So I should’ve mentioned in a first post that I actually arrived in D.C. on Thursday to present at the Emerging Leaders Poster Sessions on Friday, June 25. Oops!
Emerging Leaders get support in completing a ALA chapter sponsored project, and learn about leadership in those chapters. We first met at Midwinter, and then worked online on our projects. Friday’s session was our chance to present our findings to ALA attendees, and we were all busy talking up our projects. You can read all the project summaries on ALA Connect here: http://connect.ala.org/node/10546
I was part of Project P, sponsored by LITA. We evaluated different tools the LITA membership used to communicate with members; most use ALA Connect for official business, with mailing lists coming in a close second. We also developed a few guidelines for how to best use ALA Connect. Do you use ALA Connect? Our group did use it for completing our project, but we ended up using Google Docs for our final project report…What uses are most effective? Any tips for new users?
Blogging at a convention is HARD. After a long day of sessions, walking and managing the heat, writing blog postings was just not happening. I have returned to work and hope to complete a post this evening. Hopefully I can organize my notes and handouts and get a few more posts done through the weekend.
I’m always glad to get to ALA and be around so many smart, funny, ingenious and dedicated librarians.
Christian Zabriskie of Queens Public Library discussed “where graphic novels and circulation mesh” today at the Graphic Novel Pavilion, in one of over forty hours of programming devoted to graphic novels at this year’s ALA Annual conference.
“Superbooks: How Graphics Can Save Your Library” wasn’t a colorful, image-filled presentation on the history of graphics, or a sneak peek at new titles. Instead, it was a numbers-based case for graphic novels as a solid investment. Using statistics, graphs, and his own “cost/circ ratio,” Zabriskie demonstrated that the graphic novels in his library’s young adult collection at the Central Library in Jamaica, Queens cost about thirty-eight cents per circulation.
The “cost/circ ratio” is simply the cost of a book divided by the numbers of times it has circulated. In the Central Library’s young adult collection, graphics had better value for their dollar investment than even high-interest titles such as the Twilight and Harry Potter series.
However, this formula is not meant to be used as a weeding tool. “Instead of weeding, do some seeding,” Zabriskie suggests. The high circulation numbers of graphic novels can allow libraries to keep less popular materials without sacrificing circulation statistics. The classics, for example, may never be circulation blockbusters, but they should be available when patrons need them: they are “part of our identification as libraries,” notes Zabriskie.
Zabriskie would like to use larger data sets in order to test his findings’ statistical relevance. If you would like to contribute similar statistical information from your library, contact him at .
And, of course, you can also use the numbers you generate as a convincing case for the presence of graphic novels in your collection.
I’m here to start my third year as a member of Great Graphic Novels for Teens, a YALSA selection committee. Throughout the year we seek out graphic novels that are both “great” and “great for teens,” and mold them into a selection list at the Annual and Midwinter ALA conferences. You can take a look at our current list of nominated titles here.
And, if you discover any “great” new titles at the conference, feel free to nominate them here.
First Second, the graphic novel publisher, hosted a dinner for my committee and other graphic novel fans on Thursday. Gene Yang, author of Printz winner American Born Chinese, was a special guest. He told us about a new project of his titled Level Up, a graphic novel about a gamer who receives a divine calling to go to medical school. Yang told us that he was inspired by his brother, a doctor who is also a video game fan. When his brother decided to become a gastroenterologist, Yang wondered why anyone would want to become a “poop doctor.” His brother, though, raved about the wonders of performing colonoscopies, which were like playing “a video game up your ass.” Dessert was served shortly after.
I attended an excellent overview session on health literacy and reference this morning entitled “HELP! My Patron is a Cyber Patient: Learn to Help Patrons Identify Their Health Information Needs and Locate Relevant Resources”, presented by LaVentra E. Danqua of Wayne State University, Shiffman Medical Library in Detroit, Michigan. She’s worked as a health reference librarian for more than fourteen years and shared her tips and resources for helping customers.
More than half of American adults (90 million people) are considered to have low health literacy. Combined with the facts that medical information isn’t written for a lay person, that we’re being increasingly tasked with monitoring our own health and often those of our loved ones, and availability of prescription drugs has increased, navigating consumer health information can be overwhelming. Particularly for those who aren’t native English speakers, accessing, evaluating, and understanding health information can be a challenge. Also, health information is filled with jargon, and patients are often intimidated by doctors, which is often similar to customers’ experience with libraries: as such, librarians should follow these tips when answering health questions:
Be approachable – be alert, stand, greet patrons.
Listen – Allow patrons to fully state their needs; ask “What do you need?”
Searching – Show materials as you find it. “Do you have time now? If not, let’s schedule an appointment.” Set them at ease: “This is new for me, too. Let’s learn this new topic together.”
Follow up – Check in with the patron. “Was this enough information?”
Most importantly, stress that you’re there to help.
