This Monday, the CLA released a draft of their Future Plan, which can be found at: http://www.clatoolbox.ca/CLAFuture/index.php/2010/10/18/proposed-cla-future-plan/
CLA-CASLIS Toronto encourages all of our members to take the time to read and consider this plan. Feedback and comments can be left as a comment to this blog post, or emailed to our President, Eileen Lewis at eileen_lewis@ontla.ola.org or any one of the members of the Future Committee listed on the CLA Website. The purpose of releasing the draft was to solicit comments and input from the membership, so now is the time to raise your voice. CLA is YOUR association and it's only fitting that its future be put in YOUR hands.
Take the time to read, write and shout about what you want the CLA to be for you.
Eileen Lewis
CLA-CASLIS Toronto President
Showing posts with label cla news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cla news. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
CLA Conference debrief
It is hard to believe that Canada Day is almost upon us and that the CLA National Conference and Trade Show was almost a month ago now! How the time flies during the hazy days of summer.
The CLA conference was a fantastic experience for me – I attended wearing several hats, including first timer, presenter and CASLIS TO President (and member of the CASLIS National Advisory Committee). It was an incredibly rewarding and enriching experience all around, and I was able to walk away with a lot of new knowledge and tools, both in regards to my work, and my – and your – association.
As blog readers likely know, CASLIS and CASLIS Toronto have been in a bit of a limbo since the end of February, when CLA announced a drastic restructuring. At the time, we were uncertain if we would continue to exist – never mind offer programs and services – after June 30, 2010. Well, that date has come and gone, and we are still here. However, the year ahead is certain to be an interesting one for CLA and our chapter.
I, along with my colleagues on the executive Maggie Weaver and Lily Mac attended the CASLIS and CLA AGMs, as well as the Resolutions Hearing wherein the resolutions for the AGM were reviewed and significantly revised. This was a highly informative process for me, and I am very pleased with the resolutions that emerged from that session; to the point that I spoke in their favour on the floor of the AGM.
I encourage everyone to check back both here, and the CLA’s Future Blog [http://www.clatoolbox.ca/CLAFuture/] regularly for updates.
Eileen Lewis
President, CASLIS Toronto
The CLA conference was a fantastic experience for me – I attended wearing several hats, including first timer, presenter and CASLIS TO President (and member of the CASLIS National Advisory Committee). It was an incredibly rewarding and enriching experience all around, and I was able to walk away with a lot of new knowledge and tools, both in regards to my work, and my – and your – association.
As blog readers likely know, CASLIS and CASLIS Toronto have been in a bit of a limbo since the end of February, when CLA announced a drastic restructuring. At the time, we were uncertain if we would continue to exist – never mind offer programs and services – after June 30, 2010. Well, that date has come and gone, and we are still here. However, the year ahead is certain to be an interesting one for CLA and our chapter.
I, along with my colleagues on the executive Maggie Weaver and Lily Mac attended the CASLIS and CLA AGMs, as well as the Resolutions Hearing wherein the resolutions for the AGM were reviewed and significantly revised. This was a highly informative process for me, and I am very pleased with the resolutions that emerged from that session; to the point that I spoke in their favour on the floor of the AGM.
The nuts and bolts are as follows:
· The Executive Council (EC) acknowledged that they acted hastily in the deferral of all elections – a motion was carried to reinstate the election for VP/President-Elect, the other members of the EC will remain in their current roles until the 2011 AGM in Halifax;
- The current CLA business model is no longer sustainable for the organization;
- It has been acknowledged that CLA needs to change, and change quickly. The current EC has been charged with the task of delivering a framework for change, and communicating its progress to the membership;
- A subcommittee was formed, under new president Keith Walker which is charged with outlining the future direction of the organization. The findings of this committee are expected to include significant changes to the constitution which will be presented to the membership in early 2011;
- Overall, the community responded overwhelmingly that not only is change needed, but the CLA is needed as a voice for our profession now and in the future.
I encourage everyone to check back both here, and the CLA’s Future Blog [http://www.clatoolbox.ca/CLAFuture/] regularly for updates.
