Please note: the formal report is followed by informal notes taken during the session for a bit more detailed coverage. I'm always glad to respond to comments or requests for further information.
Washington Library Association
ALA Chapter Councilor's Report, Annual Conference 2008
Jonathan Betz-Zall, jbetzzall@yahoo.com
The only dramatic incident at ALA's annual conference this year took place at the very tail end of the last Council meeting, as two councilors who had felt duped by the Friends of Cuban Libraries stood to apologize to ALA for having sponsored a resolution that Council would have soundly rejected. Otherwise this was a very routine gathering, with the usual opportunities and difficulties.
Meeting in Anaheim across the street from Disneyland, 22,000 ALA members and exhibitors enjoyed the heat and bright sunshine typical of Southern California summers as they attended thousands of individual workshops, meetings, programs and informal gatherings, as well as a large exhibition hall. This was ALA's first meeting in Anaheim, and things went so well that conference organizers plan for a return visit in the future.
There were no major intellectual freedom incidents this year, though the Freedom to Read Foundation reported on some legal developments, including their monitoring of the North Central Regional Library System case, which they decided not to join.
Financially, ALA is breaking even, though revenue sources are flat and members are talking about environmental measures that may affect conference revenue. Many conversations took place over whether a proposal to shorten conference by one day would cause exhibitors to regard participation in ALA as less of a good investment than in the past. ALA seems to be paying more attention to Socially Responsible Investing; the slide illustrating that portion of the financial report featured wind power machines. There are some concerns about how the “graying” of the profession will affect dues and other financial support. In identifying other ways for ALA to support itself, the treasurer noted a potential untapped market for ALA’s “brand” in continuing education. The initiatives for increased participation [discussed below] involve electronic technology; building this capacity will cost a lot of money. AL Direct has been a big success: much more information distributed at little additional cost, but other services e.g. online meetings will encounter capacity constraints. Eventually we’ll have to spend big bucks for more computers.
ALA-APA: ALA’s Allied Professional Association, which promotes the interests of librarians and library workers, reported some financial troubles but programmatic successes. At least seven people have now received certification as Public Library Administrators with twenty-plus more taking the courses. The main difficulty has been finding content providers to train them.
Internal issues: ALA is working hard to empower members to participate via electronic technologies. A Task Force on Electronic Member Participation, chaired by Janet Swan Hill, one of the most well-respected councilors, presented a report that nearly everyone supported except for some who grumbled about the loss of humane values in depending so heavily on technology. We debated this point in WLA twenty years ago, and it’s still a problem. The Task Force hopes to have recommendations ready for the Midwinter 2009 Meeting. If you are interested in this issue, the preliminary recommendations are due in October, so online discussion will begin then. Let me know if you’d like special notification of them.
The Resolution Committee [on which I served] proposed a new method of submitting resolutions that, while not officially taking effect until Midwinter 2009, was employed early by several submitters, including me. The committee chair crowed with delight to see the immediate success of the committee’s ideas.
Several questions arose about how ALA could “green” its conferences. I asked why there were no recycling bins provided anywhere in the conference center; conference management claimed that they were separating the trash to retrieve recyclables. I will press further on this issue, as this claim is too easy to make and too difficult to verify.
ALA adopted two organizations as affiliates: the Association for Rural and Small Libraries and the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services.
Other issues of interest:
The resolution on the return of historical documents to Iraq that I helped to craft at Midwinter 2008 was updated. During debate, councilors expressed their wishes that the resolution could even more strongly demand the return of the Iraqi documents from the Hoover Institution to the people of Iraq. ALA’s web page on this issue http://www.ala.org/ala/iro/iraq.cfm has not yet been updated; contact me if you would like more information.
[the next two items are from the ALA Washington Office briefing, thanks to Jim Casey’s report]
Fair Use: ALA is involved with the Library of Congress’s Working Group on Section 108 of the Copyright Law, examining “Fair Use” of copyrighted material. Jim Neal, ALA’s representative, commented that “fair use” is not “civil disobedience”; we should be ready to fight for it in the years to come. LC has a website on copyright issues: http://www.loc.gov/section108
Congressional appropriations for libraries: LSTA was approved at an unexpectedly high level.
Thanks very much to the members of WLA who have supported me in my role as Chapter Councilor. I have very much enjoyed the many opportunities to involve myself in library affairs at the state and national levels, but I strongly feel that it’s time to give someone else an opportunity to serve WLA and ALA as Chapter Councilor. Therefore I have told the WLA Board that I will not stand for re-election next year. I will be happy to provide information on the joys and challenges of this form of service.
Informal Notes:
Council info session
BARC report: careful monitoring of budget trends, buying building for Choice, YALSA no longer subsidized, COLA for staff, round tables improving financial support, advising units on how to compile and use budgets, budget targets met within 1%.
