Category Archives: News

News of interest to the Vermont library community

2009 Public Libraries and the Internet Study

The 2009 Public Libraries and the Internet Study (as part of the Public Library Funding & Technology Access Study) funded by the American Library Association and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation was opened to libraries for participation September 8, 2009. The project is managed and directed by Denise Davis and Larra Clark of the ALA Office of Research and Statistics, and the survey is directed by John Bertot at the University of Maryland College Park’s Center for Library & Information Innovation.

Results from the 2008 survey have already been coming out these last months to inform the Broadband Stimulus debates, library assistance with jobs, and library assistance with e-government. You can find recently released issue briefs and other useful data at the study website (http://www.ala.org/plinternetfunding). The current context makes the data from these surveys even more important, and we hope you will participate in this year’s survey so that this information is complete and widely available.

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VLA Resolution Included in Official Record Of Senate Judiciary Committee.

Senator Patrick Leahy entered the VLA’s Resolution on the 2009 Reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act into the official record  during the September 23, 2009 hearings of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on the reauthorizations of the sections scheduled to sunset December 31, 2009.  Following questioning by Senator Franken of Inspector General Fine  about the temptation to use national secuirty letters insead of  going to the FISA Court for Section 215 orders, Senator Leahy submitted the VLA resolution and two other supporting documents that raised the same concerns referring to Inspector Fine’ s documented  example in his  March 2008 report on National Security Letters. 

All 177 + minutes are available for continued viewing via  Webcast  available http://judiciary.senate.gov/hearings/hearing.cfm?id=4062.

VLA Board adopts Resolution on 2009 Patriot Act Resolution

On September 15th, the  VLA Board Meeting unanimously and enthusiastically adopted a Resolution on the 2009 Reauthorization of the USA Patriot Act.the following resolution. Unlike a resolution passed by ALA Council in July 2009, VLA’s resolution goes beyond Section 215 and address grave concerns raised by the use and abuse of Section 505, National Security Letters.

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Good Ideas!

The Vermont Department of Libraries is launching Good Ideas, http://vtgoodideas.wordpress.com. The website will include examples of programs, manuals, forms and fundraisers used by Vermont public libraries. Check it out—and please contact me if you have material to share.

Amy Howlett
VT Department of Libraries

Updated Intro to Vermont Online Libraries (VOL)

I’ve updated the PowerPoint introduction to the Vermont Online Library at http://www.webjunction.org/vt-ce/-/resources/discussion/80730711 You don’t need to log into WebJunction to retrieve the workshop.

The PowerPoint link is http://tinyurl.com/qbdmof. The WebJunction link provides user handouts and a script to read for the workshop. The searches, email functions, and Help commands described in this workshop are unchanged from the 2008 edition.

Amy Howlett
VT Department of Libraries

Looking for a Mentor? Want to Be a Mentor?

ALA has launched MentorConnect in ALA Connect so you can find or become a mentor.

MentorConnect (”MC”) allows ALA members to create mentoring profiles that highlight their expertise and experience. After they’ve joined MC, ALA members can search for a mentor using a variety of criteria (gender, type of library, ethnicity, etc.) and request mentorship. Once created, the mentorship is tracked within MC, with a space for providing and archiving feedback. The system will prompt mentors and mentorees every few months to ensure they are staying in touch.

To learn all about this new service, see Mentoring Starter Questions and Mentoring and MentorConnect FAQ at (http://www.students.ala.org/studentmemberblog/?p=344)

Don Wood
Program Officer
Chapter Relations Office
American Libraries Association
dwood@ala.org
1-800-545-2433, ext. 2429

New England Library Association Annual Conference

NEW ENGLAND LIBRARY ASSOCIATION ANNUAL CONFERENCE

OCTOBER 18-20 2009 – CONNECTICUT CONVENTION CENTER

Annual Conference Offerings & Registration

NELA Membership Registration

Dear Colleagues,

I don’t want you to miss the next New England Library Association (NELA) Annual Conference this coming October 18 – 20. The fall is a busy time for us all but it is also a good chance to refresh and renew by planning time to attend the conference.

We offer many presentations, events and exhibitors that represent a variety of interests. Here are just a few:

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Grants for Book Clubs Serving Underserved Teens

The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office and the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) are now accepting applications for the next round of Great Stories CLUB grants. Electronic applications for the reading and discussion series will be accepted through Nov. 2 at www.ala.org/greatstories. Funding was provided for this program by Oprah’s Angel Network.

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