Dear RUSA Members,
With a new year looming, I want take a moment to let all RUSA volunteers know how much we appreciate all the work, time and energy you put into RUSA. RUSA has so many wonderful things to offer members such as service on our book award committees, our beloved Literary Tastes and Book & Media Awards events, guidelines for reference and user services and online educational sessions among others. We couldn’t have done any of this without the invaluable advice and assistance of our member leaders and volunteers. I also want to thank every RUSA member for all their dedication and loyalty in helping to make our division successful; it’s a pleasure and a privilege to serve you! The entire RUSA office staff thanks you all!
The Midwinter conference will be in Chicago this year and I hope those of you who will be there will take time to visit with us at the RUSA Membership Social. It will be held Saturday, January 31, 2015, 5:30 pm 07:00 pm, at the Hilton Chicago – Williford B. Join us to mingle, meet the RUSA board members, committee chairs, and volunteer leaders, and have some fun. We’ll have a raffle with great prizes and refreshments will be available so be sure to come and bring your friends and colleagues – all members and visitors are welcome!
One other event that is always of interest to all RUSA members and book lovers is the Book & Media reception taking place Sunday, February 1, 2015, 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm at the Hilton Chicago – Williford. We are excited to announce that we have a featured guest speaker this year: Margaret Hawkins, author of Lydia’s Party and senior lecturer at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Ms. Hawkins will be signing copies of her book after the reception. We’ll also unveil the winners of The Reading List, Notable Books list (which help form the long list for the Andrew Carnegie Medals of Excellence for Fiction and Nonfiction), the Listen List selections, and many more (see all of our awards here: http://www.ala.org/rusa/awards). All ALA Midwinter Meeting participants are invited to this celebration in Chicago. If you can’t attend, you will be able to track the announcements on Twitter with the hashtag #literarytastes. Don’t miss this wonderful event. We hope to see you there!
In addition, the RUSA board will meet three times in Chicago; please feel free to join us as our honored guests. The meetings will be held:
RUSA Strategic Planning Discussion
Friday, January 30, 2015
8:00 am – 4:00 pm
McCormick Place West – W192a
Board of Directors Meeting I (RUSA)
Saturday, Jan 31, 2015
01:30 pm – 03:30 pm
Hilton Chicago – Grand Tradition Room
**Don’t miss our Town Hall, where we invite all RUSA members to provide input on RUSA’s strategic path.**
Board of Directors Meeting II (RUSA)
Monday, Feb 2, 2015
02:00 pm – 04:00 pm
McCormick Place West – W195
See you in Chicago and best wishes for a happy new year!
Susan Hornung
Executive Director, ASCLA/RUSA
Book & Media Awards Ceremony and Reception:
Sunday, February 1, 2015 – 5:00pm to 6:30pm; The highly acclaimed Chicago author, Margaret Hawkins will be our feature speaker and kick off our premier awards event for adult reading and reference.
We’ll unveil the winners of The Reading List, Listen List selections—lists that are used by readers advisory librarians nationwide, Notable Books, which forms the basis for the Carnegie Medals Longlist —as well as the winners of the Dartmouth Medal for reference, the Sophie Brody Medal for Jewish literature, the Zora Neale Hurston Award for achievement in promoting African-American literature and the Louis Shores Award for book reviewing. All ALA Midwinter Meeting participants are invited to this celebration on-site in Chicago. Can’t attend? For the most up-to-date announcements, follow us on Facebook and track us on Twitter with hashtag #literarytastes.
Membership Social:
Saturday, January 31, 2015 – 5:30pm to 7:00pm; Kick off the 2014 ALA Midwinter Meeting in style with the Reference and User Services Association’s (RUSA) Membership Social—an opportunity to eat, drink, network, win door prizes and learn more about RUSA. The social open to all current RUSA members, friends of RUSA and those meeting attendees interested in learning more about the association and networking with peers. All attendees will have the opportunity to win fantastic door prizes!
RUSA Leadership Development and Speed Mentoring Session:
Saturday, January 31, 2015 – 3:30pm to 5:30pm; Join a group of experienced RUSA leaders and engage in a fun, interactive “speed mentoring” session. Similar in format to “speed dating”, MLS students, new librarians, and mid-career librarians are invited to participate in this session where they will have the opportunity to gain leadership advice from a number of senior librarians and RUSA leaders.
Genealogy Institute: Meeting the Needs of Your Family History Patrons:
Friday, January 30, 2015 – 8:30am to 4:00pm; Enjoy an interactive day of learning and networking for all librarians serving genealogists. Leaders from the library and genealogical industry will cover a variety of topics, including strategic planning, partnerships, and serving diverse populations. Luncheon provided by our sponsor, Proquest. Registration is free, but required. Limit 150 participants. Please register here: