My earliest memory of how I became a presenter at MLA’19 was Jolene M. Miller’s call for collaboration in September 2018. In the time it took for a book to be checked-in and shelved, Jolene had gathered Stephanie Friree Ford and me to tackle an immersion session centered on reflection for professional practice. Below are a few key ideas that helped us get ready for our immersion session:
- Set up recurring meetings in advance (be cognizant of different time zones)
- Anna’s Note: We met every Thursday at 9 AM (PST)/12 PM (EST) until the conference.
- Have agenda items or desired outcomes of meetings, read
- Anna’s Note: Librarians have a lot to talk about so bring an agenda to the meetings. Close the meetings with an individual ‘to-do’ list.
- Collegiality is key
- Anna’s Meaning: Don’t be afraid to challenge your colleagues, but be respectful. If someone is struggling with an idea, help each other understand it by talking through it.
- Have a space to create and share content (Google Drive, Dropbox, etc.)
- Anna’s Note: We loved Google Drive!
- Plan to meet in advance of the actual immersion session
- Anna’s Note: We practiced our presentation online once and met in person the day before our session.
- Enjoy yourself
- Anna’s Note: Basically, have fun with it and don’t forget to laugh. Our team always made time to talk about cats, coffee, and dream vacations.
