| VLA Newsletter
August 1998 issue
VLA Wants You! Have you ever wanted to become involved in VLA work, but didn’t know how? It’s as easy as filling out the committee interest form in this issue. That’s all you have to do to become involved in VLA. An MLS is not required. Experience is not required. For most of the VLA committees, there are no special qualifications, other than a willingness to serve and membership in VLA. When you send in a completed form, the Second Vice President forwards your name to the chair of the first committee you’ve listed. EVERY name is forwarded. There are usually openings for everyone who is interested in serving. Brief descriptions of the committee’s work are on the form, but you can check the VLA manual on the VLA web site (http://www.vla.org/manual/manual.html) for more information about each committee. VLA needs YOU! --Donna Gant
VLA Council Meeting The VLA Council met in Charlottesville on June 12, 1998. President, Tom Hehman, called the meeting to order and the minutes from the April 3rd Council meeting were approved. Linda Hahne, Executive Director, presented the treasurer’s report. From January 1 through June 10, a total of $149,163 was received as income. The Annual Conference has already generated $26,230 in income and the Paraprofessional Conference generated $50,807. Linda reported that legislative donations have increased and that several unit programs and workshops have done quite well. The Association has been able to transfer $40,000 into long-term investments which earn greater interest. As Executive Director, Linda reported that the Membership Directory has gone to the printer. Currently, VLA has 1,189 members. There were 267 members who did not renew after receiving renewal notices and postcards. Income taxes for 1997 were filed, 22 scholarship applications were received and 84 exhibitor booths have already been sold for the Annual Conference. Linda noted that her preferred email address is now hahne@bellatlantic.net. Neal Wyatt, chair of the Intellectual Freedom Committee, presented a revised draft of the VLA intellectual freedom vision statement and position on open access to the Internet which initially appeared in the May issue of the VLA Newsletter. The document was discussed at length and suggestions for further revisions were made. The statement was then approved as amended and Tom thanked the committee members for their hard work. Janis Augustine, co-chair of the Legislative Committee, presented the proposed VLA legislative agenda for the 1999 General Assembly session. VLA will seek legislative action for state aid for public libraries, VIVA, the Library of Virginia budget, the statewide technology plan for public libraries, internet/electronic access, and sales tax exemption for friends groups. VLA will also make an effort to build a stronger relationship with the Governor’s Office in order to establish gubernatorial support of libraries in the budget process. VLA will support the study and discussion of library construction funding and will support the public law libraries’ efforts to develop a strategy to achieve passage of legislation to generate additional protected revenues through dedicated fees. After some discussion and revisions, the proposed agenda was accepted. Lis Chabot, Past President, reported on the retreat of the Ad Hoc Committee on VLA Purpose, Goals and Structure. A summary of that meeting appeared in the June Newsletter. The discussion at Council highlighted some of the topics from the retreat. One idea was that the Executive Committee should meet more often than it currently does, perhaps on a monthly basis. Discussion of the VLA organizational structure covered the idea of combining some sections and forums and creating subcommittees beneath the larger units. This led to a discussion concerning the importance of the VLA regional structure and whether it should be retained. The Committee plans to seek further input from the membership and expects to bring recommendations for organizational change to the September 12 Council meeting for action. The report from the Conference Committee indicated that over one hundred concurrent session proposals were submitted for the Annual Conference in October. More detailed information about the conference should be available soon. The Legislative Committee reported that Federal Legislative Day was a success with forty library supporters from Virginia and thirteen representatives of Congress in attendance. The Council meeting closed with announcements from the units. Many reported
on successful spring programs or announced upcoming events. Jo Ellen
Opyoke of the Volunteer Management Roundtable announced plans to organize
a youth volunteer award which would be presented to the winner at their
school. The Roundtable will work on setting criteria for the award and
will present a proposal to the Executive Committee. Steve Helm,
webmaster of the VLA web page, reported that Lycos selected the VLA page
in its "top
5%" directory of best sites. Ona Turner of the Paraprofessional
Forum announced that 472 people representing 16 different states attended
the spring conference. VLA Executive Director Linda Hahne was named Outstanding
Paraprofessional of the Year.
