Supportive Staff Conference
University Plaza Hotel and Conference Center
September 24-25
Make your hotel reservation by September 3 to receive OLC conference rate.
As much if not more than other staff, support staff are challenged on a daily basis to find their place in a rapidly changing organization: the public library. The goal of OLC's 2008 Support Staff Conference is to help people transition to new levels of self awareness regarding the skill sets they need to cultivate and as they deal with the impact of technology on their daily work, challenges to the security of their work environment, ever-present issues of enhanced customer service skills, interpersonal communication, teamwork, and more. The committee seeks breakout programs in the areas listed above that will provide theory as well as motivation and practical ideas to maximize the effectiveness of support staff as they grow in their roles and in their service to all their customers---both external and internal.
Agenda
Wednesday, September 24
10:00 AM
Registration
10:30 AM
Welcome and Introductions
Tracey Jipson, Conference Program Chair
Opening General Session
Maintaining a Positive Outlook in the Midst of “Negative” Change
Robin Elston, Elston Consulting
If experts agree on anything, it's that the typical American worker's job is changing and the library industry is no exception. The effects of change ripple through an organization. |
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A person's ability to accept change and adapt to it determines whether the change affects them positively or negatively. But sometimes change is hard to accept. Sometimes it seems that the proposed change will ruin everything that is good and working in the library system. How does a person learn to accept a change that is just wrong; wrong for them and wrong for the organization? This hilarious presentation will help even the most cynical in the audience see change in a new light and be left with a renewed attitude of commitment.
Robin Martin Elston is President and Founder of Elston Consulting. She has gained a national reputation as a consultant, executive coach, trainer, and strategic planner specializing in leadership in times of major change. She has extensive leadership experience including 16 years in manufacturing management and human resources in Fortune 500 companies including Procter and Gamble where she led plants through the achievement of industry-wide superior results. Since starting Elston Consulting, Robin has worked with some of the top international corporations in America including Sony, Procter and Gamble, Terumo Medical Corporation, and Eaton Corporation. She has degrees in both Chemical Engineering and Business Administration. Outside of work, she chairs several volunteer organizations. You can learn more about Robin and her work by visiting her Web site (http://www.elstonconsulting.com/whoweare.php). |
11:30 AM
Lunch
12:30 PM
First Breakout Sessions
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Social Tools in Our Public Libraries
Cindi Trainor, Eastern Kentucky University
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| Change is a constant in today's libraries; the technology used in libraries and by our customers seems to change on a daily basis.
Come learn about trends affecting the Web and how library staff can leverage these trends and tools to create an online library experience that more closely resembles the Web sites library users visit every day. This presentation will include tools like blogs, wikis, IM, online bookmarking, digital images, and online collaborative work. We will also cover social spaces like Facebook and Second Life and how libraries are using these tools. Cindi Trainor is the Coordinator for Library Technology and Data Services at Eastern Kentucky University Libraries, where from May 2007 to January 2008, she served as the Coordinator of Research and Instructional Services. |
A Library Support Staff Certification Program: Are we ready for this?
Robert Allen Daugherty, Associate Professor and Circulation Librarian, University of Illinois at Chicago Library University
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| ALA received a Laura Bush IMLS grant to establish a Library Support Staff Certification Program.We have drafted sets of competencies for the work that library support staff do in public and academic libraries.We are working on the way that participant learning will be assessed and the policies and procedures that will govern the program. Come and participate in an in-depth discussion about this planned program. We need your input! |
Going Hybrid: Readers Advisory at the Circulation Desk
Michelle Brown and Amy Hartman, Toledo-Lucas County Public Library
Conserve your energy in the hurry of the checkout desk! Discover easy ways to improve current title awareness and explore practical tips and tricks for suggesting fiction and non-fiction books. Learn how to increase circulation by enhancing your readers' advisory skills, including on-the-spot mini-displays, brief booktalking, and quick database awareness.
1:45 PM
Break
2:00 PM
Second Breakout Sessions
Charting Your Career Course
Jeff Robek and Lori Thomas, The Ohio State University Career Exploration Office
Career Development is an ongoing process that includes planning and strategizing your career based on information about yourself, the world of work, the match between these two, and the actions you take to create your life's work. Whether you are looking at a first career or considering a career change in the future, it's important to identify and develop core skills that employers will always value. In this workshop, the Career Exploration Office staff will lead you through a career transition model that includes self-assessment exercises and resources for “Charting Your Career Course.”
The Road to Success is Paved with Cheese
Robin Elston, Elston Consulting, LLC
In life what you declare possible and plan into action becomes the future. Too often we defeat ourselves with our own self-talk. Also, too often, we don't declare that the possibilities for success in our lives will be our reality. This training about dreams, plans, and overcoming adversity will have you rolling in the aisles. It will also leave you ready to climb the highest mountain and overcome seemingly impossible odds to achieve what you set out to accomplish whether that is increased efficiency, improved work relationships, or greater sense of inner peace.
Computer Basics for Public Service
Kathy Schnell, Cuyahoga County Public Library
This is a great refresher course covering basic information about working with computers—a lot of information nuggets to make working with computers a little easier. You will learn about working with Microsoft Windows, favorites and links, copying and pasting, Microsoft Word, keyboard shortcuts, printer tips, tips for working in the Public Access Catalog, and public workstation troubleshooting pointers.
3:15 PM
Break
3:30 PM
Third Breakout Sessions
Intellectual Freedom: An Overview
Ben Lathrop, Fairfield Lane Library
Defending intellectual freedom isn't just the administration's job. Front line staff are often the first to hear complaints or be faced with day to day issues of free access and patron confidentiality. This session highlights the Intellectual Freedom Committee's signature programs to provide an overview of key issues affecting support staff and to offer workable strategies.
