[OPLINLIST] PLA Pre-Conference

[Rebecca Felkner]

Please forgive cross-posting.
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ALA Public Programs Office announces PLA preconference on library
programming

The ALA Public Programs Office is pleased to announce a preconference on
library programming that will be held in conjunction with the 2006 PLA
National Conference. Titled "Cultural Programming for Libraries:
Linking Libraries, Communities and Culture," the preconference will
prepare library staff to conduct high-quality humanities programs for
the public, and will take place Tuesday, March 21, 9 am - 5 pm and
Wednesday, March 22, 9 am - Noon in Boston. Advance registration for the
PLA conference and related discounts will be available through January
11, 2006.  To register, visit www.placonference.org.  

Created for library staff in charge of programming as well as library
administrators and trustees, the preconference will provide the training
needed to plan and present programs that are well-attended crowd
pleasers.  Preconference attendees will learn how to design and present
high-quality cultural programming at their library, as well as where and
how to apply for cultural program funding and find organizations or
groups that want to collaborate on programming. They'll also find out
about model and turnkey programs that are available to the beginning and
experienced programmer, including reading and discussion programs,
traveling exhibitions, and multi-format literary/humanities programming.

Attendees will have the opportunity to participate in model programs,
including a scholar-led lecture/discussion and an interactive poetry
presentation.

Preconference presenters include Barbara E. Petzen, Outreach Coordinator
with the Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University and Stu
Wilson, Director of Public Awareness and Communications with the Friends
of the St. Paul Public Library.  Staff from the ALA Public Programs
Office will present as well, including Deb Robertson, Director and
author of Cultural Programming for Libraries:
Linking Libraries, Communities, and Culture; Susan Brandehoff, Program
Director; and Mary Davis Fournier, Project Director.  Other presenters
will be announced shortly.

Preconference registration fees are $195 for PLA and Massachusetts
Library Association (MLA) members, $250 for ALA members and $305 for
non-members. These fees include a copy of Robertson's book Cultural
Programming for Libraries: Linking Libraries, Communities, and Culture
(ALA, 2005), a $35 value.      

A portion of your registration fee will support the Cultural Communities
Fund, an endowment to support the development of cultural programming in
libraries, in response to a Challenge Grant from the National Endowment
for the Humanities (www.ala.org/ccf). 

This preconference workshop is presented with support from the Cultural
Communities Fund and a major gift from H. W. Wilson. The Massachusetts
Foundation for the Humanities Program will provide program support. 

For more information or to register for "Cultural Programming for
Libraries: Linking Libraries, Communities and Culture," visit the PLA
2006 Conference Web site at www.placonference.org. With questions
contact the Public Programs Office at 312-280-5045 or
publicprograms at ala.org.