Changing Times, Time For Change Dear VLA Member, The June VLA Newsletter carried a report on the May planning retreat of the ad hoc Committee on VLA Purpose, Goals and Structure. The committee also proposed some organizational changes to clarify, simplify and streamline VLA's organizational structure and help make VLA more efficient and effective. The changes were presented and discussed at the June 12 Council meeting, and are being revised for presentation to the September 11 Council meeting as action items for VLA Manual revision. We need your help. We need your feedback and constructive criticism on these proposed changes, which will be posted to VLA's web page (www.vla.org) after August 1. The committee also will send them to the VLA listserv (VLA-L). To subscribe to the VLA listserv, go to the VLA web page and click on "contact VLA" for instructions. If you wish to receive a copy of the proposal directly, please contact me at thehman@leo.vsla.edu or call 540-586-8911, x32. Thanks in advance for your thoughts. Tom Hehman, President
VLA Legislative Agenda for the 1999 General Assembly Session VLA will seek legislative action for the following priorities: 1. State Aid for Public Libraries - VLA will continue to support the three-year phased funding plan which requires an additional $2.8 million in FY 99/00, the second year of the biennium. 2. VIVA - VLA will support the VIVA budget amendment to secure $500,000 in the second year of the 98/00 biennium. 3. Library of Virginia Budget - VLA will continue to support the LVA operating budget, as developed by the LVA staff and board. 4. Statewide Technology Plan for Public Libraries - VLA will support the plan and budget requests currently under development by LVA and representatives from the public libraries. Also VLA will continue to strengthen working relationships with key legislators and their staff who are involved with technology issues. 5. Internet/Electronic Access - VLA will encourage the drafting of legislation that would enable localities to set their own policies for Internet/electronic access. VLA will also monitor and respond to other proposed legislation to regulate Internet/electronic access. 6. Friends Groups' Sales Tax Exemption - VLA will ensure that the Friends' exemption is retained along with those of other tax exempt groups. VLA will develop the following priorities: 1. Executive Branch - VLA will make a concerted effort to build a stronger relationship with the Governor's Office in order to establish gubernatorial support of libraries in the budget process. 2. Library Capital/Construction Funding - VLA will support the basic study and discussion to develop this as a funding issue to be pursued after other priorities have been achieved. 3. Public Law Libraries - VLA will support public law libraries in their efforts to develop a strategy to achieve passage of enabling legislation to generate additional protected revenues through dedicated fees. 4. Additional Legislative and Governmental Matters of Concern to Libraries
- VLA will monitor and act on these as the need arises.
VLA Intellectual Freedom Statements At its June 12 meeting, the VLA Council adopted the following intellectual freedom statements, drafted by the Intellectual Freedom Committee under the leadership of Neal Wyatt, after considerable member input and Council debate prior to adoption. Intellectual Freedom Vision Statement The Virginia Library Association supports the principle of open access to information and ideas, regardless of the medium in which they exist. The Association believes that a democracy can only succeed if its citizens have access to the information necessary to form opinions and make decisions on issues affecting their lives. The Association regards access to this information as a right of free citizens. The Association endorses the American Library Association's Code of Ethics, Freedom to Read Statement, the Library Bill of Rights, and the interpretations of the Library Bill of Rights. The association encourages local library systems to adopt policies consistent with their resources and their mission while supporting these ideals. Open Access to the Internet The position of the Virginia Library Association on Open Access to the Internet is a logical extension of its traditional commitment to any resource which has been provided to the public by libraries. The library's primary role in offering Internet resources is not to restrict them, but to offer the public user assistance in locating, interpreting and appreciating resources. The Virginia Library Association endorses a position of free access
and opposes any state or federally mandated restrictions on or of access
to the Internet. The Association encourages local library systems to adopt
policies consistent with their resources and their mission while supporting
these ideals.
Public Documents Forum meets at UVA On Friday September 25th at 1:00 p.m. the Public Documents Forum will
be holding their annual meeting/program at the University of Virginia.