ALA is officially underway. Washington was busy yesterday with those that came for pre-conference sessions and everyone just getting to town. The lines were long at the Convention Center for those picking up their ALA promotional bag and other materials, but the lines seemed to be moving quickly. Today the sidewalks are crowded with librarians finding their way around the Convention Center and between the hotels. I lucked out when a vendor was giving away ice cream on a corner outside the Convention Center at lunch time. An unexpected pleasure!!
In general, the Convention Center seems to be well organized for the event. Computers and projectors are working. Bathrooms are clean and accessible. Rooms have comfortable seating and the air conditioning is working.
I’m attending my second ALA so I learned a few things last time that I’ve incorporated in my strategies this year. I can leave a session early, and have. Not that the sessions were bad, but I hoped to pick up handouts at another session for future use. The strategy worked quite well this morning. When I stepped into a session that was half over I was immediately interested with the discussion and the speaker. Forty five minutes later I had learned a lot and was quite glad I had split my time between both sessions.
I have also learned that I don’t have to carry everything with me – because it WILL get too heavy by the end of the day. I’ve torn pages out of the program book that I need for today. I’ll tear more out for tomorrow. Simplify!! Simplify!!
I’m writing this (though I can’t post it) as I wait for my next session to start. l expect to attend the opening session with Toni Morrison. I hope to post some details from the sessions I’ve attended later this evening.
Well, I had a VERY BUSY day at the ALA Conference in D.C. on Friday, 6/25/2010. First up was the (full-day) RUSA Preconference “Reference Evolution: Envisioning the Future, Remembering the Past” which featured four speakers: Joseph Janes (The Information School at the University of Washington, founder Internet Public Library), Amy VanScoy (PHD candidate University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), Stephen Francoeur (Baruch College in New York, Digital Reference blog & Teaching Librarian website), and Kathleen Kern (University of Illinois at Urbana, author of Virtual Reference Best Practices – ALA Editions, 2008).
The morning consisted of each presenter speaking about various aspects of Reference – how things have changed, how they continue to change, and most important what librarians can do to keep up with and ahead of the changes. Janes started out with what he termed ”rethinking stuff’: what is a book?, what is a journal?, what is a newspaper?, expanded into where the winds are blowing (reference-wise) especially in relation to changes/advances in technology, talked about what we need to add, presented five Secret Weapons that librarians have, and ended with how stuff comes & goes but method (will always win) over material.
Amy VanScoy is working on her PHD and doing research into how librarians can shape the evolution of reference and direct where it will go. Specifically, she is investigating ‘practictioner belief’ – how librarians see their role or their purpose for providing reference service (there is very little research as yet on this topic). She addressed this topic initially in her chapter: “Reference Librarians’ Personal Theories of Practice: a New Approach to Studying Reference Service’ which appears in M.L. Radford & R.D. Landes (Eds), Creating the Reference Renaissance: Current & Future Trends (pp. 115-128), from Neal-Schuman (2010).
Stephen Francoeur discussed the tools for reference interactions and said that his goal is to provide customer service that’s better than expected. He said that librarians need to MAKE OUR WORK VISIBLE TO OTHERS !! Francoeur also generously created a website on which he has compiled the presentations for each of the day’s four speakers; it is available at http://sites.google.com/site/referenceevolution
Kathleen Kern presented some provocative ideas for librarians to consider. She asked the group to consider the question: did reference questions get more difficult? OR did the percent of questions that were difficult, increase? Kern also suggested that librarians should no longer be saying to patrons: ‘Come to us first, we can save you time.’ Instead we should be saying ‘Come to us last, we can get you the best stuff.’
The afternoon was devoted to two sets of breakout sessions. The first was small group discussions of three issues: ‘We’ve lost Ready Reference – Now what?’; ‘What reference data is worth capturing?’, and ’Consultations / One on One’ the results of which have been compiled at http://bit.ly/referenceevolution. The second breakout session was a great exercise from Joe Janes based on the idea of: what if Google, Bing & Wikipedia had all been shut down. Each group had to identify three websites that would, on the whole, provide the best starting points for the widest possible range of inquires, both ready reference and research, in the widest possible range of disciplines. The results of this exercise will appear as an article in a forthcoming issue of American Libraries(!)
After the preconference, I went to the Association of American Publishers program From the Insider(s) Out: Book Editors and the New Titles They Love which was hosted by Nancy Pearl. The speakers were Jamie Raab (from Hachette Book Group, Booth #2714), Carrie Kanie (“It” Books & Harper Perennial – HarperCollins, Booth # 2513), Susan Kamil (Random House, Dial Press, Booth # 2903), Ina Stern (Algonquin Books – Workman; Booth # 2701), and Bob Weil (W.W. Norton, Booth # 2415).
Raab spoke about OOGY: a Dog Only a Family Could Love by Larry Levin and An Object of Beauty by Steve Martin. She said that Steve Martin is a Renaissance Man – comedian, novelist (fiction & nonfiction, adult & children’s), playwright, musician, and actor. An Object of Beauty centers around Lacy a character who violates taboos and the consequences. She said that OOGY is the answer last year’s cat book, Dewey and that Levin’s book will have a step ladder display in Barnes & Noble at Christmas(!)
