CONALL at Wash U:  Skitlettes and a Library Tour

An enthusiastic group of newer librarians attended the sixth annual Conference of Newer Academic Law Librarians (CONALL) at Washington University School of Law’s beautiful Anheuser Busch Hall on Tuesday, July 11, 2006. Since its introduction at the annual meeting in Philadelphia in the year 2000, CONALL has provided an opportunity for newer academic law librarians to meet other newer librarians and learn a little about academic law librarianship in a fun, light-hearted manner. The event plays a key role in ALL-SIS’ outreach and mentoring to the newer members of our profession.

This year’s event began with bus ride down Lindell Boulevard, one of St. Louis’ historic streets, past St. Louis University, and through the Central West End and Forest Park, site of the famous 1904 St. Louis World’s Fair. Once on campus, the attendees were warmly greeted by members of the law library staff and led to a classroom where the event took place. Everyone was first asked to introduce themselves and describe a passion in their life. We apparently have a group of budding rock stars in this year’s cohort, because music was frequently cited as a passion by many of the attendees. Maybe we should encourage some of them to form a band and compete on the next season of Rock Star:  Supernova?

After the introductions, as a way to facilitate further discussion, the Committee Members performed a series of short skits (we called them “skitlettes”) representing difficult situations that occur in academic law librarianship. The first skit was a difficult reference interview between a reference librarian and a demanding pro se patron asking for legal advice. The second one was a conversation between a professor and an acquisitions librarian with the professor demanding that his donation of “very valuable” books be appraised by the library for tax purposes. The skits were humorously introduced by our Master of Ceremonies, Larry Abraham, and performed by members of the Committee, Ed Beltz, Stefanie Pearlman, Patricia Kidd, and Paul Moorman, with the assistance of Katie Thompson. After each skit a lively discussion ensued among the attendees about how best to handle the difficult situation. Following the skits, the attendees had a chance to take part in a tour of the library. And finally, to top off the evening after the tour, the attendees were able to join the Reception in the courtyard and mingle with their new friends, have a drink, and enjoy some tasty treats (Budweiser and toasted ravioli, of course!).

When asked about the event for this article, first time Annual Meeting and CONALL attendee, Tom Kimbrough, recent graduate of the University of Washington’s Information School and a new reference librarian at Southern Methodist University School of Law, said that it was great to meet other new and experienced librarians and that he especially enjoyed the skits with difficult patrons. Tom’s comments are indicative of the role CONALL plays in mentoring our newer members of the profession by giving them a chance to meet each other and learn a little about academic law librarianship in the process.

The Committee wants to thank everyone who attended and helped with the planning of CONALL, including Julia Jaet for her efforts at publicizing the event, Phil Berwick for hosting, Mark Kloempken for being our tour guide for the evening, and all of the members of the ALL-SIS Board, especially Chair Michael Slinger, for their assistance and support.

And yes, the rumors you may have heard are true, changes are afoot regarding the name and time of future CONALLs. First, the name for CONALL is going to be changed to help avoid confusion with the pre-conference CONELL (Conference of Newer Law Librarians). The new Co-Chairs of the Committee, Patricia Kidd and Katie Thompson, with the assistance of the Board, are currently working on coming up with a catchy new name that reflects its nature and avoids any confusion with CONELL. Second, in addition to the new name, the ALL-SIS Reception and Awards Ceremony and CONALL will take place on Sunday night during the Annual Meeting, instead of being held on its traditional Tuesday night. So next year, as they say in New Orleans, we’ll laissez le bon temps rouler on Sunday, July 15, 2007 at Loyola University New Orleans College of Law. Please encourage newer academic law librarians to attend.