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Join us for today’s webinar on TechAtlas Inventory Tools. It’s the first of our March Madness series exploring WebJunction’s suite of tech planning resources available for free from TechAtlas.
Please join us for any or all of the sessions. All listed times are in Eastern, check out timezoneconverter.com to convert start time to your local time zone.
Here are the details and registration links:
In these tough economic times, strategic thinking is a wise investment in the future. Whether you work in, partner with, study, volunteer, visit or are just plain interested in museums and libraries and passionate about how they can continue to thrive in their service to the public—you have an opinion to be shared!
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) invites you to help invent the future of museums and libraries through your participation in UpNext: The Future of Museums and Libraries Wiki. IMLS’s first-ever wiki is a platform where individuals inside and outside of museums, libraries, and related fields can discuss, dissect, expand, and inform the issues outlined in the Future of Museums and Libraries: A Discussion Guide. IMLS will use the knowledge shared in the wiki to help shape the agency’s strategic plan, research directions, publications, convenings, and grant making. The wiki officially launched March 3 and is an opportunity to share resources, examples of what works, and vexing questions. It’s sure to be a thought-provoking five weeks for all participants and provide food for thought for your career, your institution and the choices you face.
Nine discussion themes and one theme on next steps will each be featured on the wiki for a two-week period, introduced by expert discussion leaders. The themes and discussion leaders include:
Happening NOW! – March 3-16
1. Changing Definitions & Roles of Museums and Libraries
Martín Gómez, City Librarian, Los Angeles Public Library
2. Shifts in Power & Authority
Beth Takekawa, Executive Director, Wing Luke Asian Museum
Cassie Chin, Deputy Executive Director, Wing Luke Asian Museum
March 17-30
3. Museums & Libraries as the “Third Place”
Susan Hildreth, City Librarian, Seattle Public Library
4. Technology & Policy Development
John Wilkin, Associate University Librarian for Library Information Technology (LIT), University of Michigan, Executive Director of HathiTrust
March 31-April 13
5. 21st Century Learning & Information Use
Tom Scheinfeldt, Managing Director for Center for History and New Media at George Mason University, OMEKA Project Director
6. New Models & Structures for Collaboration
Mark Wright, Director of Partnerships, National Children’s Museum
April 14-27
7. Planning for a Sustainable Future
Emlyn Koster, President & CEO, Liberty Science Center
8. Metrics for Evaluating Service & Impact
John Fraser, Director, Institute for Learning Innovation-New York
April 28-May 12
9. The 21st Century Museum & Library Workforce
Joanne Marshall, Alumni Distinguished Professor, School of Information and Library Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
10. UpNext: Where Do We Go From Here?
Larry Johnson, CEO, The New Media Consortium
May 19
Last official “Wiki Wednesday” IMLS will post wiki final summary.
Each theme will have a unique wiki page describing the theme and posing questions for discussion. Wiki users will be able to respond and comment on the questions, as well as pose new questions and thoughts particular to that theme. Wiki users will also be able to build a collaborative bibliography on the wiki and share existing projects at their own institutions or others, which are relevant to the discussion themes. A unique page will also exist for educators and students to share how the wiki, the Discussion Guide, and other resources on the future of museums and libraries are or can be used in professional education. If you have any questions or comments regarding the wiki or the Discussion Guide, please feel free to contact Mamie Bittner, mbittner@imls.gov or Erica Pastore, epastore@imls.gov.
I especially encourage small and rural library staff to get involved in this program. How are your libraries changing? Are there special considerations for our plans for the future? WebJunction staff will be watching and participating because it’s an exciting new turn in asynchronous online programming for the library field. We’re interested to see if this is a format that we might consider bringing into the online programs that we create at WebJunction.
