The second day of the 2007 ABA Winter Institute featured lots more education, peer networking, and even some breaking news about the importance of independent retailing to Main Street America.

The eight-hour-plus schedule included nine educational panels, a breakfast session where booksellers joined in the planning process for the next ABA strategic plan, more rep picks of upcoming adult and children's trade titles, and a "New Media Lunch," which looked at the pervasive effects of digitalization on the book world.

Portland, Oregon, no stranger to great bookstores, this morning became center stage for independent bookselling when the second annual ABA Winter Institute began a two-day run at the Portland Doubletree at Lloyd's Center. Five hundred ABA member booksellers from approximately 200 stores were registered for this year's event.

The Winter Institute features 16 educational sessions, as well as six publishers' reps' picks sessions, a plenary session with author Daniel Pink, a lunch panel featuring new media experts, and many other opportunities for bookseller interaction.

Over the last few weeks, American Booksellers Association staff has been busy putting together the final details for next week's Winter Institute in Portland, Oregon. Here's a final look at the two days of educational programming, with featured speakers, panelists, and moderators, as well as a preview of the array of special events.

In less than two weeks, booksellers from around the country will be gathering in Portland, Oregon, for ABA's Second Annual Winter Institute, to learn, to network, and to just have fun. This year, the two-day education program is chock full of special events, including festive receptions, a provocative plenary session, a New Media Lunch, and much, much more.

Booksellers looking to create or bolster consumer awareness of the importance of shopping locally will find much to help their cause at the panel "How to Create an Independent Business Alliance in Your Community" at this year's Winter Institute.

For the approximately 500 booksellers attending the American Booksellers Association's Second Annual Winter Institute, business will mix with pleasure at an Author Reception on Thursday, February 1.

"The 500 booksellers who will be attending the American Booksellers Association's Second Annual Winter Institute in Portland, Oregon, on February 1 and 2 will be the beneficiaries of the generosity of more than 30 sponsors.

Twenty-two booksellers have been awarded publisher-sponsored scholarships to attend the American Booksellers Association's second annual Winter Institute in Portland, Oregon. The scholarships cover airfare and hotel accommodations at the Doubletree Portland-Lloyd Center, the host hotel for the February 1 and 2 education event.

Registration for the American Booksellers Association's Second Annual Winter Institute -- a two-day education symposium being held in Portland, Oregon, on February 1 - 2 -- is currently filled to capacity. Registration for the Winter Institute was capped at 500 booksellers, and as of noon Eastern Standard Time on Monday, November 6, the last spot was filled.

The American Booksellers Association has announced the winners of its 2007 Winter Institute scholarships: Lisa Sharp of Nightbird Books in Fayetteville, Arkansas; Miah Olmsted of Back to Books in Hudson, Wisconsin; and Jessica Stockton of McNally Robinson in New York City.