[Libs-Or] Support Staff Division Seeking Candidates

[Bacina, Susan]

The Support Staff Division of the Oregon Library Association is seeking candidates for Vice-chair/Chair-elect.  This is a three year commitment -- serving one year as vice-chair, learning the ropes, one year as chair, and one year as past-chair.  This is an excellent opportunity for professional and personal development.  Although it is a lot of work, it is also very rewarding, and you make a lot of great friends and contacts along the way.  The thing to remember if the prospect seems daunting is that you're never alone in any aspect of the "job" -- the rest of the board and the past chairs are always there with you.

Susan Bacina
Past-Chair, OLA/SSD

>From Sean Park, current SSD Chair :

SSD is a wonderfully diverse group of library professionals, ranging
from supervisors and shelvers to IT and children's librarians, and
countless other areas of expertise across the spectrum of libraries in Oregon, from large to small.

I entered my term as SSD Board Chair with a sense of wonder and
excitement (and a bit of bewilderment), as I previously did not have
much exposure to SSD and almost no exposure to OLA. The SSD past-chairs
were my lifeline (one serves on the Board and is an invaluable asset to
the Chair), and helped me feel welcome while answering all questions I
had along the way. My first event was the OLA Executive Board retreat in
Silver Falls, which was a great experience that was made even better as
the past-chair was at my side, keeping me apprised of procedure while
providing valuable background on the topics at hand. Working with the
OLA Board has opened my eyes to the great things OLA does, and the group
is composed of a wide range of librarians, every one of them friendly,
helpful, and very devoted to the OLA mission. It has been a great
pleasure getting to know them and working alongside them, and you will
feel very welcome very quickly with this group.

This past year has seen some exciting changes for SSD. Scholarship
awards for OLA membership and attendance at the annual SSD conference
have been increased, and SSD membership is also going up.
Videoconferencing has opened up involvement in SSD for people who
otherwise couldn't participate due to distance. SSD is looking to expand
training offerings across the state with book mending and technology
workshops, while looking ahead at different training approaches
(including increased exposure to the LSSC program) to help support staff
increase services amidst shrinking budgets.

Time commitment:

Chair the monthly SSD board meetings, which can be attended in person or
remotely via phone or videoconferencing (4 hours per month, depending
upon travel)
Compose the monthly SSD board meeting agenda (1 hour per month)
Attend the monthly OLA Executive Board meetings (in person or remotely,
5 hours per month)
Attend the annual OLA Board retreat in Silver Falls in person (2 days
per year)
Attend the annual SSD conference (1 day per year)
Liaise with OLA to assist members representing SSD at the OLA Conference
(1 hour per month)

My term as SSD Board Chair has been extremely rewarding. The exposure to
library staff from all corners of the state, and the friendships I've
made, have been personally and professionally enriching. I would not
hesitate to do it again, and strongly encourage those who are seeking
more involvement in OLA & SSD to consider running for SSD Board Chair.

Sean, SSD Board Chair




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