Tracking layoffs?

The Layoff List: American Lawyer

This list from the American Lawyer tracks employment changes at the Am Law 200, Global 100 and other firms. Just click on the firm of interest and you will find articles about what layoffs if any have taken place:

http://www.law.com/jsp/tal/PubArticleTAL.jsp?id=1202425647706


The Layoff List: Blogs

Here are some of many blogs with latest news on layoffs.

http://www.layofflist.org/

http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2009/01/27/h/

http://www.nowpublic.com/tech-biz/layoffs-list-job-losses-2008-and-2009-ongoing

http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2009/map.economy/index.html


Note: If you have favorite online sources you are using to track layoffs, please post. This posting will be continually updated with new information.

Librarian at Sea : Cathy Palombi

Cathy Palombi, Access Services Librarian at the University of Virginia School of Law Library, sailed around the world with the Semester At Sea program this past fall with 700 undergraduates and 100 faculty and staff from all over the country. UVA sponsors this “floating university,” which has been in existence since 1963, and each semester a librarian and an assistant are selected to assist the students and faculty with their courses. And yes, there’s a real library on board, with 10,000 volumes and access to all UVA databases.

Classes are held while the ship sails from port to port, and the learning continues in each country, where students and faculty participate in course-related experiences as well as independent travel. The ship departed on August 26 from Norfolk, VA and stopped in the Bahamas, Brazil, Namibia, South Africa, India, Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, China, Japan, Hawaii and Costa Rica, before returning to Miami December 15.

Favorite country? Vietnam

Most memorable experience? Overnight home-stay in Japan

Most eye-opening experience? The poverty everywhere (townships in Cape Town, etc.)

Greatest challenge? Staying upright on the ship’s treadmill for most of the four months

Best food? Malaysia

Ship surprises/memories? The incredible slowness of the Internet, a bigger cabin than expected, worse food than expected (how can that be possible?), outstanding crew, and some really remarkable students and faculty.

Here is Cathy's blog about her experience: http://seecathyatsea.blogspot.com/

In and Around VALL

Congratulations to Tony & Rosie Ikwueme!

Ariana Somto Ikwueme arrived on February 7, at 6:44 am, weighing 7 lb. 13 oz. She joins brother Bradley. Both mother and child are doing well.

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ASL and Virginia Tech Launch New Program to Award
Certificate of Graduate Studies in Natural Resources

The Appalachian School of Law and Virginia Tech have joined forces to offer a Certificate of Graduate Study in Natural Resources. Pursuant to this new co-operative arrangement, ASL students interested in Natural Resources Law will be able to enhance their legal educations under the auspices of one of the most respected Natural Resources programs in the United States.

Classes will be offered via distance technology and in person on both the ASL and Virginia Tech campuses.

VALL member Charlie Condon, Associate Dean for Information Services and Library Director, coordinated the technology support for the new program on behalf of ASL. Collection Management Librarian and VALL member Beth Stanley reviewed the library’s current holdings in Natural Resources Law and implemented a plan she designed to expand ASL’s collection to fully support the new program.

More information on the new program can be found at http://www.asl.edu/ .

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Suffolk Circuit Court Law Library

Heather Buchanan, Randy Carter (Clerk of Suffolk Circuit Court) & JoAnn Featherston at the Constitutional Officers Christmas Party

Nominations Deadline: January 9, 2009

The deadline for candidate nominations for offices of Vice President/President Elect; Treasurer and Director are fast approaching. You may send your nominations in to Evelyn Campbell at ecampbell@hunton.com or through the comment box in this posting.

The deadline for all nominations is Friday, January 9.

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I always wondered why somebody didn't do something about that. Then I realized I was somebody.--Lily Tomlin

Message from the President, Dec. 18, 2008

Resolutions

· res·o·lu·tion (\ˌre-zə-ˈlü-shən\): a formal expression of opinion, will, or intent
Another new year is almost upon us, which makes it time for resolutions! I always try to include a few resolutions which will make my life easier in some way. In recent years “easier” has usually meant “electronic.” I stopped writing checks in favor of online bill paying. I rarely write letters, replacing them with email correspondence. I stopped buying cookbooks, preferring to lookup recipes online. I stopped maintaining our book club book list document and started using goodreads.com to track our book selections and ratings. I started using LinkedIn and began phasing out my Outlook Contacts.

VALL is making some similar resolutions for the coming year. We’re looking for ways to make communication easier, more accessible and more effective among association members and for those interested in our activities. We will be making some much anticipated changes to the VALL website. We are talking about a wiki. We have started a blog. Many thanks to Evelyn Campbell for setting it up! You will find information about the board nominations process; a copy of the VALL Handbook, Constitution and Bylaws.; and terrific pictures from the annual meeting, It will be a fantastic resource for us. I encourage you to take a look at the blog and think about how it might be useful to you (http://valltalk.blogspot.com/). Please send your ideas to Evelyn Campbell so she can work with her committee to make the blog what you want it to be.

What professional resolutions do you have? How can VALL help you keep them? I encourage you to contribute your resolutions and to contribute ideas to support your colleagues’ resolutions. Send your resolutions to me or Evelyn and we’ll be sure they are posted for others to comment on!

It might be important to note as I encourage a number of e-initiatives, that I have written this article with a decidedly low-tech pen and pad. The hard drive on my laptop is failing. (Eek)! So as we work on resolutions for the new year, let’s not forget all the things we learned in years past. We still need all of that too!

Happy New Year!

Leanne

VALL Annual Meeting 2008, Richmond, VA

Newsletter Deadline: Dec. 15

Scribes, midnight writers, Baldacci wannabes, the Newsletter needs your contributions! Tony Ikwueme acikwueme@liberty.edu and Eric Kistler ekistler@liberty.edu welcome your masterpieces and your photos!