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El Corazón de Tejas Central Texas Chapter of REFORMA |
Meeting Notes
January 31, 2009
Terrazas Branch Library
Austin, Texas
Present: Don Bos, Bob Cárdenas, Melinda Curry, Mary Donley, Maribel Garza, Gustavo Soto,
Paula Ferate-Soto, Irma Flores-Manges
Items Discussed
- Membership and Treasury Report - Bob reported that 10 renewals have been processed so far. There is approximately $900 in the bank account.
- Reforma News - Don reported on the following issues:
▪ A Reforma Foundation may be established. The goal would be $5 million over a six- to eight-year period of time. National Reforma will act on this possibility at the Mid-Winter ALA Meeting.
▪ The Pat Mora Award has been extended through 2111.
▪ California Gold--The Sacramento Valley Chapter has petitioned National Reforma Board of Directors for official status. It was also mentioned that La Estrella de Tejas, the San Antonio chapter, has re-emerged with a new chapter name.
- Camila Alire's Visit - More details of Dr. Alire's visit were discussed. It was felt that this event should be announced through various listservs, including Las Comadres, Latinitas, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Writers' League, and the Historical Society, at least to recognize the fact that Dr. Alire will be the first Latina president of the American Library Association.
- Día de los Niños / Día de los Libros Event - Maribel reported that plans are shaping up for this year's Día de los Niños events. On Wednesday, April 22, PODER will sponsor Earth Day at Govalle or Oak Springs Park. On Thursday and Friday, April 23 and 24, there will be morning and afternoon sessions at the MACC. A Thursday evening gala is being planned. Proceeds from $25-50 tickets would be used to pay authors who speak about their books at the events.
Vendors can set up at the fair, but they are responsible for their own vendor fees. René of Resistencia Bookstore is willing to sell books for the authors. As a co-sponsor, Reforma will need to look into contracts for the authors and liability insurance. Groups may have information tables in the walkways of the MACC facilities.
Paola continued the discussion of the Día de los Niños. The Saturday, April 25 event will be held inside Pickle Elementary School from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tents will not be rented this year.
Don has met informally with several AISD eastside librarians and thus recruited new Corazón de Tejas Reforma members. He has also drummed up interest in Camila Alire's visit and the upcoming events at the MACC.
Our chapter will help with the following committees:
1. Authors - Gustavo, Irma
2. Schools (Metz, Zavala, Martin, Sanchez) - Don
3. General Organizing (volunteers, etc.)
Paola reported that the Austin Public Library Día de los Niños committee is meeting on Thursday mornings (Thursday being a good day because of branch closures).
▪ Membership Potluck – RSVPs are requested so Margo will know how many people to plan for on February 7. Don will invite Perla Cavazos who has recently announced her candidacy for Austin City Council.
▪ iSchool Stipend for TLA – We discussed the wording for award preferences. Previously, we had mentioned the following as possible requirements:
▪ has to become a member of Reforma
▪ become a member of the electronic listserv
▪ commitment to serving the Latino community
▪ help with Corazón de Tejas chapter events
At today's meeting we refined a statement concerning speaking Spanish and having definite plans to serve the Latino population to: “have an interest in serving the Latino population.” We would like the winner of the award to do the following:
▪ focus on Latino issues, organizations, and authors when attending sessions at the conference
▪ write a piece about his or her experience
▪ report to an undergraduate UT class
To apply for the award, a student will have to write an essay answering the following questions:
o Why do you want to attend the conference and what would you like to learn there?
o What are your future plans and interests?
o What population would you hope to serve after graduation?
Don plans to visit UT iSchool classes of Barbara Immroth and Loriene Roy to talk about Reforma and the award and to recruit members. Christy Loya, librarian at Sanchez Elementary School, will help him.
Corazón de Tejas Website - Gustavo reported that he has updated much of the information on the chapter website but may need to find another host since he is running out of space using the current one.
▪ Announcements
Conference - ACC and St. Edward's University will sponsor the Immigration, Education and Our Future Conference II at the ACC Eastview Campus on Friday, February 6.
La Feria Para Aprender 2009 will be held at Burger Center on Saturday, February 7 from 10 am to 2 pm.
One Immigrant Deportation Situation: Mary Donley brought to our attention the case of Marxavi Angel Martinez, an immigrant in North Carolina who worked in a public library. She faces deportation after being arrested for using a false Social Security number.
Future Chapter Meetings - Below are dates of future chapter meetings. All will be held at the Terrazas Branch Library (1105 East CŽsar Ch‡vez St., Austin, 78702; 974-3625) on Saturdays at 11:00 a.m.