ChapterNews
IN THIS ISSUE Letter from the Chapter President
Letter from the President:
Fundraising 101 .........................1
Hooray for Spring ..........................3
Holiday Party Survey .....................4
Chapter Announcements...............6
In Memoriam
Francis Elizabeth McMeen.........7
Notes From The Archvies
NY: Where SLA Comes
to Work and Play .......................9
Our Evening with
Malcom Gladwell .....................10
A Winter Interlude ........................11
Internships:
A Win-Win Situation.................13
ADVERTISERS
Dialog.............................................5
Donna Conti Career Resources...10
EBSCO...........................................7
EOS International...........................4
Factiva .........................................12
Global Securities Information, Inc...8
InfoCurrent.....................................3
Prenax..........................................14
Pro Libra ........................................7
Wontawk......................................11
ChapterNews
Volume 77, #1 Spring 2005
Fundraising 101
Last year, the Board of the New York Chapter was forced to think creatively about
a problem that we had not worried about in quite a while: finding sufficient money
for chapter programs and scholarships.
Sponsorship from vendor sources was down significantly, to the point where we
were worried how we were going to pay for chapter activities in the coming year.
New York had relied on vendor contributions for so long that we assumed this
source of funds would always be there for the asking. We were wrong.
New York is the largest chapter, with somewhere between 1,100 and 1,300 mem-
bers, depending on the month you do the counting. We also operate in one of the
most expensive cities in the United States. What would we do if vendor contribu-
tions continue to remain low? How can we continue to pay for programs without
sufficient vendor contributions? A bake sale is not a sufficient source of revenue,
not when the least expensive venue we can find in NYC (with a 200-seat capacity)
costs $800, before refreshments and speaker expenses. Local programs cost us
from $1,000 to $5,000 and up. Asking members to fully pay for our actual program
costs is unrealistic.
This situation made us think and ask some questions about ourselves as a chapter.
We know that we need to continue providing worthwhile programs throughout the
year to Chapter members, many of whom cannot attend the Annual Conferences on
a regular basis. Association membership is driven primarily by local Chapter activ-
ities throughout the year.
We turned to a fundraising consultant for help examining the issues and coming up
with solutions. I met with a consultant with an established record with major cultural
and non-profit associations, both in New York and nationally. He even has an MLS.
His observations are interesting:
▲ We certainly are worthy enough recipients. We do many worthwhile things,
both locally and nationally, such as providing student scholarship and intern-
ship programs. We also offer professional development programs to our
members. Librarians represent an established profession that many people
view favorably. The profession is directly linked to the information revolu-
tion/explosion or whatever one wishes to call it. Our members could be
(and should be) perceived as fulfilling a vital role in this information era.
It is just a matter of finding interested donor organizations.
▲ For member associations such as ours, fundraising turns out to be very much a
local effort. For example, Houston-based companies with established gift-giv-
ing programs are much more likely to donate funds to local Houston-based
activities (i.e., chapters) rather than to a parent association based elsewhere.
The same principle applies to corporate donors in every large city.
(Letter continues on page 2)
1 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005
 (Letter continued from page 1)
ChapterNews ▲ The crux of the problem, however, is communicating
New York Chapter what we do in a way that donor organizations would
