Special Sessions
Opening Session
Ribbon Cutting Ceremony & Exhibits Opening Reception
Auditorium Speaker Series
LITA Presents
Book Buzz Theater
PLA Presidents Program
Presidents Program & Awards Presentations
Wrap Up/Rev Up
Closing Session & Inaugural Event
Inaugural Brunch
Opening General Session
Friday, June 22, 4:00pm - 5:15pm
Join fellow attendees and ALA President Molly Raphael as she kicks off the Annual Conference by welcoming attendees, presenting the most prestigious ALA awards, and introducing speaker Rebecca MacKinnon (global Internet policy specialist and author of Consent of the
Networked). The Annual Conference Opening General Session always sets the tone for the following days, with the headline speaker focusing on a current hot topic for libraries and librarians--this year, how technology should be governed to support the rights and liberties of users around the world. Past speakers include Maya Angelou, Dan Savage, and President Barack Obama.
Sponsored by Basic Books.
Ribbon Cutting & Exhibits Opening
Friday, June 22, 5:15pm - 5:30pm
Immediately following the Opening General Session, the exhibit hall will open. The ribbon cutting ceremony will feature a brief welcome from ALA and local dignitaries. The opening of the exhibits will include food, drink and entertainment through the exhibit hall. This gives exhibitors and attendees their first chance to network as the exhibits kick-off.
Auditorium Speaker Series
The Auditorium Speaker Series brings leading authors and authorities from the fields of adult and youth fiction, technology, and popular culture to general sessions at key points in the Annual Conference Schedule.
Saturday, June 23
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8:00am - 9:00am |
10:30am - 11:30am David Weinberger Sponsored by Basic Books |
3:30pm - 4:30pm Chris Colfer Sponsored by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers |
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1:30pm - 2:30pm William Kamkwamba Sponsored by Penguin Young readers |
1:30pm - 2:30pm Talia Leman Sponsored by Simon and Schuster |
1:30pm - 2:30pm Gaby Rodriguez Sponsored by Simon and Schuster |
Sunday, June 24
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8:00am - 9:00am Dan Ariely Sponsored by HarperCollins |
10:30am - 11:30am Sapphire Sponsored by Penguin Group |
Monday, June 25
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8:30am - 9:30am Dan Rather Sponsored by ALTAFF |
10:30am - 11:00am |
LITA presents George R.R. Martin and Blake Charlton - Traveling the Spectrum: From Interstellar Adventures to Epic Fantasy, the influence of Science Fiction and Fantasy on the world today
Saturday, June 23, 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Science Fiction and Fantasy are ever increasingly mainstream genres. Is this because authors are gearing their works towards a wider audience, or is it because big budget films and television shows are spotlighting the genres? As a means for social commentary, what do modern works have to say about the society that gave them birth? Come listen to George R. R. Martin and Blake Charlton (both courtesy of Tor Publishing) speak on the subject.
Sponsored by LITA (Library and Information Technology Association)
Book Buzz Theater
Come hear the latest “Buzz” about the newest titles from your favorite publishers all in one easy to find location in the convention center. Book Buzz Theater Featuring...
PLA President’s Program and Awards Presentation
Sunday, June 24, 1:00 pm- 2:30 pm ACC-Ballroom DE
Following the recognition of PLA’s 2012 award winners, the Public Library Association (PLA) and PLA President, Marcia Warner, will welcome keynote speaker Sherman Alexie to the PLA President’s Program and Awards Presentation.
Sponsored by Grove/Atlantic
Book signing outside Ballroom immediately following event.
ALA President's Program and ALA Awards Presentations
Sunday, June 24, 3:30pm - 5:30pm
Join ALA President Molly Raphael for this exciting session featuring the presentations of ALA awards and authors Jodi Picoult and Samantha Van Leer.
Sponsored by Simon & Schuster
Wrap Up/Rev Up Celebration
Monday, June 25, 2:00pm - 3:00pm
Conference attendees will gather on Monday, June 25 in the afternoon to Wrap Up the 2012 ALA Annual Conference and Rev Up for the 2013 Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, with Singer Bettye LaVette’s “Performance and Revelation: An Intimate Showcase with a Soul Survivor” helps Wrap Up the Annual Conference and Rev everyone Up for 2013 Midwinter Meeting in Seattle.
Since releasing her first single at the age of 16 in 1962, LaVette has survived the trials and tribulations of a career in the music business and lived to tell the remarkable story in her upcoming explosive memoir, “A Woman Like Me” (Penguin, September 2012). The same week , ANTI- Records will release her new album, “Thankful n’ Thoughtful,” featuring her uniquely personal readings of classic songs by Sly Stone, Bob Dylan and others.
The remarkable second act of LaVette’s career began with her signing to ANTI- in 2005. Since then she has released three acclaimed albums, and appeared at such high-profile events as the 2009 Presidential Inaugural, at which her telecast duet with Jon Bon Jovi stole the show, and a command performance at the Kennedy Center in 2008 honoring The Who, after which Pete Townshend exclaimed “you made me weep.” Recent accolades for Bettye come from Elton John, James Taylor, Keith Richards, Steve Winwood, Sheryl Crow, Elvis Costello, Pete Townshend, Bon Jovi, and many more. She has been nominated for a pair of Grammys and has won a W.C. Handy Award, Blues Music Award, R&B Foundation Award and hit many critic’s “best of” lists. On her recent residency at New York’s Café Carlyle, the New York Times declared her “the equal of Aretha Franklin and Tina Turner” and “an R&B realist who tells it like it is.”
LaVette has appeared on National Public Radio's World Cafe, All Things Considered, Weekend Edition, Wait, Wait Don't Tell Me, and performed a Tiny Desk Concert. She has appeared in the Mississippi Public Broadcasting series, Blues Divas, and is in a film of the same name, both produced by award-winning film maker, Robert Mugge. She has also appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Show with David Letterman, The Conan O'Brien Show, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Lopez Tonight, Austin City Limits, The Prairie Home Companion, The Artist's Den, Good Morning America, The Today Show and The Tavis Smiley Show.
Presented by Baker & Taylor, ANTI- Records and Penguin Group.
Closing General Session and Inaugural Event
Tuesday, June 26, 9:30am - 11:00am
Make sure not to miss the exciting Closing General Session. New this year ALA President Molly Raphael will pass the gavel with the announcement of the 2012-2013 ALA President Maureen Sullivan and Division Presidents.
End the conference on a high note at the Closing General Session, with inspiring speaker J. R. Martinez, whose message of resilience and optimism will resonate with ALA attendees given the current challenges facing libraries and librarians. Long before he won legions of fans as the 2011 winner of Dancing With the Stars, Martinez was inspiring audiences of all kinds with his remarkable story—while serving in Iraq in 2003, he suffered severe burns to over 40% of his body after his vehicle hit a land mine, spent the next 34 months in recovery, and underwent 33 different surgeries. His new book Full of Heart: My story of Survival, Strength, and Spirit will be published in November 2012. He joined the cast of ABC’s All My Children in 2008 as combat veteran Brot Monroe, appeared on the cover of People Magazine, in the Sexiest Man Alive issue, and was one of their 25 Most Intriguing People of 2011. Sponsored by Hyperion Books.
Inaugural Brunch - NEW TIME, NEW EVENT
Tuesday, June 26, 11:15am - 1:00pm
Join ALA President Molly Raphael in honoring incoming President Maureen Sullivan and Division Presidents-Elect at this new exciting Inaugural Brunch. This elegant event will immediately follow the Closing General Session and includes food, entertainment, and more.
