Yankee in Canada.com

Will Sherman over at degreetutor.com has posted his article, "Future of Librarians"  which he based on a number of interviews he conducted, via email, with librarians and information professionals.

Sherman has also posted a page where you can contribute your thoughts and ideas to support the discussion.

Will Sherman over at degreetutor.com has interviewed (via email) a number of librarians and info pros on the future of libraries and librarians.  My interview has been posted.

Thanks Will!

SLA Toronto held a "Best of the Web" event on June 21, 2007 where Chapter members were invited to share websites they find most useful.

The Chapter was fortunate to have present:

• Le Dieu Tran, Research Librarian at the Legislative Library;
• Astrid Lange, Library and Research Specialist at the Toronto Star;
• Leanne Hindmarch, Librarian at the Toronto Botanical Gardens;
• Eve Goldin, Senior Manager at the Film Reference Library; and
• Rachel Dupuis, Director of Information and Communications at the Institute of Communications and Advertising.

Sandra Craig, Events Coordinator for the Chapter has written an excellent summary of the websites presented.

Best of the Web:  SLA Toronto Event

Embedded Library Services: An Initial Inquiry into Practices for Their Development, Management, and
Delivery [pdf]
A Contributed Paper for the Special Libraries Association Annual Conference

David Shumaker, Clinical Associate Professor
School of Library and Information Science, Catholic University of America
-and-
Laura Ann Tyler, Research Librarian
LMI Government Consulting

Shumaker and Tyler’s new paper, recently presented at the SLA conference in Denver, is a great read for any information professional, but it’s of particular importance to new information professionals and students as well as seasoned info pros looking for a change.  I only recently realized that I have never been anything but an embedded librarian my entire career.  Strangely, I always wondered why there was huge disconnect in what I was being told by other info pros, what I was reading in library literature and what I experienced at work.  Most of what I heard and read was about working in libraries with other librarians and info pros.  Even the SOLO environment didn’t quite fit because many of my colleagues who are solos work in a one-person library.  Realizing my embedded status has made me look at my career very differently, in terms of the skills I need to hone and the professional development opportunities I choose to learn from.  For me, Shumaker and Tyler’s work was a breathe of fresh air.

Librarians make the fashion section of the New York Times. Throwbacks to old stereotypes aside, I thought it was a pretty interesting piece.  My life isn’t quite like theirs, but good for them.  It has been YEARS since I was last profiled in the NYT!

Some folks don’t think it’s so awesome.

I have to wonder though if any of the fallout from this hullabaloo will actually reach the folks responsible for the piece.  Will all the criticism make a difference? Librarians talking to librarians is great, and we do that well, but at some point we are going to have to start taking our message to everyone else if we have any hope of changing their view of who we are as professionals.

A Hipper Crowd of Shushers (New York Times)
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/08/fashion/08librarian.html