Tuesday mornings in the Convention Center are always sad. We come to the Convention Center to find that all the registration booths are coming down. Signs are gone, exhibits closed, ALA Store gone. I always find it somewhat depressing.
Today’s agenda started (after the business items) with the report from Policy Monitoring Committee . Many of there items were housekeeping and merely involve deciding where past Council actions appear in the handbook. There was much discussion on the election guidelines. These are not policies, and therefore not in the Handbook. Should “officers” be allowed to endorse candidates? Should units? Is not allowing this stifling our first amendment rights? These were the topics covered. The Executive Board has been charged with (again) reviewing the guidelines, and I can expect that there will be more discussion.
Janet Swan Hill did a masterful job of presenting the report. Janet then continued to report on the E-Participation Task Force. (ALA CD#35)
The Council Orientation Committee (CD#40) had an item which got a surprising amount of discussion. There was discussion about shortening the length of conferences. BARC (the Budget Analysis and Review Committee) will review this issue and report at summer.
We heard more on the graduated dues. And there was yet more discussion. [editorial remarks] Some people just don’t get that we have “semi-graduated” dues already. They also don’t get that doing salary based dues are patently unfair if the same scale is used across the country. [end editorial]
The Committee on Accreditation report almost got referred to the Education Task Force. There was extended discussion of whether COA did a good job. <editorial, again> The report presented incredibly minor editorial changes where many of us want much more. <end editorial>
The Committee on Professional Ethics (CD#38) report was presented. There are several important additions. They were passed with some discussion.
Honorary Membership was voted for Peggy Sullivan, Effie Lee Morris, and Pat Mora.
Keith Michael Fiels read the petition candidates whose petitions had been received.
Attendance as of Monday 10,533 registrants with exhibitors total was 13,601 which was up 1,300 from last year at the same time.
There are 1 Comments to "ALA Council II"
My first conference was in June 1951 and over the years attended both as a vendor (S&S/Coronet Films and a library trustee and indeed there always was a bit of sadness for those of us that still had meetings after most had dashed out of town.
However, as I look back over all those years and recall the thousands of friendships that developed and all the concepts and ideas that related to the library process (and it is a process and not a place) my life became enriched and full. Thank you ALA for 100 plus well organized and executed conferences.