Article from ILA E-Newsletter, August 3, 2010

The three task forces (Services, Structure, and Funding) presented their final reports to the ILA Executive Board at the Thursday, 29 July board meeting in East Peoria.  The task forces made recommendations to define, continue, and/or revamp statewide and regional support for cooperative services especially in the areas of Delivery, Shared Catalogs, and Group Purchasing, as well as at least some level of coordination and support for Advocacy and Marketing, Professional Development, and Serving the Unserved. 

Steering Committee Co-chairs Donna Dziedzic and Dee Brennan met with ILA President Gail Bush, project consultant Chris Watkins, and I yesterday (Monday, 2 August), to begin drafting a plan based on the recommendations that will be presented to the ILA Executive Committee on Friday, 27 August.  Based on the ILA Executive Committee’s reactions, the results will be compiled into a presentation for the ILA Membership Meeting, Wednesday, 29 September at the 2010 ILA Annual Conference and form the basis for discussions with state agencies, legislators, and other elected officials later in the year.

Updates will continue to be provided in the ILA E-Newsletter and on the ILA Web site on this work as more progress is made in developing a plan.