The PLA Blog | Official Blog of the Public Library Association
Transforming your library and your library’s future with technology
Held Saturday 1:30-3:30 This session was an interesting one, but from my viewpoint, it’s one that got better as it went along. The first speaker, Lori Ayre, focused on things that I didn’t think really fit with this topic. She even said that she was going to talk about technologies “with levers and buttons, not [...]
Press Release: PLA Receives Gates Grant
PLA receives Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant to help public libraries build skills and experience needed to increase local support and funding $7.7 million grant will fund national training program for library staff and supporters (Washington, D.C.) – Susan Hildreth, president of the Public Library Association (PLA) announced during the 2007 American Library Association [...]
PLA Awards Presentation
The award winners are being announced now by Susan Hildreth, PLA president. For details about each award, visit the PLA Awards and Honors page. ADVANCEMENT OF LITERACY AWARD sponsored by Library Journal Jacksonville Public Library Foundation (Fla.) ALLIE BETH MARTIN AWARD sponsored by Baker & Taylor Barry Trott, Williamsburg Regional Library (Va.) BAKER & TAYLOR [...]
Sunday at ALA
Sunday was a very busy day full of programs. Nancy Pearl First I arrive bright and early to see Nancy Pearl speak. It was fascinating to hear how each of her books came into being, especially her lastest book, Book Crush. She gave some suggestions of books for children and teens such as : Sunshine [...]
Podcast: Celebrating Excellence in Audiobooks for Children and Young Adults
I’ve never recorded a session for podcast and *not* sat in on the same session (my post of the session I attended is forthcoming), so this is something new. Many thanks to Melissa Faubel Johnson for minding the digital recorder! The description for the session, which was presented Saturday, June 23, was as follows: Audiobooks [...]
More Shining Stars
Award-Winning Programs from Small and Medium-sized Public Libraries A trio of libraries presented programs that highlight how innovative libraries can be. Some have won national awards for their efforts, and all librarians were encouraged to try. The Bloomingdale Public Library in Illinois talked about redesigning their YA space. They won a Demco award for their [...]
KidLit Drink Night
Last night, among the crowds of librarians that had poured into the downtown Capital City Brewery, there were a couple of tables hosting KidLit Drink Night. The gathering was arranged by Mother Reader, and open to children’s literature bloggers, authors, and fans. (I’m steadily building my own blog, which sometimes focuses on children’s literature, over [...]
Babies & Books Beyond the Library
8:00 Bright and shiny, or at least awake, I arrived at the convention center for the first session of the day. Babies and Books Beyond the Library. Rachel Payne, Coordinator of Preschool Services at the Brooklyn Public Library, spoke at the program Brooklyn Reads to Babies. She was followed by Susan Straub, author and director [...]
The Google Five Libraries: Two Years, Six Months, and Seven Days in the Life of Google Library Project
Is there no downside to being a library partner in the Google Library Project? Until pressed by members of the audience, the five-member panel only admitted it was a lot of work and the lawsuits were annoying. The panelists all seemed almost unconcerned that they really do not know what the ramifications of the project [...]
Checking in to ALA 2007
Hello. My name is Catherine Moffatt and I am a Public Services Librarian in the Reference Department at a public library in Southern Maryland. This is my first time blogging for PLA at an ALA event so here is goes. Friday I arrived at the ALA Annual Conference on Friday afternoon. After checking in, getting [...]