respond to. The fundraising world has a language of
Special Libraries Association its own, a language we don’t yet know how to speak.
Spring Vol. 77, No. 1 We need to create a Case for Support to explain what
we do, and a Strategic Plan for Fundraising to explain
PUBLICATION SCHEDULE what we would use donated money for. Without these
ChapterNews, the bulletin of the New York Chapter of the documents, we couldn’t even get in the door to ask
Special Libraries Association, is published four times a year. for money from corporate donors.
▲ We need professional help to create these documents
and to guide us through the fundraising process. Once
Deadlines for submitting materials: the documents are completed, they will provide a
Fall issue September 24 template for fundraising in every large-city chapter!
Winter issue December 15 The fundraising process works pretty much the same
Spring issue March 15 in every major city, with corporate donors requiring
Summer issue May 14 the same kinds of documentation from recipients.
Therefore, the benefits of creating these fundraising
Submit all material to: documents in New York would extend throughout the
Jennifer Kellerman association, providing money at the local level.
ChapterNews Editor ▲ We need to find donors who will fund significant student
E-mail: jkellerman@paulweiss.com scholarships and cutting-edge programs in every major
city. Imagine how this could further enhance our percep-
Submissions: Articles on topics of general interest to infor- tion in the public eye and our standing as an Association.
mation professionals and the New York Chapter are welcome.
Authors can send submissions via e-mail as text file or MS Needless to say, this was very exciting to us! We felt that we
Word for Windows attachments, or with article in the body of could be on the verge of doing something really significant
the e-mail. Please use single-line spacing, Courier font, with for our chapter and for many other chapters in the Associa-
minimal use of boldface and italics. Include a byline with your tion. The New York Board approved funds to hire the con-
full name and place of work.
sultant, but they were insufficient. We were hopeful that
the Association would look favorably on this effort and
ADVERTISING inquiries should be addressed to: assist with the funding. On behalf of the New York chapter,
Nancy Bowles I submitted an application for an Endowment Grant from
235 East 22nd Street, Apt 9L the Association in the amount of $20,000. In November,
New York, NY 10010 we learned that we had been turned down for the grant.
Telephone: (212) 679-7088 or Needless to say, the Board is extremely disappointed. The
E-mail: nancy.bowles@verizon.net idea still seems to make so much sense to everyone, so I
remain hopeful that there is a solution. One of the reasons
DESIGN & LAYOUT: we were turned down is that the amount of money we
Gatta Design & Company, Inc. asked for was large, relative to the total amount of available
For inquiries call (212) 229-0071 or www.gattago.com funds from headquarters. But perhaps Chapters can collab-
orate on this mutually beneficial project? I look forward to
this possibility. This is the next plan for our fundraising
Special Libraries Association assumes no responsibility for the project. I hope to report positive results to you soon.
statements and opinions advanced by contributors to the Associa-
tion’s publications. Editorial views do not necessarily represent the See you at our next Chapter program!
official position of Special Libraries Association. Acceptance of
an advertisement does not imply endorsement of the product by
Special Libraries Association. Tom Pelizzi is a Principal at InfoSpace Consultants, where
he has been a special library consultant and library designer
CHAPTERNEWS STAFF for more than 17 years. Inquiries about this article should
be addressed to tapdsn@earthlink.net.
Director of Publications Mike Gruenberg
ChapterNews Editor Jennifer Kellerman
Advertising Manager Nancy Bowles
Webmaster Michael Rivas