Kanie talked about Celebrity Chekhov by Ben Greenman which re-imagines Checkov in a modern setting and retells the stories through the eyes of celebrities. She said that is you like Sylvia Plath with a little bit of Virginia Wolfe you might like Blow by Blow by Detmar Blow and Tom Sykes, the biography of Detmar’s late wife, Isabella. It’s a book with lots of money, affairs and scandal(!)
Kamil discussed Let’s Take the Long Way Home: a Memoir of Friendship by Gail Caldwell and Luka and the Fire of Life by Salman Rushdie. She said that Caldwell’s book is for anyone who has a best friend and that Rushdie’s title is a fable for all ages – witty, magical.
Stern spoke first about West of Here by Jonathan Evison which she feels is an epic American adventure about how our country is put together and what the future holds. Exley is by Brock Clark, who also wrote The Arsonist’s Guide to Homes in New England and Stern said that Algonquin will be reprint A Fan’s Notes (heavily referenced in Exley) because they believe readers are going to be looking for this title BECAUSE of Exley.
Weil told the audience about two nonfiction titles which are significant due to the topics they address. The first title is Charlie Chan: the Untold Story of the Honorable Detective and His Rendezvous With American History by Yunte Huang which addresses the issue of America’s Asian racism; a topic not really covered before. The second book was Because It Is Wrong: Torture, Privacy, and Presidential Power in the Age of Terror by Charles Fried and Weil said that he thinks this is one of the most urgent books written since 9/11. It is a moral compass and cracked mirror to what America could become.
Both the preconference on the future of reference and the Fall book preview were excellent programs and provided a wealth of interesting information for me to take back home to the staff in my library. I hope you, the reader, got something from my report. ENJOY(!)
I’ve arrived in DC today, as have thousands of others. for the ALA Convention. There were librarians on the train from Wilmington, Delaware. There were librarians on the Metro. We’re EVERYWHERE!! And it is great to be here.
I went to “The Stacks” this evening, and it was busy as you would expect. I’ve already talked to some interesting vendors. One (Shelfwiz) had shelf signage that clips on the shelf. Another vendor (Userful) talked about having multiple adult public workstations attached to just one PC, without any significant degradation of speed.
Two authors were at the Sisters in Crime booth, Alexandra Sokoloff and Ellen Byerrum. (I even got a book, which they didn’t seem to be giving to everyone, by playing up ‘newness’ to librarianship!)
It is hot here. Thanks goodness for the shuttle buses. They get you around, but also they give you the opportunity to talk to librarians from across the country. We really are a pretty fun bunch.
I’ve got a full schedule planned for tomorrow. I hope to give you some details from the sessions I attend.
Following the pre-release of key data at the ALA Midwinter Meeting (the “Perfect Storm” briefing report), the ALA this week published the complete findings from the 2009-2010 Public Library Funding & Technology Access Study (www.ala.org/plinternetfunding).
Co-published with American Libraries magazine as their Summer Digital Supplement, the report finds:
• 67% of public libraries report that they are the only source of free public access to computers and the Internet in their communities.
• On average, public libraries provide 14.2 public computers per location, up from 11 computers one year ago.
• 76% of libraries report public use of Internet computers increased in 2009.
• 82% of libraries provide free wireless access, up from 37% only four years ago.
• 88% of libraries provide access to job databases and other job opportunity resources.
• 79% percent provide assistance to patrons applying for and accessing e-government services, up 23% from last year.
• 89% of libraries offer formal or informal technology assistance to library users, and 24% offer one-on-one technology training by appointment.
• 15% of all libraries report decreased hours of operation – triple the number that reported this was the case one year ago. This translates to lost hours at more than 2,400 library branches. Nearly one quarter of urban libraries report reduced hours.
The complete report with findings from the national public library survey administered by the Center for Library & Information Innovation at the University of Maryland, the state library survey and interviews with public and state library staff in Arizona and Tennessee, can be found here: http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/archives/digital-supplement/summer-2010-digital-supplement
Hop on the Bus to Visit two of Baltimore’s historic libraries!
Take advantage of your stay in Washington, D.C. while at the ALA Annual Conference to visit two of Baltimore’s jewels – the Enoch Pratt Free Library’s Central Library and Johns Hopkins University’s George Peabody Library. Baltimore is just a short distance away from Washington D.C.
Tour will take place:Monday, June 28, 2010 – 9 AM -4:30 PM
Meet in the lobby of the Renaissance Washington DC Hotel
(999 Ninth Street NW) at 8:30 AM
Thanks to the generous sponsorship of Integrated Technology Group (ITG), this trip is free! Lunch will be hosted by Carla Hayden, CEO of the Enoch Pratt Free Library.
Space is limited, so please contact Sonia Alcantara-Antoine by Thursday, June 24, 2010 at salcanta to reserve your space.