We encourage those of you attending PLA2010 to attend this session put together by the Self-Represented Litigation Network:
Public Libraries and Access to Justice (Oregon Convention Center Room E145-146), Thursday March 25th at 8:30 AM
This session provides tools and training that will help public libraries serve as gateways to justice and governmental institutions, with a focus on collaboration with courts, law libraries, and legal aid programs. It introduces information and tools and how public librarians can appropriately help their patrons use these tools, such as those provided by legal aid and courts. Participants will learn about the national network of state Access to Justice Commissions, and how public libraries can participate in these groups. The session will also introduce the online “train the trainer” tools developed by the Self-Represented Litigation Network of the National Center for State Courts, as presented at a recent national conference funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Participants will receive tips and a template for creating a list of key resources, and ideas on how state access to justice partners can assist in the customization of that listing.
For those of you who will not be going to PLA: We have also posted the PowerPoint presentation to WebJunction. This slideshow is absolutely chock full of information and links to additional websites and online resources, so be sure to check it out. Additional material resulting from the Self-Represented Litigation Network’s January training workshop on legal resources will also be posted to WebJunction in the coming weeks.
Thanks to everyone who attended our first-ever online conference last month, especially those attendees who took a few minutes to respond to our post-event survey. The main goal for this conference was to give a conference experience to those who would are not able to attend other conferences due to budget issues or other resource constraints. We also wanted to give members an opportunity to try out online learning, social tools, and to collaborate with colleagues from across the miles. Finally, we wanted to pilot the online conference format to evaluate its effectiveness and see if it is something that we could conceive of doing more frequently.
I think we can safely say that we met our goals across the board. Here’s what we learned:
Of the 1160 people who registered, most were from public libraries (47%) and academic libraries (29%), and more than half serve populations of fewer than 25,000 people. We also had students and unemployed professionals in attendance.
The top 5 states in terms of attendance were Indiana, Georgia, Illinois, California, and Minnesota. There were also 39 people from outside of the U.S. who registered.
Average attendance at each of the 10 sessions was 291 people. Some folks went to just a few sessions, while some attended every session. We also heard from libraries who set up a room for multiple staff to watch and listen.
The top responses to our survey question about what went well was that the in-session chat area was informative and engaging and that technical issues were fixed quickly. Also noted were that the presenters were knowledgable and prepared, that session timing was managed well, and that audience participation was excellent. Here’s the full list of top responses:
The top suggestion for how to improve the experience was to improve the audio quality. Other suggestions were to decrease slide lag time, to show the presenters while they are speaking, and to help minimize chat distraction. Here’s the full list of top responses:
We also asked what topics you would like to see covered in future conferences. The top 10 topics suggested were:
1. customer service
2. social networking
3. grants and grant writing
4. cataloging
5. CMS options
6. patron training
7. reader’s advisory
8. copyright issues
9. library management
10. marketing
With this valuable feedback, we plan to offer another, even better conference in the future on one or more of the topics you suggested. Stay in touch with Crossroads to learn about this and other events at WebJunction.
As you plan your PLA 2010 conference schedule, be sure to include these events, where you’re likely to find other WebJunction members and staff. Beginning to compile this list has made me very excited about this conference and I look forward to adding more suggestions from the WebJunction community in the weeks leading up to the conference. Please post your not-to-be-missed suggestions in comments below and we’ll be sure to spread the word. There are a handful of events below that require separate registration so please note where indicated and visit OCLC’s PLA Events to register for many other sessions on timely topics.
For those who won’t be attending the conference f2f, we aim to provide you with conference coverage here on WebJunction. If you’re a WebJunction member who would like to help cover the conference for the community (the f2f or Virtual PLA versions), let us know and we’ll set you up as a guest blogger!
Wednesday, March 24
If you plan on arriving early, there are over a dozen preconference events to consider but you won’t regret attending this one. Longtime WebJunction member and super hero of accidental technology trainers, Stephanie Gerding will kick-start your conference adventure.
The Accidental Technology Trainer
Presented by Stephanie Gerding
8:30 am-12:00 pm, Oregon Convention Center – A105-106
Accidental technology trainers are responsible for technology training in labs, classrooms, or one-on-one with users or staff. You will learn about great tools and techniques, the most common concerns of technology trainers, and get helpful advice resulting from many years of coordinating and providing training for public libraries. You’ll discover why learning styles are important; how to create an interactive learning community; strategies for communicating about technology; and techniques for using activities, games, storytelling, and case studies.