ChapterNews 2 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

Message From
The Director of Publications
Hooray For Spring
By Mike Gruenberg
n the summer of 1966, my friend Bobby and I traveled
I
across the United States in his MGB. It certainly
seemed like a good idea for two college kids to drive
to California. We left New York on a Saturday evening
and arrived approximately a week later in San Francisco
no worse for wear and tear but thoroughly exhausted
upon arrival. Thus began my love of travel and my fasci-
nation with sports cars. As a result of that trip, I decided
to learn about sports cars and did everything possible to
gather literature and consume facts about them.
In those years, students were politically active in growing
numbers. Whatever your beliefs, you usually attended cam-
pus meetings to uplift your fellow followers and do every-
thing possible to influence others on your point of view.
One of the ways to show your belief and influence others
at the same time was to wear a pin proclaiming your views.
The easiest pins to obtain were for the politicians. I remem-
ber my JFK/LBJ pin and, of course, the McGovern for
President pins. Campus bookstores, record shops, political
rallies all had an appropriate pin to champion their cause.
Occasionally, the amount of pins produced exceeded the
number of people who were willing to wear them. Therefore,
the more striking or larger or humorous the pin, the bet-
ter the chance it had of being worn. It became a marketing
exercise as to how to reach the most people to wear your pin.
After supporting a number of political candidates over
my high school and college years, I decided in the last
year of college, I would only wear humorous pins that
primarily made sense to me. I searched for the pins that
would gratify me, make me smile and perhaps produce a
message that only I could understand. I finally found a
pin that fit the above mentioned parameters. It was
beige, larger than most other pins, had a branch with lit-
tle buds coming out of it to herald the new season and a
bird sitting on the branch with the message “HOORAY
for SPRIMG.” Those clever ad people at MG (also my
initials) developed a button that acknowledged Spring,
touted their car in such a way that it wasn’t immediately
transparent and gave me a button I could proudly wear.
I thought that was very cool.
So what does all this have to do with the NY Chapter?
Aside from the emergence of Spring, we have a lot to
shout about. This month, we have unveiled our new
website. The design and colors are bright and cheerful,
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much like Spring. This project has been near and dear to
me because I took on the responsibility of updating our
site when I became Director of Publications almost two
years ago. The Board has been incredibly supportive of
this work and was an integral part of the process. I was
also lucky enough to have Michael Rivas join us as web-
master. Between our ideas and having Michael translate
those ideas into reality, we came up with a look to the
site that is second to none. Thank you to all who con-
tributed to this project.
Another reason to be proud of our chapter is the election
of Agnes Mattis as Division Cabinet Chair-Elect. No
person I know works harder for the membership than
Agnes. One of the reasons I accepted the position of
Director of Publications was because of her. I knew that
whatever work I did, she would probably do more and
that I could learn from her. She has been my friend and
mentor for many years. I am grateful for all she has done
to educate me, but more so for what she has done to fur-
ther the organization on both a local and national level. I
therefore decided that I should produce a pin about
Agnes. I came up with “HOORAY for AGNES.” After
all these years, this pin fits my parameters. It makes me
smile, only a few, select people will know what it means
and it acknowledges a wonderful lady.
Michael Gruenberg is Corporate Sales Manager at Cambridge
Scientific Abstracts (CSA). He can be reached at 516 576-
1575 and his e-mail is mgruenberg@csa.com.
3 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005
The Results are in:
Holiday Party Survey
Revealed
By Gwen Loeffler

More than 100 people responded to our Holiday Party

Survey conducted between December 16-24, 2004.
Highlights of the survey include:
▲ 60% of the respondents attended this year’s party at
Planet Hollywood
▲ Nearly 50% attend the party most years
▲ Beer, wine and soft drinks beat out the full open bar
option by only a small margin
▲ 70% indicated that hot and cold hors d’oeuvres were
sufficient, but 23% would be interested in a full buffet
with entrée(s)
▲ Music and entertainment is not as important for the
majority of our members. Most indicated that quiet,
background music is sufficient – or none at all
▲ 70% would NOT be willing to pay the full cost per
person to attend the party Only a few members recommended other possible venues
for future parties. One of the main challenges in securing
▲ Members seem evenly divided on who should be invit-
a space for the Chapter’s Annual Party is finding an
ed to the party with nearly 38% indicating they would
affordable space that can accommodate 200-250 guests.
like it to be a joint event with other NY-based library
associations In terms of what we could do to ensure that members
attend the party next year, respondents suggested more
Some of the most revealing aspects of the survey were in
notice of the date of the party; more and better quality
response to the open-ended questions. For example, as
food; less expensive ticket price; quiet venue; and sched-
you might expect, the major factors affecting a member’s
ule the event on a mid-week date.
decision to attend the party were date, time, price and
whether or not friends and colleagues would be attending. Thank you to everyone who responded to the Holiday
Party Survey! Your responses do matter and your opin-
In response to question about what guests liked most and
ions will be taken into account when planning future
least about this year’s party and previous parties, factors
parties and events. Look for additional surveys on pro-
like food, noise-level, size of space, seating, lighting and
grams and events coming soon.
ambiance were at the top of the list.
Of the recent venues in which we have hosted the holi-
Gwen Loeffler is Senior Research Specialist at the global
day party, the Museum of Art & Design and The Manhattan
advertising and marketing network Young & Rubicam Brands,
Penthouse rated the highest.
and President-Elect of the New York Chapter of SLA. She can
be reached at gwen.loeffler@yrbrands.com or 212-210-3986.

