External+communication

The website should have a "press-room" where press releases (both by IASL and newspapers, entities ON IASL activities etc.) can be hosted. Docs would be freely accessible and downloadable. KMM: This "IASL in the news" section might include "clippings" from websites and other news media that mention or discuss IASL activities, publications & presentations by IASL members, etc. A brief note about the clipping and link back to its original source would be appropriate. If in print format only, we could quote it in its entirety with explicit permission from the article publisher.

KMM: "Press releases" would be an entirely different section, as a press release is written by IASL for distribution to other groups for publication/distribution; example: announcing new officers, call for papers for conference, etc. Press releases are actively sent out to the appropriate venues - school library publications, international education publications, state/regional/national library association (especially in the case of individual IASL members becoming officers, making major presentations, publishing within IASL), and even local newspapers at times (for upcoming conference in area, individual IASL member being honored/elected)

While most of internal communication should circulate via listserv, the newsletter should be accessible (as the IFLA LSRC one). This helps in making more visible the IASL contribution to school librarianship and more appealing/attracting the content (with images etc.).

We should make more resources available in the login area: these would add value to IASL membership.

LD: Thanks for sharing this, but the Newsletter is at least at this stage an added value to membership. As we're in the middle of transforming to an extra model of membership, called 'partner membership', I think we need to keep the Newsletter for members for the time being. But we could add a blog where 'parts' of the newsletter are shared. IASL has not published Press releases very often and a 'News section' can include this; is this what you mean?

I like the idea of a blog and a newsletter. The blog is for more timely notices, and the newsletter is for more formal reports, etc. KMM: a blog can also add value for our members and interested non-members by briefly highlighting noteworthy information from other sources & providing direct link to the original. Perhaps on a regular schedule, like a Tuesday Tech Note or an Advocacy Tip once every 2 weeks. We're librarians; curating information for our patrons' benefit and education is what we do!

We should also develop our publication "portfolio": A goal would be one publication per year. It could be an ebook -- or set of workshops, not necessarily a book, although that would be nice. LD: sounds good. btw, shall we put our initials before our comments, so we can see who posted it? KMM: The publication portfolio would be a strong members-only benefit. Occasional notes about this or that publication could be included in blog and news portal - as incentive to join, as access to whole article/workshop/ebook would only be available to members.