Exhibits Open/Reception
4:00pm-6:30pm
Stop by and visit WebJunction at the OCLC booth, #1847 in the exhibits hall. We’ll also be there on Thursday from 9:30-5 and on Friday from 9:30-4.
Thursday, March 25
LITA’s Top Technology Trends
8:30-9:45 am, Oregon Convention Center – B113-116
A panel of LITA leaders who are acknowledged for their reputations and expertise in the library and information technology fields will discuss and debate the top technology trends in public libraries. WebJunction’s Michael Porter will be joined by David Lee King, Joan Frye Williams, and Michelle Frisque.
Geek the Library: Putting Theory into Practice
8:30–9:45 am, Doubletree Hotel Portland, Oregon Room
Please register for this session
Geek the Library is a public awareness pilot campaign implemented in select communities in Iowa, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin. After several months, the results of the pilot are in. Were we able to increase awareness of the need for public library funding? Get the full scoop, and find out how you can implement Geek the Library in your community.
Power up Your Learning Organization
2:00-3:15 pm, Oregon Convention Center – A105-106
Transform your library into a Learning Organization. Discover new strategies and tools that move staff beyond training to proactive learning. Explore opportunities for self-directed, online, and social learning. Discuss ideas for knowledge sharing, collaboration, and mentoring. Then put these ideas into action. You won’t want to miss one, staring some of the WebJunction community’s brightest stars: Betha Gutsche, Jennifer Fenton, Kathleen Gesinger and Michele Leininger.
Latinos and Public Library Perceptions (Talk Table)
4:00-5:15 pm, Oregon Convention Center – A103-104
In partnership with the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute, WebJunction published research about library use and perceptions of more than 2,860 Latinos nationally. At this talk table, discuss the findings and recommendations for increasing Latino library use and suggest best practices for implementing outreach to Spanish-speakers in your library community. Facilitated by WebJunction’s Jennifer Peterson and SLO program coordinator/trainer, MaryKay Dalgreen, Oregon State Library.
WebJunction’s Party with Competencies
6:30-8:30 pm, Doubletree Hotel Portland, OCLC suite 1455
Please register for this session
Grab a bite and a sip and connect with the people and proven competency resources that can help your library! We’ll have plenty of fun, food, festivities, good company and practical material for you to enjoy and take back to your library to help you and your staff learn and work more effectively.
Friday, March 26
OCLC Update Breakfast
7:30–8:45 am, Doubletree Hotel Portland, Hawthorne/Sellwood/Ross Island Rooms
Please register for this session
Join OCLC President and CEO Jay Jordan for breakfast and an update on what’s new at OCLC, including service enhancements and new initiatives that make information access easier. Share your questions and discussion with your colleagues at WebJunction’s roundtable discussion.
2010 Perceptions of Libraries in Changing Economic Times
10:30 am–12:00 pm, Doubletree Hotel Portland, Hawthorne/Sellwood/Ross Island Rooms
Please register for this session
In 2005, OCLC published a groundbreaking report, Perceptions of Libraries and Information Resources. Five years later, OCLC has embarked on an updated study about library users and their information-seeking behavior, paying particular attention to the perception of libraries in these current economic conditions. Join Cathy De Rosa, Vice President for the Americas & Global Vice President of Marketing at OCLC, for an engaging discussion of the findings from OCLC’s latest research.
Expanding your world through Web Conferencing
2:00-3:15 pm, Oregon Convention Center – E141-144
Join panelists Jennifer Peterson, Karen Burns, and Cindi Hickey for a session filled with experience and expertise in online engagement! We’ll discuss our own use of web conferencing tools to host online conferences, produce e-learning activities, conduct capacity building for remote staff, and host virtual meetings and focus groups. Together we will share best practices for presenters, ideas for integrating web conferencing with other technologies, and user success stories.
