- SCLS continues director search
- Time to order 2010 SLP school visit video
- Volunteers sought for SCLS Koha work groups
- Member/Staff News
- ‘Libraries for Real Life’ drawing continues through May 12
- Groundbreaking ceremony held for Fitchburg library
- Election follow-up can pay dividends
- Chicago Tribune withdraws content from BadgerLink
- Libraries asked to promote OverDrive patron survey
- WAIS grants available to bring state authors and illustrators to Wisconsin communities
- On Point makes plug for environmental value of public libraries
- Overdrive announces new program for visually impaired readers
- Federal Appeals Court says FCC can’t require net neutrality
- First-ever national study: Millions of people rely on library computers for employment, health, and education
- Continuing Education Calendar
SCLS continues director search
This week, members of the SCLS Director Search Committee met to review applications submitted for the SCLS Director position. Current Director Phyllis Davis will retire June 4, 2010, after serving SCLS in various capacities for the past 25 years (the last four as director).
During this week’s meeting, committee members narrowed the field, and invitations are being sent for interviews in late May.
Time to order 2010 SLP school visit video
SCLS has again created a brief, fun video that will be a perfect addition to the springtime school visits to publicize your library's summer program. A snippet of the video is available on the SCLS website.
Click on the order form link to request tailored DVDs for your library and local schools. Feel free to request DVDs for your library, for all local schools, and for your local community access cable station. We plan to upload this year's video to the SCLS YouTube channel, and we’ll make an announcement when it's available.
If you have questions, or need more information, contact Shawn Brommer.
Volunteers sought for SCLS Koha work groups
In March, the SCLS Administrative Council (AC) created a Public Relations Work Group that will be responsible for developing publicity materials regarding the change from Dynix to Koha. At least one volunteer from each Cluster is preferred.
Earlier this month the ILS Committee created a Patron Education Needs Work Group to coordinate tutorials and other user education materials for patrons. This working group is different from the PR group in that it will focus on educating patrons rather than communicating information about the switch to Koha. At least one volunteer from each Cluster is preferred.
To volunteer yourself or one of your staff members, contact your cluster representative or Heidi Oliversen.
Member/Staff News
The Grand Re-Opening of the Rock Springs Public Library will be held Saturday, May 1. A schedule of events is available on the library’s website, and all are invited to attend.
UW-Stevens Point hosted the Central Wisconsin Library Conference on April 13. Ron McCabe of McMillan Memorial Library delivered the keynote and Andy Barnett presented one of the breakout sessions. Barnett's presentation is available online.
‘Libraries for Real Life’ drawing continues through May 12
This week (National Library Week) marked the launch of a project to solicit more submissions for the Libraries for Real Life website. Even though the week is over, it’s not too late to promote the prize drawing that will culminate on May 12.
Anyone who submits a story is automatically entered in a drawing for the following prizes: $100 grand prize, $50 first prize, four $25 prizes, and 10 gift bags filled with books and other items. To help libraries promote this drawing, and the “Libraries for Real Life” website, we’ve created new promotional posters and postcards and a sheet with ideas about how to use the stories submitted by your patrons.
The Libraries for Real Life Work Group also is developing a campaign to promote the stories, which can be a powerful advocacy tool. However, we first need to expand awareness of the site and get more libraries involved so we can get more stories. To that end, the Work Group is asking that all libraries request and distribute the promotional materials, use the press release, and put one of the buttons on their library website to direct people to the “Libraries for Real Life” website.
If you have questions about this advocacy project, contact Mark Ibach.
Groundbreaking ceremony held for Fitchburg library The City of Fitchburg on May 12 moved a giant step closer to having its own public library. About 220 people gathered on the corner of Lacy Road and Research Park Drive near City Hall for a ceremonial ground breaking for the new 38,000-square-foot library. Actual construction is expected to start in July, and the library is slated to open in summer 2011.
You can read more about the groundbreaking and planning process in the Wisconsin State Journal. You also can watch a video of the groundbreaking at WISC-TV.
More information about Fitchburg Public Library is available at the library's website.
Election follow-up can pay dividends
On the heels of the Spring General Election, libraries may have new city council members and county board members. This is an excellent time to reach out and make direct contact with these newly-elected officials and share information about your library and important community role it plays.
For more information and suggestions for what to talk about, check out Paul Nelson’s Retiring Guy blog.
Chicago Tribune withdraws content from BadgerLink
EBSCO has notified BadgerLink staff that the Chicago Tribune has withdrawn its content. The newspaper is no longer available via BadgerLink, effective immediately. This includes both citations and abstracts, as well as past content. BadgerLink staff has already expressed our concern to EBSCO. The Chicago Tribune has withdrawn from full text vendors in the past and then returned. Funding through the BadgerLink program has not been available to contract for single titles that usually cost much more than working with a vendor on a package.
