that families across New York State will use this interactive calendar to develop a love for books and learning that will last a lifetime. The calendar uses multimedia to enhance books, songs, and family health and bring these components to life. If families can only spend a few minutes together, this calendar will give them something they can use to make sure that this is quality time as well as educational time.
daybydayny


http://daybydayny.org

Makerspaces: The Library’s Legal Answers (ALA Editions Workshop)

A 90-minute workshop, Thursday, June 18, 2015, 2:30pm Eastern/1:30 Central/12:30 Mountain/11:30am Pacific

This is an online event hosted through Webex. Further technical information is available at the ALA TechSource FAQ page.

Makerspaces: The Library’s Legal Answers (ALA Editions Workshop)
A 90-minute workshop, Thursday, June 18, 2015, 2:30pm Eastern/1:30 Central/12:30 Mountain/11:30am Pacific

Library makerspaces are truly transformative environments that advance learning and innovation in communities. This space is a great new way where people can gather to create, invent, and learn, but you will need to be aware of and understand legal implications and concepts related to patent, trademark, and product liability.

The Library’s Legal Answers team—Mary Minow, Tomas Lipinksi, and Gretchen McCord—will guide you in a positive approach to library makerspaces, true to the library mission of intellectual freedom, access, and learning. Cutting through any alarmism about the possibility of such things as guns, sex toys, or illegal drugs being made using 3D printers, they will show you how to limit your liability with consistent practices and sensible policy statements, covering topics such as:

  • Key clauses for waivers and partnership agreements.
  • How to file a one-page form with the U.S. Copyright Office that will protect you from potential infringing activity
  • What to look for in local building codes before you solder
  • Guarding against indirect or vicarious liability lawsuits
  • Where the First Amendment meets makerspaces
  • Protecting privacy in the sign-up process
  • Americans with Disabilities Act compliance

You will also learn and be able to:

  • Minimize liability for copyright or patent infringement claims
  • File a one-page form with the U.S. Copyright Office
  • Ensure access for patrons with disabilities

Register here.  If you plan on viewing this event with a group of 3 or more people, please purchase at the group rate.