June 2020

Meet the Candidates!

Elections for the 2020-2021 MiALA officers and bylaws amendment proposal begin on Monday, June 1.

Board candidate information - https://www.miala.org/miala_candidate_information.php 
Interest Group Coordination Council candidate information - https://www.miala.org/igcc_candidates.php
Bylaws amendment proposal - https://www.miala.org/docs/2020_bylaws_amendment_proposal.pdf

If you have any questions regarding the elections process, please contact the nominations/elections committee at: elections@miala.org.

Call for Committee Volunteers

Are you looking to become more involved in MiALA? Are you looking for opportunities to share your knowledge outside your institution? 

MiALA is looking for volunteers to serve on their various committees during the 2020-2021 membership year. There are openings on the following committees:
Committee service is a great way to learn more about the organization and share your expertise with other members. For more information on each of the committees listed, click on their links above.

If you are interested in volunteering to serve on a committee, let us know by indicating so on the form here: www.miala.org/IWantToHelp. We will be using these submissions to reach out to members interested in serving next year. Please indicate your interest no later than June 10.
 
New for 2020, chairs for the Advocacy, Communications & Marketing, IDEA, and Membership committees will be self-selected within each committee. If you are interested in this leadership opportunity, you can indicate so on your volunteer form.
 
If you have any questions regarding service on a MiALA committee, contact the Nominations/Elections committee at elections@miala.org

June Member Spotlight

Heather Fisher

Heather smiling at camera














Heather Fisher
Metadata / Catalog Librarian
Saginaw Valley State University

What are you currently reading?
The hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy by Douglas Adams
Controversial books in the K-12 classrooms and libraries by Randy Bobbitt 

What are your research interests?
Music and religion
Music and politics
Film music
Wellness for library staff
Public education and literacy (K-12)

Do you have hobbies or interests outside of the library?
Yoga
Movies
Visiting the lakes
Traveling

What drew you to the library profession?
It was suggested to me. When I talked to our music librarian when I was in graduate school, I fell in love with the idea of helping communities via education. 

What do you value about MiALA?
I really like the collegiality and the support of everyone in the organization. ​

President's Message

Beth Martin

Hello MiALA members,
 
This is my last newsletter piece as your 2019-2020 president. A bittersweet moment for me. I want to continue to thank all of our members past, present and future. We have been an active organization during the past five years, and I am proud to have served, first as a board member, then as VP and president. I look forward to serving one more year as your past president and am excited to see what lies ahead. I cannot stress enough about how much it has been an honor to serve MiALA over the past four years. Thank you.
 
It is now election season for MiALA, and I encourage all of our members to vote for your future leadership. Take the time to read about those who are running for positions and vote for the individuals you feel will best serve our organization. Thank you to all the candidates, thank you for taking the time to see the value of MiALA and deciding to run for a position to serve our organization. Regarding the elections all current members will receive an email from MiALA with a link to the election page. If you feel you did not receive the email with the election information on it (note: the link is at the bottom of the email) then please email us, contact@miala.org Elections will close June 12, 2020, so, please, remember to take the time to elect your new leadership.
 
As we move into the future and begin planning for 2020-2021 please be patient with us. We will be holding a leadership retreat this August whether face-to-face or virtually. We will be sending out that information in the coming weeks.
 
Lastly, I want to thank all of you for the support and encouragement I’ve received during this pandemic. I want to thank those who took the time to advise me, listen to me, and share with me the frustrations of having to do things differently these past few months. I appreciate everyone’s input and support. I am fortunate to have friends and colleagues who are there for me. My wish is that we can one day, finally, meet face to face as an organization and share in all of our successes.
 
Stay safe.
 
Beth Martin, MiALA President

July 27 Adult Learners Conference Now Virtual

The MHSLA/MiALA Partnership Task Force cordially invites you to attend our first ever joint MHSLA/MiALA Pop-Up Conference! This will be an all virtual opportunity to meet and network with library colleagues across the state before our two associations host our joint conference in 2021! Registration is FREE for MHSLA and MiALA members!

When: Monday, July 27, 2020; 10:00AM – 2:30PM (with 1 hour lunch break)
Where: Virtual via Zoom
What: Learn how academic, academic medical, and hospital libraries around the state are tailoring library services to meet the needs of our adult learners! 

Conference Highlights:
“Generational Learners” Continuing Education Course (worth 3 MLA CEs) Are you challenged dealing with the different Generations at work? Looking for a more effective way to bridge the gaps in the different generations in your work life? Generational Diversity will help you understand the mindsets of the different generations from Traditionalist to Gen Z and how you can bridge the gaps in understanding and expectations. 

The CE will be presented by Patrice Hatcher, Senior Leadership Development Consultant for McLaren Health Care. Pat is a Registered Medical Technologist and worked in the clinical laboratory at McLaren for 11 years. She is a certified facilitator for the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Crucial Conversations, Crucial Accountability, Influencer, Project Management Essentials, Situational Leadership and Inspiring Trust. These programs are a part of the McLaren Leadership Academy. She was awarded Platinum status in the Elite Trainer program from VitalSmarts 7 years in a row and counting.


Two Panel Discussions featuring panelists from both of our organizations!
  • Panel 1 “Teaching Learners at Different Education Levels” with perspectives from four librarians in the community college, undergraduate, graduate, medical, and resident levels. Learn about their varying teaching & assessment methods, lessons learned, and looking to the future:
    • Mary Beeker, MLIS, Librarian, Northwestern Michigan College Osterlin Library, Traverse City, MI
    • Mary Fitzpatrick, MLIS, Assistant Librarian, McLaren Medical Library, Flint, MI
    • Margaret Hoogland, MLS, Assistant Professor, Clinical Medical Librarian, The University of Toledo Mulford Health Sciences Library, Toledo, OH
    • Rebecca Renirie, MLIS, Assistant Professor, Distance Education, Biology and Engineering Librarian, Central Michigan University Libraries, Mount Pleasant, MI
  • Panel 2 “Methods of Support for Adult Learning” How do we best tailor our services to accommodate different learners including through our collections, outreach, accessibility? 
    • Iris Kovar-Gough, MLS, Liaison Librarian to the College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University Libraries, Lansing, MI
    • Barbara Platts, MLIS, Manager, Knowledge Management Services, Munson Healthcare, Traverse City, MI

Registration: This will now be an all virtual conference via Zoom!
MiALA/MHSLA Member: FREE, but please register!
Non-Member: $10

For more information and to register, visit the conference information page: https://miala.org/adult_learners.php Registration will remain open through Monday, July 13.

Annual Meeting Recording Now Online

Did you miss the Annual Membership meeting on May 14?  Catch up on Annie Downey's keynote presentation as well as hear from MiALA board members and committee chairs on their yearly reports by viewing a recording of the meeting now posted on the archived events page:
 https://www.miala.org/archived_event_information.php

Providing this meeting online for the membership was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
MiALA Newsletter - June 2020