ALAO blog

2026 ALAO ELECTIONS – CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

Are you looking for professional service or leadership opportunities, or know someone who might be?  If so, please consider nominating yourself or a colleague for a position on the ALAO Board! 

This year’s elections will take place in spring 2026, with successful candidates officially assuming their positions at the ALAO Board Retreat in July. 

What does the ALAO Board do?

As the Ohio chapter of ACRL, we:

• Advance academic library services in our state and provide opportunities for education and growth for library personnel at all levels and at every career stage
• Sponsor an annual conference and spring workshops that focus on innovative topics and showcase Ohio academic librarians
• Provide scholarships and awards
• Maintain several active, diverse interest groups and committees.
• Have a mentoring program that pairs up Ohio academic librarians for peer-to-peer, intergenerational, leadership, or student mentoring relationships

ALAO Board members:

• Perform duties described in the Procedures Manual for their position
• Attend monthly Board meetings
• Participate in the annual Board planning retreat in July

This year, we will be soliciting nominations for the following positions:

• Vice President/President Elect
• Secretary
• Treasurer
• Board Member-at-Large (3 positions)
• Public Relations Coordinator
• Membership Chair

Please submit nominations or self-nominations to the online 2026 ALAO Election Nomination Form by 5pm Tuesday, March 10, 2026

Not Ready for an Elected Position? ALAO is also looking to fill the following non-elected positions to start in July 2026.

• Interest Group Coordinator
• Communications Editor
• Chair Positions for subject specific interest groups and committees

Click here to submit your interest!

Questions about the upcoming elections or open positions?  Please feel free to contact Sara Klink (pastpresident@alaoweb.org) or Laura Birkenhauer (membership@alaoweb.org)

Thank you from the 2026 ALAO Nominating Committee!

Sara Klink, Stark State College, Committee Chair
Ryan Scott, Columbus State Community College, Committee Member
Melissa Bauer, Kent State University, Committee Member
Laura Birkenhauer, Miami University, Advisor to the Committee

The Academic Library Association of Ohio’s Professional Development Committee (ALAO PDC) is excited to announce a call for participation in the 2024-2025 Mentoring Program. 

Program Overview

The Academic Library Association of Ohio Professional Development Committee reviews registration information and matches mentoring pairs. The annual program typically runs from mid-October 2024 through October 2025. 

The mentor application contains a few fields that will be posted on the ALAO web page as a prospective mentor bio. Mentees will select three potential mentors from the bios and the PDC will match participants and reach out to new mentor-mentee pairs. 

We invite people interested in being mentors to complete the application: 

https://forms.gle/HX3gQ6gPA16Q2azG9

Applications are due September 9, 2024

Matching Process

1. Mentor bios will be posted to an ALAO web page.

2. Prospective mentees review the list of available mentors and identify three mentors they would like to work with.

3. Prospective mentees complete an online application listing their top three mentor choices.

4. ALAO PDC will then work to create a match. When a match is confirmed, both parties will be notified.

5. Prior to your first mentoring meeting, ALAO PDC will provide some guidelines and suggestions to help get the mentoring relationship off to a good start.

6. Typically, most mentoring relationships meet for at least four sessions based on mentor/mentee availability and scheduling preferences.

7. At the end of the mentoring relationship, a program evaluation will go out to both parties.

Who Can Be a Mentor?

ALAO membership is required. We welcome mentors from all levels of professional experience in academic libraries. Mentoring offers a meaningful way to engage with a colleague, be a supportive listener, and help them identify and achieve their professional goals.

Questions? Please contact, Jaclyn Spraetz spraetj@miamioh.edu, Tracey Overbey overbey.13@osu.edu, or Stephanie Founds founds.8@osu.edu.

Thinking about presenting at a conference (maybe for the first time)?  Not sure if your idea can be turned into a presentation, or if there are presentation ideas you might not have thought about?  The ALAO Annual Conference is an excellent opportunity!  Please join us for an informal online chat where you can ask questions and learn more about submitting a proposal and planning a presentation.

