About a year ago, we started planning the launch of an online platform for all AMICAL members. A place to communicate, share and collaborate. A way to keep the momentum going after our annual conferences. AMICALconnect was officially launched in March 2012 and was presented at the 9th AMICAL Meeting and Conference at the American University of Sharjah, last April. Since then, we have seen AMICAL members engage in various types of activities that further promote collaboration and sharing of work and ideas throughout the year. Today, AMICALconnect welcomes its 200th member, Aleksandr Nazaryan from the American University of Armenia. Aleksandr joins 199 other IT professionals, instructional technologists, faculty, librarians and campus leaders from AMICAL institutions that are now on the network. A huge thanks to everyone who has helped keep this new resource active by joining groups, participating in conversations, sharing documents and pictures, as well as new thoughts and ideas. Thank you for helping us build a stronger AMICAL community! Posted by Dimitris Tzouris, AMICAL Advisor on Social Media and Learning Technologies

AMICAL members can now pre-register for the AMICAL-OCLC Forum on The Challenges of Discovery Services being held 8-9 March at Lebanese American University. The pre-registration form is linked from the event page on AMICALconnect.

Ning has now restored access to AMICALconnect, and the site appears to be fully functional again.

AMICALconnect, the social network for collaboration amongst AMICAL members, is currently unavailable due to a technical problem at Ning (the service platform on which AMICALconnect is built). Ning has promised to resolve the issue within the next few hours, so the site should be available again shortly. (posted 18:30 GMT+1, 17 Jan 2013)

AMICAL members: the temporarily expanded scope of AMICAL's Small Grant program has now been extended through 20 March 2013. Please see the Small Grant guidelines for more information.

FOR AMICAL MEMBERS: ANNOUNCEMENT AND CALL FOR PROGRAM PROPOSALS DEADLINE: 1 MARCH 2013 2013 AMICAL Annual Meeting and Conference John Cabot University, Rome 12-15 June 2013 (Conference Hub on AMICALconnect / Program / Public Conference Site) Who should attend? AMICAL's annual conference is the one opportunity each year for AMICAL members to meet face to face with colleagues from all the other American international universities in AMICAL, to discuss shared problems and solutions, and to hear from some of the most influential leaders in library and information services. Librarians, IT staff, instructional technologists and designers, and faculty members - as well as anyone concerned with information services and their role in teaching and learning at AMICAL institutions - are all encouraged to attend. Dates (Pre-Conference + Conference) There will be two pre-conference workshop days (12-13 June), focusing on practical aspects of information services, followed by two main conference days (14-15 June) of presentations and discussions, exploring the conference theme and other topics relevant to AMICAL members. Conference Theme The 2013 Conference program is being shaped around the broad theme of: New media, new literacies, new models: Library-IT-Faculty collaboration in a learning intensive world Topics will range from technology-enabled inter-institutional teaching partnerships, to working with faculty to re-envision and deliver library and information services, information and media literacy, and other learning-focused information issues. A few possible sub-themes we're considering exploring in the program through the lens of faculty collaboration: Teaching in a learning intensive world - Technology is enabling students to engage like never before in both self-directed learning and creative work. How are the roles of faculty, technologists and librarians changing to adapt to learning environments that increasingly engage them in the design and structuring of their own learning experiences? Collaborative learning technologies - How can librarians and technologists effectively support teaching and learning activities that bridge students' academic work and classroom participation, across the classroom or across the globe? Keynote Speakers We have an exceptional group of keynote speakers joining us in exploring these issues: Char Booth - Instruction Services Manager & E-Learning Librarian, Claremont Colleges Gardner Campbell - Director, Professional Development and Innovative Initiatives, Division of Learning Technologies, Associate Professor of English, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Tracy Mitrano - Director of IT Policy and Institute for Computer Policy and Law, Cornell University Nancy Foster (Director of Anthropological Research, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester) will also be joining us again, leading a pre-conference workshop on techniques for engaging faculty with library and information service planning. How to propose a program session The success of an AMICAL conference depends on your participation, and we welcome proposals from all AMICAL members for program sessions. If you have an idea for a program session related to the conference theme, or on a topic that would be of likely interest to AMICAL members, please send all of the following to the Program Committee (programcommittee@amicalnet.org) no later than 1 March 2013: your name, job title, institution, email and telephone number a presentation/session title your preferred format for the session (see below for session formats) a one-paragraph abstract of the presentation/session (this short description may be used in the published conference program a detailed description including the main points to be covered by your session, its expected relevance to AMICAL members, and the presentation methods that you will use to engage the audience Session formats Session formats accepted for this year's conference (with approximate time allotments) include: Lightning Talks (10 minutes): short, focused presentations structured around 20 slides, each shown for 30 seconds Presentations (20 minutes) Panel Presentations (1 hour max): short presentations and/or discussion by several participants centered on a common theme Workshops (1 to 2 hours max): hands on, participatory session focused on helping participants build practical skills on a given topic Technology Showcase (45 minutes to 1 hour) - demonstrate or present an interesting technology-based project or idea you've implemented at your institution, related to libraries, information services, teaching, learning, etc.; these sessions take place in a room shared with other presenters, each with a computer to show their project to attendees that come and go freely Discussion Groups (45 minutes to 1.5 hours): lead an open discussion, with a subgroup of attendees (typically 10-20) on a topic likely to be of interest to other AMICAL members. If you would like to suggest a session format not included in the list above, don't hesitate to share your idea with the Program Committee (programcommittee@amicalnet.org). In particular, we are considering having an un-conference session - a session organized at the AMICAL Conference itself, where anyone posts suggested topics, either something in which you have expertise that you're willing to share with others, or something that you're interested in learning more about. one is willing to learn; attendees are free to join or move between groups that interest them. Travel support for program contributors AMICAL will try to provide travel support for all those whose program proposals have been accepted by the Program Committee. Priority for funding will be given to those contributing presentations and workshops, but other program contributors may also receive travel support, depending on the availability of funds. Further information about travel support for AMICAL members generally will be distributed in February. We look forward to receiving your program proposals! The 2013 AMICAL Conference Program Committee Sania Battalova, Associate Vice-president for Planning and Assessment, American University of Central Asia Berj Gatrjyan, Director, ICTS, American University of Armenia Jeff Gima, Director, AMICAL, American University of Paris Meggan Houlihan, Coordinator of Instruction/Reference, AUC Libraries, American University in Cairo Elisabetta Morani, Head Librarian, John Cabot University Livia Piotto, Reference Librarian, John Cabot University David Tresilian, Instructor of English, American University of Paris Dimitris Tzouris, Instructional Technology Consultant, American College of Thessaloniki For further information about the conference, members can go to the Conference Hub on AMICALconnect.

