School Library Journal's Second Annual Think Tank

I was lucky enough to head to Nashville, TN on April 24-25th to participate in the second annual Think Tank that School Library Journal hosted at the Nashville Public Library. This gathering of library leaders in youth services is a dynamic event featuring invigorating speakers in the morning, and an unconference vibe in the afternoon when the group of 80-100 participants divide into smaller breakout sessions on topics from tech in libraries to early literacy (the group I got to lead), to outreach and partnerships. 

A marionette of the famous Johnny Cash on display at the Nashville Public Library

The real highlight of the day for me, however, was listening to keynote speaker Gretchen Caserotti. Gretchen's big claim to fame in library land thus far was the large scale reorganization of the picture book collection at the Darien Library in Connecticut. She has since moved on from there to take a position as a first time library director in Idaho at the Meriden Library District. She shares her thoughts and perspectives of being a new director often on Twitter using the handle @gcaserotti. Here is a link to her speech at the Think Tank. If you scroll down, you can listen to her audio and get inspired as I did listening to her in person!