Profession: September 2008 Archives

"Relative National Membership and Self-Reports of Professional Activity Among Academic Science, Engineering and Medical Librarians Some Hypotheses on Why SLA Is Mentioned So Often" by Tony Stankus - read it if you subscribe to Science & Technology Libraries

Three reasons are "proximity to academic SLA STM librarians, an awareness of the general success of SLA members in attainment of elective professional office, and success in SLA member recruitment by elite institutions."

Let me posit a fourth point that comes from attending STS Council and other ACRL meetings along with a recent personal experience trying to get a STM program accepted for ACRL Conference.  "In efforts to meet the needs of all its sections and members ACRL winds up giving STS and perhaps other sections very limited opportunities for impact and significance."  This plays itself out at ALA Conferences, of which ACRL is only a part, in limited
time slots of programming and multiple conflicts in those slots.  Also this may be my first year to attend SLA so I will see if the grass really is greener on the other side of the fence.