The Winter Meeting of the Special Libraries Association will be held January 21-23, 1999, in San Francisco, CA. The following SLA meetings will be held:

• Board of Directors
• Chapter Cabinet
• Division Cabinet
• Joint Cabinet
• 1999 & 2000 Division Conference Program Planning Meetings
• Leadership Development Institute (LDI) formerly DACOLT
• Select Committee Meetings

The Chapter and Division Cabinets meet only two times each year. Therefore, it is important that all are represented at this meeting. All members of the Cabinets (Chapter Presidents and President-Elects, Division Chairs and Chair-Elects) are urged to attend. In addition to the Cabinet Meetings, officer leadership training and conference program planning will take place.

If your Units wish to hold meetings during the 1999 Winter Meeting we must know by December 18, 1998. Space is limited. Please send your request including day, date, start & end times, title of session, number of people, food and beverage, audio visual needs, and billing information to stacey@sla.org.

SLA's Winter Education Conference is January 24-26, 1999. Go to www.sla.org\professional\wintered.html for exciting details!

At the call of President Suzi Hayes, the SLA Board of Directors will meet on the following dates during SLA's 1999 Winter Meeting:

Thursday, January 21, 1999
9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon (Executive Session 9:00 am - 10:00 am)

Saturday, January 23, 1999
9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon

All Board meetings (except the Executive Session) are open to members of the Association. Members of the Chapter and Division Cabinets are expected to attend the Board meetings, where possible, so that they will be made aware of the topics to be referred by the Board of Directors to the Cabinets, and to provide attendees the opportunity to make their views known to the Board of Directors.

Agenda Document Deadline

Agenda documents with recommendations for Board action are due at SLA's Headquarters no later than Friday, December 18. Individuals who plan to prepare documents are asked to remember the action of the Board of Directors on January 26, 1976, that "no agenda document for Board action received at the Headquarters office after the deadline will be placed on the agenda, except by a majority vote of the Board of Directors."

If the Board's agenda becomes too crowded, the President may request abbreviated presentations of scheduled items from Board Proctors or the Chapter and Division Cabinet Chairs, in place of presentations by Representatives, Committee Chairs, Division Chairs or Chapter Presidents.

You are invited to be present when your report is considered by the Board. You may submit your documents by mail, fax or e-mail. The December 18 deadline will be strictly enforced to give staff sufficient time for duplication and distribution of documents and for final preparation of the agenda.

Need Assistance

If you have questions or need more information about board document submission or the Board of Directors meeting, please contact Stephanie A. Russell at 1-202-234-4700 x632 or by e-mail at stephanie@sla.org.

Documents to Association Units

All Association Units will receive the draft agenda along with a document request form with instructions and a deadline for submitting your request for documents. These instructions and the draft agenda will be posted on SLA's web page in the Board of Directors section and sent via fax-on-demand to all Association Units on/about December 30, 1998.

Please mail the original document(s) to:

David R. Bender, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Special Libraries Association
1700 Eighteenth Street, NW
Washington, DC 20009-2514

You may also send a copy of your document(s) to SLA's President at:

Suzi Hayes
12505 Oak Arbor Lane
Boynton Beach, FL 33436-6138

Chapter and Division Cabinets

The Chapter Cabinet is composed of Chapter Presidents and President-Elects and the Division Cabinet is composed of Division Chairs and Chair-Elects. All members of the both Cabinets are urged to attend the meetings. If any officer is unable to attend the Chapter/Division Cabinet meetings, the Chapter President or Division Chair shall designate an alternate to represent the member unable to attend.

If you wish to present a report to the Chapter or Division Cabinet, it must be submitted to the Chapter or Division Cabinet Chair before December 18, 1998 and a copy sent to Christine Kennedy, Director, Membership Development at the Association Office.

The reports will be numbered as agenda documents, duplicated, and mailed from the Association Office. Reports received after December 18 will not be placed on the agenda. By receiving this information in advance, all Cabinet members will have the opportunity to discuss the action with their constituents and thus be able to better judge the issue's validity.

Joint Cabinet

A Joint meeting of the Chapter and Division Cabinets may be necessary to discuss issues of common interest to Chapter and Division members. If a meeting is necessary, items may be put on the Joint Cabinet agenda and be voted on by the Joint Cabinet instead of being presented to both Cabinets independently.

Division & Chapter Officers Leadership Training (DACOLT)

The Chapter and Division Cabinet officers are planning Leadership Workshops as approved by the Division Cabinet in June 1983 and the Chapter Cabinet in June 1984. DACOLT training sessions are designed specifically for the SLA Leadership in response to their requests. These sessions are structured to address specific issues and concerns that Association officers encounter. All Cabinet members are expected to attend. Please refer to the "Tentative DACOLT Agenda for details.