Eileen Lewis
President, CASLIS Toronto
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Message to CLA members: CLA President’s Task Force
This has not been the year I was anticipating as CLA President! In my inaugural address in June 2009, when I said “who would have thought that General Motors would be filing for bankruptcy protection”, I should have taken it as an omen.
First, let me assure you that CLA is not in the meltdown situation we witnessed a year ago, we are solvent! Further, we can continue to operate without making any decisions for probably 18 months. However, we do have to address some serious financial concerns. I posed the problem for Executive Council and emphasized the fact that delaying action would not be prudent. The seeds for our situation were sown years and years ago. We have attended successive Annual General Meetings and on each occasion listened to a dire Treasurer Report. Then we manage to walk away with the feeling that the sky is not falling.
Over the past two weeks I have heard that the initial communication from Executive Council contained mixed messages. Is our Association in a real financial quandary or not? The answer is: CLA is solvent, but we cannot continue to operate in the manner to which we have become accustomed. We need to change!
I have been asking myself for the past several months, how did we get here? The budget chart that was distributed on 11 March is very clear: we budget with the anticipation that revenues will not cover expenditures. This is not normal long term behaviour. Most organizations avoid deficits if at all possible. In circumstances when a deficit cannot be avoided, a contingency is developed to accommodate the planned deficit, combined with an action plan to restore funds to a balanced situation. I believe our approach has been less pragmatic, and much more of a “hopeful” approach, believing that the next year will be better than the last. CLA has been functioning within this hopeful environment for a decade, and the time of addressing the problem is upon all members. We can no longer avoid embarking on this very difficult discussion.
I am very pleased to tell you that the Task Force which was established by motion of Executive Council on 28 February has been formed, and held its first meeting by teleconference on March 19. It was a very lively discussion of how to begin what seems like an impossible task. The members of the Task Force are: Melody Burton, Gary Gibson, Kelly Moore (ex officio), Shelagh Paterson, Ken Roberts, John Teskey (chair), and Keith Walker.
The Task Force will be developing various scenerios which will be pulled apart and reconstructed as we search for the appropriate way forward. There will be a blog on the CLA website which will provide you with an opportunity to post your comments on the scenerios as they are developed by the Task Force. We only have a matter of weeks for this process and I hope that you will actively participate. I would urge you to review a key CLA strategic document from 2001, called Writing the Future, which is available on the CLA website at: http://www.cla.ca/Content/
I want to thank the individuals who have written to me to offer help and support. As the blog on the website becomes active I hope you will share the many thoughts that you have been developing to help direct the association into a revitalized future.
John Teskey
CLA President
Canadian Library Association
328 Frank Street
Ottawa, ON K2P 0X8
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Canadian Library Association - State of the Association, February 2010
Message from the CLA Executive Council to all CLA members
We would like to share with you preliminary details of some exciting changes that are going to take place at the Canadian Library Association. We met on 27-28 February for a facilitated session on strategic budgeting. CLA is in a situation where our revenues are not sufficient to provide all of the activities and services which our members expect and deserve. We have determined that structural changes must be made to the association in order to allow us to re-direct our financial and human resources so that CLA can fulfill its mandate more effectively.
This message outlines the points of discussion arising from our meeting, as well as the texts of the motions that were passed. President John Teskey has been charged with forming a Task Force to develop proposals for members to consider for adoption at the upcoming Annual General Meeting at the CLA Conference in Edmonton in June.
Everyone associated with CLA will be aware that the association has been in a tenuous financial position for years. The following chart is a very graphic representation of our budget situation over the past decade. We have projected deficit budgets in each of the past 10 years. While we have always managed to finish each year with a better than predicted outcome, we only were able to realize actual profits in four of those years, most recently in 2006.
During our facilitated session, we engaged in a very positive discussion, and considered a variety of options for the structural changes required to address the chronic deficit budgets. We worked from the premise that the association’s finances should be spent on serving its members, specifically, on investing in the priorities and programs that fulfill the CLA mission to “build the Canadian library and information community and advance its information professionals.” It was agreed that, for this year and forward, we must create a budget that both serves the best interests of the members and indicates that CLA is re-defining itself.