Thank you to all who attended last week’s Technology Essentials 2010, WebJunction’s first ever online conference. All session archives of the 10 presentations are now posted and include the contributions of ideas, links and resources posted to chat throughout the conference by the over 700 participants! If you haven’t attended one of WebJunction’s online events, you’ve yet to experience the active real-time brainstorming and community building that goes on in the chat feature. Participants are invited to post questions, comments, suggestions and links to help generate learning for all in attendance and for all who review the archives. These contributions demonstrate the sustained influence that online events can have on our library learning. For those who were unable to attend or for those who could only attend one or two sessions, these resources will remain accessible indefinitely!
Two participant generated documents from the conference deserve special recognition:
The Participant Marketing Ideas compiled from the presentation by Cindi Hickey and Janie Rutherford, M&M: Maximum Marketing/Minimum Investment is filled with suggestions and examples on everything from calendar tools to ways of marketing your databases and from partnerships in marketing to leveraging social media tools in marketing efforts. Kudos to Cindi and Janie for putting participant engagement at the core of their presentation!
And longtime WebJunction member, SLO trainer, and Utah State Library’s Library Consultant/State Data Coordinator, Juan Tomás Lee has graciously shared his document collecting Participant Notes, a thorough and thoughtful compilation from all 10 sessions!
We have heard from many of you that you attended the conference along with a group of colleagues and are excited to hear that you are sharing your learning with others via staff meetings and wikis. Please let us know how that experience worked for you or how you are applying new skills, tips or tricks on the job.
And thank you again for your participation. We are thrilled to see that the online conference model sustains WebJunction’s commitment to collaboration and learning and it doesn’t happen without you!
Recently, Jennifer and I had the pleasure of speaking with several Florida librarians about their state’s initiative to provide resources, tips, and techniques for finding and using federal and state government resources. Here are a few highlights:
Karen Brown, library program specialist at the State Library and Archives of Florida, manages a program to harness the activities and documentation of libraries around the state, including coordinating a working group that meets once per month. The state library has given a number of training workshops to staff around the state on e-government. We look forward to learning more about the resources that this group produces.
Nancy Fredericks, e-government services manager at Pasco County Library System (PCLS), used LSTA grant funds to create extensive e-government resource section on the PCLS website:
Florida also maintains an e-government email discussion list. This list is open to anyone.
Nancy also serves on an ALA e-gov committee, which exposes her to the needs and ideas of librarians around the nation. She tells us there will be some helpful resources–including a toolkit–coming out of this group’s work later this year.
We also heard from Sol Hirsch, director of Alachua County Library District, and Otto Pleil, a staff member at the library, who described the innovative partnership between their library and the local community. As part of the program “Partnership for Strong Families,” thirty social agencies rotate into the open space in the building that also houses the library, and the library sets up related material in a highly visible location. This means that patrons don’t even need to leave the building to find the additional information they may need for their social service needs, such as job search, literacy, parenting, healthcare, and so on.
Otto described his witnessing of the challenge that staff face in shifting from book- to computer-centered service and the growing need to provide social service information and assistance. He has presented with Nancy on tips and techniques for how libraries can be prepared for this type of service. We have posted one of these presentations (as PowerPoint slides) on WebJunction in the Introduction to E-Government section, along with Nancy’s cheatsheet of both state and federal e-gov resources.
What e-government initiatives are happening in your state? Post a comment here or on WebJunction to let us know.
This week at BlogJunction has been full of additions on previous posts, here and elsewhere. It’s a theme. We’re building something.
Today’s post builds on an earlier announcement about a webinar hosted by ALA’s Washington Office – How to Connect (to federal broadband funds BTOP or BIP). The archive is not yet posted but the presentation materials are posted at ALA’s Broadband Resources page. In this week’s Technology Essentials online conference hosted by WebJunction, Wendy Knapp and Mary Alice Ball presented on Funding for Broadband: Indiana and Beyond. Their presentation reconnected me personally to this issue so critical to public access to information, especially important for libraries where they are the only option for such access in their communities.