The meeting will be held in Peabody Hall, room 105. Peabody is the old
School of Education building for those of you familiar to the UVA campus.
Jean Tingler from the Virginia Economic Development Partnership will be
the speaker that day. She will discuss and demonstrate the new GIS system
that the EDP is developing. There will be no cost for the program, however
there is limited seating available. To register please phone Steve Stratton
at (703) 993-2238 or e-mail him at sstratto@gmu.edu.
Library of Virginia Board Meeting The Library of Virginia Board met in Richmond on June 15th. The following items were of major significance. On money matters the Board approved disbursement of $15,543,113 in State Aid. The Board also approved the following three measures that will direct funds toward the operating costs of the new building and supporting technology for institutional libraries: 1) eliminate reimbursement payments to net lenders ($166,250); 2) eliminate payments to institutional libraries ($363,276); and 3) revise agency fee structure ($32,000). Board member Peter Broadbent will head a subcommittee to investigate Internet access issues. Committee members will include representatives from the Automation and Public Library Development subcommittees, and representatives from SNUAB and the Virginia Public Library Directors Association. The library of Virginia will host a meeting for public library directors on September 24 and 25. The Records Center facility should be finished by mid 1999. It will be staffed by about eight people. Volume 1 of the Dictionary of Virginia Biography will be published in November. The Library of Virginia Board voted to remain a policy board and will request the legislature not to pursue the issue. Policy boards promulgate public policies or regulations and are not responsible for supervising agencies and employing personnel. The alternative was to try to become a supervisory board. Such a board has broader plenary powers and direct managerial authority over its institution’s purse and personnel. Nolan Yelich, the State Librarian, reported that the Library of Virginia had another good year. He said that the Legislature and the Governor’s Office are beginning to realize the gravity of the Library’s funding and staffing problems and deal with them in meaningful ways. The Library of Virginia Foundation will be asked to retain a legislative liaison. The Board extended Mr. Yelich’s contract to June 30, 2001 by way of showing support for his accomplishments. For Fiscal Year 1998-99 the Library Board’s Executive Committee consists of: Peter Broadbent, Roy Cabell, Serf Guerra, Mary Ann Harmon, Bobbie Hudson, and Leona Wilkins. No date was set for the next Board meeting, which will probably be held in September. --Alan M. Bernstein, VLA Observer to the LVA Board
People & Happenings The Williamsburg Regional Library has recently garnered national recognition by winning awards from the Virginia Public Library Directors Association and the Library Public Relations Council. The Youth Services Department earned the award for 1998 Outstanding Children’s Program with their Mother Goose Time program. The WRL Youth Services Program was also awarded two honorable mentions for the new Book Bowl program for high school students and for Service Innovation during the time of construction at the Williamsburg Library. WRL’s Program Services Department received the 1998 Outstanding Adult Program award for "Beyond Category: The Musical Genius of Duke Ellington." The Special Collections Department of the University of Virginia Library
has received a gift of 170 original illustrations created by noted horse-artist
Wesley Dennis for the children’s book "Misty of Chincoteague" and for other
classic books by Marguerite Henry about the wild ponies of the Virginia
coastal island. The illustrations, chiefly black and white pencil drawings,
were given to the library by the Misty of Chincoteague Foundation Inc.
of Chincoteague, Va.
Calendar VLA Council Meetings The next VLA Council meeting will be held in Charlottesville at the
Northside Library on September 11.
September 24 On Track For the 21st Century: Libraries Leading the Way Sponsor: Region V Place: Marymount University, Arlington Contact: Linda Vretos (703) 913-3851 September 25 Basic Storytelling Skills Sponsor: CYART Place: Central Rappahannock Regional Library Headquarters, Fredericksburg Contact: Rebecca Purdy (540) 372-1144 September 25 Annual Meeting of the Public Documents Forum Sponsor: Public Documents Forum Place: University of Virginia, Charlottesville Contact: Steve Stratton (703) 993-2238 sstratto@gmu.edu October 15-17 VLA/VEMA Annual Conference, Virginia Beach
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