It was further agreed that the main focus of CLA's activities should be to advocate for issues of cross-sectoral interest and national importance. In order to achieve this goal, we recognized that both the organizational structure and the budget need to be realigned to support the mission; maintaining the status quo is not an option. We need to build on our existing strengths, and concentrate our human and financial resources on those areas which CLA, as a national broad-based association, is uniquely positioned to advance.
At the meeting, Executive Council passed two motions:
Motion:
Whereas the current organizational structure of the Canadian Library Association is no longer financially viable, and
Whereas, Executive Council of the Canadian Library Association is responsible for the financial viability of the association, and
Whereas, national issues faced by the Canadian library community are of critical importance,
Therefore be it resolved that Executive Council commit itself to recreate CLA as an organization that can more effectively advance national issues critical to the Canadian library community, and
That President John Teskey form and chair a task force charged with developing a proposed structure responsive to the association’s financial and strategic challenges, and
That the task force present its findings and recommendations to the 2010 CLA AGM.
Moved by Ken Roberts; Seconded by André Gagnon; passed unanimously.
Motion:
To defer elections for CLA Executive positions and Division Executive positions until a decision is taken regarding the organization’s structure.
Moved by André Gagnon; Seconded by Pam Ryan; passed unanimously.
We are now taking steps on the actions stated in these motions. President Teskey is forming a Task Force; details of its composition will be made available as soon as all participants have confirmed. The elections for CLA Executive and Division Executive positions have been put on hold pending the presentation from the Task Force at the CLA AGM on 5 June.
Please note that CLA activities, including those of Divisions, Interest Groups, Committees, and other units, will be "business as usual" in as much as possible until June 30, 2010. The 2010 CLA National Conference in Edmonton will continue as planned, with a very strong professional program and some new innovations in the schedule of events.
We appreciate that members will have questions about the implications of these decisions; and we will address these as best we can. We ask for your patience while President Teskey's Task Force completes its work on a new budget and organizational structure, and thank you in advance for your support.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact any member of Executive Council. Further information will be posted to the CLA website in the coming weeks, so please keep checking the site for updates.
We look forward to your continued engagement in CLA, and in the process of developing these changes. We are very excited about the possibilities for a new direction.
We hope you will attend the AGM in Edmonton to vote on the future of your Canadian Library Association.
CLA Executive Council
John Teskey, President ~ jteskey @ unb.ca
Keith Walker, Vice-President ~ kwalker @ mhc.ab.ca
Ken Roberts, Past President ~ kroberts @ hpl.ca
Ingrid Langhammer, Treasurer ~ ingridlanghammer @ shaw.ca
Linda Shantz-Keresztes, CASL President ~ ljshantzkere @ cbe.ab.ca
Pam Ryan, CACUL President ~ pam.ryan @ ualberta.ca
André Gagnon, CAPL President ~ andre @ reginalibrary.ca
Robyn Stockand, CASLIS President ~ robyn.stockand @ nbfinancial.com
Jan Harder, CLTA President ~ jan.harder @ ottawa.ca
Victoria Owen, Councillor-at-Large ~ owen @ utsc.utoronto.ca
Cheryl Stenström, Councillor-at-Large ~ cheryl.stenstron @ gmail.com
Catherine Steeves, Councillor-at-Large ~ csteeves @ uoguelph.ca
We would like to share with you preliminary details of some exciting changes that are going to take place at the Canadian Library Association. We met on 27-28 February for a facilitated session on strategic budgeting. CLA is in a situation where our revenues are not sufficient to provide all of the activities and services which our members expect and deserve. We have determined that structural changes must be made to the association in order to allow us to re-direct our financial and human resources so that CLA can fulfill its mandate more effectively.
This message outlines the points of discussion arising from our meeting, as well as the texts of the motions that were passed. President John Teskey has been charged with forming a Task Force to develop proposals for members to consider for adoption at the upcoming Annual General Meeting at the CLA Conference in Edmonton in June.