The most urgent message in their presentation was this: there is federal support for this and every year schools and libraries are not accessing it.
It’s no wonder. It’s a challenging application process, especially if you’re not supported in the effort by a larger organization like state library or regional consortia. But the application process for the second and last round of funding begins on February 16 and ends on March 15. I can vouch for the fact that federal grant application processes are more challenging than the others I’ve worked with. But this application process has supposedly been streamlined since the first round, so don’t let that scare you away. It wouldn’t hurt to check out the ALA webinar once it is posted or check out the workshop recordings from regional workshops on both programs. Or take a look at Stephanie Gerding’s Library Grant 101 materials if this is a first grant application process.
All that said, here’s the bottom line:
The Recovery Act appropriated $7.2 billion and directed the Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service (RUS) and The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications Information Administration (NTIA) to expand broadband access to unserved and underserved communities across the U.S., increase jobs, spur investments in technology and infrastructure, and provide long-term economic benefits. The result is the RUS Broadband Initiatives Program (BIP) and the NTIA Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP).
BIP will make loans and grants for broadband infrastructure projects in rural areas.
BTOP will provide grants to fund broadband infrastructure, public computer centers and sustainable broadband adoption projects.
A very nice summary of BIP’s process was presented at the webinar, and will give you a high-level overview of the process and how to complete a successful application. Everything you need to know about the official application process is at BroadbandUSA.gov.
If you’d like to get more involved in broadband access issues, our presenters suggested working with ALA’s Office for Information Technology Policy (OITP). Thank you to these presenters for reminding me how important this topic is for rural libraries! I’d love to hear your experiences with any of these programs…is there more we should be doing to help each other with this process? Let us know…
Join us on February 17 for Maximizing Local Connections and Resources with “Min” Conferences, the second in a series of webinars presented in collaboration with REFORMA. In these times of tight budgets and restricted travel, attending national conferences has become impossible for many library staff. Many local and regional agencies are joining forces to coordinate “mini” conferences that provide the means of connecting and collaborating locally, often providing a more focused and meaningful experience for attendees. Since 2005, the Northeast Chapter of REFORMA has joined forces with ALA ethnic caucuses to present a terrific conference where library workers network, exchange ideas and listen to quality speakers. What started as an idea has grown into an annual event embraced by REFORMA, AILA, APALA, BCALA and CALA. Come hear best practices in planning, coordinating and hosting a “mini” conference from your colleagues who have had success in their regions. Webinar presenters include Loida Garcia-Febo, REFORMA president; Tess Tobin, REFORMA’s Northeast Chapter; and Janice Rice and Haipeng Li, co-chairs of the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color.
Advancing Leadership and Innovation in Public Libraries – International City/County Management Association discusses Public Library Innovation grant recipients and links to their projects.
“Online at the Library” was published by Ellen Perlman in Governance Magazine on Oct 20, 2009.
International City and County Management Association Newsletter includes notice and summary about the Libraries Connect Communities report.
Best Practices in Helping Job Seekers in the Library (webinar) – with speakers Bernice Kao, Raye Oldham, Megan Pittsley iincludes links to presentation and materials related to the topic.
Hard Times Resources is a new website supporting librarians and the public developed by the Washington State Library. The team presented at WebJunction’’s Technology Essentials Conference yesterday and a number of other projects are referenced in their presentation materials.
Public Libraries & E-government Services – published Summer 2009, this ALA brief highlights how public library technology supports public access and use of e-government information and resources.
The ning community on Library 2.0 has a group on E-government for Public Libraries.
If you have additional resources to share, please post a comment and we’ll keep building out this list.
Originally published by Valerie at Collaborative Librarianship News. Re-posted and expanded with permission.