ALAO has a longstanding tradition of hosting first-time presenters of sessions, posters, lightning talks and panel discussions.  Ours is a welcoming and supportive conference environment for your first presentation.  In this spirit, and in conjunction with our recent call for conference session proposals, the 2023 ALAO Conference Planning Committee will be hosting an informal virtual conversation with potential first-time presenters and others who may be interested.  

This online event will take place via Zoom on Monday, April 10, 2023 from 3 to 4pm.  Please register beforehand here if you would like to attend.

If you have questions, please contact Mark Eddy at vicepresident@alaoweb.org 

© Academic Library Association of Ohio (ALAO), A Chapter of the Association of College and Research Libraries, American Library Association

ALAO’s online payment system has been fixed. ALAO members can now successfully join or renew their memberships and pay online here. You may have to select "Change membership level" in order to renew your membership. Thank you for your patience during this process.

ALAO is currently experiencing a problem with accepting payment via PayPal. We are working to resolve the problem. If you would like to join or renew your membership now, you can do so and pay by check as directed on the invoice sent via email.

Please contact ALAO Membership Chair, Maureen Barry, at membership@alaoweb.org with any questions. We regret the inconvenience.

Discussions will now be held asynchronously using Padlet.

Discussion #2: Programming, service, and outreach - closes on February 21, 2022 @ 2pm

Article citations:

Kasten-Mutkus, K. (2020). Programming as Pedagogy in the Academic Library. portal: Libraries and the Academy 20(3), 425-434.

Lamøy, L. & Kilvik, A. (2021). May I Borrow a Stapler? Is This All Students Ask at the Service Desk in a University Library? Evidence Based Library and Information Practice, 16(3), 32–45.

Oldenburg, K. (2021). Student Work in VCC Libraries: From Mannequins in the Library to a Car on the Third Floor. Partnership: The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research, 15(2), 1–8.

Padlet link: https://padlet.com/c2ycligchairs/discussion2

Discussion #3: Information literacy and instruction - more info coming!

Email c2yclig-chairs@alaoweb.org for more information.

Join C2YCLIG for a three part discussion series featuring library trends and hot topics!

Discussion #1: Technology and the future of libraries  - November 1, 2021 @ 2pm

Discussion #2: Programming, service, and outreach - February 21, 2022 @ 2pm

Discussion #3: Information literacy and instruction - April 4, 2022 @2pm

Email c2yclig-chairs@alaoweb.org for WebEx links.

The Academic Library Association of Ohio (ALAO) Continuing Education Grant is awarded each year to support the cost of participating in professional development opportunities such as conferences, workshops, seminars, or courses which are related to the member’s current position or in pursuit of a professional library degree.

Current ALAO members are eligible to apply for funds to defray the costs of attending any library-related educational opportunity occurring during the calendar year.

Learn more: Continuing Education Grant 

Apply online:  https://forms.gle/JptJU4e56JWo82kt5

“Futures are not a destination, but a medium for imaginative thought” - Anthony Dunne & Fiona Raby

This work is the apotheosis of a yearlong exploration of speculative design and libraries. Beginning with TEDSIG 2020 in July of 2020, continued through an inspired Speculative Design and Climate Reading Group with LATITUDE | Chicago, and culminating with the publication of this object on speculative library futures.

COMING IN MARCH 2021
https://futures.alaoweb.org/

Would you like an opportunity to hear what your colleagues are doing at other Ohio institutions to deal with the pandemic? Would you like to share about the challenges and opportunities you’re facing this semester?

If so, please feel free to join us for an informal COVID-19 Open Forum!

September 25th at 3:00pm

Register here by September 23rd: https://forms.gle/L927wxV4t8di3LnB6

We’ll do some polling to see what attendees are doing on their campuses, and we’ll have some time to share and problem-solve in small groups. This is also a chance to see each other and connect a little bit! Feel free to attend with child, pet, snack, and/or beverage in tow!