Archive: February, 2010

Two More Kits!

READS-TO-GO is pleased to announce that two more kits have been added to the program.  They are, Skeletons at the Feast by Chris Bohjalian, being hosted at the Nashua Public Library, and Still Alice by Lisa Genova, being hosted at the Fitzwilliam Town Library.

Visit www.reads-to-go.org for discussion questions and other information about the RTG program.

 

Marilyn Johnson, author of This Book is Overdue

Marilyn Johnson, author of the critically acclaimed book, This Book is Overdue, spent an hour and a half this past Friday visiting with a dozen Gen-X librarians from Portsmouth Public Library before giving a terrific book talk in town. The pre-booktalk gathering, which included delicious Flatbreads pizza and lively conversation, was the first of a series of upcoming social events for Gen-X librarians throughout NH.

Marilyn’s book talk reflected both her passionate belief in the critical role of all librarians in today’s society and her terrific sense of humor. I would highly recommend inviting Marilyn to come speak in your community. She would love to make the trip. The best way to contact Marilyn is by email at this address, marilynajohnson at aol dot com.

If you would like to be informed of future social and/or professional events for NH Gen-X librarians, contact me by email, skbutzel at cityofportsmouth dot com.

For more info about Marilyn, visit these sites:

Winning Library Grants

*Winning Library Grants*
March 1 – 31, 2010 (online asynchronous) $250 (Simmons GSLIS Alumni price $200)
PDPs: 15

In these difficult economic times, grant research and proposal writing skills are more important than ever for librarians. Grants may be the only way you can address changing needs in your community while your library budget is flat or shrinking. This online course will introduce you to the grant process from beginning to end with an emphasis on planning successful grant projects, funding sources for libraries, researching grant opportunities, preparing winning proposals, and tips,
techniques and proven success stories from all types of libraries. Course modules are designed to follow the instructors’ Grant Process Cycle model, which illustrates how grant work is ongoing and can be easily integrated into your jobs as librarians.

Instructors: Stephanie Gerding and Pam MacKellar are experienced on both sides of the grant process, having been grant reviewers, proposal writers, and grant project administrators. Stephanie and Pam co-authored the successful book, Grants for Libraries: A How-To-Do-It Manual for
Librarians, and they write the Library Grants Blog, which lists grant announcements for libraries in one easy-to-access location. They have presented workshops on grants for libraries nationwide, and they are currently working on a new book, Winning Grants: A Multimedia How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians, forthcoming in 2010.

For more information about our online workshops see http://bit.ly/9v17e4

***************************************

For additional information or to register see http://bit.ly/cRcSMO or contact gslisce@simmons.edu


Kris Liberman ’87LS
Program Manager
Simmons GSLIS CE
T – 617-521-2803
F – 617-521-3192
gslisce@simmons.edu
http://www.simmons.edu/gslis/careers/continuing-education/index.php

CHILIS Spring Conference – Thursday, March 25

Please come to the CHILIS Spring Conference on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at Southern NH University in Manchester.  This all day event will feature the Kids, Books and the Arts Showcase with 11 presenters. The morning will also include a CHILIS Business meeting and the presentation of the CHILIS Librarian of the Year Award.

Registration forms are posted to the CHILIS website at http://www.nhlibrarians.org/chilis/ The cost of registration, which includes morning refreshments and lunch, is $35 for CHILIS members and $45 for nonmembers.  Checks should be made payable to CHILIS and should be sent, along with the completed registration form, to Nancy Lang at the Dunbarton Public Library.  Seating is limited so please get your registrations in soon.

NH Small Libraries Summit, April 16th

Information about the 2010 NH Small Libraries Summit is now available at http://www.nhlibrarians.org/summit.html. You can also go to the NHLA home page, http://www.nhlibrarians.org, and click on the purple link on the left-hand side of the page.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Summit, here’s a brief overview:

  • It’s a new event for librarians from communities of 3,000 or fewer residents.
  • It’s being held on Friday, April 16th, 2010 from 9:30-3:00 at the Local Government Center in Concord, NH.
  • The event is invite-only, at least until March 5th.
  • Thanks to the financial support of the New Hampshire Library Association, the cost of the Summit will be limited to $10 per registrant.
  • All of the panelists at the Summit will be limited to 5-10 minutes, and
  • All of the presenters will be from libraries in small communities or will be intimately familiar with issues faced by these libraries.

For a complete list of conference programs and speakers, please visit the Small Libraries Summit home page.

From the Frontlines of the E-book Wars

From the Frontlines of the E-book Wars, A Beyond the Book Special Report from LISNews

This Wednesday, Feb. 10th from 2PM – 3PM EST, Copyright Clearance Center’s Chris Kenneally will be hosting a special Beyond the Book live podcast (http://beyondthebookcast.com/live-webcast) examining the eBook Wars, which are taking shape with MacMillan challenging Amazon and the rise of eReaders and the iPad. During the podcast, Chris and his panelists will look at all sides of the e-book story and what future battles may bring to the print and digital marketplace. The podcast will air live on BlogTalkRadio: http://bit.ly/drJipN

Joining Chris are:
• Andrew Albanese, features editor at Publishers Weekly;
• Sara Nelson, Books Editor, “O” Magazine;
• Brian O’Leary, Founder & Principal, Magellan Media Partners; and
• Mike Shatzkin, Founder & CEO, The Idea Logical Company, Inc.,

During the podcast, Chris will also be taking phone calls at 646-378-1949.

Tell Senators Gregg and Shaheen to include librarians in the Jobs Bill

URGENT MESSAGE TO LIBRARY ADVOCATES
 ===================================
 February 1, 2010
 
  
ALA has reports from Congressional offices that they hear from
teachers, police and firefighters every day and almost nothing from the
library community.  Libraries are as essential as schools and public
safety and help the economy by helping people find jobs.  Yet library
jobs are being cut – and, now, not included in this jobs bill.  It is
vitally important that librarians be as vocal as these other public
employees. The reason they are getting funding in this piece of
legislation is because they are calling their congressional offices
more often and in higher numbers than we are.
 
Your grassroots efforts are critically important.  The omission of
librarians in the jobs bill is in addition to the troubling news this
week that President Obama’s budget proposal freezes the Library
Services and Technology Act (LSTA) and consolidates the school library
program with literacy programs in the Department of Education.  These
cuts will lead to a loss of jobs and a loss of services that our
communities cannot afford to be without.
 
Please call both of your U.S. Senators to ask each of them to request
that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator Richard Durbin
(D-IL), and Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND),  include the hiring and
retaining of librarians in the $18 billion as well. Call the U.S.
Capital switchboard ASAP at 202.224.3121.  For email addresses and
other contact information go to:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
 
This bill could come up at any moment and it is critically important
that you contact your Senators’ offices immediately and tell them to
push the above Senate leaders to include librarians in the jobs bill. 
Don’t just call once – keep calling until we succeed.  Make sure to
tell your senators what your library is doing to help people find
jobs.
 
We cannot let this legislation pass without the inclusion of library
employees.  We have no chance of getting into this legislation without
your calls and emails – and the support of all senators!!
 
Call the U.S. Capital switchboard ASAP at 202.224.3121.  For email
addresses and other contact information go to:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
 
Please act now!