You may have seen the buzz about our newest WebJunction Partners…perhaps you’ve even visited their sites. If not, I’m pleased to share the news that library staff in three additional states: Missouri, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania now have access to courses, articles, discussions and a state-specific professional network that will keep their skills up-to-date and help their libraries stay relevant to current user needs.
If you’re part of the library community in one of these states, update your WebJunction account today and request to be affiliated with your state’s WebJunction site on the “My Affiliations” tab as you edit your account.
We’re patting ourselves on the back! We just wrapped up our two-day free, online conference: Technology Essentials. We hosted 10 great presentations on all types of technology topics focusing on library-specific needs. This was an event that involved months of planning and we were pleased (thrilled, ecstatic, honored) to have so many great presenters and attendees join us.
One of the highlights for me was the very active chat conversations that happened with every session. Attendees were posing questions, answering questions and sharing resources – and it was great! Our presenters shared their experiences and best practices on a wide range of topics and it all added up to a very successful event. If you missed any of the sessions, the archives will be available at the end of the week for you to view.
We’ll be posting more updates and thoughts soon, but for now, here are a few pictures of our team in action. One colleague commented that we looked like “Mission Control” and it definitely felt like it!
Jennifer, Sharon, Chrystie and Kendra in the WebJunction Mission Control room.
Michael monitoring the Twitter feed and also tweeting the conference!
Last week, Jennifer mentioned the department of agriculture’s recent announcement about $100 million in grants and loans for rural libraries. I wanted to know a bit more about the program, so checked into it a little bit more. Here’s what I found.
Overview
· The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture has designated approximately $100 million in grants and loans (texas state library blog says they’ve learned it’s mostly loans and “a much smaller number of grants”) from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to support public libraries in rural areas or small towns. Loans can be repaid over 40 years, and are available to institutions who can’t otherwise get credit.
· Definition of rural is serving under 20,000 (similar to WJ definition of a small/rural library serving < 25,000).
· Administered through the Rural Development Housing and Community Facilities Programs, the funds will support the construction, enlargement, or improvement of public library facilities along with the purchase of facility equipment.
· Depending on funding availability, RD plans to provide up to $500,000 in additional grant funds to each State Office through the Community Facilities American Recovery Reinvestment Act grant account for library projects.
· Funds may be used for costs to acquire land needed for a facility, pay necessary professional fees, and purchase equipment required for a facility’s operation. Funds can be used to purchase shelving, furniture, computers, audio-visual equipment, distance learning equipment, and bookmobiles.
· Applications will be accepted through the USDA Rural Development regional field offices (different for every state) http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rhs
· Community Facilities Grants are authorized on a graduated scale. Applicants located in smaller communities with low populations and low incomes will receive a higher percentage of grants. Grant funding limitations are based on population and income, economic feasibility, and availability of funds
Links to more info
· USDA fact sheet on the program (PDF): http://www.wo.ala.org/districtdispatch/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/USDA.pdf
· ALA Washington Office press release: http://www.ala.org/ala/newspresscenter/news/pressreleases2010/january2010/usdadesignates_wo.cfm
The Secretary of Agriculture has allocated $100 million in United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Rural Development Community Facilities funding for public libraries to provide educational opportunities and improve public services in rural communities. The funding will be provided primarily through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. In 78 percent of rural communities, the library is the sole provider of no-fee Internet access,” Emily Sheketoff, executive director of the ALA Washington Office, said. “This funding specifically set aside for rural libraries is a lifeline for communities across the country who depend on their local libraries for basic needs such as Internet access as well as assistance with e-government services, literacy and homework programs, and much more. We thank the USDA for its recognition of the vital role libraries play in rural communities and their need for funding.” Funds may be used to construct, enlarge or improve public libraries. This can include costs to acquire land needed for a facility, pay necessary professional fees and purchase equipment required for operation. Funds can be used to purchase shelving, furniture, computers, audio-visual equipment, distance learning equipment and bookmobiles.
· Association for Small & Rural Libraries re-posted fact sheet information on their grants section: http://www.arsl.info/links/grant-news/usda-funds/
Selected blog mentions
These posts mostly repost the info; a few other state libraries, systems, or associations posted as well but this gives you a good sense for who picked it up.