Everyone associated with CLA will be aware that the association has been in a tenuous financial position for years. The following chart is a very graphic representation of our budget situation over the past decade. We have projected deficit budgets in each of the past 10 years. While we have always managed to finish each year with a better than predicted outcome, we only were able to realize actual profits in four of those years, most recently in 2006.
During our facilitated session, we engaged in a very positive discussion, and considered a variety of options for the structural changes required to address the chronic deficit budgets. We worked from the premise that the association’s finances should be spent on serving its members, specifically, on investing in the priorities and programs that fulfill the CLA mission to “build the Canadian library and information community and advance its information professionals.” It was agreed that, for this year and forward, we must create a budget that both serves the best interests of the members and indicates that CLA is re-defining itself.
It was further agreed that the main focus of CLA's activities should be to advocate for issues of cross-sectoral interest and national importance. In order to achieve this goal, we recognized that both the organizational structure and the budget need to be realigned to support the mission; maintaining the status quo is not an option. We need to build on our existing strengths, and concentrate our human and financial resources on those areas which CLA, as a national broad-based association, is uniquely positioned to advance.
At the meeting, Executive Council passed two motions:
Motion:
Whereas the current organizational structure of the Canadian Library Association is no longer financially viable, and
Whereas, Executive Council of the Canadian Library Association is responsible for the financial viability of the association, and
Whereas, national issues faced by the Canadian library community are of critical importance,
Therefore be it resolved that Executive Council commit itself to recreate CLA as an organization that can more effectively advance national issues critical to the Canadian library community, and
That President John Teskey form and chair a task force charged with developing a proposed structure responsive to the association’s financial and strategic challenges, and
That the task force present its findings and recommendations to the 2010 CLA AGM.
Moved by Ken Roberts; Seconded by André Gagnon; passed unanimously.
Motion:
To defer elections for CLA Executive positions and Division Executive positions until a decision is taken regarding the organization’s structure.
Moved by André Gagnon; Seconded by Pam Ryan; passed unanimously.
We are now taking steps on the actions stated in these motions. President Teskey is forming a Task Force; details of its composition will be made available as soon as all participants have confirmed. The elections for CLA Executive and Division Executive positions have been put on hold pending the presentation from the Task Force at the CLA AGM on 5 June.
Please note that CLA activities, including those of Divisions, Interest Groups, Committees, and other units, will be "business as usual" in as much as possible until June 30, 2010. The 2010 CLA National Conference in Edmonton will continue as planned, with a very strong professional program and some new innovations in the schedule of events.
We appreciate that members will have questions about the implications of these decisions; and we will address these as best we can. We ask for your patience while President Teskey's Task Force completes its work on a new budget and organizational structure, and thank you in advance for your support.
If you have any questions or comments, please contact any member of Executive Council. Further information will be posted to the CLA website in the coming weeks, so please keep checking the site for updates.
We look forward to your continued engagement in CLA, and in the process of developing these changes. We are very excited about the possibilities for a new direction.
We hope you will attend the AGM in Edmonton to vote on the future of your Canadian Library Association.
CLA Executive Council
John Teskey, President ~ jteskey @ unb.ca
Keith Walker, Vice-President ~ kwalker @ mhc.ab.ca
Ken Roberts, Past President ~ kroberts @ hpl.ca
Ingrid Langhammer, Treasurer ~ ingridlanghammer @ shaw.ca
Linda Shantz-Keresztes, CASL President ~ ljshantzkere @ cbe.ab.ca
Pam Ryan, CACUL President ~ pam.ryan @ ualberta.ca
André Gagnon, CAPL President ~ andre @ reginalibrary.ca
Robyn Stockand, CASLIS President ~ robyn.stockand @ nbfinancial.com
Jan Harder, CLTA President ~ jan.harder @ ottawa.ca
Victoria Owen, Councillor-at-Large ~ owen @ utsc.utoronto.ca
Cheryl Stenström, Councillor-at-Large ~ cheryl.stenstron @ gmail.com
Catherine Steeves, Councillor-at-Large ~ csteeves @ uoguelph.ca
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