Changes to VLA Conference Discount Structure

January 14, 2020
By Lisa R. Varga, VLA Executive Director

Effective with our 2020 Annual Conference, the Virginia Library Association is changing its structure for discounts for those who shape and create our conference.

All VLA Council Chairs, members of the VLA Executive Committee and the members of the Conference Committee will receive a discount code for $75 off their conference fees for the year(s) in which they are serving the Association. All Presenters will also receive a discount of $75 (up to two presenters per session, up to two presenters per poster, and up to two presenters per lighting talk.)

Award Committee Chairs will also be given a complimentary ticket to the Annual Scholarship and Awards banquet.

This new structure ensures that the individuals who work (in some cases, for up to 18 months) to bring a conference to fruition are given a small token of VLA’s appreciation for hours of service.

After a cost structure analysis of the 2019 VLA Conference and projection of income and expenses for the 2020 conference, VLA is moving forward with this change, which provides a more equitable distribution of discounts to our members, presenters and attendees.

Lisa R. Varga, MLS
Executive Director
Virginia Library Association

VLA 2020 Election of Officers Results

Please join us in congratulating the newly-elected members of the Virginia Library Association Executive Committee for 2020!

Joslyn Bowling Dixon has been elected to a 3-year term as Vice President/President Elect. Joslyn is the Assistant Director for the Prince William Library System, serving Prince William County, Virginia, Manassas, and Manassas Park, VA. She is also the Chair of the newly-established Librarians of Color Forum for VLA, representing librarians and library staff of color in the Commonwealth.

Regina Sierra Carter has been elected to a 2-year term as 2nd Vice President. Regina is a 2019 American Library Association Emerging Leader and a librarian for the U.S. Army. She is a former Fulbright English Teaching Assistant to Indonesia and her research interests include the following: diversity, inclusion and accessibility, multicultural children's literature, and storytelling.

Bill Edwards-Bodmer has been elected to a 2-year term as Treasurer. holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Old Dominion University; a Master of Arts in History from Old Dominion University; and a Master of Science in Information from Florida State University. He currently works at Suffolk Public Library as Collection Strategy Senior Librarian. He has served on the Annual Conference Committee, Jefferson Cup Committee, and is currently Chair of the New Members Round Table Forum.

Lucy Rush Wittkower will represent Virginia on the Council of the American Library Association for a 3 year term. Lucy Wittkower is currently the Head of Teaching & Learning Initiatives at the Old Dominion University Libraries. Lucy is a current member of VLA and ALA/ACRL. She has served in VLA as a member of the Scholarship Committee, Scholarship Committee chair and co-chair, and most recently as chair and past-chair of VLACRL. She was also a member of the conference planning committee in 2017.

Joslyn, Regina, Bill and Lucy will begin their roles at the conclusion of the VLA Annual Conference Business Meeting, Friday, October 25 in Norfolk, VA. They will join the other members of the 2020 VLA Executive Committee:

VLA Officer Elections are held annually in August and September. Elections closed on September 9, with 13% of VLA members participating. VLA membership has grown from 900 members to 4,300+ members in 2019.

VLA Encourages Macmillan Publishing to End eBook Embargo

The following message was sent to VLA members on September 4, 2019: