Index
- New and Improved Library services Team Website
- Survey Request About Public Library Preparedness for Disaster
- Member/Staff News
- Save the Date – WLA Conference
- Trustee Training Week 2022
- Continuing Education Calendar
New and Improved Library Services Team Website
The Library Services Team website has a new look. Check out the updated website, which now reflects the activities and services of the Library Services Team and their work with public and school libraries in one place.
The Library Services Team’s mission statement of “Empowering Wisconsin libraries to best serve their communities” along with the vision statements are located towards the top of the home page. Keeping the mission in mind, the Library Services Team intentionally reworked the web pages to focus more on user needs.
The content reflected on the new website is a culmination of years of feedback from stakeholders. The rebuilding process brought to light the information users needed most to find on the website. This resulted in reorganization and updated labeling of pages on the site to make finding relevant content more intuitive.
New features include:
- Inclusion of the Library Services Team mission and values.
- Easier access to information about grants, projects, and commissioned reports.
- Professional Learning information for library staff
- Updated staff directory.
The Library Services Team hopes users find the site more user-friendly and easier to navigate.
Please note the new pages do have different web addresses. Please let the Library Services Team know if something you use appears to be missing.
Survey Request About Public Library Preparedness for Disaster
We are asking for your help to benchmark both public library preparedness for disaster and their contribution to community resilience efforts. This research is being conducted by Monika Antonelli (Minnesota State University, Mankato), Rebekkah Smith Aldrich (Mid-Hudson Library System), Adrian K. Ho (University of Chicago) and René Tanner (Rollins College).
The short survey will take approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete and is intended for public library directors or public library administrators. The aim of the project is to aid the researchers in assessing U.S. public libraries’ readiness for weather-related disasters as institutions, as well as to assess how public libraries can provide assistance to their communities’ recovery in the wake of weather-related disasters.
If you would like to participate in this Minnesota State University, Mankato study (IRBNet ID 1919288) please click on this link to go to the survey. If you have any questions, feel free to contact lead researcher, Monika Antonelli at [email protected].
The survey will close on August 31, 2022.
Thank you for considering this research opportunity.
Virtual Antiracism Event Live at Columbus Public Library
Creative visionary, cultural architect and social activist Eunique Jones Gibson will present her program, “Everything Must Change: Antiracism in the 21st Century” live online on Friday, August 5 at 5 pm for the Columbus Public Library and The Virtual Project.
Eunique has worked with a variety of companies such as American Family Insurance, Nickelodeon, Genworth Financial, BET, the Oprah Winfrey Network and Custom Ink to name a few.
In February 2012, following the death of Trayvon Martin, Eunique created her first photo awareness campaign – I AM Trayvon Martin. The campaign spread through social media and online news outlets around the world and inspired others to use their voices to highlight social injustices and the need for change.
In 2013, Eunique launched Because of Them We Can, an award-winning campaign and platform that reaches millions of people monthly as it uplifts and amplifies positive news. Launched during Black History Month with a mission to empower the next generation to honor the legacy of their ancestors, the campaign featured photographs of adorable children channeling leaders, activists, and celebrities, past and present. It has evolved into a positive platform for Black Excellence that reaches millions of people each month.
A native Marylander, Eunique received her Bachelor’s degree from Bowie State University. She is an ADCOLOR Rockstar, a Root100 honoree, a White House Champion of Change and has been featured on numerous media outlets, including MSNBC and O Magazine. She credits her biggest support and inspiration to her husband Christopher and their children, Chase, Amari and Sage.
Attendees may use a computer, smart phone or tablet to view this event. Registration is on the library’s website at [email protected] or on the library’s Facebook page. You will be asked for an email address and the name of your home library, and will receive the link to this live event a day or two in advance.
This virtual event may be viewed online in-person at the Columbus Public Library (author not in building). Due to limited seating, please call the library ahead of time if planning to attend there.
The event is free and open to all.
The Virtual Project is a collaboration among the public libraries of Columbia County to bring virtual programming to library patrons. Participating libraries for this event include The Columbus Public Library, Angie W. Cox Public Library (Pardeeville), Hutchinson Memorial Library (Randolph), Jane Morgan Memorial Library (Cambria), Kilbourne Public Library (Wis. Dells), Poynette Public Library, Rio Community Library, and Portage Public Library.
If there are any questions, patrons may call the Columbus Public Library at 920-623-5910 and ask for Adult Services Coordinator Catherine Walters Brick.
An Afternoon with Jacqueline Mitchard
Jacquelyn Mitchard is the New York Times bestselling author of 22 novels for adults and teenagers, and the recipient of Great Britain’s Talkabout prize, The Bram Stoker and Shirley Jackson awards, and named to the short list for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. Her first novel, The Deep End of the Ocean, was the inaugural selection of the Oprah Winfrey Book Club, with more than 3 million copies in print in 34 languages. Mitchard’s essays also have been published in magazines worldwide, widely anthologized, and incorporated into school curricula. Stay tuned for more information on this free event and how aspiring writers can have a chance to participate in a brief one-on-one writing workshop. Saturday, September 17, 2022, Lenz Auditorium, Pardeeville High School
Save the Date – WLA Conference
WLA 2022 Annual Conference – Rising to the Challenge. November 1-4, 2022 at Grand Geneva Resort and Spa. More Information Coming Soon!
Join us August 22-26 for Trustee Training Week 2022. Registration is now open.
Wisconsin Trustee Training Week was developed in 2014 with the goal of providing high-quality webinars to public library boards, friends and trustees in Wisconsin.
TTW 2022: Materials Challenges & Your Library From the Trustee Table
Monday, August 22, 2022
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Presenter: Becky Spratford
Regardless of whether or not your library has had a request for reconsideration of library materials, the increase in challenges is dramatic, and quite frankly, upsetting. Becky Spratford, an expert in serving leisure readers through the public library with over 20 years of experience as a locally elected library trustee, Reaching Across Illinois Library System board member, and Illinois Library Association Executive Board member, will walk you through everything you need to do to prepare for a request to ban titles at your library. From the steps you need to take right now, to how to properly handle a challenge from your seat at the trustee table, Becky will help you to put the emotions aside and protect intellectual freedom.
Register here!
TTW 2022: Here to Stay: Recruiting & Retaining Dedicated Library Workers
Tuesday, August 23, 2022
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Presenter: Lisa Shaw
The highly competitive job market makes it much harder for libraries to attract and keep library staff - including directors. While libraries might struggle to compete with other employers on wage scales, they can create a culture of inclusivity, inspiration, and belonging that appeals to creative and hard-working employees. This session will include practical tools for library boards like improving board-director relationships, reviewing job descriptions, and investigating options for improved salaries and benefits, and more to make your library a great place to work and help reduce staff turnover and shortages.
Register here!
TTW 2022: Effective & Efficient Meetings: Parliamentary Procedure
Wednesday, August 24, 2022
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Presenter: Nancy Sylvester
Planning great meetings and running them effectively and efficiently is crucial to a strong organization. This webinar will help make parliamentary procedure understandable and useful to you as well as focus on the tools to help you with the meetings you conduct and attend. After this webinar, the attendees will not only have a better understanding of parliamentary procedure but will have the knowledge and skills to help run an effective meeting.
Register here!
TTW 2022: Making Sense & Cents of a Library Building Project: the Library Trustee Role
Thursday, August 25, 2022
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Presenter: John Thompson
Public libraries around Wisconsin are building, expanding, and/or renovating their spaces. Your Library Director or Building Consultant is recommending to the board the need for additional library space. What is the role of the library board? How can the library board support the project?
John Thompson will share some tips and insights on the library board role, an overview of the process, some of the costs involved, and how potential choices might impact the project and library services.
Register here!
TTW 2022: From Stories to Action: How to Talk about Your Budget to Activate Support & Secure Funding
Friday, August 26, 2022
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Presenter: John Chrastka
The core of any library's strategic plan, management plan, or development plan is the organization's own mission, vision, and values system. But very often, the plans describe the “features” of the library, like hours, collections, staffing levels, and facilities rather than the expected or hoped for outcomes. And library leaders are ready to share powerful stories about how the library impacts users, but not often about their own work. Learn how to talk about your funding in a new way by talking about you, your staff and board, and why you do the work you do.
Register here!