PLA Blog

The past few posts have been all about feedback. Your thoughts, beliefs, actions, plans, and ideas on how librarianship works are important, so definitely give a few minutes to participate!

I read this bit of “what do you do?” on the WebJunction Publib listserv (May 4, Vol 26, Issue 4). The contact for responses is listed below, but feel free to comment on this post and let us know what you do, so that other librarians can benefit from your experiences. We can also use the comments you leave here for building out part of the policies section of the Public Library Wiki project here at PLA.

ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy is collecting information on the trend described below. If you would like to share your library’s experience with this issue, please send an email to Carrie Lowe (), Information Policy Specialist at OITP.

Question: If your library suspends checkout privileges when patrons receive a certain overdue fine threshold, does it also restrict access to computers and/or internet access? Does your library restrict access to anything else when a patron reaches this threshold? If you have a policy about this issue, what does it say?

Brendan Gallagher, a participant in Leslie Berger’s Emerging Leaders Initiative, posted to the Mentors, Masters, Leaders blog today about the survey that’s been making the rounds through various digital venues:

I’m one of the ALA Emerging Leaders this year, and I’m part of a work team that is looking at options for “rebranding the library profession in the digital world.” We’ve decided to survey as broad a spectrum of library professionals as possible in order to see what we think of ourselves.

This survey is part of Project KK. You can read more about the project and other projects on the ALA Emerging Leaders wiki. I’ve seen the survey mentioned on Twitter, in emails, in IM chats, and on blogs, and I’m hoping that ALA will actually post a link to it from the ALA home page, which would make a lot of sense and increase the outreach of such an important request for feedback.

Click here to take the survey, and definitely come back and tell us what you think about the idea of rebranding librarianship, what it will mean to public libraries, and about the survey itself.

Public libraries can be total rock stars when it comes to publicity. Take a moment to strut your stuff by entering the competition (details below) now that they’ve extended the deadline!

C’mon - you know your library does some amazing public relations work . Show it off to the rest of the country! Enter this year’s Best of Show Competition, put on by the Swap & Shop Committee (LAMA/PRMS). All libraries are invited to submit promotional materials produced in 2006. Judging in all categories will bebased on content, originality, design format and effectiveness. Entries must be received by April 20, 2007. A team of experts in librarianship, public relations and marketing will judge the library promotional materials. Winning entries will be on display during the Swap and Shop program scheduled for Sunday, June 24, 2006, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., during the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. The awards will be presented to the winners on that day. Free samples of library public relations materials from dozens of libraries will be available for attendees to “swap and shop” during the program. For more information, contact Luke Vilelle at or 540.231.1108. Best of luck to you all!

Best of Show Entry Form

2007 FAQs

Troy Rumpf
Manager, Community & Media Relations
Laramie County Library System
2800 Central Avenue
Cheyenne, WY 82001
307.635.1032 ext. 123
www.LCLSonline.org

We invite you to share your fabulous promotional tips, campaigns, and even ideas you haven’t tried yet here on the blog by commenting on this post.

I received this via the Public Programs Office listserv:

A record number of applications have been received for this year’s We the People Bookshelf on the “Pursuit of Happiness”! We need more volunteer reviewers!

This year’s We the People Bookshelf has only one deadline and the number of school and public libraries to be awarded is again 2,000! As this national initiative continues to impact so many school and public libraries, it presents an excellent opportunity for librarians to be integrally involved in library selection.

Judges will review and rate proposals online via a password accessible National Endowment for the Humanities Web site. The applications are very brief and should take no longer than 3-5 minutes per review. Each judge will be asked to review approximately 40-50 applications. Each judge will be given three weeks to complete the assigned batch of proposals. The entire review process will be competed by February 28, 2007.

Judges may not be applicants to the WTP initiative under the January 30 deadline.

More information on the WTP initiative can be found at www.ala.org/wethepeople or http://www.wethepeople.gov/bookshelf. If you are interested in serving as a reviewer, please contact Mary Davis Fournier at .

Mary Davis Fournier
Project Director
Public Programs Office
American Library Association
312/280-5056
1-800-545-2433, ext 5056
www.ala.org/publicprograms

Hi everybody, I’m Heidi. Now that I’m back home in San Francisco, I finally have time to post about Seattle!

