ACRL-LES Elections — please vote!

March 9th, 2021

The ALA 2021 election is now open!  We have an excellent slate of candidates this year:

VICE-CHAIR/CHAIR-ELECT

Kristina De Voe

Mark Dahlquist

SECRETARY  

Hillary Richardson

M. Leslie Madden

MEMBER-AT-LARGE  

Paizha Stoothoff

Sam Lohmann

Voting will remain open until April 7, so please take a few moments to cast your ballot! Your vote really does matter, and gives you an opportunity to show your support for the section and help shape its direction going forward.  

Eligible members should have received voting instructions via email.  You can read the biographical information about each candidate by clicking on the “View Bio” button next to their name on the ballot.  For more information about the ALA elections, visit http://www.ala.org/aboutala/governance/alaelection.

Volunteer for an LES committee! Deadline is 2/12

February 11th, 2021

Are you a librarian who works with English departments, collections, students, and/or faculty? Would you like to meet other librarians who do so? Are you a librarian or student who would like to be an English librarian? If so, please volunteer for an LES: Literatures in English committee! You’ll meet interesting people and learn more about how ACRL works. Librarians from under-represented groups are encouraged to apply, as are new and student members. In-person attendance at conferences is not necessary (though right now, conferences are virtual), and no experience is necessary.

A list of committees is included below, along with a list of committee chairs:
http://www.ala.org/acrl/aboutacrl/directoryofleadership/sections/les/involved

http://www.ala.org/acrl/aboutacrl/directoryofleadership/sections/les/acr-lesec

Information about volunteering and the volunteer form can be found on the page below:
http://www.ala.org/acrl/membership/volunteer/volunteer

Please contact LES Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect Glenda Insua (ginsua1@uic.edu) with any questions.

LES Anti-Racist Action Plan Town Hall

November 25th, 2020

The Literatures in English (LES) Anti-Racist Action Plan Ad Hoc Committee is hosting a town hall to share the committee’s work thus far and to hear your comments and suggestions. Our goal is to assess and improve the operation of the Section as a first step toward anti-racist practice. At this town hall we will be sharing the committee’s charge, draft report and explaining the process thus far, examining: 

  • Publications
  • Marketing
  • Volunteer recruitment
  • Programming
  • Governing documents
  • Nominations
  • Inclusive meeting practices 

We are seeking feedback from library workers across all subject fields, areas of expertise, and types of libraries, whether or not you are members of LES, ALA, or ACRL.

The town hall is scheduled for December 11, from 2:00-3:30pm EST. Please click here to register

If you have questions, please contact LES Anti Racist Action Plan Ad Hoc Committee co-chairs Nancy Foasberg (nfoasberg@qc.cuny.edu) and Ginny Moran (vmoran@macalester.edu).

Contribute to Biblio-Notes

September 17th, 2020

Welcome to the start of a new academic year. We would like to take this opportunity to encourage you to submit to Biblio-Notes.

Send your submissions for the Fall 2029 issue in .doc, .docx, .odt, or .rtf format to LES Biblio-Notes (biblionotes@gmail.com) by Monday, 5 October 2020.

Ideas for Biblio-Notes articles can include, but are not limited to, the following topics: 

  • Updates/Talks/News from ALA or will you present at another forthcoming conference?
  • Are you engaged in an innovative project related to LES at your library?
  • Did you complete an exciting research project, or recently publish an article? 
  • Have you tried a new instruction method or designed a new assignment? Tell us about it. 
  • What role are you taking to develop more inclusive literary collections and what strategies do you use to develop such collections? 
  • Were you recently hired, promoted, published, tenured, or otherwise excellent? Your fellow LES members want to know!
  • Contribute to the “What’s In Your Bag” feature by writing a brief piece that describes a book or books that you read this fall. Why were these books so meaningful to you?
  • What is your library doing to address the COVID-19 pandemic? Or how has the pandemic affected your work and the services/collections that you provide to faculty, staff, students, and community users?
  • Given that LES endorses the anti-racist actions outlined in ALA Black Caucus’s Statement on Racial Violence, how have you participated to create a more just society? What role, if any, can literature, poetry, creative non-fiction, etc., play in how you envision and materialize such a society?

