Session #1: Dimensions in Community Engagement (Great Room C)

Moderator: Dr. Sue Yeon Syn, Catholic University of America

Connecting People, Places, and Cultures: The Role of Social Media in Forming Participatory User Communities in Contemporary Cultural Institutions, by Stan Trembach, School of Library and Information Science, University of South Carolina

A thoughtful approach to the use of social media tools may serve to ensure the long-term sustainability and success of cultural institutions in the dynamic technology-driven twenty-first century world. Drawing on a variety of scholarly sources, this presentation provides a critical analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of various social media platforms for audience development and engagement in a broad range of cultural centers. This research also positions the cultural sector in relation to the current trends in social media development and explores the relevance and implications of these trends as museums, libraries, and archives are actively responding to the new agenda. By establishing a presence in the growing social media universe, cultural organizations can build a more robust marketing strategy and capitalize on social media’s untapped potential for creating participatory learning environments. Additionally, the presentation sheds light on some of the pressing challenges associated with the use of social media in cultural practice, particularly with regard to user privacy, identity, and accountability along with issues of cultural authority and the authenticity of cultural objects.

Coloring inside the (Guide)Lines: New Goals, New Rules, New Marketing Challenges, by Michelle Polchow and Jamie Coniglio, George Mason University Libraries

George Mason University’s new president rolled out the 10 year strategic plan quickly followed by the University's Office of Strategic Communication's new Brand Profile: A Guide to Messaging and Visual Identity. Change is in the air, but how do University Libraries interpret this vision, create a brand that binds our accomplishments and strengths, affirm our identity, and increase our visibility? As the University sets its sights on achieving Carnegie Very High Research classification, could marketing be a critical tool for tighter integration within the university? In August, 2014, a new Libraries Marketing Team took up the challenge to translate these new visions and directions into practical objectives, and to define, chart and measure integration into this shared vision of tomorrow.

Prison Librarianship...the Intrepid Career Move, by Herbert Malveaux, Maryland Correctional Education Libraries

Where will your career path take you next? You crave a setting that fosters lifelong learning with ever curious customers. You prefer to work in an environment which provides you with rarely experienced challenges on a daily basis. You need to gain managerial and supervisory experience. Your career path requires you to have gained hands-on knowledge and experience in every aspect of running a library including circulation, information, selection, collection development, buildings and equipment maintenance, budgeting, and strategic planning. And you want to be at the forefront of innovations in specialized library service delivery. If you will allow yourself to make a perhaps unanticipated move you might consider becoming a prison librarian.

Session #2: Surviving Your First Year as a School Librarian (Great Room B)

Moderator: Dr. Sung Un Kim, Catholic University of America

Panelists: Sung Un Kim,The Catholic University of America; Jessica Zeiler, Glen Forest Elementary School, Fairfax County Public Schools; April Brown, Seven Locks Elementary School, Montgomery County Public Schools; Kelly Cieslak, Cedar Lane Elementary School, Loudoun County Public Schools; and Megan Reichelt, Cardozo Education Campus, District of Columbia Public Schools

In this panel discussion session, recent CUA graduates will bring their experience in the real world as school librarians and share what they have learned from the early stage of their career in K-12 schools. Each panelist will speak to one of the following topics: Classroom management, collection development, lesson planning & delivery, reading promotion and social media. Discussion and Q&A will follow.

Session #3: Career and Personal Development (Rooms 321/323)

Moderator: David Shumaker, Catholic University of America

Models For Collaborating Within A Large Enterprise, by Richard Huffine; David McBee, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; and James King, U.S. National Institutes of Health

There are over 1,100 libraries in the Federal government. Many of them cluster under a larger Department or Agency but all of them operate with some level of autonomy. This session will explore different models of collaboration and coordination that are helping government agency libraries save time and money while still meeting the information needs of government employees.