2009 Vermont Library Association Conference Theme: Speaking Up! Advocacy for Libraries

“Isn’t the Internet going to put public libraries out of business?”
“Why do we need school libraries when everything is online?”
“Why do we need a campus library when students can do their research on the Internet?” (Library Advocate’s Handbook, ALA).

Library advocates must adapt to a changing and not always sympathetic political and social environment. We need to be able to explain the role of libraries in the 21st century in order to maintain funding, to be a voice for policy issues ranging from intellectual property to intellectual freedom and protection of privacy.

It is our hope that the 2009 Conference will offer programs that give us the tools and knowledge to explain the importance of libraries to our communities, legislators and funders. We would like to build our own strength as advocates, and also help others – boards, friends, principals, administrators, and community members – to become strong advocates for libraries.

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SLJ Webcast Event: CAPTURING STRUGGLING AND RELUCTANT READERS

Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Time:2–3 PM ET

Register for this FREE webcast today at www.slj.com/reading

This informative webcast will bring together a panel of experts in reading, media center services, and children’s literacy, including school librarians, educators, and a representative from Capstone Press and Stone Arch Books to cover a range of processes, programs, and ideas that can bolster reading skills, comprehension, and literacy in the K-6 library and classroom.

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MLA-Tech Services Section Program: Introduction to Library Digitization (open to anyone)

Massachusetts Library Association Technical Services Section proudly presents “Introduction to Library Digitization”, a one day program on Tuesday October 28th, 2008, at the Worcester Public Library (open to non-MLA members).  This program will cover what libraries need to consider before starting a digitization project.  The speakers will be Massachusetts librarians who have successfully implemented digitization projects at their libraries. 

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ALA President To discuss Creating Connections Online

Join ALA President Jim Rettig at the ALA Connections Salon, an online event scheduled for 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. EST Friday, Sept. 26.

Online Programming for All Libraries (OPAL) Coordinator Tom Peters will begin the hour with an interview with Rettig, whose presidential focus is “Creating Connections.” Rettig’s initiatives foster connections among libraries, library workers, the communities libraries serve and those who make library funding and policy decisions. Rettig is particularly interested in fostering connections among ALA members and exploring new ways for members to benefit from and contribute to our association. The ALA Connections Salon is one such exploration.

Like its 17th and 18th Century European counterparts, the ALA Connections Salon offers a place for ALA members to gather and discuss professional topics of interest. Following the interview, participants will be free to ask questions and engage with Rettig and one another about ways to make the most of their ALA experience.

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Vermont Historical Society Library Expands Hours

The Vermont Historical Society Library in Barre has expanded its hours to include Wednesday evenings until 8 pm between Labor Day and Memorial Day.  Our hours and fees, as posted on our web site, are as follows:

  • Tuesday – Friday, 9 am – 4:30 pm
  • Wednesdays until 8 pm, Labor Day through Memorial Day
  • Second Saturday of each month, 9 am – 4 pm
  • Closed state and federal holidays; check the VHS Calendar for specific dates. 

Research Fee: $5.00/person per day; VHS members and students free.

2008 Presidential Debates and Libraries

(From the ALA Listserv)

On Tuesday, October 7, one of the three 2008 Presidential debates between Senators Barack Obama and John McCain will be held at Belmont University in Nashville, TN. This debate will be a town hall format moderated by Tom Brokaw. The moderator will call on members of the audience as well as select questions submitted online.

During this election year, we are looking for librarians and library supporters from across the country to call attention to the value of today’s libraries in our communities, as well as the issues the library community is facing. We encourage all ALA members to submit questions. The Commission on Presidential Debates has partnered with MySpace to create a new Web site, www.MyDebates.org. This site will become available in the days leading up to the first Presidential debate on September 26.  The more questions submitted, the more likely a library question will be asked. This is an opportunity for the library voice to become an important part of the 2008 Presidential election.

Sincerely,

James Rettig
ALA President

To be clear, this is a message to ALA members, but it is not exclusive to ALA members. The materials and methods are freely available on the open web and any librarian can participate.

Voter Registration Materials for Vermont Libraries

To encourage voter registration at the library, boxes of signs, buttons, bumper stickers, registration forms, pamphlets with all the info, and other fun stuff can be requested from Missy Shea in the Vermont Secretary of States Office <mshea@sec.state.vt.us>

It is very easy to register now – you (or the patron) fill out the form, take the Freeman’s oath and return the form to your local town clerk’s office (or perhaps the library can do so). People have until the very end of October to register and can vote by mail-in ballot too.

Missy will send out boxes to anyone who wants them.  There’s materials for college students in the box as well.

2008 National Survey of Public Library Funding and Technology Access

A national survey of public library funding and technology access was mailed to public libraries in early September 2008. The survey, part of a broader study of public library funding and technology access issues, is funded by the American Library Association and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and conducted by researchers from Florida State University’s Information Use Management and Policy Institute and the University of Maryland’s Center for Library Innovation, and builds on research conducted since 1994. More information on this and previous studies is available at www.ala.org/plinternetfunding . There you will also find the most recent study report. Additional survey findings are available at www.ii.fsu.edu/plinternet/.

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Beyond Survival: Thriving in Hard Times

This annual statewide conference for trustees and librarians is sponsored by the Vermont Library Trustees Association with help from the Vermont Department of Libraries. 

Saturday November 8, 2008
9:30 am-3:00 pm (coffee and registration at 9:00)
Rutland Free Library, 10 Court Street, Rutland, VT
802-773-1860

A community is not just a place, but a set of relationships. In Vermont, where small town libraries abound, not knowing the local movers-and-shakers or building partnerships, weakens the library’s community standing and encourages claims of irrelevance. In tough economic times people depend heavily on their public library for help. Our session today will focus on building support for your public library that will help to sustain you in both good and hard times.  For a complete program description and a registration form click on the following link:  Beyond Survival Thriving in Hard Times.