Biblio-Notes is a newsletter. Brief articles are welcome (25­­­­­­­0-1000 words). If you have any ideas for an article or other relevant content, feel free to let us know. 

We look forward to reading your submissions. 

LES ALA Virtual Meetings

June 10th, 2020


Executive Committee Meeting I (ACRL LES)
Monday, June 15, 12:00-1:30 PM, Eastern Time


General Membership Forum
Monday, June 15, 3:30-5:00 PM, Eastern Time


LES Social
Monday, June 15, 5:15- 6:45 PM, Eastern Time


Reference Discussion Group
Tuesday, June 16, 1:30-2:30 PM, Eastern Time


Collections Discussion Group
Tuesday, June 16, 4:00-5:00 PM, Eastern Time


LES/IS Forum
Monday, June 29, 4:00-5:00 PM, Eastern Time


All Committees Meeting (will take place on multiple platforms)
Wednesday, July 1, 12:00-1:30 PM, Eastern Time


Executive Committee Meeting II (ACRL LES)
Wednesday, July 1, 2:00-3:00 PM, Eastern Time

LES Election Results

April 22nd, 2020

Congratulations to our newly elected officers:

Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect
Glenda Insua

Secretary Read the rest of this entry »

Collaborating for Student Success: Advancing Research Competencies in Writing and Literature

November 26th, 2019


The LES Working Group to Update the LES Research Competencies and LES Virtual Participation Committee invite you to a special virtual event…

Collaborating for Student Success: Advancing Research Competencies in Writing and Literature

Date and time: Tuesday, December 10, 2019, 2:00PM – 3:00PM (Eastern)
Register online

Description: The LES Working Group to Update the LES Research Competencies has been working on a document to update the existing competencies within the new ACRL Information Literacy Framework. During this webinar, the working group will provide an update on the status of the Research Competencies in Writing and Literature document, highlighting how the document can be used to enhance teaching and outreach efforts in your liaison areas.

Your feedback on the document is needed! During the webinar, there will be opportunities for you to share your thoughts and ideas in small group settings on these key topics:

• Relevance to your own teaching and assessment efforts
• Interdisciplinary applications
• Usefulness in curriculum design and creating learning objectives

Please take a moment to review the document before the discussion.

Hope to see you there!

Kristina, on behalf of the 2019-2020 LES Working Group to Update the LES Research Competencies and LES Virtual Participation Committee

Meet LES Member Brian Flota

November 15th, 2019

brian flota

Brian Flota is the first librarian the Literatures in English (LES) Virtual Participation Committee is highlighting as part of a new series. Are you a member of LES? Would you like to be featured as a member, or nominate a colleague? Contact Margie Ruppel, Instruction & Research Services Librarian, at Boise State University margieruppel@boisestate.edu.

Name: Brian Flota

Job title and location:
Humanities Librarian (Associate Professor) at James Madison University; Harrisonburg, Virginia

How long have you been in LES?
This will be my sixth full year in LES (I joined in 2013).

Describe yourself in 2 words:
Silly and serious

What are you currently reading/watching/etc?
Currently reading: a book about Japanese noise music; I’m also re-reading Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick. Currently watching: It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia; Silicon Valley; Mrs. Fletcher

What is something others may be surprised to know about you?

I have a decent collection of early- to mid-20th Century American postcards.

What is your favorite aspect of your current position?

I have plenty of autonomy in position to follow certain areas of interest. Over the last few years I’ve worked to create and develop a collection of comic books here in the libraries. I co-taught an Honors course in Fall 2018 titled “Comic Books, Analysis, and Digital Scholarship,” which was the culmination of three years of work in this area. That’s pretty cool if you ask me!

What is in your toolkit?:
Pay attention to your social media feeds if you still have them. (Sidebar: if you don’t have any, you are a better person than I am!) I find out about lots of interesting books (for collection development), projects, and discussions around literary topics here that I might not have found through more traditional means (such as library and literary journals). Also, get to know your liaison departments’ administrative assistants. Their knowledge and experience can be very helpful, especially if you are new in your position.

