DAY 2

Yesterday I kicked off the day with a run through the exhibit hall. We ran through about 1/3rd of the hall hitting various vendors and catching up with friends and colleagues.

From there I headed to the AASL President’s Program. The program was kicked off by awarding the Spokane Mom’s the Crystal Apple Award. Meeting these amazing women was a highlight. It was so exciting to see the passion they had to preserver and improve their school libraries in Washington. Wouldn’t it be great to see this grassroots effort happening in every state! Read more about their efforts at: http://www.fundourfuturewashington.org/

In the afternoon I presented along with the assistance of Jay Bansbach the AASL 101 session. This program gave newbies information about AASL and how to get involved. While the crowd was small, we were able to share information about AASL and spending time in individual conversations.

I had a little more time for exhibits after the session and was able to catch-up with several vendors.

I ended the day at the ALA Scholarship Bash at Disneyland. There were a lot of people, but we had a great time!

DAY 3

This morning was AASL Affiliate Assembly. This is my last meeting on the Executive Committee as I now cycle off following my term as Past-Chair. Affiliate Assembly is a wonderful forum for sharing concerns with the AASL Board and for AASL to share with the states all that is happening. AASL President, Sara Kelly Johns, AASL President-Elect, Ann Martin, and a whole host of AASL Committee Chairs provided insights and updates on to what is happening in our organization. We also discussed and voted on several concerns and commendations that will now be sent to the AASL Board to consider. It was a very productive meeting.

In the afternoon I shared a brief AASL 101 in the exhibit hall. It mostly became a one on one conversation with a library school student, but it was a great chance to share about the wonderful things AASL does as an organization.

I caught a little of the Demco Book Cart Drill Team competition before calling it a day!

Bright and early I left Indianapolis (7:00am) and arrived in California around 10:00am. After getting settled in the hotel, I took a nice long nap. Working for C.L.A.S.S. this week on top of the early wake-up call this morning (4am) had just worn me out.

ALA started for me with American Association of School Librarians’ Affiliate Assembly meetings. The Executive Committee met first followed by Affiliate Assembly 1 from 8-10pm tonight. Affiliate Assembly is the heart of AASL. Each state affiliate sends two representatives. This body shares with the national organization the issues and concerns from all the states in the country. It allows our national organization to know what areas it needs to focus on across the country. Tonight we talked about lots of issues and Affiliate Assembly will vote on the most critical areas to send to the AASL Board on Sunday.

Even with my nap, it has been a long day. But, glad to be in Anaheim and ready to enjoy a great conference!