I attended the MN Library Association Conference in St. Cloud on 10/11/18 and 10/12/18. Some of the sessions I attended were: Friends Beyond Fundraising, What Does Advocacy Look Like, Programming Outside the Lines, Advocates Action Plan in a Flash, Whole Person Librarianship, Champagne Library Technology on a Beer Budget, MN American Indian Children’s Literature, Stop Sex Trafficking, and An Inside Look at the Library Construction Grant. I really enjoyed the advocacy tips and training in those sessions, especially meeting Sam Walseth, the lobbyist for MLA and ITEM. My favorite was the MN American Indian Children’s Literature session. I am hoping to find a grant to help our library purchase the 107 books on the bibliography they shared. I was a bit disappointed by the keynote speaker on Thursday, as I thought she was a bit negative and I really wanted to be pumped up and encouraged. I loved the keynote speaker on Friday. I was hoping to learn more about the library construction grant in the last session of the day on Friday and was also a bit disappointed in that one. I won a $100 Redleaf Press gift certificate so that was exciting and I enjoyed visiting with the other vendors, as well. I love the networking that happens at these conferences and got to meet some new directors from around the state. Thank you for helping me attend this conference.
