Index
- Mark your calendar for Oct. 17 Cornerstone Award reception
- Member/Staff News
- Can’t make it to WLA Conference? Stream these three sessions
- OverDrive to bring back desktop app for Mac
- Continuing Education Calendar
Mark your calendar for Oct. 17 Cornerstone Award reception
Library staff members, library trustees, and library supporters will gather Oct. 17 in Sun Prairie for the annual South Central Library System (SCLS) Foundation Cornerstone Award Reception. This an annual celebration of the work libraries do, and a recognition of the people who make it all happen. Mark your calendars and plan to join in the celebration.
The highlight of the evening is the presentation of the Cornerstone Award, which is given annually to an individual or individuals who have had a significant and long-term impact on enhancing public libraries in South Central Wisconsin and represent the values and mission of the South Central Library System Foundation.
The 2019 Cornerstone Award recipient is Bruce Deming, the owner of Embury, Ltd., which for years supplied furniture and shelving for public libraries. Bruce has also been active at Library Legislative Day. You can read more about Bruce in the previous issue of Online Update.
This year's reception will be held Thursday Oct. 17 from 5-7 p.m. at Buck & Honey’s Restaurant, 804 Liberty Blvd., Sun Prairie, WI (map & directions). This year's reception sponsors are Chase Lumber Company, First Business Bank and Summit Credit Union. The Cornerstone Award Reception is open to everyone, it is free of charge, and there is no need to register. There will be light refreshments and a cash bar.
Mark your calendar and make plans to join us for this annual celebration of libraries, and the people who make them great!
The 11th annual Cornerstone Award Reception continues a fundraising tradition that has raised nearly $100,000 for the foundation in 10 years.
Again this year, the SCLS Foundation will present three awards to recognize the amazing work public libraries do every day while serving their communities. The awards to be announced that evening are:
- Super Awesome Library Award
- Program Wizard Award
- Giddy Up Partner Award
“The annual Cornerstone Award fundraising reception is an excellent opportunity to shine the spotlight on individuals who have given so much of themselves to public libraries, and Bruce Deming is most deserving of our recognition,” said SCLS Foundation Board President Janet Pugh. “This award is also a great way to raise money for the Foundation, which in turn makes funds available for projects that benefit all member public libraries.”
In recent years, the Foundation made $5,000 available to purchase e-book titles for Wisconsin’s Digital Library (OverDrive collection), thereby reducing library costs. It also contributed about $3,900 for the purchase of 10 Lego Mindstorms robot kits that can be used by libraries and is currently supporting library efforts to digitize local historical materials and make them available online.
Lindsey Ganz (at right) is looking forward to her new position as director of the Columbus Public Library. She grew up in Columbus and is excited to reconnect with the Columbus community. She previously served as the director of the Poynette Area Public Library for five years and previous to that worked as a special education teacher. In her free time she enjoys crocheting, reading, and spending time with her family. Lindsey will start in Columbus on Oct. 7.
Can’t make it to WLA Conference? Stream these three sessions
The WLA Conference Committee is excited to announce that three sessions on Thursday, Oct. 10 will be streamed live from the Kalahari.
The public may register to attend live or to receive a recording after the event for each of the three sessions without registration cost.
Recordings will be uploaded, and links will be emailed and promoted via social media for viewing after the conference.
Please see the session descriptions and links to register below. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. Streamed sessions include:
- Defusing Tense Situations and Setting Effective Limits -- Oct. 10, 9-9:45 a.m. (register), with presenter Betsy Bleck, Oconomowoc Public Library -- What does one do when a patron or colleague gets upset, non-compliant or out of control? Participants will discover verbal and non-verbal methods for resolving difficult situations. They will learn specific skills, such as how to set effective limits, that will increase the likelihood of a positive outcome and increase one's comfort level when faced with uncooperative behavior. This presentation complements the session on "Giving Bad News" on Friday morning. Betsy is certified in the "Prepare Training Program" by the Crisis Prevention Institute.
- Putting Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion into Action -- Oct. 10, 11-11:45 a.m. (register), with presenters: Kelly Bolter, Waukesha Public Library; Paula Mason, Waukesha Public Library; Olivia Langby, Waukesha Public Library; and Khorye Huffman, Waukesha Public Library -- Tick-tock, it's EDI O'Clock! It's time to make time for equity, diversity and inclusion at the library! In this session, participants will join a discussion about one mid-size library's approach to creating an interdepartmental, staff-led Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Committee. Attendees will gain practical insight and strategies for getting started in their own libraries, including areas on which to focus and ways to engage staff from wherever they are in their organization.
- Get Ready for 2020! Voter Education and Registration Assistant Project -- Oct. 10, 1:45-2:30 p.m. (register), with presenters: Kris Adams Wendt, WLA Library Development & Legislation Committee; Debra Durchslag, League of Women Voters of the Northwoods; Yolan Mistele, League of Women Voters of the Northwoods; and Laurie A. Ollhoff, T.B. Scott Free Library, Merrill -- A dynamic team from the League of Women Voters of the Northwoods has been working with librarian colleagues in Florence, Forest, Langlade, Lincoln, Oneida and Vilas Counties to promote voter registration for all eligible adults. The Voter Education & Registration Assistance Project (VERAP) includes an Instructional Notebook to guide library users through the voter registration process, which can usually be completed online and on the spot. There is also a Resource Notebook to easily enable library staff to answer questions about online voting registration as well as paper registration, photo ID and voting. This program will help prepare all libraries for the busy election season in 2020.
OverDrive to bring back desktop app for Mac
On Aug. 26, 2019, OverDrive announced it would discontinue support for the OverDrive for Mac desktop app. On Sept. 4 OverDrive removed the app from app.overdrive.com and eliminated the download option for MP3 audiobooks on Mac via your library’s OverDrive website. This change frustrated users who used the app to download and transfer audiobooks from the online library to MP3 players.
OverDrive made this decision in anticipation of Mac’s new OS, expected for release this fall, called Catalina. The macOS Catalina will require all apps to be 64-bit. The OverDrive for Mac app is 32-bit, which will make it incompatible with the upcoming macOS.
“When we decided to end support for OverDrive for Mac, we failed to appropriately gauge the number of users that would be impacted and how,” OverDrive said in a statement released this week. “We are sorry for this mistake and the inconvenience it caused for your patrons and staff.”
As a result, OverDrive is working as quickly as possible to restore the download option for MP3 audiobooks to users running macOS 10.6 (Snow Leopard) through 10.14 (Mojave). Once restored, the following message will appear for Mac users on the OverDrive website with a link to an updated Help article: MP3 audiobooks are only supported on macOS 10.6 (Snow Leopard) through 10.14 (Mojave). These updates will be made by October 2.
Users who upgrade to the newest macOS Catalina will not be able to download and transfer MP3 audiobooks from OverDrive. Those users can listen to audiobooks in their browser, or depending on their device compatibility, install the OverDrive or Libby app (for public libraries) or the Sora app (for schools) directly on their device to listen to audiobooks.
“Again, we sincerely apologize for this disruption of service to your Mac desktop patrons,” OverDrive said. “We can and will do better and are committed to providing the best experience for your patrons across platforms.”