Endowment trustees: challenging year. endowment still over 30 million. portfolio down 1.7%, market average 9+. no exposure to subprime problems. Long-term focus. SRI highlighted with slide of windmills. STudy learned that investment incomes will be lower, risks higher. Long term strategy is where the real money is. Development office, promote planned giving to increase the endowment. Benefits of actively managed portfolio. SRI: taken time to learn and know the vehicles that are there, watching them closely, looking at other vehicles.
Core Competencies of Librarianship: long term development since 1999, rephrased existing document rephrased into knowledge goals. Common knowledge, not exhaustive list. Phrased in terms of outcomes, nothing about process. Planned to be adopted in Denver, next Midwinter.
New president concentrated on committee appointments.
ALA-APA Information Session: workplace wellness activites at conference, certification CPLA has 7 graduates, having trouble finding programs because programs are concentrating on master's students, "strenghtening professionalism in the public interest" meeting, finances: revenue targets not being met: 11,000 less than budget
Council I:
adopted new procedure for resolutions
socially responsible companies list expanded to about 70, 1200 identified. adopted protocol for responding to requests for ALA position on issues
accessible workstations--developed permanent process for ASCLA & conf services to work together to expand accessibility & public notice of accomodations available
crisis in Kenya, received appreciation from US ambassador
treasurer: ALA needs 600-750K in new revenue each year just to stay even, ALA has a de-facto 2 year budget cycle because of alternating division conferences, 2009 is last year of dues increase, need for new revenue sources. Conferences & membership dues are "mature", publishing might not be. Economic slowdown affecting state/lcaol budgets & library funding, travel to conferences, purchases of ALA products & services, less advertising revenue. Lower rates of return on investment. Graying of profession will challenge membership retention & growth, technology costs, healthcare benefit costs. Financial plan: efficiences, collaboration/reduce redundancy, new revenue generating sources, outside support, increased dues. May be untapped market for ALA brand in continuing education. Choice building in Connecticut working out financing. Increased participation involves electronic technology (costs). AL Direct has been success. addressing issues: capacity constraints.
APA: revenues fallen short of projections, 07 were higher because first year of non MLS salary survey, which sold very well then. Didn't sell so well this year.
Council II:
Current Reference File: going back to the 1970s, background information with original document creating policy and some interpretations. Need to be digitized. Discussion of whether it is archives or for current use.
TF on Electronic Participation. Encouraging people to experiment with electronic decision-making.
Restructuring Corporate Membership into two-level dues structure
Finances: investments took a loss of 228K, life member dues down 71K, budgetary ceiling 68 million.
Freedom to Read Foundation: challenges to Harmful to Minors laws in Indiana and Oregon. Individual memberships dropped over the last year. Urging people to join.
Resolution CD 56 on funding for cataloging and bibliographic control—LC positions left open as catalogers retire. Calling on ALA to advocate for more funding for LC training of bibliographers and bibliographic control work at LC.
ENDA—putting protection for gender identity and expression back into civil rights legislation.
Passed sweatshop resolution.
Attendance 21,817
Council III:
Affiliation of Assn for Rural and Small Libraries. New ass'n but effort of Ctr for Study of Rural Librarianship, first conference planned for September, 85% of libraries serve pop of 25000 or less.
Affiliation of Ass'n of Bookmobile and Outreach Services.
IFC: Libel tourism, using foreign libel laws to attack American authors. Privacy for all initiative received Soros grant, privacyrevolution.org
banned books week: Sept 27-Oct 4 2008
IF manual: proposed revisions of “ALA's most important document”.
Adding gender expression to LBR
adding reading level to school library media access
diversity in collection development
evaluation
expurgation
free access to libraries for minors includes reference to “guardians” as well as parents
International relations Cttee: supporting IFLA membership for latin american national library associations that are not already members.
Iraq replacement resolution passed unanimously Members want more action to get Hoover Institution to return documents!
COO
Cttee on accreditation: composition of committee revised to reflect current practice, discussion of “public members” of COA—appointed by president-elect
Cttee recognizes role of more informal groups in ALA, wants better procedures for recognizing them. Membership interest groups allowed to petition for longer existence.
Cttee on Legislation: chapters encouraged to appoint representatives to legislative assembly. Action alerts important, please respond. LSTA state grants need advocacy.
Support Nat'l agricultural library
E-Government act to support public distribution of electronic documents
Sound recordings: need to bring recordings made before 1972 into public domain so they can be preserved.
Definition of Digital Preservation & preservation policy:
Resolution to study how to make council proceedings transparent
discussion mostly enthusiastic about broadcasting proceedings but hesitations over legal issues, costs. Inspiration is a two-way street. Predictably irrational—book about decision making
Cuba machinations denounced—deception by Friends of Cuban Libraries, targeting new councilors. ED will send letter of remonstrance to R Kent et al. Council Orientation Committee apologized for not doing a better job of letting new councilors know this might happen. Also notify speakers that they might be harassed.
Final attendance: 22.047
