RMSLA held its annual membership meeting on October 9, 2012, at Gates Hall at the Denver Botanic Gardens. About 40 members attended in person, and there were nine virtual attendees. Several students from the University of Denver MLIS program were among the welcome crowd.

After a social and networking hour and buffet dinner, RMSLA President Recca Larson opened the meeting and shared highlights on the chapter’s activities for the year.

• RMSLA received top honors and a $500 cash prize in connection with the SLA Information Technology Division’s Outstanding Chapter Technology Programming Award for its Virtual Lunch webinar series, coordinated by Director Connie Clem.
• RMSLA is participating in SLA’s Loyalty Project with James Kane, focusing on adding value to membership. RMSLA’s members in Utah are getting together for networking events and co-hosting library tours with the Utah Library Association. RMSLA uses technology to reach members beyond the Colorado/Denver region and is posting profiles of members from all around the chapter. Other units participating in the Loyalty Project include the D.C. Chapter (working on vendor relations), the Minnesota Chapter (working on member participation), the Florida/Caribbean Chapter (working on involving members at a distance), and the Southern California chapter (working on student engagement).

Director Jason Youngstrom shared details on chapter membership, which has shown a slight uptick though overall SLA membership is still lagging slightly, mainly traceable to economic factors. As of the meeting date, RMSLA had 140 members.

Academic Relations Chair Kendra Spahr presented the Rebecca Jackson Memorial Scholarship to University of Denver MLIS student Lindsay Roberts, who thanked the chapter for the support. Kendra also thanked everyone who attended a fundraiser or made a donation to this year’s scholarship fund. Major donors included the Jackson family and the Colorado Library Consortium (CLiC). Mary Ellen Bates of Bates Information Services, Ellen Naylor of the Business Intelligence Source, and Pat Wagner of Pattern Research each made a notable contribution.

President-Elect Rachel Bates Wilfahrt recognized the 2012 board and the work of RMSLA’s various committees and committee chairs. She invited all members to get involved by volunteering. Listowner Marcy Rodney encouraged members to use the discussion list to share job opportunities and other professional news. RMSLA’s discussion list currently has 352 subscribers.

The evening’s speaker, Marcy Phelps of Phelps Research, gave an insightful presentation on how to engage with the social media to be part of today’s knowledge flow in your sphere of expertise. Her presentation is part of the recorded meeting, available online. Marcy’s segment begins at about 28 minutes into the recording.

The meeting closed with door prize give-aways. All books were donated for the meeting by Information Today, Inc. Joe Kraus and Bronwyn Maxson (live attendees) and Daureen Nesdill (attending from Utah) each won a copy of Marcy Phelps’s book, Research on Main Street. Lindsay Roberts won Face2Face: Using Facebook, Twitter, and Other Social Media Tools to Create Great Customer Connections. Lisa Backman walked away with The Embedded Librarian, someone won UContent: The Information Professional’s Guide to User-Generated Content, Vivienne Houghton won The Librarian’s Guide to Negotiation, Jennifer Doran won the The Cybrarian’s Web: An A—Z Guide to 101 Free Web 2.0 Tools and Other Resources, and Connie Clem won Implementing Technology Solutions in Libraries.

Rachel Bates Wilfahrt did the behind-the-scenes work to plan the meeting. RMSLA would like to thank IHS for its generous support of the event. We also thank the Denver Botanic Gardens (home of the Helen Fowler Library & Archives) for providing the meeting space and librarian April Miller for helping with set-up. RMSLA also thanks the University of Denver and the inestimable Joe Kraus for assisting with the virtual attendance technology.

###

Each year RMSLA awards the Rebecca Jackson Memorial Scholarship to a library and information science student who has an interest in pursuing a career as a special librarian or an information professional. The scholarship is named for Rebecca Jackson, an outstanding chapter member who was dedicated to mentoring library school students. Read about this year’s winner, Lindsay Roberts, in the feature below.

About Lindsay Roberts

Brief Bio:

I’m in the second year of the MLIS program at the University of Denver. After college, I taught English to high school students in France. I also worked at the Boulder Book Store for five years in a variety of roles, including author event host and Sidelines Buyer (free chocolate was my favorite part of the job!).

Employment:

I am working full time as Assistant to the Chair of Political Science at the University of Denver to help pay for MLIS coursework. I am also a graduate assistant at Auraria Library in research and instruction, where I get to teach library instruction classes to undergraduates and work the research help desk on evenings and weekends. I would love to arrange an internship working in a corporate environment or with an information consultant for a few hours each month.

Education:

Not many people know that I unschooled myself for most of high school (basically, like homeschooling, but the teenager teaches herself and finds real world learning experiences, rather than relying on formal instruction). This meant that I got to do things like spend a week observing the aurora borealis in Alaska, be a volunteer with the University of Alabama Paleontology department digging up dinosaur bones, and spend enormous amounts of time at the Tuscaloosa Public Library or wandering the stacks at the University of Alabama libraries. I earned my BA in French and Humanities from CU-Boulder.

