Mississippi State Library and SOLINET to co-sponsor ALA Advocacy Institute in New Orleans
Contact: Marci Merola
PR Specialist-Advocacy
312-280-2431
For Immediate Release
May 25, 2006
Mississippi State Library and SOLINET to co-sponsor ALA Advocacy Institute in New Orleans
CHICAGO - The Mississippi State Library and the Southeastern Library Network (SOLINET) have joined the growing list of co-sponsors for the American Library Association (ALA) Advocacy Institute, scheduled for Friday, June 23, 2006, during Annual Conference in New Orleans.
Advanced registration for the Institute is open through June 9 and is $25, including
lunch.
The Advocacy Institute will begin with a luncheon on two timely legislative issues: the 65 Percent Rule, affecting school libraries, and TABOR (Tax Payer Bill of Rights) laws, affecting state funding. Ann Dutton Ewbank, chair of the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) Task Force on Instructional Classification, will discuss the 65 Percent Rule, and Kay Boies, executive director, Oklahoma Library Association, will provide an update on TABOR Laws, which impact state funding. Gloria Meraz, Texas Library Association, will moderate the discussion.
The main program will address advocacy topics such as message development, lobbying and coalition building techniques. During the course of the day, attendees will work on an advocacy action plan to implement in their library. Geared to help foster community support among library professionals, Friends, trustees and advocates at the state levels, the Advocacy Institute is designed for the beginning advocate or anyone who wants to sharpen their skills.
Presenters include Gail Dysleski, president, New Jersey Library Trustee Association and Advocacy Institute Task Force member; Susan Schmidt, past-president, Friends of Libraries USA (FOLUSA); Sally Reed, executive director, FOLUSA; Carol A. Brey-Casiano, chair, Advocacy Institute Task Force and 2004-2005 ALA Immediate Past President; Fran Roscello, AASL, Dr. Ismail Adbullahi, associate professor, North Carolina Central University; Dr. Beth Paskoff, dean, School of Library and Information Science, Louisiana State University; and Keith Michael Fiels, executive director, ALA.
To register for the Advocacy Institute, visit
www.ala.org/advocacyinstitute and follow the links to ALA's registration page.
To register for the luncheon only, visit the same site and register for the Advocacy Institute. Onsite registration for both the Advocacy Institute and the joint luncheon will be available and begins at 11:30 am.
In addition to the Mississippi State Library and SOLINET, the Advocacy Institute at the 2006 ALA Annual Conference is co-sponsored by the Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Southeastern and Texas Library Associations. It is a project of the Advocacy Institute Task Force of the ALA Public Awareness Committee, in partnership with the ALA Chapter Relations Office, the Association for Trustees and Advocates, the ALA Washington Office, the ALA Public Information Office, and FOLUSA. The Institute is made possible by a grant from the Ford Foundation.
