Message from the President

Greetings, VALL members,

 

This is your friendly, neighborhood 2014-2015 President here with my first message and VALL update. It’s been nearly two months since the Spring Meeting, and things are already in full swing as we enter the summer (by the way, whatever happened to our spring weather?!).

 

The Spring Meeting was a great success, with close to thirty attendees. Members heard Kristin Glover from the University of Virginia Law Library talk about mindfulness and the law (why am I craving raisins all of a sudden?). Also, John Eller and Andrew Christensen from the Washington & Lee Law Library showed how law librarians can further service their legal communities outside of their traditional roles (I personally think every law library should have its own set of “librarian” trading cards).

 

Leadership Transition 

 

In addition, the leadership transition went smoothly. We welcomed new members to the Executive Board: Stephanie Miller as Vice- President/President-Elect, Chris Vassey as Secretary, and Andrew Winston as Director. Many thanks go to Lara Dresser and Heather Casey for their years of service to the board, and to Amy Wharton for her year-long tenure as President. Amy’s work as President has certainly set the bar high for me. So I will do my best to help make VALL an even stronger law library association this year! 

 

Membership Directory: 

 

One of the issues voted on during the Spring Meeting was the future of our VALL Membership Directory. By a majority vote, the directory will no longer be published in print, but exist as an online-only document. This move will ultimately save VALL a significant amount of money each year from publishing the directory. Because of security issues (personal names, phone numbers, etc.) and questions about where to have the actual online directory in place, the transition is currently an ongoing one. We will keep you informed as our membership directory goes through the change from print to online. 

 

VALL 30^th Anniversary Memory Book: 

 

We are continuing to acknowledge and celebrate our 30^th year as a law library association this year! As part of the celebration, the 30^th Anniversary Committee has been hard at work in creating a VALL Memory Book. If you have any VALL memories or thoughts that you would like to share, the committee would love to hear from you. Please contact Sally Wambold at swambold@richmond.edu or you can post your comments on the blog under the Memory Book entry.

In addition, keep an eye out on our blog for future posts from the committee, of interviews and remembrances from previous and current VALL chapter leaders and members.

 

Step up and volunteer in a VALL Committee: 

 

Do you want to become more involved in VALL? Volunteering in a committee is a great way to start. It really doesn’t take too much of your time. Plus, you’ll get to meet and work with your fellow VALL members. This year’s standing committees are currently being formed - the list of committees can be found on the wiki and on this blog (scroll down just past the Executive Board members). So if you are interested, please contact the appropriate committee chair, or you can contact me. Thanks! 

VALL at AALL: 

If you are attending AALL in San Antonio, please attend the VALL Lunch Meeting on Monday, July 14, at noon at Paesano’s Riverwalk Restaurant at 111 W. Crockett St. The venue is about an eight minute walk from the Convention Center. The registration fee is $20 for VALL members, $25 for non-members.

Please RSVP by Monday, June 30. For a registration form, you can visit the VALL Wiki at http://vall.pbworks.com/ or contact Stephanie Miller at millersc@wlu.edu.

Also, if you haven’t yet registered for AALL, do so by June 6 to save $100 on the registration fee!

 

Chapter Leadership Handbook: 

 

It has been several years since its last revision, so we are currently in the process of updating the VALL Leadership Handbook. We will keep you up to date of its progress.

Well, that has been your first message and update from me, VALL members. There are many more exciting plans in the works during our 30^th year. So be sure to keep an eye out on our listserv, Wiki and blog for up to date news and information.

A final note: I am truly honored to be your VALL President during this milestone year. As your President, I will do my very best to represent you and our association in the legal community. However, while I am the President, this is still your association - I am here for you! If you ever have any questions or concerns about VALL, please don’t hesitate to contact me at balmoite@courts.state.va.us.

Thanks and enjoy the summer, everyone!

 

 Ben Almoite



Wythepedia

The College of William & Mary's Wolf Law Library launched Wythepedia on May 1 in honor of Law Day. This online encyclopedia dedicated to the college's and the nation's first law professor, George Wythe, features descriptions of the library's George Wythe collection, Wythe's life and death by poisoning, his letters and papers, and even some poetry.

