ULS Universe

No trip to Seattle would be complete without partaking of the myriad of the city’s fine and fascinating restaurants.  There is perhaps no more memorable dining experience than one that is shared.  The Local Arrangements Committee for the ACRL National Conference Seattle 2009 invites you to bring these two principles together and volunteer to host a table for the Dinner With Colleagues program on Friday, March 13, 2009, in the 7pm to 9pm window.

The guests at your table could be members of a single committee or members from the same section.  You could combine experienced members with new members and make it an occasion for orienting the newcomers to the association and its work.  How about facilitating a group of student attendees getting together to meet one another, their future professional colleagues?  Maybe organize a group around professional interests (ala Birds of a Feather), geography (state of birth), a particular cuisine, or an interest in wine or custom cocktails.  Make it a group of friends, or be creative and make it a group of strangers who’ll become friends.

Please visit the Dinners With Colleagues page on the conference wiki for more information, including host responsibilities and a list of restaurants. If you would like to host a table, please email Jessica Albano.

Bon appetit!

Reposted from acrleads@ala.org

Having trouble filling management positions? There has been an ongoing debate in academic libraries about the benefits of hiring from within vs. brining in someone from outside the organization with different experiences and new ideas. Has this dynamic changed? Want to know what other institutions are doing?

The ULS Current Topics Discussion Group will be considering these issues at ALA Midwinter on Saturday, January 24, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in the Colorado Conference Center Korbel Ballroom Room 3B. Laura Blessing, Director of Personnel Management at North Carolina State University Library will get us started by talking about their program of identifying and nurturing new librarians with an interest in management.

Please spread the word about the discussion and we hope to see you on Saturday!

Vicki Nozero
Chair, Current Topics Discussion Group

Feeling pressed by the current economic situation?  Wish you had someone you could lean on to assist you in delivering your message, someone to assist you in making the case for a smaller budget cut for you when compared to other campus agencies?

The ULS Campus Administration and Leadership Discussion Group will be taking up the topic of “Building Campus Advocacy in Tough Economic Times” at ALA Midwinter on Saturday, January 24 from 10:30 – Noon in Colorado Conference Center Room 402.  The discussion will be facilitated by Georgie Donovan from Appalachian State University, who has experience in building advocates.  Compare notes with your colleagues, learn ways to growing advocacy on your campus, and gain valuable ideas of how to put those advocates to work for you.

Please spread the word to your colleagues.  We hope to see all of you there!

Christopher Cox
Chair, ULS Campus Administration and Leadership Discussion Group

I was intrigued by the recent ACRLog post wondering why there are separate CLS and ULS sections within ACRL, and it got me thinking.  How do we explain who we are as a section?  What is unique about ULS?  How do we convey what we have to offer and interest librarians new to the profession and/or new to ACRL?

There is a misconception that ULS is a section for library administrators, but did you know that many of the people who are members of or chair committees in ULS are not administrators, but are middle management and frontline librarians?  In fact, the current Past-Chair, Chair, and I (Vice-Chair, Chair-elect) are not library administrators.  I became involved in ULS years ago because my mentor was active in the section, but had I not had that connection, I’m not sure that I would have thought to become involved in the work of this particular section.  I hear from many of my new colleagues that they want to be involved in sections, divisions, and organizations that directly pertain to their jobs.  For some of them, this is a requirement for travel funding for conferences.   They don’t immediately see a place where they “fit in” with ULS, or one where they feel that they can make a significant contribution.  How do we change this, whether it’s merely a perception or whether it’s truth?

ULS is a large section with many members who have diverse interests, but what is our common thread?  Yes, most of us work for universities, but what else?  As I begin to plan for my tenure as Chair of ULS, I’d like to hear your thoughts about the section, what we should be focusing on, who we are, and what we’re about.