SLAB Holds Elections and Plans End of Year Fundraiser

by Marisa Dabney

UB SLA has officially changed its name to SLAB (Special Libraries Association at Buffalo). This month SLAB held elections for next semester’s president and vice president. Nick Brodnicki will be the new president and Patricia Powers will be the new vice president.

Current SLAB President Ellie Jones spoke with Dr. Judith Robinson and other faculty regarding what courses students concentrating in special libraries should take. The following courses were recommended: Digital Information Retrieval; Collection Development; and Archives. Dr. Robinson also suggested getting involved in a corporate library practicum or special project.

If you still have not joined SLA, it is not too late. Students can join for a special $35 membership fee. Applications are available online at www.sla.org

SLAB would like to join its fellow student organizations in wishing all fall graduates good luck in their future careers. And to everyone else (including graduates!), have a happy, healthy and safe winter break.

LIS GSA Ends Year With Happy Hour

by Ellie Jones

LIS GSA will end the fall semester with another Happy Hour at Jack’s Place
on Thursday, December 4th starting at 9pm. So, the night before your last class (and possibly a final) come down to Jack’s for food anddrinks courtesy of LIS GSA.

LIS GSA will also be hosting an orientation like event in January 2009. Suggestions for the event include karaoke and ice skating.

The mentorship program will be in full swing next semester as well. LIS GSA
is working with local, professional organizations to enhance and to broaden the program. Watch the listserv for information on how to become a mentee or mentor.

LIS GSA will also be working on a program that will allow students to come to-
gether, to express concerns and questions about the accreditation process and the DLIS program as well as offer ideas and suggestions for the program. This will be a chance for students to explain their interests and perhaps suggest course ideas and routes to follow.

And finally, LIS GSA would like to congratulate all of the December graduates on their achievements and on earning their MLS.  LIS GSA wishes all December graduates a hearty congratulations and good luck in all their endeavors!

Pregunta De Semana

How much do you use the list-serv? Do you get it in regular or digest form?

Do you INTENSELY DISLIKE THE LIST SERV?

Tell us your feelings (or thoughts) about it.

Question Time!!

Time for some fun.

Finals are coming up and stress is in the air.

What are some things you like to do to relieve the stress during finals time?

Question de Semaine

That French is bad. Someone should fix it.

Here’s your question:

What do you think should be posted on the list serv? Should the recent political conversations be allowed? Why or why not?

Should there be guidelines for the list serv?

Editor Correction

Anna Gossin’s name was misspelled as Anna Grossin on both the blog and the PDF newsletter (see “Weed Me, Seymour”). The newsletter stored here has been fixed as has the blog entry. The editor apologizes for this mistake.

Game Night to be a Big Hit for LIS GSA

By Ellie Jones
  

LIS-GSA will be co-sponsoring the upcoming George Bobinski lecture on November 10th. The lecture will be held at Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society and will feature Michele Cloonan’s work on Iraqi libraries.

Prior to the Bobinski lecture will be another lecture. On the same day, but different time and place. In Baldy 553, Dr. Sidney Berger will be giving a lecture on being a rare books librarian in a digital information world. This lecture is also free and open to students.

On a more social note, LIS GSA wants to kick it old school. As in, elementary school. That’s right, we are holding our ever successful Game Night! (Historians, ignore the fact that it is our first Game Night) At a location yet to be determined, LIS GSA will host a lovely evening of fun games. We might even purchase pizza and pop. Euchre, Monopoly, Risk—bring your own game for a relaxing night…of humiliation and defeat.

In more humanitarian news, LIS GSA is sponsoring a canned drive for City Mission. A box for dropping off items to be collected at a later date is located in the Student Lounge.

   And for you Rochester folks, a Rochester Happy Hour is being planned for November.

     

In all cases, keep an eye on the list serv for more information! 

UB ALA Launches Humanitarian Initiative

By Sarah Kelly

The semester is in full swing, and so are the activities in UB ALA. Our bake sale was a hit, and those who attended the Wine Soiree had a great time. The UB ALA website is still listed as under construction, so continue to check out our Word Press blog at ubstudentala.wordpress.com. Also, remember the Bobinksi lecture, Life, Liberty, and Libraries in Iraq, will be held at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society on November 10th.  There will be a reception at 6:00 with the lecture to follow from 7:30 – 8:30.

This holiday season please remember that we are doing a book drive for those who need something to read. Most of us can go to the bookstore or the library when we want something to read, but there are those who can’t and UB ALA is seeking to help them. As you’re cleaning out and getting rid of old textbooks and novels, make a decision to drop them off in the various book donation boxes that you’ll see around the department. Also, when you go home for the holidays, ask your family and friends if they have anything they would like to donate. The more that we can gather, the more enjoyable someone’s holiday will be.

SLAWNY Plans Tour of Hull House, Encourages Involvement

By Kelly Kroese

<p? SLAWNY’s next gathering will be Thursday, November 6, 2008. It will be a walking tour, starting at 4:30pm at The Hull House, 5976 Genesee Street, Lancaster 14086. Built by Revolutionary War veteran Warren Hull, the c.1810 Hull House is the oldest surviving stone dwelling in Erie County and was used as a place of refuge for citizens of Buffalo fleeing the village as it was being burned by the British in Dec. 1813. Come tour this great historical landmark. http://www.landmark-niagara.org/hull/int/index.html.

SLAWNY members will also be assisting UB ALA in their book drive for charity. Local SLMS will be donating from their personal stashes and assisting us in the collection of the books through their ILL. UB ALA is very grateful for their support and assistance

SLAWNY would like more student involvement in their networks, committees and events. They still need a lot of help with the planning of their spring professional conference, “Spring Sharing,” which will be held in March. All students should also plan on attending the event, as there are many interesting and informative sessions to experience.

There are currently only 10 Student members of SLAWNY, which is completely ludicrous. All of us in the Buffalo area should have memberships in order to build our networks and have access to “insider information.” There is rolling acceptance of membership fees so you can join at any time. The sooner the better!

Books Bring People Together in Rochester

By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

Rochester Area School Librarians held their first meeting this week to talk about popular books, methods of book selection, and how to get students involved in book groups. Membership is $10 for students and a great opportunity for networking with fellow librarians. More events are being planned, so check out the website at rasl.wikispaces.com.

There will also be several exciting opportunities to meet some famous authors and illustrators in November. As a special preview to the Rochester Children’s Book Festival, members of RASL have been invited to the Rochester Area Children’s Writers and Illustrators’ meeting on Thursday, November 6 at the Pittsford Barnes & Noble from 7 to 9 pm. Come on out and spend some time with some of the coolest people in the book world! Check back on the blog for more information about upcoming meetings and workshops in the Rochester area.