ChapterNews 4 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

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ChapterNews 5 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

 CHAPTER ANNOUNCEMENTS
CHAPTER ANNOUNCEMENTS

Kevin Manion on the Frontlines

Beginning in the next (Summer) issue of ChapterNews,
Kevin Manion will contribute a column called “Front-
lines.” The column will deal with a different topic each
issue and detail the stories, experiences and successes of
In Memoriam... New York Chapter members. Membership in a profes-
Frances Elisabeth McMeen sional association like SLA is an important part of career
Former Personnel Consultant, development. By compiling and sharing these stories,
Theresa M. Burke Employment Agency Kevin hopes to raise awareness of the value of member-
ship and to promote communication and professional
Frances McMeen died on February 3, 2005, after several networking.
months of failing health. A graduate of Penn State Uni-
The first topic Kevin will cover is how seeking advice/
versity, she received her Master’s Degree in Library Sci-
input/guidance from colleagues in the information ser-
ence in 1965 from the University of Pittsburgh. Frances
vices profession helped solve a problem in your operation.
worked as a Consultant at the Burke Agency from 1972
Share your experiences with Kevin by emailing him at
until 1991, specializing in the placement of Library Per-
manike@consumer.org or phoning him at 914-378-2263.
sonnel in Special Libraries.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Endowment
Fund of the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew, 263 W.
86th St., NY, NY 10024. Welcome to
— See article on page 7. the New York Chapter
Sarah Warner, Membership Chair
We would like to welcome the following new members
Members on the Move… to the New York Chapter. We look forward to meeting
Michael Gruenberg has taken a position with Cambridge you at our chapter events!
Scientific Abstracts (CSA) as Corporate Sales Manager. Ted Baldwin Patsy Lee
CSA is part of the Cambridge Information Group based Debbie Bard
in Bethesda, Maryland. Michael’s role will be to oversee John Miller
the sales of CSA's products to the corporate community. Tina Chrismore Soeun Nam
He can be reached at 516 576-1575 and his e-mail is Janine Devereaux Barbara Oliver
mgruenberg@csa.com. Robin Dodge
Susanne Pichler
Beth Eisman Ludmilla Pollock
Damian Hayden Jason Powell
And the winner is….. Howard Hill
Congratulations to Agnes Mattis, who was elected Division JaNae Kinikin
Cabinet Chair-Elect. She, along with the other newly-
elected board members, will be installed to the SLA
Board of Directors at the 2005 Annual Conference in
Toronto.
Carol Ginsburg will be inducted into the SLA Hall of Fame
at the 2005 Annual Conference in Toronto. Congratula-
tions, Carol!

ChapterNews 6 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

In Memoriam...
Frances Elisabeth McMeen
Former Personnel Consultant,
Theresa M. Burke
Employment Agency

Frances McMeen died on February 3, 2005, after several

months of failing health. A graduate of Penn State Uni-
versity, she received her Master’s Degree in Library Sci-
ence in 1965 from the University of Pittsburgh. Frances
worked as a Consultant at the Burke Agency from 1972
until 1991, specializing in the placement of Library Per-
sonnel in Special Libraries. Her clients included a wide
variety of corporations and law firms.
She was a person of diverse careers, talents and interests.
In addition to her work as an employment counselor, she
held librarian positions for major libraries and corporations,
including the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore and
NCR Corporation. She also served as an editor for infor-
mation services, performed as an administrative assistant,
and organized and compiled data for Goldman, Sachs & Co.
An avid reader and lover of books, she had the reputation
among friends and associates of being a “book detective,”
with a rare ability to doggedly pursue and obtain infor-
mation about beloved books — and frequently the books
themselves in hidden and sometimes musty places. She
had a special expertise in books written by the late British
author Barbara Pym and was an active member of the
international Barbara Pym Society.
Ms. McMeen was an excellent writer and public speaker;
she wrote a number of columns for Along the Juniata in
the Daily News, and book reviews for various professional
organizations.
Her sense of humor stayed with her throughout her life.
Her friends, co-workers and audiences for her talks and
writings enjoyed her witty and perceptive observations
on many subjects, including the joys and frustrations of
daily life in New York City.

Memorial Contributions may be made to the Endowment

Fund of the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew, 263 W. 86th
St., NY, NY 10024.

