I totally disagree. National Library Week is not the way to promote
your library. I am now convinced, after years of hosting library
weeks, that all that effort just makes it look like you have nothing
better to do with your time. I believe the only way to promote the
library is to offer consistent, accurate, enthusiastic and timely
service to all your patrons all the time--period. No one is ever
going to prevent your budget from being cut, your space from being
reduced or your job from being outsourced because you provide free
book marks with AALL's logo. You are much better off talking to your
Dean or your managing partner or your library board, regularly, about
how amazingly wonderful and busy you are, about all the services you
provide, about all the clients you have helped to get, about all the
technical expertise you have and can share and about all the money you
have saved doing this or doing that (like getting that hard to find
article faxed from a colleague on the internet).
I also believe AALL does have a great benefit. They do not stroke and
pet me, but they watch out for the big library picture, which I am
way, way to busy to follow; they help me to get jobs as I change
cities; they offer me networking opportunities and leadership
opportunities, should I choose to take them; they offer me
professional development and continuing education. I don't need them
every day, and often don't think about them for months, but it doesn't
mean they aren't working for me.
Elizabeth LeDoux, who apparently has no humble opinions
Dickstein, Shapiro & Morin, LLP
Washington, D.C.
______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: AALL & NLW Promotion
Author: lnemchek@mofo.com at INTERNET
Date: 3/8/96 3:16 PM
I agree that it's really deplorable for AALL to offer nothing of specific
substance relating to NLW celebrations. As a private law firm librarian, I
often think that my AALL dues are largely wasted, since there's very little
that I get back from the organization as a whole that relates to my
professional needs and concerns, other than the benefit of belonging to the
PLL SIS. AALL spends an awful lot of money on various tasks forces and
legislative monitoring and networking...but when it comes down to it, it's
just too big and cumbersome an organization to provide much practical,
everyday benefit to the professional law librarian. [Hey, it's Friday, I'm
bored, and I feel like inciting a ruckus. Let's get some spirited
discussion going, and stop glutting the lines with all those "reference
help" e-mails!!!]
Lee Nemchek
Morrison & Foerster
lnemchek@mofo.com
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