Index
- Last article in series highlights changes implemented by Act 226
- CE workshops scheduled Nov. 10 & 17
- Member/Staff News
- UW-Madison joins massive Google Book project
- Status of the Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA)
- November is National Family Caregiver Month
- Wikipedia founder begins new ‘citizens’ compendium of everything’
- New online resource helps publicize book sales
- Continuing Education Calendar
Last article in series highlights changes implemented by Act 226
This is the last in the series of articles about the two recently passed Acts that affect Chapter 43 of Wisconsin Statutes! The final provisions of Act 226 are:
- 43.17(11)(b) has been modified to make it clearer that if a library refuses to honor cards issued by libraries in an adjacent system, based on the reimbursement received from the adjacent system, and/or counties or municipalities in that system, that it is referring to the most recent year in which it honored such cards.
- 43.15(4)(c)4 requires that in order to be a member of public library system, libraries enter into a signed agreement with the system to offer the same services to any resident of the system area that they offer to their municipality’s residents. In the past the only exception was that they could give preference to their own residents in library group programs, if they limited the number of attendees. Act 226 adds a second exception, that libraries can provide remote access to the library’s databases only to their own residents.
- 43.15(4)(c)5 is the provision that describes the three-year average maintenance of effort requirement. This has been revised to clarify that joint public libraries also must maintain the average of the last three years.
- And finally, Act 226 removes some irrelevant dates, adds some clarifying language, etc.
That’s it! As a reminder, Chapter 43, as found in your current printed volumes of Wisconsin Statutes, does not contain the changes made by Acts 420 and 226. However, the online version available at www.legis.state.wi.us/statutes/Stat0043.pdf does. In addition, Act 420 is available at www.legis.state.wi.us/2005/data/acts/05Act420.pdf, Act 226 is available at www.legis.state.wi.us/2005/data/acts/05Act226.pdf, and all the information contained in this series of articles about both acts and their affect on Chapter 43 is available at www.scls.info/management/law/272273.html.
CE workshops scheduled Nov. 10 & 17
In November there will be two continuing education programs, descriptions of which are provided below. You can also visit the SCLS Continuing Education (CE) calendar for more information or to register.
Librarians already know that Chapter 43 of the Wisconsin Statutes is important reading -- maybe not easy reading, but important reading, none the less! But just when you thought you were getting a handle on Chapter 43, it's important to remember that there are other laws that public libraries must obey! One of those is the "Open Meetings Law," found in Chapter 19.81-19.98. It is a good idea for library directors and their boards to understand (and obey!) the Open Meetings Law, before there is ever a question about it, to avoid legal challenges and potential penalties.
SCLS is offering a "Brain Snack" on Friday, Nov. 10 at noon, using the new online "OPAL meeting room." To learn more about the session and OPAL, or to register, visit the SCLS CE Calendar. If you have questions about OPAL, contact Stef Morrill at (608) 245-5799 (or by email).
On Friday, Nov. 17, from 8:45 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. the SCLS has scheduled the “2007 SLP Workshop.” Presenters Carissa Christner, Ruhama Kordatzky Bahr and Shawn Brommer will help you solve the mysteries of planning the 2007 Summer Library Program, Get a Clue @ Your Library! Shawn will solve the puzzle of planning mystery programs for very young children, provide examples of book-based programs and will discuss new ways to publicize the summer library program to schools and your communities. Carissa and Ruhama will unravel the mysteries of planning innovative programs for school-age, tweens and teen participants and will reveal distinctive visual marketing ideas that are sure to draw attention to your summer decorations and displays. Kick back those gumshoes in the afternoon for the second biennial SCLS Performer Showcase, during which 15 performers will present sample programs of their summer shows.
More information about CE programs is available at www.scls.info/ce.
It was announced this week that Demita Gerber has been hired as the new director of the Monona Public Library, effective Dec. 11. She is currently director of the Greenburgh Public Library in Elmsford, NY.
The latest issue of Libraries@UW-Madison is now available at www.library.wisc.edu/news/newsletter/51/.
Sharon Zindars, director of the Sun Prairie Public Library, announced this week that she will retire after 23 years at the library. Her official last day will be December 31.
UW-Madison joins massive Google Book project
The UW-Madison and Google recently announced an agreement to expand access to hundreds of thousands of public and historical books and documents from more than 7.2 million holdings at the UW-Madison Libraries and the Wisconsin Historical Society Library.
