Virtual Conference
PLA 2010 Virtual Conference - Registration Now Open
PLA is offering a great way to participate in and enjoy conferences, even if you can't be there in person. A Virtual Conference will be held during the upcoming PLA 2010 National Conference. The Virtual Conference will consist of live programming on Thursday, March 25 and Friday, March 26. The virtual conference will include five hour-long, live programs on each day, plus an hour long author interview. Programs are chosen from among the highest rated in PLA's session preference survey. Each day also will include a lunchtime author interview and a closing session 'happy hour' event for attendees to get together and discuss the day's programming. Registration opens on January 11, 2010.
The Virtual Conference will feature panel discussions, poster sessions, interactive workshops, and chats with colleagues, all from the comfort of your computer. You'll be able to participate in sessions like:
If You Didn't Work Here, Would You Come Here? - Do you ever feel like you're missing an important segment of your population? Where are all those quarter-life adults and young professionals? If you look around and do not see them, they are your new underserved population. With an impressive panel of speakers from across the U.S., find out how to connect with this elusive group through innovative programming, direct marketing, and smart connections. If you didn't work in the library, would you use it?
Cross Over Readers Advisory - Presenters will focus on the appeal of teen books for adult readers and adult books for teen readers. Also will detail how to suggest crossover books using RA techniques and real life scenarios.
LITA's Top Technology Trends - At the end of this program participants will have a better understanding of the variety of complex information technology issue currently facing public libraries. Participants also will hear a number of varying viewpoints from which to approach these issues.
Marketing as Conversation: How to Interact with Your Community Through Your Website - Your staff members represent your organization to the customers they encounter at the desk. How about through your library's webiste? Incorporate conversations using blogging and emerging social networking tools like Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Presenter will show how to encourage staff to participate and engage patrons at small and large libraries.
Cracking the Code: Beyond Dewey Words vs. Numbers: Word-based organization has become a much-talked about trend in public libraries. Using words instead of the Dewey Decimal Classification System provides customers the ability to browse and find exactly what they want without having to interpret numerical codes. This invigorating panel will focus on the process of implementing word-based systems and discuss why libraries are deciding to break down barriers so they can make searching more intuitive for customers.
Advanced Black Belt Librarians: The Top Ten Security Issues in Public Libraries - Warren Graham, author of Advanced Black Belt Librarians, will share the top ten security issues he has encountered in public libraries across the country and techniques on how to successfully respond.
S.Y.A.S.S. Save Your After School Sanity - Teen behavior can range from perfectly pleasant to mere nuisance to outright hazardous. If your teens are out of control, learn how your staff can work together with an appropriate, unified response to create after school peace in your library. Use community resources to help your staff look at environments, examine their practices and preconceived notions, and turn things around. We did it and you can, too!
Shortcuts to Greatness or 10 Things Great Libraries Know and Maybe You Don't - What makes a library great? Are there shortcuts to greatness? Have you heard that it takes years to change a library culture and you don't have that long? In this program, library consultant and Executive Director of the South Jersey Regional Library Cooperative, Karen Hyman reveals what great organizations know that you can borrow, adapt, or shamelessly copy to jumpstart yoru library's move to greatness.
Programming for the Virtual Conference is still being confirmed so be sure to check back for new additions to the line-up and for the final schedule. Virtual Conference programs were selected from among the highest rated programs in the PLA 2010 Session Preference Survey.
Schedule (all times are Pacific Standard Time)
Thursday, March 25, 2010
7:45 a.m. Welcome and Introduction
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. If You Didn't Work Here, Would You Come Here?
9:15 - 10:15 a.m. Cross Over Readers Advisory
10:30 - 11:30 a.m. LITA's Top Technology Trends
11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m. Inside the Author's Studio with
Booklist's Donna Seaman
1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Marketing as Conversation: How to Interact with Your
Community Through Your Website
2:15 - 3:15 p.m. S.Y.A.S.S. Save Your After School Sanity
3:15 Happy Hour/Wrap-Up
Friday, March 26, 2010
7:45 a.m. Welcome and Introductions
8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Cracking the Code: Beyond Dewey: Words vs. Numbers
9:15 - 10:15 a.m. Program to come
10:30 - 11:30 a.m. Advanced Black Belt Librarians:
The Top Ten Security Issues in Public Libraries
11:45 - 12:45 a.m. Inside the Author's Studio with
Booklist's Donna Seaman
1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Program to come
2:15 - 3:15 p.m. Shortcuts to Greatness or 10 Things That Great Libraries Know and Maybe You Don't
3:15 Happy Hour/Wrap-Up
The PLA Virtual Conference also includes:
Inside the Author's Studio
Each day, Donna Seaman of Booklist will interview notable authors exclusively for the Virtual Conference audience.
Audio Poster Sessions
An important element of the conference experience, Virtual Conference attendees are welcome to explore our audio poster session which features PowerPoint presentations or Web tours with audio narration. As part of the last PLA National Conference (2008), we offered twenty poster sessions for attendees to peruse, on topics like Early Literacy, Website Accessibility, Cataloging Video Games, Public/Academic Library Collaboration, and Impact of Library Outreach. We also featured poster sessions on library programming like 52 Books - 52 Weeks, A.R.T. Revolution forTeens, Local History, and more.
Virtual Conference registration costs are as follows:
Single person registration:
PLA Members - $215
ALA Members - $270
Nonmembers - $310
Students - $85
Group Registration*:
Up to three attendees - $335
4-9 attendees - $635
10-20 attendees $1035
More than 20 please call for rate.
*Our group rate is based on one log-in per site with the assumption the group will come together and participate in the Virtual Conference from one location. Each location must purchase its own group registration.
Registration for Virtual Conference closes on Friday, March 19. For more information email pla@ala.org or call 1-800-545-2433, ext. 5PLA.
Virtual Conference Technology Requirements
We strive to keep our Virtual Conference as accessible as possible with low-bandwidth, cross-platform solutions. The best way to test your system is to click on this link http://www.learningtimes.net/connectcheck and run the tests at the bottom of the page. Contact mike@learningtimes.net if you have questions about the tests or your library's technology capacity.
