ACL Meeting this Friday, Nov. 9, Ted McCoy, Other News

Meeting Reminder – Friday, Nov. 9, 2012, 9am-1pm at Oakland Main Library 

Just a quick reminder about our regular ACL meeting this Friday – we will have the usual book reviewing and Distinguished Books sharing, but we will also have a report on the recent California Library Association conference, including highlights of programs relating to children’s services. Thanks!

IMLS Survey: Lend Your Voice to Our Youngest Learners!

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is seeking your stories of successful community partnerships for a 2013 policy report on the role of early learning in public libraries. Your stories are paramount to this
report’s success, no matter the size of your library or the scale of your
partnerships. ALSC’s Early Childhood Programs & Services Committee invites you to lend your voice to our nation’s youngest learners at this critical time for early childhood programs and services. Please follow this survey link to share your stories with IMLS by Monday, 11/19/12:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dFgtdjBqbmllR1o1RmJ5dD
VFZDFzdnc6MQ#gid=0>
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dFgtdjBqbmllR1o1RmJ5dDV
FZDFzdnc6MQ#gid=0

Island of the Blue Dolphins Cave Discovered

 Archaeologists believe they have found the cave on San Nicolas Island that was the home of the true-life Native American young woman featured in Scott O’Dell’s Newbery-winning children’s novel Island of the Blue Dolphins (Houghton, 1960). For the details, check out:  http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-lone-woman-cave-20121027,0,3187267,full.story.

ALSC selects McCoy as 2013 Emerging Leader

The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) announced Edward McCoy of the Oakland Public Library as its representative in the 2013 Emerging Leader program. McCoy is currently a library assistant at the Oakland Public Library and a candidate for Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) at San Jose State University in San Jose, Calif.

He says that he first developed his skills working with children during his final undergraduate year as an AmeriCorps member, working as a first-grade Reading Recovery instructor in a low-income elementary school. After working as an attorney for eight years, McCoy returned to library school, where he quickly developed an interest in public library service while working at the Oakland Public Library.

“After participating in branch outreach to local schools and my first summer reading program, I knew public library children’s and youth services was where I was truly meant to be,” he admitted.

McCoy is also active in the Association of Children’s Librarians of Northern California (ACL), including being a 2012-13 Dorothy Helfeld Fellow and co-chair of the Performer’s Showcase. As an ACL member, he reviews children’s literature for the organization’s monthly BayViews publication.

“My involvement with ACL reinforces the importance of staying current with and reviewing children’s literature to my professional development,” he said. “I feel that getting increasingly active in ALA and ALSC is a natural extension of my commitment to children’s services and children’s literature.”

McCoy is also a member of Save Oakland Libraries, a library advocacy organization dedicated to helping ensure Oakland values its libraries. He also completed internships at the San Francisco Public Library and Alameda Free Library. He plans to graduate from San Jose State University in December 2012.

As the 2013 ALSC Emerging Leader, McCoy hopes to deepen and strengthen his relationship with and involvement in ALA and ALSC, as well as to hone his leadership skills early in his career.

“Being involved with ALA allows me to contribute my enthusiasm for and experience with library advocacy to a national organization,” he noted.

“We are proud to welcome Edward as our 2013 ALSC Emerging Leader,” said ALSC President Carolyn Brodie. “We were very impressed by his level of commitment to library advocacy and we are excited to have him represent the division as an early-career ambassador. We believe he will bring an important perspective on the critical issues facing librarianship in the twenty-first century.”

As ALSC’s 2013 Emerging Leader, McCoy will attend the 2013 Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, Wash., as well as the 2013 ALA Annual Conference in Chicago, Illinois.

The Emerging Leaders program enables newer librarians from across the country to participate in workgroups, network with peers, gain an inside look into ALA’s structure and have an opportunity to serve the profession in a leadership capacity. Emerging Leaders receive up to $1,000 each to participate in the Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference, and each participant is expected to provide years of service to ALA or one of its units.