The university is the eighth library to join Google's ambitious effort to digitize the world's books and make them searchable on Google Book Search.
The combined library collections of UW-Madison and the Wisconsin Historical Society comprise one of the largest collections of documents and historical materials in the United States. The collections are ranked 11th in North America by the Association of Research Libraries in Washington, D.C.
"Wisconsin is in a position to take a leading role in making the primary documents of U.S. government history freely accessible on the Internet for anyone to find and use," said UW-Madison Provost Patrick Farrell.
Edward Van Gemert, interim director of the UW-Madison General Library System, added, "Whenever possible, the university intends to make the complete content of public documents available on the Internet, including text, images and maps."
Other libraries that are currently working with Google to digitize portions of their collections include: Harvard, Michigan, New York Public Library, Oxford, Stanford, the University of California system, and, most recently, Madrid's Complutense University, the largest university library in Spain. The Library of Congress also is conducting a pilot project with Google.
An individual looking for information will be able to use Google Book Search to search the full text and locate the printed works digitized from the UW-Madison and WHS collections. Google has specifically designed Book Search to comply with copyright law. Anyone will be able to freely view, browse and read the UW-Madison's public-domain books, including many of the treasures in the libraries' historic and special collections.
For the complete UW-Madison press release, visit www.news.wisc.edu/13010.html.
Status of the Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA)
DOPA passed by a vote of 410 to 15 in a July 26 vote in the House of Representatives, but no version of the bill came before the Senate for a vote in September. If it had become law, schools and libraries that receive E-Rate funds to help pay for Internet access would have been required to block access to "social networking sites." These sites are defined by DOPA as those that enable communication among users and that allow users to post information or create personal profiles. Among the sites that would have been covered by this law were everything from Amazon.com to the federal government's own First Gov website.
According to the ALA Washington Office, the Senate has no plans to consider any social networking bills during the rest of this session, which means DOPA, in its current form, will die at the end of this session and not become law.
Does that mean DOPA is dead? That’s anyone’s guess, but it is possible that in the next session, which begins in Jan. 2007, the issue of social networking technologies might come to the forefront again. The House might very well again try to pass a similar bill at that time.
In the meantime, according to the ALA’s Young Adult Library Services Association, librarians should continue educating their Congresspersons, local decision makers and library users about social networking technologies. Since Congress will be home for the holidays, ALA recommends that you invite your legislator to the library for an event that focuses on computer use and/or social networking technologies. Other tips and ideas for educating legislators and others about this issue are in YALSA's Social Networking Toolkit.
For a more comprehensive website on DOPA and additional resources, visit http://wikis.ala.org/iwa/.
November is National Family Caregiver Month
November is National Family Caregiver Month, and libraries in Dane County can get more information about the observance from the Area Agency on Aging at (608) 261-9930.
National Family Caregiver Month is a time to thank, support, assist, educate, and celebrate family caregivers. There may also be financial assistance for family caregivers over 60 year of age or older for respite, training on personal care techniques and supportive home care through the Caring for the Caregiver Program of Dane County.
For more information about the Area Agency on Aging of Dane County, and its services and resources, visit www.co.dane.wi.us/aging/.
Wikipedia founder begins new ‘citizens’ compendium of everything’
Wikipedia's founder is beginning a new experimental wiki project called Citizendium that combines public participation with gentle expert guidance. It is similar to Wikipedia except that people are accountable for what they write.
The project was launched recently as a beta and is available only by invitation. Citizendium will begin as a “progressive fork” of Wikipedia, but may eventually take on a life of its own and become the flagship of a new set of responsibly-managed free knowledge projects. It is not being called an “encyclopedia” because there will probably always be articles in the resources that have not been vouched for in any sense. Citizendium will not be open to public view during the pilot phase.
For more information about Citizendium, or to apply for an invitation, visit http://citizendium.org.
New online resource helps publicize book sales
Library Friends and other groups holding book sales now have a new tool called Book Sale Scout, through which information about their sales will be available to a broader audience like booksellers, book collectors, and book bargain hunters.
The new, free site, offers features like instant book sales alerts, integration into Google maps, email reminders that can be customized, and user comments about each sale.
For more information, or to try out Book Sale Scout, visit www.booksalescout.com.