My term as an at large member of Council began last summer, but so far that’s just meant that I got subscribed to the Council email list. The Council sessions at Midwinter were my first in-person meetings, and I even went up to the microphone once or twice to speak my mind. I was surprised and delighted by the number of Councilors who stopped by my seat in the back row to welcome me to Council and thank me for speaking up. Personally, I find Council FASCINATING and had a whole lot of fun. I felt very much like a sponge trying to drink in as much information as possible, but something tells me that Council will always throw a lot of information my way and that feeling might not go away.

During the Council session on Sunday we had an informal ‘hot topic’ discussion called “Creating a Buzz about Council.” As the governing body of our association, it is important that Councilors represent and reflect the entire membership. As it stands, school librarians and western states as well as students, front-line (non-administrator level) staff, and recent graduates are especially underrepresented. We did a bit of brainstorming to figure out why.

Some of the obstacles we identified:

• big time commitment/can’t get time off for conferences
• expensive
• don’t know what Council is or why it is important
• Council is too politicized/boring/inefficient
• need name recognition to get elected

We discussed a number of potential solutions, including financial assistance for elected Councilors and increased mentoring efforts. I’d love to hear more from all of you about your perception of Council. If you’ve ever considered running for Council or are curious and want to hear more, drop me a line and I’ll do everything I can to bully you into running provide the support and encouragement you need to get involved.

This came to my attention very recently through the ALA Public Programs listserv. The deadline for application submission is very tight (December 18, 2006), but it seems like it would be worth the hustle and trouble for interested libraries. All bold emphasis mine.

Dear Library Colleague:

In the spring of 2006, Arthur marked a milestone that few children’s-or adult-series ever attain: ten seasons on the air! To celebrate the occasion, the WGBH Educational Foundation is pleased to launch Arthur’s 10th Anniversary Literacy Initiative, a new outreach effort targeting public libraries.

This new outreach effort is designed to use the series’ continuing popularity to support two intersecting target audiences-libraries and parents. Many parents become library users when their children are toddlers and preschoolers. Many also know the importance of reading aloud to support their children’s literacy development. However, as their children age and become readers themselves, parents often relegate responsibility for their children’s reading success to teachers and become less aware of how libraries can support them and their children as they grow older.

WGBH will award grants in the amount of $1,000 each to 15 public libraries, asking them to design projects using the Arthur resources and targeting parents and children, including soon-to-be as well as independent readers. We seek libraries that represent diversity in size, location, and population served (with an emphasis on reaching at-risk audiences), and will also consider the creativity of their approach and the strength of their community partners (including local PBS stations), which will be essential to access families not currently served by the library.

We invite you to apply for an Arthur’s 10th Anniversary Literacy Initiative grant. Applications are due by Monday, December 18, 2006 and can be found at http://www.ala.org/ala/ourassociation/chapters/literacyoutreach.htm.

If you have questions on the grant application, please feel free to contact Natalie Hebshie, Arthur Outreach Coordinator, at 617/300-3639 or by e-mail at .

Sincerely,
WGBH Educational Outreach

What You Can Expect from WGBH:

• A $1,000 grant to defray the cost of staff time and materials required to develop targeted outreach activities for kids and families.
• Arthur Library Event Guide. This online resource includes ideas to engage kids across the age spectrum in reading activities.
• Let’s Read! (in English and Spanish). This family activity booklet offers ideas for how parents can support their children’s literacy at different ages.
• Arthur anniversary stickers and pencils for distribution to young patrons
• Read Aloud Book Club Kit for young readers, including six book club session cards with activity suggestions, and books for distribution.
• Arthur-themed bulletin board decorations.

What WGBH Expects From Your Library:

• Design outreach activities that support kids and families.
• Partner with your local PBS Station on your outreach activities.
• Utilize ideas and activity suggestions from the Arthur Library Event Guide.
• Distribute Arthur outreach materials, including Let’s Read!, stickers, and pencils.
• Publicize your activities.
• Complete and submit a final report on your outreach activities (final report form provided by WGBH).

Dates to Keep in Mind:

• Grant applications due to WGBH Educational Outreach: December 18, 2006
• 15 grantees selected and notified: January 2, 2007
• Grantees complete final report and submit to WGBH: April 30, 2007

Questions? Please contact Natalie Hebshie, Arthur Outreach Coordinator at 617/300-3639 or by e-mail at .