· WebJunction: http://www.google.com/reader/view/?hl=en&tab=wy#search/agriculture/1
· Marshall Breeding: http://www.librarytechnology.org/ltg-displaytext.pl?RC=14494
· TX state library: http://www.tsl.state.tx.us/ld/librarydevelopments/?p=2374
· Resource Shelf: http://www.resourceshelf.com/2010/01/27/100-million-dollars-allocated-for-rural-libraries-from-united-states-department-of-agriculture-usda/
· Libraries in the News: http://www.ilovelibraries.ala.org/news/?p=686
· Peter Scott: http://xrefer.blogspot.com/2010/01/united-states-department-of-agriculture.html
· Southern Adirondack Library System: http://salsblog.sals.edu/index.php/2010/01/27/money-for-rural-libraries/comment-page-1/ (this post does offer a local contact for assistance)
To those of you who are investigating these loan and grant options and application process, is there anything that WebJunction can do to support this process for everyone? It might be helpful to share applications, tips or tricks for going through the process, or lessons learned once awards are made. Let us know what you’d like to see or how we can help.
The ALA Washington Office is hosting a webinar on broadband stimulus programs on February 5. Space is limited, so please reserve your seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/531394042
John Windhausen, consultant to ALA’s Washington Office and president of Telepoly, and Christopher Mclean, Principal of e-Copernicus and former Administrator of the Rural Utilities Service (RUS), will provide more in depth information about Round II of BTOP and BIP — the federal broadband stimulus programs at the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture. Included will be a brief discussion of key suggestions for making your application successful made at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and Rural Utilities Service (RUS) Denver workshop.
Title: BTOP & BIP: How to Connect
Date: Friday, February 5, 2010
Time: 1:30 PM – 2:30 AM EST
After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.
System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 2000, XP Home, XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista<
Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.4 (Tiger®) or newer
Here’s a timely message from our friends at Drexel University Online. Note the March 1 deadline!
Suni Minorics’ has shared her story about how she was able to pursue her interest in library and information science at Drexel’s iSchool. Now you can do the same. Visit www.drexel.com/wj to apply online at no cost. Complete your application by March 1 to begin class this spring. Be sure to enter “WEBJUNCTION” as your partner code on your application to receive a 20% tuition reduction!
For additional information or assistance with your application, please contact Valerie Malinowski, Webjunction-Drexel Online partnership liaison, at (215) 895-0915 or vm97@drexel.edu.
The Secretary of Agriculture announced in a 1/26/10 press release that the department has designated $100 million in USDA Rural Development Community Facilities funding for public libraries. The program will provide educational opportunities and improve public services in rural communities.
For more information on the program and how to apply, see the USDA Rural Development fact sheet.
Applications are handled by USDA Rural Development field offices. To reach the USDA Rural Development contact for a specific state, visit www.rurdev.usda.gov/ – adding the two-letter initial of the state to the end of the URL.
WebJunction’s Workforce Resources topic is growing. Since I first introduced it earlier this month, we are building momentum with new documents and links to information.
New:
Workforce Resources will continue to grow. We welcome your contributions. Tell us what your library is doing to guide patrons toward recovery. Share your stories of patrons who were steered toward success with the help of the library.
Kudos to WebJunction member David Mattison for starting Group: Google Wave for Libraries.
David says, “Google Wave is a collaborative, instant messaging service which began in a preview (alpha) edition in 2009. Google Wave may change the very face of virtual reference. This group is for libraries/librarians and others who wish to connect with one another outside of Wave and share ideas, projects and tools about and for Wave”.
And he’s already started 3 great discussions: Google Wave Resources, Books about Google Wave, and Are you Waving?
Stop on by the new group or browse other WebJunction Groups.