Linda Tesar is the managing editor of Wythepedia but it was a library-wide project with librarians, staff and graduate research assistants contributing. Check out Paul Hellyer's write up on Wythe's death by poisoning, and Fred Dingledy's reviews of Wythe's chancery cases, as well as Michael Umberger's article on Commonwealth v Canton.

Check out Wythepedia and learn about this fascinating man.

Memory Book

At the April 11 VALL meeting hosted by South University, VALL members had the opportunity to write in the Five Star VALL Memories Book passed around by Sally Wambold. If you were not at the meeting, you can still share your  VALL memories by posting in the comments section of this blog entry or emailing them directly to Sally Wambold (swambold@richmond.edu) The 30^th Anniversary Committee will be compiling these “memories” as a permanent record of the association’s anniversary.

The entries so far have been thoughtful and thought-provoking. Thank you to those who have shared their memories. The committee looks forward to receiving more memories from members to create an anecdotal history of this association whose members have served on multiple library association boards including AALL  and who have authored many publications. 

Thirty years is a milestone worth celebrating and we look forward to receiving lots of memories from you!

Andrew Winston in April 2014 Virginia Lawyer

Andrew Winston has written A Bibliography of Resources on Mindfulness in the Law which was published in the April 2014 Virginia Lawyer. To access the article:  http://www.vsb.org/docs/valawyermagazine/vl0414-libraries.pdf

VALL Spring Meeting, April 11, 2014

 

It was a beautiful day in Glen Allen for the Spring meeting (it didn't rain and there was no snow) and that bright object in the sky was actually the sun!

 

VALL attendees registering at South University for the meeting

 

Having a bite and catching up with other Vallers before the conference

Listening intently to Kristen Glover's "Don't Just Do Something, Sit There!"

 

Thanks to Kristen Glover from the University of Virginia Arthur J. Morris Law Library, I will never look at a raisin in quite the same way again, and I like raisins! One of the exercises that Kristen used in her "mindfulness" presentation was the examination of a raisin. Putting a shriveled up grape in the palm of your hand, bringing it up to your ear, sniffing it, letting it rest on your tongue, gives you a whole new appreciation for that innocous looking dried fruit.

 

The idea of centering oneself in the moment and being aware of your surroundings and your being is not new to those of us who practice yoga. The fact that it is now being used in law schools, businesses and organizations to improve students' and employees' well being and performance, is certainly new.

 

Kristen shared some of the things that the University of Virginia's Mindfulness Center is doing -- it offers a six-week course where students can spend two hours a week participating in mindfulness activities. During finals students can come to the library where there is a room designated for half hour meditations, etc. And if you hit it on the right day, rumour has it that you may even get grilled cheese sandwiches served up by Micheal Klepper and Ben Doherty!

 

For Kristen's presentation and some very helpful resources on mindfulness, please click here: http://vall.pbworks.com/w/page/78868157/Kristin%20Glover%20on%20Mindfulness%2C%20Spring%20Meeting%202014

 

 

John Eller and Andrew Christensen from the Washington & Lee Law Library speaking on "Expanding the Frontiers of Service" from the traditional reference and instructional services provided to students and faculty, to providing "competitive intelligence" to other university departments such as human resources for career placement, recruitment and curriculum development purposes.

 

Those from firm libraries will notice that these are things that firm librarians have been doing for years. It's good to see that there is now a focus on expanding services beyond the traditional ideas of what libraries do, and this also opens up avenues for a greater partnership between academic and firm librarians.

 

For John and Andrew's presentation, please click here: http://vall.pbworks.com/w/page/78873362/Eller%20and%20Christensen%2C%20Expanding%20the%20Frontiers%20of%20Service%2C%20Spring%20Meeting%202014

 

 

Andrew Christensen in a breakaway group discussion

 

Group discussions

 

Outgoing VALL President, Amy Wharton, conducting her last business meeting

 

The Executive Board: L-R: Lara Dresser (outgoing Secretary), Andrew Winston (incoming director), Chris Vassey (incoming secretary), Ben Almoite (incoming president), Stephanie Miller (vice president), and Amy Wharton (outgoing president)

 

The new board!