ChapterNews 7 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

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ChapterNews 8 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

Notes from the Archives:
New York – Where SLA
Comes to Work and Play
By Ellen Miller
any of you took part in the SLA Annual Confer-
M ence held in New York in 2003. I thought you
might enjoy reading about some of the other
conferences held here in the past. The earliest conven-
tion (as they were known then) was held in November
1909 and was presided over by John Cotton Dana, with
forty members in attendance. There is limited informa-
tion in the archives about the subsequent conventions in
1911, 1920, 1934, 1937 and 1943. However, starting in
1952, the archives are a treasure trove of details about
convention planning.
Back in those days, the local chapters of SLA were entirely
responsible for the arrangements of a conference in their
locale. The conference committee handled not only program
planning but also hotel selection. The committee in 1952
did an extensive comparison of six hotels in the city before
settling on the Hotel Statler as the convention hotel.
Lest we all think that spreadsheets were invented with
the rise of the personal computer, there is a wonderful
handwritten version of one in the archives showing the
comparative features and costs of each hotel the committee
contacted. One of the primary considerations in choosing a
hotel was cost. This spreadsheet shows that single rooms
were $5.50 and doubles were $9. Meal events came in at
$2, $3, and $4 for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Overall,
convention fees were quite reasonable, with registration
at $1.50 per day or $5.00 for the entire five days.
Some of the other highlights of the 1952 convention
were the Young Women’s program, aimed at newer
librarians who were felt to have different educational
interests and needs than the “old-timers.” There was
some concern about the use of the designation “young
women” but no one seems to have been able to come up
with something better. This was also the first New York
conference for which a restaurant guide was produced, a
copy of which is in the archives. As always, social events
were as much a part of the weekly activities as education-
al programs and the 1952 conference included a square
dance (very New York, don’t you think?), a tour to the
Cloisters and a boat ride around Manhattan.
1959 was the 50th anniversary of the Association and it
was decided that the annual convention would be held in
Atlantic City and co-hosted by the New York, New Jersey
ChapterNews
and Philadelphia chapters. The New York Chapter,
responsible for the entertainment program on Sunday
night, put on a fashion and variety show covering the pre-
vious fifty years. It was a huge success, with 596 attendees
squeezing into a room designed to hold 400. In honor
of the association’s golden anniversary, it was decided to
invite those retired members who had been active volun-
teers at the association or chapter/division level to attend
free, thus waiving the $7 registration fee. This was also
the first convention where Divisions asked to be allowed
to use their conference allotment money for speaker
expenses instead of flowers for the meeting rooms. The
Board of Directors agreed to allow this change because
Atlantic City was more difficult to get to than most of
the earlier venues for the conventions and, therefore,
speakers would incur higher travel costs. It seems quaint
now to think about flower arrangements in all the meet-
ing rooms at an SLA conference.
In 1967, SLA came to New York again for a conference
held at the Commodore Hotel, which was situated next
to Grand Central Station where the Grand Hyatt now
stands (this was before the construction of the Met Life,
formerly Pan Am, building). Once again the conference
committee analyzed a broad range of hotels and settled
on the Commodore for its central location, ability to
supply required meeting space, availability of dates and
prices. Considering that it was fifteen years since the
1952 convention, the increase in costs was minimal, with
rooms at $8.50 for singles and $13 for doubles. Meals
were now $2.75 for breakfast, $4.00 for lunch and $6.00
for dinner.
The last conference where the local chapter was entirely
responsible for program content was held in 1977. Ron
Coplen, the conference chair, put together a five person
team and I was fortunate enough to be asked to serve as
secretary/treasurer. We no longer had to handle local
arrangements for hotels and meals (thank goodness!) so
we could concentrate our energies on program issues.
This was the first conference to use the combined venues
of the Hilton and the Sheraton to house both meetings
and exhibits. Although prices were still modest by today’s
standards (student attendance was particularly encour-
aged through a $5 registration fee), prices had escalated
to the point that an awards luncheon was held for the
first time in place of the traditional banquet.
Ellen Miller is a 32-year member of SLA, who twice served as
President of the New York Chapter. She retired from J.P. Morgan
in 1999 and now spends her time gardening, singing in her
church choir and doing occasional consulting assignments.
She was inducted into the SLA Hall of Fame in June 2004.
She can be reached at libelady@aol.com.
9 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005
Our Evening
with Malcolm Gladwell
By Gwen Loeffler
Career Resources, Inc.
DC On-Line, Inc.

