ALA elections are here and this year NMRT is electing a Vice-President/President-Elect, Secretary, and Leadership Development Director. Below, our candidates for Secretary answer a few questions about their plans for the position. More information on these positions can be found here.
NMRT Candidate Q & A – Abigail Phillips
Question 1: Why are you interested in this position?
I have been a member of New Members Round Table since I joined ALA. This round table provided me with one of my first opportunities for committee work as a new ALA member. My previous work on NMRT committees had encouraged me to take a larger leadership role within the round table by running for the Secretary position. In part I am interested in this position, because I would like to give back to NMRT what it has provided me in professional and collegial support. Serving in this position would allow me to delve more into the work of NMRT and the larger work of round tables within ALA.
Question 2: What skills and experiences do you bring to the position?
I currently serve as Secretary/Treasurer for Library Research Round Table (LRRT). In this position I have learned a great deal about the roles and responsibilities of being a Secretary, particularly by becoming more of a voice on the executive committee. Before being elected to this position, I served as LRRT’S Member-at-Large. This early role introduced me to how an executive committee for a round table functions and the work involved to complete the important tasks and duties of different committee. From 2015-2016, I served as the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) Board Fellow which allowed me a year’s worth of opportunities to understand board work and all its intricacies and challenges. Currently, I am the YALSA’s Division Councilor, a role in which I both represent YALSA on ALA Council and participate as a YALSA board member.
Aside from ALA, service-wise, I am involved in the Youth Services Special Interest Group (SIG) in the Association of Library and Information Science Education (ALISE), the Treasurer for the Information Policy and Ethics SIG of the American Society of Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T), and, more recently, on the MLIS Program and Curriculum Committee in the School of Information Studies at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. All of these experiences have helped me grow as an individual, a critical thinker, and as a leader. I’ve become skilled at approaching a problem, situation, and discussion with a thoughtful and forward-thinking approach.
Question 3: As Secretary (more information) your responsibilities include coordinating NMRT social networking presence on the appropriate tools. What do you feel is the best method to get information to the NMRT membership, and why? What is your plan for coordinating NMRT’s social networking presence?
I teach (and have taught) a Social Media Management course for Library Juice Academy over the past three years. This course is geared towards information professionals seeking to improve the social media presence of their library, museum, archive, etc. Additionally, I have taught as an adjunct instructor at Florida State University for a similar but lengthier course on social media management that dug deeply into different approaches to social media engagement and content development. When I worked as a public librarian, I managed the Twitter and Facebook accounts for our library system. I have experience with social media management both as a professional librarian and as an LIS instructor.
When thinking about a social media plan for NMRT, I would suggest boosting the current Twitter presence by going a bit beyond what is already being offered. Member highlights and blog posts are wonderful but a consistent and highly targeted style would help increase engagement and connect strongly with members. I’ve always used (as public librarian and academic) and encourage the use of a social media calendar. With posts planned and already created, it helps create that cohesive message that will greatly benefit NMRT by building membership, sharing goals, and news. However, there is always flexibility with a social media calendar depending on current events, unexpected announcements, etc. Social media requires a close eye which I am confident that NMRT and I can maintain.
Question 4: What do you hope to learn if elected?
I hope to continue to grow as a leader, finding new and innovative approaches to helping and mentoring young MLIS students, librarians, library workers, and my colleagues. My previous work on committees and boards have been a wonderful way for me to become more confident in sharing my thoughts, opinions, and concerns. By being elected to the Secretary position, I will learn even more.
Question 5: If elected, what time management skills will you employ to ensure that your NMRT duties remain a priority?
Graduate school and my current professional position taught me quite a bit about time management. As part of my job as faculty, service within the profession is one component. I have found balancing research, teaching, and service challenging, but I have developed a system where I can divide my time to each of these duties. I have become adept at seeking out new ways to ensure that I can maintain my commitments and the service that I enjoy.
NMRT Secretary Candidate Q & A – Rachael Clukey
Question 1: Why are you interested in this position?
I love being involved in ALA and especially with NMRT. I think I am now ready to step up to a leadership position in the roundtable and have more responsibility. Being secretary actually sounds fun to me!
Question 2: What skills and experiences do you bring to the position?
I was my Student Government Secretary at my college several years ago. Also, I have been on various committees through ALA and Ohio Library Council and am a Librarian member of the Exhibits Roundtable board.
Question 3: As Secretary (more information) your responsibilities include coordinating NMRT social networking presence on the appropriate tools. What do you feel is the best method to get information to the NMRT membership, and why? What is your plan for coordinating NMRT’s social networking presence?
As far as getting information to the NMRT membership, I think that e-mail, blog posts and Facebook are all excellent. The listserv through e-mail is my top choice, however, since so many ALA NMRT members check their e-mail many times throughout the day. Less people probably read the blog and Facebook posts but I still think that they are both important. I would definitely prioritize the NMRT member of the week posts for the blog and Facebook. Also, I would plan to increase our presence on Twitter and possibly Instagram, as well.
Question 4: What do you hope to learn if elected?
If elected, I hope to learn a lot actually. I hope and plan to learn more about the ALA organization as a whole and more about NMRT. I also hope to learn more about all of the committees on NMRT.
Question 5: If elected, what time management skills will you employ to ensure that your NMRT duties remain a priority?
I am very self motivated, focused and prioritize my tasks. I also have great decision making skills. I use a paper/printed planner and also Google calendars.