 

A little gift to Amy for her service to VALL

It's a gavel with an inscription!



VLA Council Meeting Highlights, April 11, 2014

by Terry Long, VALL liaison to VLA Council 

·         Membership is showing strength as the renewal period has just begun - 773 members have renewed and there are 147 new members.

·         VLA’s new web site will go live by May 1.

·         Shari Henry is working on making the VLA Manual consistent with its by-laws.

·         Several council members participated in a conference call with Senator Warner. Kevin Smith said it went very well.

·         Phil Abraham, the VLA lobbyist spoke to the Council:

o   State Aid has fared well despite the current budget debacle in the General Assembly.

o   The budget impasse may affect public law libraries.

o   There are two different attorney general opinions on whether the government can continue to operate after July 1 if a budget has not passed.

o   John Ulmschneider, Legislative Committee co-chair, commended Phil’s good work on behalf of VLA.

·         VLA’s Paraprofessional Forum will be held May 18-20 in Richmond. Registration is open.

·         The Paraprofessional Forum is changing its name to Professional Associates Forum as they want to broaden their membership base to those working in libraries that are not librarians, i.e. financial staff, facilities managers, administrative assistants, etc. And, likewise, the Forum will provide programing of interest to them.

·         Ten VLA members have signed up to attend National Legislative Day May 5-6. VLA pays up to $300 per day for a member to attend.

·         VLA Annual Conference is October 22-24 at the DoubleTree Hotel in Williamsburg

o   Programs submissions will be reviewed and selections made mid-May.

o   28 vendors have already signed up.

o   Fundraising is going well, $5200 has been raised with a goal of $11,000.

o   Wednesday afternoon tours will be offered of Swem Library. Shuttle service will be provided.

o   The unconference will be held in the hotel atrium instead of a meeting room to be more accessible.

·         New Member mentoring program is going well. There will continue to be directed Twitter chats and a visit to a winery is planned.

·         The Leadership Development Academy had more applicants than places. It convenes in Staunton at the Stonewall Jackson Hotel from May 5-6. There will be 24 attendees.

·         The Library of Virginia is the host for the National Genealogical Conference, May 7-10. The conference is huge 2300 people are expected –according to the NGS web site all 6 downtown hotels are booked – they have also reserved rooms in many suburban hotels!  For the first time, the Library will be open one evening.

·         The Library of Virginia is conducting social media boot camps for public libraries to be held throughout the state in May.

AALL 2014 Leadership Academy

by Ben Almoite

 

I was privileged to have been chosen to participate in this year’s AALL Leadership Academy, April 4-5, at the Hyatt Lodge at McDonald’s Campus, in Oak Brook, Illinois. Yes, that’s THE McDonald’s! The location of the two-day workshop was in the same grounds that include McDonald’s Corporate Headquarters, and Hamburger University nearby. If one needed further proof where you were, the hotel showcased much McDonald’s-themed art throughout its halls (see accompanying pictures). In addition, the timing of the academy could not have been any better, as it took place exactly one week before my official succession as VALL President.

 

 

It was a very intense yet educational two days. The academy was led by Gail Johnson and Pam Parr, of Face To Face Communications and Training, Inc. Their presentations were very entertaining and engaging. As participants we watched PowerPoint slides, took short, interesting tests and played “ice breakers” and team building games. From all these activities we learned about the “myths” and definitions of leadership, people’s different styles of communication and leadership, how to communicate clearly and directly, and how to have the “tough talk” or difficult conversation with co-workers. In addition, we learned how one’s values and leadership go hand-in-hand, and how to motivate yourself and others at the workplace. 

 

The academy was also notable in that three VALL members had been selected to participate this year. In addition to me, Debbie Shrager of George Mason Law Library and Andrew Winston of the University of Richmond Law Library were in attendance.

 

VALL members, L-R: Andrew Winston, Debbie Shrager and Ben Almoite

 

All in all, it was a very informative and productive two days. I am very grateful to have been awarded the VALL grant that allowed me to participate in such an innovative workshop. I definitely plan to practice the skills I have learned during this year’s AALL Leadership Academy - during my coming year as VALL President, and beyond.