It is time to begin thinking about the 2014 Rural Libraries Conference. The event will be held April 30-May 2, 2014 at the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. The Library of Michigan and the Rural Libraries Conference Program Committee encourage you to submit a proposal for the conference. The Rural Libraries Conference has a long tradition of providing a forum for the staff, trustees, and advocates of Michigan's small and rural libraries to share, learn and be inspired to provide the best library service to their communities. The 2014 RLC theme is Partnerships, People, Progress. Let's come together as a community to share our collective knowledge of imaginative, resourceful and successful library practices. How can you contribute? Bring your tried and true as well as your new and inventive practices to share with your Michigan library colleagues. If it's working well for you, chances are good that others could benefit from hearing about it. We will be showcasing up to 50 presentations at the 2014 conference. The RLC Program Committee invites you to consider the following conference tracks as you design your program proposal: * Library Technology or Digital Literacy * Services to Individual Populations (youth, seniors, unemployed, entrepreneurs, etc.) * Library Programming * Engagement, Collaboration & Partnerships * Administration and Management Presenters will be required to provide an electronic copy of session materials by April 1, 2014 that will be on a flash drive to all conference attendees. The Library of Michigan will provide all presenters with one conference registration and one night's lodging at the Grand Hotel (or other hotel accommodation up to the state rate of $75 per night) per day of presenting. Program selection is a peer-reviewed process. The RLC Program Committee will evaluate the content of your proposal for relevance to the conference tracks, clarity, originality, and timeliness. The experience and qualifications of presenter(s) will also be considered. Proposals are due Monday, October 21, 2013 in order to be considered for inclusion in the 2014 conference. Please note that proposals with significant incomplete information will not be considered. The contact person for the proposal will be notified of the status of that proposal by the end of December 2013. If you have questions about the submission process or Rural Libraries Conference, please contact Shannon White at whites29@michigan.gov<mailto:whites29@michigan.gov> or 517-373-9489. Instructions for Submitting Your Program Proposal You will need the following information to complete your proposal submission: * Complete contact information and a brief bio for all speakers * Program title * Length of program (one 45-minute session or two back-to-back sessions) * Preferred date of program * Program description * A minimum of three learning outcomes Submit your proposal here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/RLC2014 (A program may not be an advertisement for a vendor or solely a demonstration of a product/service. Specific product/services may be used or described only if essential for a correct understanding of the topic being presented. Library staff currently using the product/service must participate in the presentation. The Library of Michigan and the Rural Libraries Conference reserve the right to reorganize content, combine proposals, and make other changes as necessary to render the proposal appropriate for presentation at RLC.) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Shannon D. White Continuing Education Coordinator Library of Michigan 702 West Kalamazoo, P.O. Box 30007, Lansing, MI 48909-7507 Ph: 517-373-9489; Fax: 517-373-5700 Toll free: 877-479-0021 whites29@michigan.gov<mailto:whites29@michigan.gov> http://michigan.gov/libraryofmichigan