Involvement with professional organizations:

I currently serve as the Vice Chair of the ASIS&T student group—check out our TechBytes Archive for 30 minute technology talks. Last year, I was Secretary of the ALA student chapter. This past summer, through the Student to Staff program, I won a spot to volunteer at the ALA Annual conference in Anaheim, where I got to assist the Office for Literacy and Outreach Services with their conference events. In my first year in the LIS program, I received a LEADers III scholarship from the Denver Public Library and was able to do a service learning project with the Denver Public Library’s Community Technology Center as a part of the LEADers program. I attended Spotlight on Your Career and Colleague Connection this past spring, and I am looking forward to becoming more involved with RMSLA in the next year!

As an MLIS student and an information professional, what do you find valuable about RMSLA? Why would you recommend RMSLA to other MLIS students?

For me, RMSLA represents a chance to explore the information profession outside of the school, public, and academic areas. In many ways, RMSLA seems like a very interdisciplinary group. The lines are blurred between business, science, academic, and non-profit work, among the varied job titles RMSLA members hold. When I browse the SLA Member Directory for our chapter, I find myself thinking, “huh—I never knew that job existed!” So RMSLA is expanding my understanding of what is possible in our profession. The webinars and career resources are fabulous. For students and new professionals, the networking events RMSLA provides are a great way to begin meeting professionals in the area and narrowing down what you think you might like to do!

Currently Reading:

I am addicted to reading The New Yorker at breakfast and I try to keep up with the current issue—usually I’m a couple of weeks behind. Occasionally I’m late to work when I’ve been reading one of the longer non-fiction pieces. I am currently finishing David Shumaker’s The Embedded Librarian and have found it to be hugely on-target with where we’re heading in the field. I’m also finishing up The Start-Up of You, by the founder of LinkedIn, Reid Hoffman (thanks, Kim Dority, for these two excellent recommendations!). I loved The Greater Journey: Americans in Paris by David McCullough, which I slowly savored over most of the summer. I devoured Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey a few weeks ago. Who knew that the real story is far more exciting than the mini-series? I’m curious to check out J.K. Rowling’s new book for adults, The Casual Vacancy, when fall classes are over.

Hobbies, Etc.:

When I’m not reading something, I love rock climbing, hiking, cycling, and doing yoga. I love taking classes to learn new skills—Swallow Hill Music School and the Lighthouse Writer’s Workshop are some of my favorites, but I’ve taken fun classes in motorcycle basics, sewing, and photography in recent years. I hope to take a class on cheese making soon!

Thank you!

I’d like to warmly thank the Jackson family and all of the RMSLA members who contributed to the Rebecca Jackson scholarship fund this year, whether at the Trivia event, the Rockies game, or through an individual or company donation. This scholarship will help me finish my last few classes at DU—thank you for supporting new professionals like me!
Contribute to the Rebecca Jackson Memorial Scholarship fund.

>>Updated 10/8/2012: For people unable to attend the live event, the program portion of the meeting will be broadcast online, beginning at 7:00 p.m. Mountain time. Connect at https://connect.du.edu/rmsla-fall-meeting-2012/.

>> Updated 10/9/2012: Download the 2012 Membership Meeting Agenda.

Network, Get Chapter News, and Learn

Current and prospective RMSLA members are encouraged to join us at the Denver Botanic Gardens (York Street) on Tuesday, October 9, 2012, for an evening of food, networking, chapter information and a presentation from Marcy Phelps, Owner of Phelps Research on Knowledge in 140 Characters: Using the Social Web for Professional Growth.

From Marcy:  Facebook, blogs, tweets, podcasts, and other tools can bring you more than just the latest buzz; they can serve as your early-warning system, alerting you to the skills, ideas, and insights essential for today’s information professionals. Find out how to tap into the resources of the social web and create your own personalized learning network for staying future ready.

Registration is now closed.

Date:  Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Location:   Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York St, Denver CO 80206 (http://goo.gl/maps/hLtBb)

Parking:  Free in the complex between Josephine and York Streets

Cost:  Free!  We are even giving away door prizes courtesy of Information Today.

Time:

5:30-6:00:  Networking begins

6:00-7:00:  Dinner

7:00-7:45:  Vendor presentation, chapter business, and scholarship award

7:45-8:45:  Presentation by Marcy Phelps

8:45-9:00:  wrap-up

*Please note that this is a loose outline!

You do NOT need to register if you will be attending virtually.  Also, virtual attendees will have a chance to win one of two copies of Marcy’s book Research on Main Street.

Thanks to IHS for their support for the meeting and to the University of Denver for providing the virtual program connection.

Questions:  Contact RMSLA President-Elect Rachel Bates Wilfahrt at rachelbateswilfahrt@gmail.com or 303-518-2324.