ALIA Far North Coast Group

Newsletter

March 2000

Previous meeting

AGM and Christmas Dinner, 24 November 1999
President's Report, minutes of AGM, list of Office Bearers attached

EXECUTIVE MEETING

23 February 2000, Lismore Base Hospital Library
Report to be presented at the first General Meeting of the year (see following & enclosed flyer)

Next general meeting

Please see enclosed flyer

All library personnel - librarians, library technicians, library students, & library assistants, are warmly invited to attend.

Time & date: 5:30 for 6:00pm Thursday 13 April 2000
Place: Meeting with dinner to follow at Pioneer Tavern Wollongbar
Guests Stephen Coppins, Vice Pres NSW Library Technicians Section & Katherine Raper, Librarian, Aust Consumers Assn
Discussion: Survey Report & discussion.
RSVP: (Please!) 10 April 2000 to Michael Wheeler [Contact details were included]

Survey : relevance & future of alia far north coast regional group

Attendance at the Regional ALIA Group's meetings has been decreasing in recent years, and was particularly low in 1999. Over preceding months, the Executive had organised different meetings with a variety of guest speakers and topics to try to attract members. Despite this, attendance continued to be very low, and one meeting (with guest speaker) had to be cancelled because of poor response. It is felt that the Regional Group may have to be disbanded unless the Group can be revitalised and meeting attendance improved.

This survey aims to reach as many librarians, library technicians and library students in the Far North Coast library community as possible, including potential members of ALIA as well as current financial ALIA members. The purpose of the survey is to find out why meeting attendance has been so low, the preferred format and content of meetings, and if members see the ALIA Regional Group as relevant and worth continuing with.

In addition to obtaining information from the survey, the Executive hope to boost membership by stimulating the interest of potential members as well as that of non-participatory members of ALIA.
The Executive would be grateful if you would take the time to complete the enclosed Survey and return it to the ALIA Survey Coordinator, Lainey Furness by the 31 March 2000 (contact details at the end of this Newsletter & on the survey form). Thank you.

ALIA NSW Library Technician Section News

Stephen Coppins will be visiting the Far North Coast in April and the Group has invited him to our first meeting of the year. (Please see attached flyer for details.) We hope you will take this great opportunity to come along and meet Stephen, find out more about what ALIA and the Library Technicians Section does and to chat about library stuff!

This year the ALIA NSW Library Technician's Section has discussed the following topics for 2000, to name a few:
May 2000 National Library Week - the LTs Section would like the Monday or Tuesday of this week to be National Library Technician's Day.
June 2000 Techs on Tour (idea from Vic. LT Section) - visit other libraries on a weekend.
August 2000 ALIA National Conference in Canberra - LTs who have not been able to attend the LT Conference may attend.
October. 2000 Ideas for Workshops - send me your ideas about workshop topics for a proposed workshop in Grafton(?).

Some suggestions so far include interviews, techniques for success, job applications. (It is proposed to base the workshop/s in Grafton as it will enable LTs from Coffs Harbour area up to Lismore and surrounding areas to attend.) TAFE cutbacks - suggest that letters be send to the Minister of Education and the Premier, Mr Bob Carr. Louise Somerville, Far North Coast Representative, NSW Library Technicians Section
(Contact details were included in mailout)

Newsletter Editor / Survey Coordinator Lainey Furness [Contact details were included]