We’ve got a crew of 6 conference bloggers who have volunteered report on PLA Boot Camp in Nashville, TN this week from November 13 - 17.

• Marsha Barker, Amarillo Public Library
• Linda Mielke, Indianapolis Marion County Public Library
• Anne Masters, Pioneer Library System
• Kim Kietzman, Southeast Library Services
• Rose Frost, Utah State Library Division
• Mindy Kittay, Marmot Library Network

Keep an eye on the blog as our conference bloggers keep us posted on the conference sessions and happenings!

Will you be attending the Seattle ALA Midwinter Meeting in January 2007?  Want to take a stab at conference blogging?  Send us email with your name, your title, your library’s name, your email address, and your blog URL (if you have one) and let us know.  No experience required!

3M Library Systems sponsors a grant for members of ALA’s New Members Round Table (NMRT) to go to the ALA Annual conference for just about free.  The grant itself covers round trip airfare, lodging, conference registration fees and some incidental expenses.  The catch: you need to be a current NMRT member to apply, and there is a small list of conditions of acceptance. All small prices to pay, especially for a new public librarian.
The deadline for application is December 15, 2006, and the selection will take place at ALA Midwinter in Seattle.  Visit the NMRT/3M Award Information page for details and to fill out the online application form.

These two tidbits came to me care of the ALA Public Programs Office email list. There are more grants and awards (with upcoming deadlines), events, and news listings listed on the ALA Public Programs Office part of the ALA site, as well as information on how to subscribe to the email listserv.

Carnegie Whitney Grant Deadline Approaching
http://www.ala.org/work/pubs/Carnegie.html
The American Library Association Publishing Committee provides a grant of up to $5000 for the preparation of print or electronic reading lists, indexes, or other guides to library resources that promote reading or the use of library resources at any type of library. Applications must be received by November 6, 2006. Recipients will be notified by the end of February 2007.

ALA Seeks Grant Applicants for New We the People Bookshelf
http://www.ala.org/wethepeople
This year, we are offering 2,000 sets of classic books for children on the theme the “Pursuit of Happiness.” To apply, simply complete the easy online application by describing how your library will create a theme-related program that highlights the Bookshelf titles. Applications are due by January 31, 2007.

I’ve noticed a plethora of surveys and other feedback requests for librarians out there recently. You may want to consider offering your solicited opinion to these efforts, your voice counts!

ALA Web Site Usability Survey
http://tinyurl.com/y6yhta
Love it? Hate it? Let them know by taking the survey. While there is no published deadline for taking the survey (all accounts I’ve seen note the deadline as “late October 2006″), it is still up as of today, so take a moment to help ALA improve the web site.

ALA Online Resource Center for Library Cultural Programming Survey
http://tinyurl.com/tebaw

The ALA Public Programs Office is developing a resource called “The Online Resource Center for Library Cultural Programming” (ORC). The ORC will be a “one stop” web site where librarians interested in cultural programming can find all the information they need to learn about and present quality public programs, program ideas, presenters, partners, funding, training and materials. … Responses are requested by NOVEMBER 20, 2006.

Library Journal Sixth Annual Movers & Shakers
HTML form:
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6358087.html (LJ notes that you may want to print your HTML form before submitting)
PDF form:
http://www.libraryjournal.com/contents/pdf/LJMoveShakeForm.pdf

“The sixth annual Movers & Shakers supplement will profile 50-plus up-and-coming individuals from across the United States and Canada who are innovative, creative, and making a difference. From librarians to vendors to others who work in the library field, Movers & Shakers 2007 will celebrate the new professionals who are moving our libraries ahead. The deadline for submissions is November 1, 2006.”

2007 ALA Recognition Awards and Grants
http://tinyurl.com/wzw86
“Nominations are being sought for the 2007 American Library Association (ALA) Recognition Awards and Grants. Unless otherwise noted, the deadline for awards is December 1.” There are 15+ awards to choose from, so if you know of a deserving library or librarian, take a look a the list and show them some love.

Google Librarian Center and Newsletter Survey (added 2:30pm)
http://tinyurl.com/yg8yw6

The purpose of this survey is to help us identify how we can improve the Librarian Center and Newsletter to better fit your needs. … We hope that you’ll take the 10-15 minutes to complete this survey and let us know more about you and what you’d like to see from our program. … Please note that the survey will close on October 31st, 2006.