The BadgerLink staff continues to analyze the need for historical and current access to newspapers and the longer-term options for obtaining it. Staff also continues to work with EBSCO and NewspaperArchive to increase the number of Wisconsin newspapers available through BadgerLink, but the process will take time as rights management remains difficult. Staff is planning on working with the Library Information Technology Advisory Committee (LITAC) to further explore needs, issues and recommendations in this area, and plans to solicit information from the library community.
To assist in this process, librarians are being asked to complete a brief survey about their thoughts on the importance of newspaper content to you and your library. To complete the survey, visit www.surveymonkey.com/s/RF3KZ7F. Your input is greatly appreciated!
Libraries asked to promote OverDrive patron survey
OverDrive has seen significant user growth in the past several years, and the vendor is actively developing new features and plans to enhance the download experience for patrons.
To this end, OverDrive has created a survey to which they would like libraries to link. The survey is optional for patrons, confidential, and the information collected will be used to prioritize how OverDrive will continue to meet patron and library needs. Survey results will be shared with participating libraries.
To preview the survey, visit www.surveymonkey.com/s/overdrivesurvey.
WAIS grants available to bring state authors and illustrators to Wisconsin communities
The Wisconsin Center for the Book’s Wisconsin Authors and Illustrators Speak (WAIS) program offers towns and cities the opportunity to celebrate and explore the literature of our state with writers and artists. The Center for the Book will award up to four grants of $300 each to qualifying organizations wishing to bring a Wisconsin author or illustrator to their community to speak at a public event.
Events must be free of admission charges and be scheduled between Sept. 1, 2010, and April 30, 2011. A Wisconsin author or illustrator is defined as one who has lived in Wisconsin for a significant period of time, including someone who may no longer be living in the state.
Any Wisconsin nonprofit organization interested in books and reading is eligible to apply for one of the grants, and collaboration among groups is encouraged. Such groups may include libraries, schools, community organizations, and places of worship. Applications will be judged on the basis of community outreach and collaboration, thoroughness of planning, and rationale for the choice of speaker.
For more information, or to obtain application materials, visit the Wisconsin Center for the Book website or contact Sarah McGowan, Wisconsin Authors and Illustrators program chair. Completed applications are due July 1, 2010.
On Point makes plug for environmental value of public libraries
On Wednesday evening, April 7, National Public Radio’s “On Point” produced a piece titled “Sizing Up Your Green Footprint” which explored the concept of “green” products and tried to determine if they are as ecologically friendly as they claim.
The program led off with a discussion about the new Apple iPad and other eReaders, and how they compare environmentally to printed books. The consensus was that printed books are actually more environmentally friendly, especially when you check them out from the library.
You can listen to the complete program at www.onpointradio.org/2010/04/is-it-green.
Overdrive announces new program for visually impaired readers
Overdrive has created a program called LEAP (Library eBook Accessibility Program) and it’s now up and running at the Cleveland Public Library. OverDrive is fully funding this program and offering LEAP to your qualifying patrons at no cost to the library and at no cost to your patrons.
If a patron of your library has a print or visual disability, they will be eligible for a LEAP account at Bookshare.org. Bookshare has established this program solely for qualified patrons of U.S. public libraries that offer eBooks from OverDrive. LEAP account patrons will be able to download and read up to 20 accessible eBooks each month. The Bookshare national catalog of titles is growing each month with thousands of popular titles available, though it should be noted that it is not the identical collection of eBooks that OverDrive provides to your library.
For more information about this project, and other accessibility issues, contact Shawn Brommer.
Federal Appeals Court says FCC can’t require net neutrality
A federal appeals court ruled April 6 that the Federal Communications Commission does not have the authority to require network providers to give equal treatment to the sites or applications to which they provide access.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia overturned a 2008 ruling by the FCC ordering Comcast to stop blocking its broadband subscribers from using the BitTorrent online file-sharing technology and other applications. The court’s decision said that because the FCC “has failed to tie its assertion of ancillary authority over Comcast’s Internet service” to any ‘statutorily mandated responsibility,’” the agency lacked jurisdiction over its network management practices.
Read the entire article in American Libraries.
First-ever national study: Millions of people rely on library computers for employment, health, and education
Nearly one-third of Americans age 14 or older -- roughly 77 million people -- used a public library computer or wireless network to access the Internet last year, according to a new national report. In 2009, as the nation struggled through a recession, people relied on library technology to find work, apply for college, secure government benefits, learn about critical medical treatments, and connect with their communities.
The report, “Opportunity for All: How the American Public Benefits from Internet Access at U.S. Libraries,” is based on the first large-scale study of who uses public computers and Internet access in public libraries, the ways library patrons use this free technology service, why they use it, and how it affects their lives. It was conducted by the University of Washington Information School and funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
To read the complete press release (and access the full report), visit the Gates Foundation website.