Tuesday, August 2, 2005

St Louis Programs and Big Issues

Dear Colleagues,

Pioneering Change

As you prepare your program proposals for the 2006 St Louis Centennial meeting, please keep the theme in mind, thoughtfully elaborated by AMPC: Pioneering Change. These words are carefully chosen, and you can read more about the theme here. You will note the special emphasis on inviting as many VIPs as possible, especially from the legal community, and from the decision-makers in the institutions we serve: law firm partners, law school deans, judges, trustees, court administrators, and so on. VIPs are influential people who can help extend our sphere of influence.

Thinking about the Big Issues

I want to challenge you to think about the big issues of our profession. Where are we in the eyes of others, and where do we want to be? Ignoring these questions runs the risk of us and our profession being marginalized. In order to pioneer change, we need to change ourselves and the perception that others have of us.

Would you kindly take a few minutes and answer the following three questions:

1. What perceptions do people have of law librarians and law libraries? (What do you hear?)

2. What perceptions do you wish for them to have?

3. What will it take for us to be seen in the ways we wish to be?

Please send me your thoughts by replying to this message. I promise that your voice will be heard and the message shared with our Executive Board for action.

Many thanks in advance,

Claire M. Germain
AALL President
Edward Cornell Law Librarian & Professor of Law
Director, Dual Degree Programs, Paris & Berlin
Cornell Law School
365 Myron Taylor Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853
Tel. (607) 255 5857
Fax (607) 255 1357
cmg13@cornell.edu

AALL:  Maximizing the Power of the Law Library Community Since 1906.