Support Staff and Internet Basics: How Much Should You Know?
Jay Burton, State Library of Ohio
What Internet knowledge is really needed; what is not? Jay Burton, Head of Professional Development for the State Library of Ohio, will try to clear up what Internet information is vital for you to know as a support staff member and what sort of things you can skip. Jay has been training support staff on a wide variety of electronic resources and welcomes the opportunity to help you, too!
Inspector Gadget: Gizmos @ Your Library
Laura Solomon, OPLIN
Are electronic gadgets a mystery? What's the difference between an iPod and a Zune? What do you do when a patron brings in a laptop, an MP3 player, or a digital camera and wants to connect it to a library computer or network? Why is that patron wandering around your library with a GPS unit? Check out what patrons might be bringing into your building and what it means for staff.
4:45 PM
Day One: Wrap-Up
As the first day of the conference winds down, program committee members and OLC staff will be on hand to informally offer suggestions on evening activities and events in Columbus. You may just want to retire to your room with a good book but if you're looking for a good restaurant or some “retail therapy” organizers of the conference will happily provide suggestions and directions.
Thursday, September 25
8:00 AM
Full buffet breakfast
9:00 AM
Fourth Breakout Sessions
Get that Promotion with Great Interviewing Skills!
James McQuinn and David Slivken, Dayton Metro Library
Interviewing is the most stressful part of the job search for many people. But it doesn't have to be. Interviews are an opportunity to show you are an enthusiastic worker who would do a job well. You can make the most of that opportunity by being prepared, presenting a professional demeanor, and describing your qualifications well.
Dead Mouse Tricks: Using Computers and Programs without Clicking
Walter Lesch, Shaker Heights Public Library
What do you do when you are in the middle of something important and the mouse stops working? Have you seen others using the keyboard in mysterious ways to get things accomplished? If you are interested in knowing 12 keyboard shortcuts to make your work easier, where to find dozens of useful tips to use your PC more efficiently, and what to do when your mouse stops working (no matter what the situation), then this session can help.
More than just a list of Web sites to visit later, the session will also cover terms to use within program help systems as well as ways to find relevant information on the Web about this topic. You will receive knowledge that will help in many situations on the PC, techniques to make computing easier without the mouse, and terms and tips to use when further exploring these ideas.
You've Got What it Takes! Peer Training in Your Library
Cathy Wilkymacky, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County
Don't keep it secret!! Your knowledge is valuable—especially if you know how to pass it along! In this fast-paced session, learn how you can share that knowledge and not only gain presentation skills for yourself but help your coworkers keep updated and refreshed on what they need to know to provide great customer service to everyone, internally and externally. You will gain practical information on the needs of adult learners and adult learning styles, the steps to conducting effective on-the-job learning, and how to put it all together with practical planning tips for a successful training experience.
10:15 AM
Break
10:30 AM
Fifth Breakout Sessions
Oh, Boy - Where Do I Start? Helping People Who Ask Tough Questions
Kathryn Fisher, Shaker Heights Public Library
A student wants statistics that don't seem to exist. This man can't remember the name of the old movie he wants to reserve. That woman is trying to find a specific journal article for her class. Sound familiar? Patron questions can be daunting! Bring some examples of the "stumpers" you've experienced, and share your experiences with other library staff. Together we'll devise strategies and list resources you'll find helpful when tackling the toughies.
Keeping You Safe When the Workplace Turns Dangerous
Jeffry A. Sabo and Michelle Vollmar, Toledo-Lucas County Public Library
This program is designed to help you pick up on nuances of patron behavior that could become a security risk. What to do during an altercation, what/how to give information to the police, how to protect patrons, staff, and yourself during an emergency. Safe practices when working alone or with other staff members will be discussed. Feel free to bring questions for discussion.
Be Careful what You Post: The Myth of Internet Privacy
Arthur Jipson, University of Dayton
Today most of us communicate through electronic means. Often we forget that anything we write, comment on, and even anywhere we go online can be tracked, recovered and possibly come back to haunt us. This presentation will address some of the technological and legal issues concerning Internet privacy that are faced by both patrons and libraries today.
11:45 AM
Lunch
12:45 PM
Closing Session
Taking the (Support Staff) Road Less Stressed
Kay Frances, MBA, Kay's Keynotes
"The only constant in the universe is change" and libraries are undergoing changes faster than you can say "Card Catalogue!" So what's the support staff to do? |
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Well, it's Kay Frances to the STRESS-cue! Regardless of what is happening in our frenzied world, we can learn to stay calm in the midst of the storm. Even if we can't control our circumstances, we can learn to control our REACTIONS to our circumstances. In this program, Motivational Humorist and Stress Management Goddess, Kay Frances illustrates the importance of managing our stress in this time of change and uncertainty for library support staff. Suffer from crotchety administrators? Pesky patrons? Tedious technology? In this fun and lively program Kay "addresses the stresses" that library support staff face. She also reminds us that no matter what is going on around us, there are ways to keep our lives in balance and our sense of humor intact so that we can survive the many challenges of an ever-changing library climate. Kay is a former professional stand-up comedian who is never far from her comedy roots, so be prepared to laugh while you learn!
Kay Frances believes that “Humor is to a meeting what dessert is to a good meal!” She has shared her message to “lighten up and stress less” in 38 states and Canada for over two decades. Kay offers a healthy dose of laughter that can be just what the doctor ordered for your meeting. With her clean and upbeat presentations, people laugh while they learn without straining their brain. Of Kay, one client wrote, "I would recommend Kay Frances for any professional development seminar, meeting or conference your group is organizing... Kay was not only funny but inspiring! " You can learn more about Kay and her work by visiting her Web site (www.kayfrances.com/index.html). |
2:00 PM
Adjournment
