Category Archives: Fall 2015

Issue 237

2015-2016 CALL Meeting Schedule

Business Meetings

Business Meetings and Educational Events Policies

2015

  • September 17, 2015 (Thursday)
  • November 19, 2015 (Thursday)

2016

  • February 25, 2016 (Thursday)
  • May 12, 2016 (Thursday)

Executive Board Meetings

Starting at 8:45am

For 2015-2016 the Board will meet the second Tuesday of every month. Specific dates are:

2015

  • June 9 (Tuesday)
  • August 4  (Tuesday)
  • September 8  (Tuesday)
  • October 13  (Tuesday)
  • November 10  (Tuesday)
  • December 8  (Tuesday)

2016

  • January 12  (Tuesday)
  • February 9  (Tuesday)
  • March 8  (Tuesday)
  • April 12  (Tuesday)
  • May 10  (Tuesday)

Details will be posted as they become available.
Dates subject to change.

CALL would like to thank all of the speakers and meeting sponsors at this year’s business meetings.

President’s Letter

Dear CALL Colleagues,

It’s all about you!  This year CALL will be about what the members need to keep up with the changes and challenges that our profession faces.  It is important that we stay apprised of the latest trends and to have the skills to meet the demands of our job.  CALL will also focus on helping develop our members into leaders who will not only lead in our institutions but also in our profession. Continue reading President’s Letter

From the Editors

Fall is officially here. It is time to cozy up with the Fall issue of the CALL Bulletin, while you enjoy your Pumpkin Spice Latte (made with real Pumpkin). This is a very exciting issue as we welcome new members to the Bulletin Committee and as regular columnists: Heather Hummons, Jill Meyer, Clanitra Stewart NejdlStacia SteinLeighAnne Thompson. Juanita Harrell will be writing a court librarian column. We also welcome Philip Johnson’s help with editing.  And Annie Mentkowski as our Bulletin Historian. Thank you all for your help with our award-winning publication! We look forward to a great year. Continue reading From the Editors

Meet New CALL Member Stacia Stein

Stacia Stein Photo CALL
Stacia Stein

New CALL member, Stacia Stein, is a graduate student in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a member of the CALL Bulletin Committee.

Fellow Bulletin Committee member, Juanita Harrell, recently interviewed her so we could all get to know her a little better.

JH: Tell us a little about yourself.

SS: I went to DePaul for undergrad. I received my law degree in 2006. I studied German/ international studies, human issues. I also studied abroad in England and Ireland. Continue reading Meet New CALL Member Stacia Stein

Meet New CALL Member Heather Hummons

Photo of Heather Hummons
Heather Hummons

New CALL member, Heather Hummons, is the Head of Access Services at DePaul University College of Law. Fellow Call Bulletin Committee member, Jill Meyer, recently interviewed her so we could get to know her.

JM: How did you get your start working in libraries?

HH: I actually started working in libraries back in 2000 as a part-time circulation clerk. As the years progressed, I received several promotions within that department beginning with a transition to the part-time weekend circulation supervisor to a full-time position as a Library Assistant I, functioning as the primary circulation desk attendant and in charge of library billing. When the position for Circulation Manager opened in 2004, I applied and was hired. I remained in that role until last year (2014) when I was promoted to my current position as the Head of Access Services. Continue reading Meet New CALL Member Heather Hummons

LEEPing Into the Law Librarian Profession: a Glimpse Inside the University of Illinois LEEP Program “Boot Camp”

I recently made the “leap” from practicing ERISA law to pursuing a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) degree at the University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS).

Continue reading LEEPing Into the Law Librarian Profession: a Glimpse Inside the University of Illinois LEEP Program “Boot Camp”

CALL Library School Experience

Stacia Stein Photo CALL
Stacia Stein

Why do I get myself into these things?! This is a question I have asked myself a lot this year. In fact, I am asking myself that very question right now, as I stare at a blank computer screen, reflecting on my first year in library school, trying to find some sort of form and poetic resonance in my experience.

It’s a question that I asked myself last summer when I attended “bootcamp” at the University of Illinois, the mandatory 1-week introductory course in Champaign for students intending on pursuing their MLIS degree online … 4 quizzes, 2 papers, 1 group presentation and required active participation in live classes as well as internet message boards that never sleep! It’s a question that I asked myself last fall when the class I was taking wasn’t resonating with me. Because the class was online, I had no way of knowing if this disconnect was a sign that I had maybe made the wrong career choice or if, in fact, other students were feeling it too. And, yes, it’s also a question that I asked myself Spring Semester, when I took two inspiring and challenging classes but struggled to find the time to balance work, school and life.

Continue reading CALL Library School Experience

AALL Annual Meeting and Conference 2015: A Newbie’s Journey

Photo of Clanitra Stewart-DB-14-web
Clanitra Stewart Nejdl

Being a novice at something can create at least some degree of apprehension. Someone who, for example, has never piloted a plane would probably be pretty nervous about his or her first takeoff. And it goes without saying that a singer’s first concert ever likely creates at least one or two beads of sweat. In my case, apprehension hit me while preparing to attend my first American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Annual Meeting and Conference.

Continue reading AALL Annual Meeting and Conference 2015: A Newbie’s Journey

A New Librarian Goes to AALL

As someone new to Chicago and new to law librarianship, I was somewhat surprised to find myself, a mere two months into my new job as a reference librarian, jetting back to my home state of Pennsylvania to participate in the 2015 AALL conference.

It would be my very first conference, and I had no idea what to expect—of the programs and workshops or of my fellow librarians. In library school, we had felt the effects of an ongoing tension between researchers and practitioners. We had all been frustrated by endless discussions of the true meaning of information and were tired of climbing the data-knowledge-wisdom pyramid. A classmate had gone to a conference in Vancouver and returned bearing tales of irate practitioners berating researchers over the irresponsibility of small sample sizes. I wondered if those debates were what awaited me in Philadelphia.

Continue reading A New Librarian Goes to AALL