FOR AMICAL MEMBERS: AMICAL-OCLC Forum on The Challenges of Discovery Services : problems, solutions and workflow Event page on AMICALconnect Dates: 8-9 March 2013 (day and a half program length) Location: Lebanese American University, Beirut, Lebanon Intended for: E-resource and other librarians from OCLC (RESPOND) member libraries who are currently or will soon be involved in the selection process for a discovery service, or those who are currently directly involved with the management of discovery services. Total attendance will be limited to approximately 20. About the event Libraries are struggling with effectively connecting users with the full range of e-content they manage. Libraries that have implemented Discovery services have found that their user communities are very receptive to this new service by providing them access to their suite of electronic resources. However, we have just begun this journey and various problems and issues are presenting themselves. Questions are emerging about relevance, precision and recall when searching. The behind the scenes work reveals even more problems: e-resource coverage load, accuracy of the selected packages, getting local content indexed, link problems, landing page problems, syncing the catalog with the discovery layer and more. There is much to be considered with this innovative service and this is a product that becomes its own management and technological challenge that requires a care and attention that for many will be unanticipated. Forum participants will be there to discuss precisely these issues. Whether you're using or considering WorldCat Local, EBSCO Discovery Service, Summon, or some other discovery service, join us for a day and a half of discussions about the challenges these discovery services present. Their introduction into the work environment radically alters existing workflows and even organizational structures. We'll be focusing on what managers, librarians, and staff should be aware of, types of problems encountered, best practices, and how to devise workflows around a digital product that is now completely outside of the print legacy workflow environment which still guides many in their day to day operations.This event will be largely run by the participants, and we will be counting on you to share what you know in discussion groups and workshops. OCLC staff will also be present to talk about how their products and services can address these issues, and integrated into the event will be training sessions on implementing/using OCLC's WorldCat Knowledge Base, WorldCat Local, and perhaps even Connexion and Batchloading (insofar as they relate to the above e-content questions), depending on the interests of attendees. A full announcement about the event will be made in January. In the meantime, any input you wish to share about this event, and the topics to be covered, would be warmly welcomed, including offers to lead workshops or discussions (send to contact@amicalnet.org). Sponsorship This event is being cosponsored by AMICAL and OCLC. AMICAL will provide travel sponsorship for as many attendees as its budget permits; priority will go to those who are leading a discussion or workshop, and to those who have already begun implementation of a discovery service. Information about how to request for travel funding will be made available in January. The forum organizers David Nelson, Director for Collections, AUC Libraries, American University in Cairo Cendrella Habre, University Librarian, Lebanese American University Jeff Gima, AMICAL Director, American University of Paris