ore than 200 Chapter members and their guests

M were on hand for “An Evening with Malcolm

Gladwell” on Monday, January 31, 2005.
Each Chapter member was encouraged to invite a special
guest to this event. That guest could be their CEO or
President, CIO, CKO, their Director of Research or
Business Development, their supervisor, a valued client
or a potential student. David Man, the Chapter’s
Arrangements Chair, and Kae Wells greeted everyone at
the reception desk. The first 100 guests received a free
copy of the January 2005 issue of Fast Company which
featured a cover story on Malcolm Gladwell.
Attendees had the opportunity to catch up with friends
and colleagues and visit with representatives from Factiva
and First Research during the cocktail reception before
the presentation. Anne Caputo, Barbara Burton, Judy
Matolka and Yvonne Valenti of Factiva were available to
provide information on Factiva’s new products and ser-
vices. Bobby Martin, Lee Demby and David Buffaloe
from First Research showed off their website to intro-
duce members to the service. Both vendors conducted a
raffle that evening. Kathleen Pritz of Skadden Arps won a Additional thanks go to Ruth Kaplan and the staff at
$50 gift card to Starbucks from Factiva. Barbara Tanzer JP Morgan Chase for making sure all the details of the
of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart received a 3-month free trial reception and presentation went smoothly.
from First Research.
Our appreciation also goes to Gladwell’s publicist and
Tom Pellizzi, the Chapter’s president, welcomed every- everyone at Little, Brown and Company, for working with
one to the event. I am delighted to say that I had the us to arrive at a mutually-convenient date for the event.
honor of introducing Malcolm Gladwell. During his pre-
And, of course, our very special thanks to Malcolm Gladwell
sentation, Gladwell suggested ways that we can improve
for taking time out of his very busy three-week book tour
skills of ‘rapid cognition.’ He described situations in
to deliver such an entertaining, thought-provoking pre-
which having less information – what he refers to as a
sentation on the subject of his new book, which reached
‘thin slice’ of information – can lead to better, more
#1 on The New York Times Non-Fiction Best-Sellers
effective decisions. Gladwell responded to questions and
list only the day before his presentation.
comments from the audience during a lively Q&A ses-
sion following his presentation. Then it was back to the
reception hall for a book signing where everyone had the Gwen Loeffler is Senior Research Specialist at the global
opportunity to meet Gladwell one-on-one. Representa- advertising and marketing network Young & Rubicam Brands,
tives from Posman Books in Grand Central were there and president-elect of the New York Chapter of SLA. She can
selling copies of Gladwell’s new book, Blink: The Power be reached at gwen.loeffler@yrbrands.com or 212-210-3986.
of Thinking Without Thinking, which Gladwell person-
alized for each of our members.
Our thanks to Factiva and First Research for sponsoring
this unique event.

ChapterNews 10 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

A Winter Interlude
By Gwen Loeffler

A few of us from the New York Chapter shoveled our

way out of snowy Manhattan in January to attend SLA’s
annual Leadership Summit in Tampa.

