Planning for an in person conference May 4 - 6, 2022 at The Hotel Saskatchewan in Regina is continuing. We are aware of the risks related to Omicron, and public health restrictions that may be put in place as a result of this most recent wave.

We are uncertain where the country will be in relation to the pandemic in May 2022. Although we are anticipating a safe and more open environment, we are mindful that this may not be the case. As such we will continue to monitor. SLA will always take public health considerations into full account and respond with individual and community safety as the primary consideration.

The theme for the Saskatchewan Libraries Conference 2022 is Libraries Rise Above, which reflects the innovation, flexibility and resilience of libraries to meet their communities’ evolving needs. Libraries are a flexible, resilient, constantly evolving force that rises to meet community needs, especially in the areas of life-long learning, innovation, social connection, and economic well-being in our our province. Proposals are being accepted for presenters at the conference until January 31, 2022. Presentations should reflect the theme of the conference.

Submit a proposal or find more information here.

Author, playwright and musician Tomson Highway will be the Keynote Speaker for the 2022 Saskatchewan Libraries Conference. Recently promoted from member to officer of the Order of Canada, winner of the 2021 Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for his book Permanent Astonishment, Tomson Highway is sure to give a captivating presentation.

Read more about Tomson Highway on the SLA website.

Read an excerpt from Permanent Astonishment.

The Saskatchewan Library Association AGM will once again be held during the conference. This year, the Saskatchewan Library Trustees Association, the Saskatchewan Health Library Association and CASL will also hold annual meetings in conjunction with the conference. As well, Dawn Martin of Daybreak Consulting will present a session to explore the fundamentals of non-profit governance.

The Provincial Public Library Sector Plan: A Step in a Very Long Process

In 2017 the Government of Saskatchewan committed to engaging with public library stakeholders and undertaking a planning process.

In the fall of 2018, the Government of Saskatchewan completed a series of engagement sessions with representatives from the public library systems and stakeholders. The process was led by Mr. Terry Dennis, the MLA for Canora-Pelly, and Legislative Secretary to the Minister of Education at that time. SLA was one of several organizations invited to an engagement session. In addition to engagement sessions, organizations were invited to provide written submissions. In January 2019 Report on Saskatchewan Public Libraries Engagement was released; it included eight main themes. The Saskatchewan Ministry of Education conducted a survey to gather public feedback on the Report of Saskatchewan Public Libraries Engagement. In 2019, over 5,800 residents provided their feedback and subsequently a process was introduced to develop a Public Library Sector Plan.

Oksana Moshynska, Branch Manager of North Battleford Public Library and SLA board Member, was recently featured in the USC Marshall School of Business MMLIS Newsletter. SLA extends congratulations to Oksana for the recognition of her impressive achievements.

Read the newsletter here.

Have a great idea for a workshop for library staff? Interested in attending a conference, workshop, or other professional development opportunity? A grant is available for first time conference attendees at the SLA Conference.  Applications for CE category one, two, and three grants are now being accepted. All applications are due by February 15th, 2022. Details are available on the  SLA website.

Nominations are open for the Frances Morrison Award of Merit. This award is for outstanding service to libraries and is given in the name of one of Saskatchewan's outstanding librarians. Criteria for the award include:

·        Library service must be provided in Saskatchewan.

·        Outstanding service to libraries may be provided by individuals, institutions, or groups.

·        Recipients who may or may not be members of the Saskatchewan Library Association.

Applications due by March 1, 2022 submitted to Dorothea Warren slaexdir@sasktel.net

For further information and an application please visit the SLA website.

Applications due March 31, 2022 submitted to Dorothea Warren slaexdir@sasktel.net

For more information and application visit the SLA website.

Each month we share Saskatchewan library stories of places, events and people around the province.

If you have a Saskatchewan library story to share, please send it to slacomm@sasktel.net.

This month we celebrate the career of librarian Carol MacDonald with a story submitted by Cara Bradley.

Carol MacDonald has retired from the University of Regina Library after serving the U of R for over four decades. She began her career at the Library as a Reference/Collections Librarian then transferred to the Canadian Plains Research Center to develop the CANPlains database into a nationally accessible database of prairie research. She then returned to the Library to lead its first major automation project and the formation of the RegLIN consortium consisting of the University of Regina Library, the Saskatchewan Legislative Library, the Gabriel Institute, the Regina General, Pasqua and Wascana hospital libraries, and the Saskatchewan Dept. of Health Library.

As Head of Library Systems at the University of Regina Library, Carol played a key role in leading the development of three state of the art integrated library discovery systems all of which were adopted by the RegLIN consortium member libraries. Along the way Carol became adept at writing RFPS, writing database conversion specifications for the consortium libraries, loading records, administering complex library systems, customizing web interfaces, writing technical documentation, and providing technical support and training.

Read Carol's full story here.

Proposals are now being accepted for Concordia University's 20th Library Research Forum. This year's Research Forum will again be held virtually, in the afternoon of April 26 & 27, 2022. 

Full details here 

Email:  slaexdir@sasktel.net; slaadmin@sasktel.net; slacomm@sasktel.net

Web: saskla.ca