Excitement is building for the February 9-10 WebJunction Online Conference. Registrants represent libraries around the globe, from Illinois to India, and from British Columbia to Brazil. Some are library directors, others are currently seeking jobs – all are invited to attend. Here are three ways to make the most of your conference experience:
1. Pick which sessions you most wish to attend: You aren’t required to attend every session. You will be able to re-enter sessions as your schedule permits, and the sessions will be archived so you can catch up on those you missed.
2. Make it a team event: Set up a computer for your staff to drop in as they’re able. Or, invite your colleagues to each attend one session and share what they learned in a follow-up session.
3. Bring your success stories: We’ll invite folks to ask lots of questions via chat, but please come ready to share stories and links to relevant resources. This online format provides a multitude of ways to exchange ideas and experiences!
Now that the ALA Midwinter conference has wrapped up and all the travel home is finished its time for a wrap up post, chock full of juicy details. So where to start, where to start… Personally, this was the most engaging and useful ALA-MW I’ve attended. It just seemed more welcoming and useful. The sessions, the level of engagement of the attendees, the conversation, it really was chock full of conferencey goodness. I suppose that impression isn’t entirely WebJunction centric on my part, but it all did seem very cohesive and things just seemed to come together nicely all around.
I’d even go so far as to say that even though it took me two days to get to my secondary post-ALA-MW destination of Dublin, OH (to OCLC HQ don’t you know:), and I only got 90 minutes of sleep during that trip to Dublin from Boston, it was still, without a doubt, worth the trip. Sure, that was a brutal travel experience, but it was totally worth it. Why? Here are a couple of the things that stood out for me:
First, and this also isn’t really about libraries or WebJunction, but Boston is a great city to visit! I imagine lots of you know that already, but what I saw of it really made me want to see more and maybe even go back for a long weekend vacation some time. When I became a librarian I sure didn’t expect that a fringe benefit would be to sometimes get to see new cities! The taxi and shuttle rides, meals and evenings out for Libraryland social events at Midwinter this year provided the opportunity to see incredibly historic locale after incredibly historic locale….and now I want to go back, you know, when you aren’t rushing between meetings and events. If you had a chance to see any stand out libraries in Boston it would be great to hear your story and add it to the list of things to see next time a trip to Boston rolls around.
Another really nice thing at the conference was the humble, but very enjoyable little WebJunction reception. We got to visit with some old and new friends and folks from some of our partner orgs. About 35 of us got together for a nice, relaxed visit where we could all meet face to face, chat and snack a bit. We also held that meeting at 3:00, which seemed like a welcome time for many folks who were tired from a very active string of days and appreciated a chance to chill out a bit and chat in such a friendly environment. Since we are planning more, similar events both for PLA and ALA Annual, if that timing sounds either good or bad to you, please drop a line. We’re always hoping to make these events as useful as they can be and timing is part of that.
The OCLC Symposium was also very interesting, with the CityYear information really jumping out in particular for me (btw, Chrystie stepped in to do some mic work during this event and you can see here in the photo below). Some quality notes for the symposium are here:
It seemed to me that the booth/exhibit hall was a little quieter than usual this year, but I may have been visiting during more quiet times. Did you think the exhibits were quieter this year? I just read this afternoon that attendance was up from Denver, so maybe that impression isn’t spot on?
I snuck in to a smattering of ALA meetings and saw some great presentations as well, but since this post is getting long I’ll cut myself off here. I will say that some of the larger after hours events like the LITA get together, the Tweetup and the facebook meeting were really great opportunities to connect with smart, friendly, funny people. I’d encourage more folks to attend of come up with similar meetings like these in the future. They are later in the day, but even hitting one or two of them can be quite useful. And if you can’t find out where those gatherings are, you can drop me a line and I’ll get you all connected. Then while your there, we can talk libraries!
We’d love to hear any observations about ALA Midwinter that you have…even if you didn’t attend you may have seen some interesting tidbits fly by. It seems like you could consume more things for the event whether you were there or not, thanks to so many of us being connected online now, in so many ways. So feel free to leave a comment and share your thoughts and observations on ALA Midwinter 2010.