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I attended a few really inspiring sessions at NCLA this year.  One, entitled “I Do”: The Engaged Employee offered by three librarians from Wake County Public Libraries provided tips to better engage your workers in the work of the library through methods that create a sense of community among the staff. They had a variety of tips from having library coordinated baseball games and bar hops after hours, to creating a “bingo” card of summer activities meant to create greater connection to the work and each other.

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Perhaps my favorite session of NCLA was one that I found myself in accidentally when I walked into the wrong room and attended a dual session on “Hosting a Comic-Con at your library” by some very enthusiastic librarians at the Gaston County Public Library, and “Create an All-Ages Comics Festival on Any Budget” offered by Durham Public about their Durham Comics Fest (www.durhamcomicsfest.org). Their events include comics vendors, costumed attendees, (and costume contests), art exhibitions, documentary film showings, and more! With our new graphics novels collection, I thought doing something like this would create a natural connection in ZSR. I’ve already started to share what I learned with Steve Kelley, Meghan Webb and Hu Womack.

This NCLA was choc full of new ideas and surprises. I enjoyed an opportunity to spend time with fellow librarians and hear their ideas on better ways to engage with each other and our communities!