This year, DACOLT will provide significant opportunities for the Chapter and Division Cabinet members to observe the Board of Directors meetings. The Board of Directors affirmed this schedule at their Fall Meeting in October 1998. An important part of DACOLT will be watching and interacting with the SLA Board of Directors. Board members will also be taking a more visible role in other DACOLT activities so that you will have plenty of opportunities to bring issues and concerns to their attention in an informal meeting.

Committees

Committee Chairs who wish to present a report to the Board are urged to attend in person. If a Committee Chair is unable to attend, the report will be presented by the Committee's Board Proctor. Reports must be submitted to the Association Office, Attn: Stephanie A. Russell, by December 18, 1998.

A number of smaller meeting rooms are available for Committee activities during the Winter meeting. If Committee Chairs wish to schedule a meeting, please indicate on the registration sheet the time you wish to schedule your meeting(s). Please avoid conflicts with Board and Cabinet Meetings.

Committee Chairs who are planning open committee meetings should not schedule them during the hours generally reserved for meetings of the Board of Directors and the Chapter and Division Cabinets. For assistance in scheduling, please contact Jim Mears, Senior Director for Conferences and Professional Development by phone 1-202-234-4700 x628 or e-mail: jim@sla.org.

Conference Program Planners

The Chair of the Conference Program Committee for each Conference will conduct planning meetings to stimulate thinking about Division program planning. Division Chairs and Chair-Elects are urged to attend these scheduled meetings.

1. Number of Copies: Send one original typed copy of the report to the attention of the Executive Director at the Association Office.

2. Format: Reports should be typed on 8 ½ x 11 paper. The name of the persons and/or SLA unit making the report should appear on each page. The names of members of the committee should appear at the end of each committee report.

3. Date: Every report MUST be dated on each page.

4. Content: It will be helpful to the Board of Directors if the reasoning of the SLA unit is included in the report. A short paragraph containing the background of the problem, the arguments for and against the recommendations, and the unit's reasons for the recommendations will make it easier for the Board of Directors to make its decision.

5. Recommendations: When recommendations are included, they must be summarized at the beginning of the report.

6. Dissenting Opinions: In the case of committee reports, a dissenting opinion or minority report may be filed by a committee member in any case where the report does not represent the member's viewpoint. If such dissent is not filed, it is assumed by the Board of Directors that all members of the committee are in substantial agreement on both the report and the recommendations.

7. Reports must be received at the Association Office according to established deadline as announced.

8. Financial Impact Statement: In June 1995 the Board of Directors approved a motion requesting "the inclusion of a budget impact statement in all recommendations for all Board actions".

The San Francisco Bay Region Chapter
is delighted to welcome SLA members to San Francisco for the Winter Meeting and Education Conference on January 21-26, 1999.

Whether you are a first-time visitor or making a return trip, San Francisco is one of the best cities in the world to visit. It is known for its breathtaking scenery, rich cultural and intellectual resources, and outstanding shops and restaurants, which in 1996, earned San Francisco the coveted title of "Best Restaurant City in the World" by Conde Nast "Traveler" magazine. The City's star attractions include Alcatraz Island, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the San Francisco Public Library, the California Historical Museum, and Golden Gate Park. Much of its vitality comes from its neighborhoods, which retain strong cultural, political, and ethnic identities: the colorful Mission district, the lively Castro, the hillside mansions of Pacific Heights, the hustle and bustle of Chinatown, and the vibrance of North Beach and Fisherman's Wharf.

The Greater San Francisco Bay Area is a wonderful place to explore. To the north lies the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, with its 100 miles of hiking and riding trails spreading from the coastal parks of San Francisco, across the Golden Gate Bridge, through Marin County and on to the Point Reyes National Seashore. The wine country of Napa and Sonoma counties is only a one-hour drive north from The City. In the East Bay are the thriving cities of Oakland, a major west coast city with a rich cultural heritage, and Berkeley, site of the University of California, Berkeley campus. To the south lies the Santa Clara Valley, which includes the city of San Jose, Stanford University, and the famous Silicon Valley. Further south are the cities of Santa Cruz and Monterey, home of the famous Monterey Bay Aquarium.