Highlights included:
▲ Summit attendees had the opportunity to hear from
the candidates for SLA’s Board. Pam Rollo, the New
York Chapter’s Nomination Chair and SLA’s Presi-
dent-Elect, introduced each candidate. Candidates
sketched out their ambitious goals for the association.
Our own Past President, Agnes Mattis, gave a rousing
presentation of her qualifications and vision for the
position of Division Cabinet Chair-Elect – AND SHE
WON! You can find out more about the newly elected
Board of Directors-Elects at http://www.sla.org/
content/SLA/governance/bodsection/0405bodcand/
0405bodelect.cfm.
▲ SLA President Ethel Salonen announced the first
group of members inducted into the newly formed
President’s Club. The Club recognizes individuals
who have been influential in recruiting new members
to the association. Congratulations to Chapter mem-
bers Gretchen Hazlin, Charles Lowry, Kevin Manion
and Frank O’Conner for being named to the 2004-
2005 President’s Club.
▲ Janice LaChance, Executive Director of SLA, After intensive days of meetings, presentations and work-
delivered an inspiring speech on the new initiatives shops, we relaxed in the evenings, dining al fresco, and
at SLA Headquarters. You can read about the highlights meeting new friends. The fun began on the first night
in the Association’s Performance Review at http:// during the “Meet and Greet” cocktail party in the hotel
www.sla.org/ PDFs/PerformanceReview.pdf. She lobby bar. Thursday night, the Tampa Chapter arranged
urged us all to maintain a positive, optimistic outlook a private tour and reception at the Florida Aquarium. An
and to approach every new challenge with inventive elaborate reception on Friday night at the hotel brought
ideas and creative solutions. the Summit to a close.
▲ In addition, Janice declared learning as “the center- I can’t wait to see everyone at the annual conference in
piece of the association.” The SLA Board will focus Toronto. I’ve already registered, started to add things to
more on Professional Development activities in the my online conference planner, and booked my room at
coming year. One of the major initiatives is the estab- the Conference Headquarters hotel the Fairmount Royal
lishment of SLA Online University where members York. If you haven’t booked your room yet, I encourage
can participate in online courses focusing on technolo- you to do so as soon as possible – rooms are going fast.
gy, management and other areas critical to our growth See you all at our Chapter events this Spring and in
as information professionals. Read more about the SLA Toronto in June.
Online University at http://www.sla.org/content/ SLA/
pressroom/pressrelease/2004pressrelease/pr2429.cfm.
Gwen Loeffler is Senior Research Specialist at the global
advertising and marketing network Young & Rubicam Brands,
and president-elect of the New York Chapter of SLA. She can
be reached at gwen.loeffler@yrbrands.com or 212-210-3986.

ChapterNews 11 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

 {New York SLA Chapter :}

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ChapterNews 12 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005