Read the rest of this entry »

ACRL IS and LES seek liaison to Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC)

August 23rd, 2019

The ACRL Instruction Section (IS) and Literatures in English Section (LES) are currently seeking applications to serve a three-year term (through July 2022) as the ACRL liaison to the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC). CCCC, a conference of the National Council of Teachers of English, supports postsecondary teachers of rhetoric, composition and communication.

This is a new liaison position, recently approved by ACRL. Liaisons are responsible for outreach, education, and communication between the CCCC and ACRL in order to form strong relationships and advance the interests of ACRL, IS and LES.

About the CCCC

CCCC, according to its mission statement, “advocates for broad and evolving definitions of literacy, communication, rhetoric and writing (including multimodal discourse, digital communication, and diverse language practices) that emphasize the value of these activities to empower individuals and communities.” CCCC’s advocacy for a broad definition of literacy, which includes digital and multimodal literacy, dovetails very nicely with ACRL’s goal to advance student learning and advocacy for information literacy and other literacies. As both CCCC and ACRL are looking to collaborate with institutional partners to improve curricula, it makes sense to bring these two organizations together.

Deadline for Applications

September 1, 2019

Submission Requirements

Nominees must submit:

An email of application articulating qualifications to Meghan Sitar, Past-Chair, ACRL Instruction Section, msitar@umich.edu
A current vita

Expectations

Liaison attends CCCC Annual Convention, which takes place in March.
Liaison must be willing to identify opportunities for collaboration with CCCC members on research and scholarship to advance understanding of ethical and effective teaching practices, shared frameworks, and other emerging focus areas.
Liaison should effectively share information about ACRL strategic initiatives and agendas to CCCC.
Liaison must submit a report jointly to the Executive Committees of IS and LES and contribute a newsletter item following attendance at the conference, providing a summary of the experience.
Liaison will also report to the ACRL Liaisons Assembly.

Qualifications

Required:

Current member of IS or LES.
Experience working with composition and writing programs as a librarian.
Interest in coordinating activities to increase interaction between the CCCC, ACRL, IS, and LES.
Financial support to attend the CCCC for the length of the three-year term if not funded by ACRL (Note: Liaison may apply for conference funding from the grants working group of the ACRL External Liaisons Committee, but funding is not guaranteed. The current deadline to apply for Spring 2020 conference funding is September 15, 2019.)
Experience with or interest in outreach and advocacy to campus stakeholders engaged in writing instruction.
Excellent communication skills

Desired:

Record of serving IS, LES, and/or ACRL on committees, task forces, etc.
Experience conducting research on the collaborations between composition instructors and librarians.

IS and LES are committed to assessing applicants promptly in order to allow the liaison to apply for funding through ACRL’s grants program.

If you have any questions about the process, please contact msitar@umich.edu.

LES Events at ALA Annual in Washington, DC

May 29th, 2019

Saturday, June 22

8:30 – 10:00 AM Executive Committee Meeting I (ACRL LES), Washington Hilton, U Street

4:00 – 5:30 PM General Membership Forum (ACRL LES), Washington Hilton, Columbia 08,11,12

6:00 PM LES Social — The Punch Garden at the Columbia Room, 124 Blagden Alley NW

Sunday, June 23

8:30 – 10:00 AM All-Committees Meeting (ACRL LES), Washington Hilton, Georgetown East

10:30 – 11:30 AM Reference Discussion Group (ACRL LES), Washington Hilton, Cardozo

1:00 – 2:00 PM Collections Discussion Group (ACRL LES), Washington Hilton, Cardozo

Monday, June 24

9:00 – 10:00 AM Difficult Discussions: Diversity in Digital Collections and Archives (ACRL DSS/ACRL LES Program), Washington Convention Center, 145A

10:30 – 11:30 AM Executive Committee Meeting II (ACRL LES), Washington Hilton, Cardozo

You can also search for the LES events via the conference scheduler: Conference Scheduler – LES
We hope to see you in Washington, Dc!