Please save the date for MiALA's first Data Literacy Boot Camp. During this day-long event, you will hear from your library colleagues around the state who are incorporating various aspects of data literacy into their teaching, research, and professional practice.

Date: Friday, March 8, 2019
Time: 9 am - 4 pm
Location: Michigan State University, Main Library Green Room
Cost: $20 MiALA members, $40 non-members

This event is sponsored by the Instruction and Information Literacy Interest Group.

Stay tuned for further details and a call for lightning talks soon!

Hope to see you there,

The Planning Committee

Saxony Betts
Molly Ledermann
Emilia Marcyk
Terence O'Neill
Dianna Sachs

Siena Heights University
Cynthia Dopp

Grand Valley State University
Anna White

Advocacy Committee Meeting
11/08/2018
3:00 - 4:00 pm

Removing Barriers: A Library Accessibility Workshop
11/09/2018
9:30 am - 3:30 pm
L.V. Eberhard Center, Grand Valley State University, Grand Rapids, MI 49504

Deadline to Submit News for December Newsletter
11/15/2018
Deadline to submit a news/event item for inclusion in the December Newsletter (news submission link here)

Cataloging/Metadata IG Linked Data Study Group
11/16/2018
11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Online using IG message board

MiALA November Board Meeting
11/20/2018
2:00 - 3:00 pm

November is here, and at the end of the month is a favorite holiday of mine: Thanksgiving!  While the thought of a turkey dinner always gets my attention, it’s a great time to reflect on the idea of gratitude.

Historically found in the domains of religion and philosophy, gratefulness has become a growing theme in leadership and organizational research.  Studies have shown a strong relationship between gratitude and happiness, and those who cultivate a thankful mindset report having a stronger sense of well-being.  To my eyes, spending a few moments to think about the good in life can hardly hurt, and I’ve made it a point to reflect each day on the many things where I can give thanks.

So for today: I’m grateful for all of you.

I’m grateful for the 380 plus individual members who commit their time, energy, and membership dues to help make MiALA the organization it is today.  I’m grateful that together, we have built an organization that provides opportunities for professional development, growth, leadership, and committee service for all academic library staff in Michigan.  I’m grateful for the “alphabet soup” of organizations with whom we partner, MCLS, MAA, MMDP, ALAO, ACRL, MIX, MAME and LoM, to name a few.  I’m grateful to our institutional members, who play a large role in supporting the organization and sponsoring our activities.  I’m grateful for our leader volunteer leaders, who do everything from organizing interest groups and committee work, to planning our yearly conference.

So this month, I ask you to join me.  Take a moment, and think about what makes you grateful about MiALA, and what you can do to help share that sentiment with others.  If you are willing to share your thoughts with others, please reach out and let me know!

Jen Fiero
Jackson College
Reference and Instruction Librarian

What are you currently reading?
An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green (I highly recommend it!); Parenting Beyond Pink & Blue by Dr. Christia Spears Brown; Saga: Book 2 by Brian K. Vaughn and Fiona Staples (graphic novel/comic series). I'm also part of a sci-fi & fantasy romance book club and we read something new every month!

What are your research interests?
Distance learning & online learning; active learning for one-shot instruction; community college-specific interests (competency based education and first-year experience, specifically); OER

Do you have hobbies or interests outside of the library?
Spending time with my husband and 4-year-old son, which often means lots of kids TV shows and books! As a singer, I'm an active member of the Jackson Chorale (1st Soprano) and Jackson Chamber Choir (1st Alto). I'm also a cantor and choir member at Our Lady of Fatima in Michigan Center. I love to collect hats of all kinds - but mainly the sort you'd be likely to see at an English wedding!

What drew you to the library profession?
I was ready for a change shortly into my post-undergrad career as a buyer for a large corporation - not my thing at all. I was very good at helping people find information, though, and a friend who was a librarian said I should really look at it as a career. It turned out to be the perfect fit for me!

What do you value about MiALA?
MiALA has connected me to so many great library and information professionals throughout the state. I am able to use those networks constantly. It has also helped me to further my development as a librarian in many ways, but especially through the annual conference! I'm really pleased to be part of MiALA and also to serve as a community college rep on the Board!

Is there anything else that you would like to share?
Fun fact: I appeared on three episodes of Jeopardy! in July 2014. I won twice! I've used this fame to host the inaugural library and student life trivia nights on JC's campus. I love all kinds of trivia!

The MiALA Cataloging/Metadata Interest Group would like to invite you to take part in a linked data study group. Our first session will be held on Friday, November 16, 2018, from 11:00 am - 2:00 pm. This event will be an e-forum through our interest group message board. There's no requirement that you attend the full session.

We're going to begin by discussing the recent ALCTS webinar series "From MARC to BIBFRAME: Linked Data on the Ground." The full series is now available to stream for free. We'll discuss the first two videos during our first session.

Library of Congress BIBFRAME Developments: http://www.ala.org/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webinar/101216

Putting the Link in Linked Data: http://www.ala.org/alcts/confevents/upcoming/webinar/101916

Because we’ll be using our interest group message board, you must be a member to participate. We welcome anyone interested in cataloging and metadata, no experience required.

Contact us if you have any questions.

Jeremy Barney
Metadata and Digital Collections Librarian
Hope College
barneycj@hope.edu

Amelia Mowry
Metadata & Discovery Services Librarian
Wayne State University
Amelia.mowry@wayne.edu

Marianne Swierenga, MFA, MLIS
Cataloging and Metadata Librarian
University Libraries (Waldo Library)
Western Michigan University
marianne.swierenga@wmich.edu