Internships:
A Win-Win Situation
By Kevin Manion
On a recent Monday morning, I turned on my computer,
got a cup of coffee and sat down to catch up on some work.
I was greeted by an email from an intern we had hired
last summer. Her message was filled with excitement.
After a series of temporary jobs, she had just landed a
plum permanent assignment as a knowledge manager in
an international financial company. Her first week
involved a trip to England to meet the European team.
The email made my day!
In the past year, the Strategic Planning and Information
Services Department at Consumer Reports has created a
dynamic and active intern program aimed at preparing
the next generation of researchers and information man-
agers. The program is designed to present students with
real life work situations, teach them about relationships
with clients and help them understand how a multi-
faceted information service operates.
As part of their work, interns are assigned a variety of
projects ranging form straight-forward reference ques-
tions to more complex and in–depth research. Interns
participate in meetings with clients and are responsible
for the timely delivery of the work assigned to them.
They provide input regarding the sources to be used and
the final look and feel of a report. They also participate
in staff meetings and are invited to contribute to brain-
storming sessions. As the program continues to evolve,
we have begun to include overviews of our archives and
records management operations; interns also spend some
time examining the issues involved in designing and
maintaining a customer-focused intranet site.
The department manager has oversight of the program
and is responsible for outreach to library schools in a
100-mile radius of our Westchester Head Office and for
interacting with other entities such as the SLA internship
coordinator. The manager also participates, with a senior
researcher, in a preliminary phone interview and a secondary
on-site interview. Interns are selected based on a number
of factors including attitude, willingness to learn and
interest in the work of the organization. The best interns
have come to interviews prepared as they would if they
were applying for a job. We have been impressed by the
professionalism and work ethic of many of our interns.
ChapterNews
On a rotating basis, senior researchers are assigned to
work closely with interns. Researchers assign work, discuss
resources and approaches and act as mentors and sounding
boards for the intern. They also review all the intern’s
research and analytical output and provide creative feed-
back to help interns hone their skills.
This practical learning relationship is beneficial to the
researcher, the intern, the department, the organization
and ultimately to our profession as a whole. It is impor-
tant for us to remember that we have a responsibility to
help new professionals acquire the skills they need to
make their way in today’s challenging job market.
Kevin Manion is Associate Director in the Strategic Planning
and Information Services Department at Consumer Reports. He
may be contacted at manike@consumer.org.
The Internship Experience:
A Win-Win for Students
and Hosts
By Dana Gordon
The quality document manager for the library at Johns
Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, an associate in the com-
munications department at a unit of Johnson & Johnson,
the librarian at the HealthCare Chaplaincy in New York.
What do these folks have in common?
They are talented members of our community who got
their first taste of professional experience as interns in
library settings.
The library schools in our area offer internship or practicum
experience. Students are discovering that, in today’s com-
petitive job market, an internship can be one of the best
ways to get ahead.
The chapter sponsors an internship program where we
try to match students with an appropriate host site. You
can get more information on the program at
http://www.sla.org/chapter/cny/internships.htm.
Some considerations for host sites and students:
For host sites: One of the biggest challenges in hosting
an intern is time. Many potential hosts believe that they
do not have enough staff or time to train someone. It’s
hard to imagine taking extra time to show someone the
ropes in addition to our already heavy workloads. I urge
you to consider hosting an intern. Today’s library school
students are trained in the major online search services
(Continues on page 14)
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and office software. If they are changing careers, they
may have extensive workplace experience, which is a
great plus. Interns can help with those projects that
haven’t gotten off the ground due to lack of personnel.
Interns are usually required by their school to work on a
major project which the host and the student agree upon
in advance. Once trained, they can work independently.
This allows the host more time to work on other projects.
Even if you are not able to fully train your intern on a task,
allowing interns to be a “shadow” on projects can be an
extremely valuable learning experience.
Today’s interns may be part of the so-called “next-gen”
librarians. They did not grow up in a book-oriented
world and may have information-seeking behaviors that
are different from what we are used to. I’ve watched my
interns “work the web,” navigating in ways I never con-
sidered, and coming up with solutions I haven’t. The best
part of hosting an intern is learning from their experi-
ence. Interns have introduced me to new web sites,
shown me tips in MS-Office I’ll be forever grateful for,
and dived into complex software packages I haven’t had
the time to fully learn.
ChapterNews
Deadlines: Interns are available in fall, spring and summer
semesters, and may be available for short terms projects
during the January semester break. You should post your
notice with the Chapter web site at least a month before
the start of each semester.
For students: It is important to treat the internship as
you any other professional employment experience.
When applying for an internship, be prepared to provide
the most updated version of your resume, listing all rele-
vant employment and experience. It is also helpful to list
the library courses you have completed or will be taking
during the semester. A brief cover letter sent as an e-mail
to the prospective host is sufficient. Include an appropriate
subject line for your message, such as “Application for
Internship.” Don’t leave it blank! Unfortunately, many of
us receive spam, and an e-mail from an unfamiliar address
may be deleted or blocked by a spam filter.
The person who will interview you for the internship is
likely to ask why you have chosen their library for your
internship. Even if you’re not sure you want to work per-
manently in the area of the host site, you must be pre-
pared to show interest and enthusiasm for your host site
and the industry of which they are a part. For example,
I usually ask interns how they get their news. While it’s
nice to hear that they read Newsweek, what I really want
to see is that they follow the news in print, on TV or on
the Web, and have an interest in world affairs. I don’t
expect a prospective intern to know how to use all our
databases--but you will be a better searcher if you are
familiar with the issues in your host site’s industry. At a
minimum, you should monitor the mailing lists and
blogs related to your area of interest.
The SLA divisions and other library professional associa-
tions all have e-mail lists that can get you up to speed,
(and they’re a great way to get a peek at the kinds of ref-
erence questions we receive).
Due to shifting priorities in a busy library, interns may be
assisting with cataloging one minute, indexing another,
and then pitching in with reference questions. It may not
always be so busy, but interns should be prepared to quickly
shift between projects as directed by their supervisor.
As an intern you need to keep a positive attitude toward
constant change and remember that the greater variety of
experience you get, the better off you will be as a profes-
sional. You may be asked to do things that are different
from how you would do them, but you need to respect
the culture of your host site and follow your supervisor’s
guidance for how things are done.
Dana Gordon is the deputy director of the Newsweek Research
Center, and the internship coordinator for the New York chapter.
She can be reach at dana.gordon@newsweek.com.
14 Vol. 77, #1 Spring 2005