Youth Services Sections (YSS) Update

Submitted by Laura Panter, YSS President

YSS will be working on finalizing its 2018-2023 Long Range Plan at their Executive Board Meeting on February 2, 2018.

YSS is moving forward in planning the Youth Leadership Academy set to have it’s first course offerings in Fall of 2018.  Based on the surveys sent out to NY state library directors, topics will include leadership in relation to communication, self-empowerment, and advocacy; the customer experience; communication and presentation skills; partnerships, collaborations, and relationships; space management, usage, and design; team building and mentoring; budgeting and financial management skills.  YSS is working on identifying possible facilitators for the courses and fleshing out the information to be covered under these subject areas.

The revamping of the Publications Committee to the Marketing Committee in 2017 has facilitated the writing of a Marketing Manual to identify guidelines for the members working on this committee.  The manual will be reviewed and finalized at the Winter Executive Board meeting where goals for the committee in 2018 will also be set.  Our big push for 2018 will be establishing and expanding our Pinterest page into a one stop shop for STEAM programming ideas.

YSS Spring Conference will be held in Syracuse, NY at the Sheraton Syracuse University Hotel & Conference Center on Friday, April 13, 2018.  The theme is Libraries are for Everyone with luncheon speaker Tamora Pierce and keynote speaker Rebecca McCorkindale Hafuboti.