ALCTS offers precons on disaster preparedness and change management in libraries and technical services

CHICAGO—The Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS) will kick off its ALA Annual programming with two full-day, in-person preconferences “Better Networking for Disasters: Improving Participation and Coordination for Disaster Response and Recovery of Cultural Heritage” and “Change Management in Libraries and Technical Services”. These preconference events will be held on Friday, June 21 from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. prior to the 2019 ALA Conference & Exposition in Washington, D.C.

“Better Networking for Disasters” will use last year’s hurricane season in Puerto Rico as a case study to bring together individuals and organizations directly involved in disaster response and recovery of cultural heritage, as well professionals traveling from the University of Puerto Rico to speak on their experience. This preconference aims to explore ways to improve coordination and increase engagement of ALA members in disaster response and recovery. This mix of formal presentations, moderated panels and a breakout session for the audience is designed to inspire collaborations that extend beyond the current modes of working. 

Please join moderators Miriam Centeno (Collections Care Coordinator, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and Brenna Campbell (moderator), Preservation Librarian, Princeton University Library. Speakers include Hilda Ayala Teresa Gonzalez, Librarian, Biblioteca General, University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez; Lori Foley, Administrator, Heritage Emergency National Task Force, Office of Environmental Planning & Historic Preservation, FEMA; Jonathan Connors, Deputy Director, Northeast, Clay Hunt Fellow, Team Rubicon; Cecilio Ortiz, Associate Professor, Political Science, Department of Social Sciences, University of Puerto Rico; Rebecca Kennedy, Owner/Private Practice, Curae Collections Care; Jessica Unger, Emergency Programs Coordinator, Foundation of the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Work (FAIC); and Johnny Lugo Vega, Director, Cultural Heritage Innovation Program, Puerto Rico Science, Technology & Research Trust.

“Change Management in Libraries and Technical Services” will explore change management as a concept for individuals, organizations, and institutions. Speakers will focus on the specifics of instituting change inside libraries and technical services departments. In addition to learning the foundations of change management and leadership, participants will work through case studies specific to technical services and various types of libraries. Participants will be able to articulate what change management is, identify ways to lead change regardless of position or rank, and will learn to manage their own and others’ responses to change through examples and case studies specific to libraries.

Speakers include Janetta Waterhouse, Director of Technical Services and Library Systems, University of Albany, SUNY; Jenny S. Bossaller, Program Chair, Library and Information Science, University of Missouri; A.J. Million, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, University of Michigan; Erin Leach, Special Collections Cataloging Librarian, University of Georgia Libraries; Rachel Fleming, Collections Initiatives Librarian, University of Tennessee-Chattanooga; Catherine Soehner, Interim Executive Director, Associate Dean for Research and User Services, University of Utah Libraries; Caroline Muglia, Co-associate Dean for Collections, Head, Resource Sharing & Collection Assessment, University of Southern California Libraries; and Denise Pan, Associate Dean, Collections and Content, University of Washington Libraries.

Registration rates for the in-person preconference events are $219 for ALCTS members; $269 for ALA members; and $319 for nonmembers.

For more details on 2019 ALA Annual ALCTS preconferences, including how to register, please visit www.ala.org/alcts/events/ac.   

The Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS) is the national association for information providers who work in collections and technical services, such as acquisitions, cataloging, collection development, preservation and continuing resources in digital and print formats. ALCTS is a division of the American Library Association.