CATLA Mini Hackathon - April 25th 2013

CATLA Mini-Hackathon
Location: Room 119, Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, Elkhart, IN
Date: Thursday, April 25th 2013
Time: 2pm - 10pm

Do you have some ideas to make better use of technology for your library? Do you want to make better use of your ILS, or start with the latest open source project, but you don’t know where to begin? Is there some project you’ve gotten stuck on, and wish you could get some advice from colleagues?

Let’s take some time to brainstorm ways to make better use of the tech tools we already have, collaborate on solving problems we are having with specific tech tools, share our expertise and know how, and possibly even write a line or two of code! Bring your problems and ideas to work on, and let’s get working together! To start the ball rolling, here are some tools at least one person would like to work on –various APIs for ILS,  CUFTS, OJS, SubjectsPlus, Zotero and Commons in a Box.

We hope you have other ideas for stuff you would like to work on together. RSVP to Lisa Gonzalez, so that we have an idea of interest. There are several hotel options in the Elkhart area; we will decide on where we will have dinner on the day of the hackathon. There is a reading list to help spark potential ideas on what you want to work on.

CATLA Spring Conference Schedule, Friday April 26th

CATLA Spring Conference: Trends in Religion, Culture and Scholarship

Friday, April 26th
University of Notre Dame (directions)
Hesburgh Library, Room 248
Campus Map (visitor lot is northeast of Hesburgh)

(All times Eastern Time Zone)
10-10:30am - Registration
10:30-11:00 – Business meeting
11:00-12:00 -  Mary Ellen Konieczny - "Religion, Secularity, and Culture: Promising Directions in the Social Scientific Study of Religion"
12:00-1:30 - Lunch (provided, or on your own)
1:30-2:30 - Mark Noll - "Evangelical Protestant Scholarship:  The Best of Times and the Worst of Times"
2:30-3:30 - Optional Tour of Theology Reference and Special Collections

We hope you will join us for a day of reflection on the current American religious landscape and trends of scholarship, and what these trends may mean for our library collections and services. Mary Ellen Konieczny, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Notre Dame, studies broad themes of religion and family life, in addition to investigating the intersection of religion, culture and politics within local contexts. Her book, The Spirit’s Tether: Family, Work and Religion Among American Catholics, will be published later this year. Mark Noll, Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History at Notre Dame, has written extensively on the history of Christianity in the United States and Canada, as well as reflecting on American evangelicalism and the life of the mind in numerous forums. After our speakers, we will end the day with tour of the recently remodeled Theology Reference Reading Room, as well as Special Collections.

A lunch of sandwiches, chips and drinks will be provided, with a selection of sandwiches, such as turkey or roast beef. If you would like a vegetarian option, please include that information in your RSVP to Lisa Gonzalez, and if you would prefer to lunch on your own, please include that information in the email as well.

CATLA Scholarship Deadline for ATLA 2013 is February 28th

CATLA is offering a scholarship for the ATLA annual conference to cover conference related expenses up to $1,000. This scholarship is available to a CATLA member who has not attended a previous annual conference. The scholarship winner is expected to report back to CATLA on their experiences at the conference. Additional details are on the application.

The deadline for applying is Feb. 28, 2013 and you can apply by submitting the application to Matt Ostercamp at mjostercamp@northpark.edu.

Save the Date: CATLA Spring Conference April 26th

Save the date for the Spring CATLA Conference!

When: Friday, April 26, 2013
Where: University of Notre Dame
Theme: Exploring the American Religious Landscape

The day's speakers will be posted soon on the CATLA listserv - we hope you can join us for some interesting discussions!

CATLA Fall Conference on Friday, October 26th

CATLA Fall Conference: Responding to Changes in Theological Education
Friday, October 26th
Chicago Theological Seminary
1407 E. 60th St., Chicago, IL 60637


(All times Central Time Zone)

9:30-10:00 Registration
10:00-10:30 Welcome and Business Meeting
10:45-11:45 Keynote Address - Dr. Alice Hunt, President of Chicago Theological Seminary
12:00-1:15 Lunch (Included in registration)
1:15-2:15 Panel Discussion - Response to Keynote Address & the Future of Theological Libraries
2:15-3:00 Tour of Chicago Theological Seminary Library (Leed Certified)

The afternoon panel discussion participants are: Miguel Figeoua, who is Director of Member Programs at ATLA, Karl Stutzman, Access and Digital Services Librarian at the Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, and Blake Walter, Dean of Academic Administration & Director of the Brimson Grow Library at Northern Seminary.  They will be responding to Dr. Alice Hunt’s keynote address, as well as discussing the issues related to ATS accreditation, distributed education, and reporting on how their respective institutions are addressing the challenges in this rapidly changing educational environment.

A list of hotels can be found on the University of Chicago's accommodations page. Please RSVP to Lisa Gonzalez, Communications officer, by October 12th if you are planning to attend.  

Save the Date: CATLA Fall Conference October 26th

Save the date for the Fall CATLA Conference!

When: Friday, October 26, 2012
Where: Chicago Theological Seminary
Theme: Responding to Changes in Theological Education

More information on the day's schedule will be posted soon!

Report on CATLA Spring Meeting

The spring conference met at the Meeter Center for Calvin Studies within the Hekman Library for the morning session, and the afternoon session took place in the Calvin Theological Seminary building.  The panel discussion with editors from Baker and Eerdmans covered a range of topics, from the effect of Amazon on the book business to different publishers' plans, or lack thereof, for e-books. The afternoon session included a presentation by Lugene Schemper on Protestant publishing in Grand Rapids, a topic he also presented at the ATLA conference in Scottsdale. During the business meeting, the CATLA by-laws were revised to combine the Vice President and Secretary into a single office, and to provide for a member at large for the CATLA board. Thanks to everyone at Calvin College and to the CATLA attendees who made the meeting such a success!