We are pleased to announce that next year's AMICAL Conference will be held 12-15 June 2013 at John Cabot University in Rome. THEMES AND TOPICS As always, we will be trying to build a program supportive of collaborations at the level of library and information services and the curriculum. This year, however, we are hoping to give particular emphasis to faculty collaborations - working with faculty to envision and deliver library and information services, information and media literacy, and other learning-focused information work. Among the themes we are considering: Teaching in a learning intensive world - Technology is enabling the masses to engage like never before in both self-directed learning and creative work. How are the roles of faculty, technologists and librarians changing to adapt to learning environments that increasingly engage students in the design and structuring of their own learning experiences? Digital humanities - Leveraging technology in the humanities, and new modes of inquiry in the humanities enabled by technology; collaborations between librarians, technologists and faculty on creation of technology-enabled humanities resources Information and digital media literacy - With the foundations of digital media and scholarly communications shifting so rapidly, where and how should faculty, librarians, and technologists be working together on this shared objective for student learning? eBooks and the academy - Ebooks are finally starting to come of age for higher education. How are faculty, libraries and IT departments working with each other and other campus players to adapt their work to this new publishing, reading and learning environment? EVENT FORMAT Anticipating that faculty may be more likely to attend a shorter event, where sessions relevant to them are focused within a 2-day period, we are planning a "2+2" format for this conference: 2 days of practical workshops focusing on library and information services, including but not limited to:introductions or best/innovative practices in specific library service areas IT (administrative, academic, instructional technology, etc.) - lessons learned, solutions to shared problems ethnographic methods in studying users of library and information services 2 main conference days, with session formats encouraging reflection and discussion on topics relevant to faculty, library and IT:presentations lightning talks (pecha kucha) panels round table discussions unconference (informal, participant-organized presentations/discussions) technology showcases ...and other session formats suggested by AMICAL members! AMICAL Members: your input on the conference program - about the themes, topics and keynote speakers in particular - would be greatly appreciated. Share your thoughts in the discussion on AMICALconnect.

AMICAL members: the temporarily expanded scope of AMICAL's Small Grant program has now been extended through February 2013. Please see the Small Grant guidelines for more information.

The Mortenson Center's programs (see announcement linked below) are a great professional development opportunity for mid-career librarians that are either newly-appointed directors or moving into roles of increasing managerial responsibility. Many AMICAL librarians have benefited from the Mortenson Center in the past, and AMICAL members are encouraged to consider applying or to help identify appropriate colleagues to encourage to apply. The deadline for applications is 1 December 2012. AMICAL Small Grant awards are well-suited to supporting this type of activity. AMICAL members are encouraged to apply for Small Grant funding before their application to the Mortenson Center program, since Mortenson applicants must demonstrate that they have already secured adequate funding for participation (this is a correction to earlier information sent out on AMICAList). See the Mortenson Center site for more information: Mortenson Center 2013 Summer Associates Program Tools for the 21st Century Librarian: May 30 - June 25, 2013 2013 Program Highlights Seminars and workshops which provide an overview of current trends in the field. Library experts will be invited to share their perspectives, offer expertise, and foster conversations on the themes of communication and leadership. Tours to a variety of libraries, including academic, public, and school libraries. We may also visit the American Library association headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, and other sites of interest. Small group projects will allow Mortenson Associates to engage in program content and explore topics with greater depth. Networking with dynamic group of international colleagues. Each participant will receive a Certificate of Program Participation upon completion. Scheduling to allow participants to attend the Annual Meeting of the American Library Association (ALA), if they wish. (Arrangements and registration for the conference must be made separately and are not included in program costs.)