The Chapter's Winter Meeting Local Arrangements Committee is busily coordinating volunteers from the San Francisco Bay Region Chapter and the nearby San Andreas Chapter to try to make your stay as thoroughly enjoyable as possible. Be sure to chat with the volunteers who will be staffing the Hospitality Booth at the Hyatt Regency Winter Meeting registration area. They will have information about the many things to see and do in our beautiful city, and advice for handling life's essentials while you are away from home. For those who want to do some armchair traveling in advance, we encourage you to visit the official SLA Winter Meeting Web site on the San Francisco Bay Region Chapter's home page at www.sims.berkeley.edu/sfsla/ events/winter.html

The San Francisco Bay Region Chapter invites all registered Winter Meeting participants to a reception Thursday, January 21, from 6:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. The complimentary hors d'oeuvres and wine reception will be held at the elegant United States Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals building on Seventh and Mission Streets. This historic and recently renovated Beaux-Arts classical building was completed in 1905 and survived the 1906 earthquake. The reception will take place in the Great Hall with documents available in the three courtrooms, judges' chambers and the library to describe the history and ornamental features of each room. Buses will start picking people up at the Hyatt Regency starting at 5:30 p.m. and make periodic return trips to the hotel throughout the reception. Those who would like to attend the reception must pre-register by Tuesday, January 19, 1999. We regret that we are unable to accommodate guests: only registered Winter Meeting participants will be admitted. Please let us know your intentions by contacting Debbie Jan at djan@library.berkeley.edu) or Debbie Jan, Public Health Library, 42 Warren Hall, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-7360. Tel. 510-642-2511; Fax 510-642-7623.

On Saturday, January 23, sample some of San Francisco's wonderful restaurants by signing up for the Dinner Buddies program. This no-host event, a pleasant SLA Winter Meeting tradition, is an opportunity to relax and chat with colleagues, and enjoy the best of San Francisco's world-famous culinary treasures. We hope you will join us at restaurants in Fisherman's Wharf, North Beach, Chinatown and the Downtown/Waterfront district. Look for restaurant information on the Winter Meeting Web site. Since Saturday night dinner reservations are at a premium, we encourage you to register by January 15 so that we can include you in our reservations for the restaurant of your choice. Please contact Marlene Vogelsang at mxv6@pge.com or Marlene Vogelsang, PG&E Energy Center, 851 Howard St., San Francisco, CA 94103. Tel. 415-973-7206; Fax 415- 896-1290.

The following are some travelers basics to get you to and around San Francisco. For more travel information, visit the SLA Winter Meeting Web site on the San Francisco Bay Region Chapter's home page at www.sims.berkeley.edu/sfsla/events/winter.html

What to Wear:

January in San Francisco can be cold and rainy. Average rainfall for the month is 4.48 inches. The daily highs are in the 50's, with lows in the upper 40's. Bring warm clothing, and prepare for rain.

You will most likely arrive at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), which is twelve miles south of San Francisco. Major car rental firms have branches at SFO. The SFO Airporter 415-641-3100 takes travelers to the Hyatt Regency Hotel every half-hour on the half-hour for a one-way fare of $10. Pick up the Airporter near the luggage carousels on the lower level of the airport; no reservations are needed. There are also airport coaches, minivans, and taxis for getting downtown. Taxis downtown will cost approximately $30.00.

The Hyatt Regency is located at 5 Embarcadero Center, in the Financial District at the end of Market Street. The hotel is adjacent to public transportation lines, the California Street Cable Car and the ferry terminal. Telephone: 415-788-1234; Fax 415-398-2567

If you must drive, prepare for busy one-way streets with synchronized traffic signals in the downtown area. San Francisco intersections are subject to strict enforcement of the Anti-Gridlock Act, which prohibits pulling into an intersection when traffic makes it questionable that you will get through the intersection before the light turns red. We also have our own version of the Denver Boot, and use cameras at many of the downtown intersections to catch red light runners. Right turns on red are legal unless otherwise posted. There are large parking garages and small garages and lots in the downtown area; otherwise, finding parking in downtown can be a problem. Driving on the hills of San Francisco is not for the faint of heart, and regulations governing parking on hills are strictly enforced.

The San Francisco Municipal Railway (Muni) provides buses, streetcars and the famous San Francisco cable cars. The one-way fare, which is $1.00 for adults, includes a free transfer good for use on any two other vehicles within a 90-minute period; ask for a transfer when paying your fare. The one-way fare for the cable cars is $2.00; no transfers are available.

Many out of town visitors take advantage of Muni's "Passport," which offers unlimited travel on the Muni system, as well as discounts to many of the city's best known attractions. Passports are available for one day ($6), three days ($10), or seven days ($15).

The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) connects San Francisco via the transbay tube to East Bay cities in the counties of Alameda and Contra Costa, and to northern San Mateo County. Magnetically encoded tickets may be purchased from dispensing machines in any of BART's thirty-seven stations. The cost of a BART ride depends on the distance that is traveled.

Welcome to San Francisco!

Linda Suzuki, President
San Francisco Bay Region Chapter

Jeanne Fong, President Elect
Chair, Winter Meeting Local Arrangements Committee

*Ticketed Events - require advance registration and payment. Please see Special Events Registration Form.