In which I compare state library association presentations to participating in the high school play. As we used to say, “don’t worry about it! It’ll be dark, they’ll be drunk!” I also link to some other folks who are more&…

I’ll repeat a comment I left on Michelle’s blog, mostly in response to your statement “Michelle is making thousands of dollars for their organization.”

LIRT did not go into this preconference expecting to make a lot of money. We’re only charging $40 for a full-day preconference. What a deal!

Michelle stated from the first that she wanted Internet access, and I agreed. This is a preconference about online tools, after all! She also expressed concerns about wireless access, and I agreed (it can be flaky, and I don’t like to count on it). TLA, as a matter of policy, does not provide Internet access, so I arranged it directly with the convention center. Total bill: $995 for a day for hard-line access for the presenters. Attendees can get wireless access for $12.95. I’m not happy about that, but it’s what we were able to get.

So, the reality is, if this preconference hadn’t had 100 people sign up, LIRT would have lost money. A lot of money. But it’s a good topic, and I have every confidence that Michelle (and Gary Wan from Texas A&M– let us not forget that Michelle isn’t doing this all alone!) will provide great information for the folks who attend.

And yes, it’s a shame that conferences don’t comp registrations for speakers. And I really hate that I can’t pay Texas librarians for their travel and expenses when they present at TLA. I’ve really hated that I can’t get paid, too, when I speak at state and national conferences, but that’s another story. We’ll just keep fighting that battle.

Danielle Cunniff Plumer
Chair, Library Instruction Round Table
Texas Library Association

Ann Ewbank, President of the Arizona Library Assocation. I read your comments about being an invited speaker to local/state library conferences with great interest, and I hope I can shed some light on why things happen from a state organization/conference organizer perspective.

A few years ago, before I became involved in the conference, I would have asked the very same questions you are raising here. Now that I have been involved in conference planning for a couple of years, I have a different outlook.

The Arizona Librar Association (AzLA) has just under 1000 members, and our annual conference, with an attendance of about 800, pretty much funds our entire organization. We have, as I’m sure you understand, a limited budget to provide speakers with honorarium and travel expenses. This includes authors. Our total budget for speakers, presenters, and authors is about $17,000. This does not go very far, considering that many authors require honoraria of $1500 plus travel. Paying for knowledgeable folks like you to present at our conference can cost about $2000 once you factor in airfare, lodging, a small honorarium, ground transporation, and per diem. So you see our predicament. We want to invite dynamic speakers, we want to pay for airfare, a couple of night’s lodging, meals, and ground transportation, and we do the best we can. However, if we extended this policy to our in-state presenters and/or non-members in Arizona, it would completely break us. We simply cannot afford to pay honoraria or expenses for anyone in-state, invited or not, and that is clearly stated in our policy, up front.

Our policy states that anyone who works in a library in Arizona, AzLA member or not, is not eligible for honorarium or travel expenses. If you are a member of AzLA and live out of state you are also not eligible. The rationale is that AzLA is a volunteer association and that we provide you with the infrastructure to share knowledge with your colleagues. Your dues and conference registration fees pay for folks who would not normally come to our conference to be there. As a member or a librarian in Arizona, you are expected to contribute, as part of your commitment to the profession. It is not a money making venture.

That is not to say that we do not treat our member speakers well; we provide a speaker gift to every speaker and have a speaker liaison who makes sure that each speaker is comfortable and gives an introduction during the session. We do try hard to make sure that our speakers feel special.

I hope this gives you some insight on conferences from the inside. I know not every conference experience is the same, but many of the mid-size and small state organizations are in similar situations and I hope that you continue to present in those venues. Many librarians and paraprofessionals go to the state conference as their only opportunity for professional development, so your expertise is needed.

And you are welcome to take a look at our call for proposals and submit one if you like! Let me know if you have any questions.

Ann Ewbank

http://azla.affiniscape.com/displayemailforms.cfm?emailformnbr=65080

As another male who used to feel that way (after being exposed to liberal doses of feminism as an undergraduate), it doesn’t do much good to feel the kind of guilt by association, especially with the misogynistic thugs that have threatened Kathy Sierra. Showing support for her is the least one can do… as you have already done.

I probably need to work this up as a longer post on my own site, but for now I’ll say that I think it is generally OK if a group is bringing in people and compensating them more than they are the locals who have applied to present. After all, the reason they are flying people in is because those people are well-known and likely to be a draw for the conference in a way that the local folks aren’t. But, again, I think this should all be public, so if the majority of the membership doesn’t see it that way, it can be hashed out in the open.

I know, I know. I think it too. This is the last time.

Just out of curiosity, did they ask you to do it or did you apply to do it?