Maine Library Association

MLA Annual Conference 2023

The Maine Library Association annual conference will be held at the Sunday River resort at the Grand Summit Hotel in Newry, ME,

Monday, May 22, and Tuesday, May 23.

This year's conference theme is Advocacy in Action.

Keynote speaker: Tracie D. Hall

TRACIE D. HALL is a librarian, author, and advocate for the arts, and is Executive Director of the American Library Association. Prior to her appointment, Hall served as the Director of the Joyce Foundation Culture Program. She also served as Chicago's Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events. In libraries, Hall was VP of the Queens Public Library, and Assistant Dean of Dominican University Graduate School of Library and Information Science. She was also the Director of the Office for Diversity for the American Library Association.

Keynote speaker: Monica Wood

MONICA WOOD is a novelist, memoirist, playwright, and the recent recipient of the Carlson Prize for contributions to the public humanities and the Maine Writers and Publishers Alliance Distinguished Achievement Award for contributions to the literary arts. Her new novel, How to Read a Book, is forthcoming from Mariner Books, and a new play, Saint Dad, will debut in October 2023 at Portland Stage. Her previous novel, The One-in-a-Million Boy, was translated into 20 languages in over 30 countries. She is also the author of When We Were the Kennedys, a New England bestseller, Oprah magazine summer-reading pick, and winner of the May Sarton Memoir Award. Her other fiction, Any Bitter Thing, Ernie’s Ark, and My Only Story, have also won awards and made bestseller lists. Her short stories have been widely anthologized, and her nonfiction has appeared in Oprah, New York Times, Literary Hub, Down East, Martha Stewart Living, Parade, and many other publications. She lives in Portland, Maine, with her husband and their cat, Susie.

Maine Library Association Fundraiser Featuring Stephen and Tabitha King on Sunday, May 21, 2023, 6:00 PM

Join us for a pre-conference dinner and keynote presentation by Maine authors and library supporters Stephen and Tabitha King. Learn More

*Please note: The Kings will not be giving autographs or signing books at this event.*

Registration:

Early bird registration ends April 16th. Regular rates start April 17th. Register Here

COVID Protocols:

We will follow the current CDC guidelines and/or local mandates on masking, at the time of the event. MIN and MLA cannot require Sunday River staff or other guests to wear masks, if the facility is not requiring it at the time of the event.

Vendor Information:

The vendor contact on our conference committee is Sarah Lucchesi

Vendor/exhibitor registration is now open: https://www.mainelibraries.org/event-5098024

CONFERENCE GRANT AND SCHOLARSHIP FUND

Up to ten grants to attend the conference are available to those in financial need. The deadline to apply for grants to attend the 2023 conference March 31, 2023. Please visit our grants page for application information.

The application deadline for the Phyllis E. Ainsworth Scholarship is April 15, 2023. Please visit our scholarship page for more information.

Please consider making a donation to MLA’s scholarship fund. 100% of your donation makes a direct positive impact on the Maine library profession through scholarships and conference grants. We’re all looking forward to the return of the fabulous fundraising Basket Raffle when we’re all together again! CLICK HERE TO DONATE

AWARDS

Award winners for the Outstanding Librarian of the Year and Library Advocate of the Year will be announced at the conference during the lunch session on Monday, May 22.

In an effort to save paper, we will limit the number of printed session schedules available and encourage everyone to download the Slack app to their mobile devices. Use Slack to view the session schedule, read speaker bios, and plan where you will be during the conference.