Here’s the Media Center Messenger article I promised to post. It’s also on the SCASL Blogs! page.
Power Up @ your library!
Conference Wrap Up!
Valerie Byrd Fort, SCASL President Elect
valeriebyrdfort@gmail.com
More than 800 South Carolina school librarians, technology specialists, teachers, and administrators came to Columbia in March for the 33rd Annual SCASL Conference, Power Up @ your library! To everyone who facilitated, presented, hosted a tour, worked at the Information Booth, took tickets, picked up (or dropped off) a special guest, set up technology, or modeled in our fashion show, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! Conference can not happen without the help of SCASL members.
Each year, our conference provides our members a chance to get together and network with peers, as well as learn new ways of doing and thinking. This year was no different – hopefully, you left conference feeling “powered up” for the rest of the school year. Have you checked out that blog you noted or tried to podcast yet? Be sure that before the end of the school year, you try at least one thing you learned at conference. That’s the point! I have already seen my Twitter (www.twitter.com) network expand by at least 12 South Carolina connections – all new because of conference!
I know you are bursting with ideas after listening to presenters like Joyce Valenza, Annette Lamb and Larry Johnson. I know you are rejuvenated after hearing authors like Alan Katz, Eloise Greenfield, Will Hobbs, and Jaime Adoff. I know you are motivated to do more after going to sessions by your colleges. My hope is that you were able to take something away from each and every session you went to. Let us know what you have tried by posting to SCASL Blogs!
We tried some new things this year: online evaluation and volunteer forms, podcasts of book award book talks, a conference wiki (look for directions on how to participate in this issue of Media Center Messenger), and tours on Wednesdays. All of these were ideas and suggestions gathered from reading evaluation forms from past conferences. After reading this year’s evaluation forms, I know that there were many powerful concurrent sessions, even though I did not get to attend any of them. I also know that you loved the authors we had this year and that you want more and more technology sessions – the more “hands on,” the better. The Conference Steering Committee looks at each and every evaluation and thinks about them when planning future conferences. Thank you for your suggestions!
I hope you have a wonderful rest of the school year…start thinking about how you can participate in next year’s conference! We’ll see you in Greenville, March 11-13, 2009.
