The State of Small and Rural Libraries in the United States (IMLS)

New report out from IMLS about the state of small and rural libraries in the US.
http://www.imls.gov/assets/1/AssetManager/Brief2013_05.pdf

Some highlights include:

Small and rural libraries make up the majority of public library systems in the United States (80.5%).
Vermont has the highest percentage of small libraries in the United States (98.7%).
Small and rural libraries continue to provide substantial electronic and digital resources for patrons through access to e-books and publicly accessible computer terminals.
Although per capita revenue has decreased over the past three years, visitation and circulation has increased for both small and rural libraries.

2012 VT Public Library Salary Survey

The Personnel Committee of the Vermont Library Association has published Salaries and Benefits: A Survey of Vermont Public Librarians. Vermont public libraries were surveyed in 2012 and the results collated. Salaries for the 105 librarians range from a mean of $17.88/hour to a maximum of $38.26. The salary range for paraprofessionals runs from the mean of $13.32 to a maximum of $19.00. Information on salaries and benefits is presented by library governance, experience, population, and size of library.

The current recommended minimum starting salary for a library director with a bachelor’s degree and the Vermont Department of Libraries Certificate of Public Librarianship is $40,300, or $19.38/hour with a full benefit package.

VLA Compensation Studies are listed together at http://www.vermontlibraries.org/publications

Vermont Early Literacy Initiative Newsletter

The third edition of the quarterly VELI newsletter is now up on our website: http://libraries.vermont.gov/libraries/cbec/eli

Edited by VLA Vice President Debbi Gadwah-Lambert, the director of the Alice Ward library in Canaan, the newsletter is chock full of ideas for early literacy storytimes, new information on brain development, resources to help you with your early literacy programs and more. This time there are contributions from Beth Reynolds of Norwich, Erna Deutsch of Essex Junction and Jill Coffrin of Williston.

Public Library Compensation Survey Information

The VLA Personnel Committee will be conducting a public library compensation survey in March. This survey will include both public library professionals and paraprofessionals.

To ensure that the survey link reaches all library staff members, I am requesting that public library directors please send me a list of their staff email addresses. The addresses will ONLY be used for emailing the survey link. My email is: lucinda.walker@norwichlibrary.org.

If you have any questions, please contact me.

Thank you so much,
Lucinda

Raise Funds for Your Library with Vermont Public Libraries Calendars!

Raise awareness and cash at the same time with our beautiful VLA 2012 Vermont Public Libraries Calendar! The time to advertise is now! Production is underway… the calendar is going to be great!

The VLA 2012 Calendar:
Sings libraries’ praise.
Will help you fundraise.
Has gorgeous photo displays.
Keeps track of your days.
Even follows the moon’s phase!
…It’s a calendar that works in so many ways!

Links for two pdfs are below – an info/order form for librarians, and a flyer/order form to print out and post for your patrons, friends, relatives, whomever…

Fill in the top circle of the advertising flyer with your selling price, we recommend $15-$20. Remember that roughly $8.50 will go towards production and shipping costs and your library pockets the rest. At the bottom of that flyer, write who the checks should be made out and given to (your library or your Friends group).

We recommend ordering a small stock for the library to sell after the order deadline. Chances are you’ll get lots of additional interest after you can show a sample copy, especially in November and December. When you’ve got all the forms and checks you think you’ll get, fill out the order form for libraries. To reserve your calendars, place your order by September 15. Calendars will be shipped at the end of October.

Questions? Write us at mkdesign@gmavt.net or marti@williston.lib.vt.us .

Sincerely,
The Calendar Team

Ad VLA2012Calendar_librarians
AD VLA2012Calendar_patrons

VLA Bylaws with Proposed Revisions

Proposed changes to the bylaws of the Vermont Library Association are attached for review at the annual membership meeting at the upcoming Vermont Library Conference. The VLA Board has worked throughout the year to comprehensively overhaul the existing bylaws. The proposed version has track changes on for comparison purposes.

VLA Bylaws with proposed revisions 2011 (PDF, 148 K)

VLA Bylaws with proposed revisions 2011 (DOC, 97K)

The current version of the bylaws can be found at https://vermontlibraries.org//constitution-bylaws . The Board has unanimously endorsed this revision.

VLA News – May 2011 is Hot off the Presses!

Hi all –

The VLA News – May 2011 has been sent out and should be waiting for you in your inbox if you are a current member who opted to receive it on their membership form or signed up online.

The VLA News is a member only privileged, so join or renew your membership today in order to get the current issue !

If you would like to read back issues of the VLA News (currently there is only one) they can be accessed from the side bar of the website under VLA Info by clicking through the VLA News Back Issues link.

If your dues are current and you didn’t receive the VLA News but believe you should have, please feel free to contact me and we’ll get it sorted out!

Enjoy!
Helen Linda
VLA News Editor
vermontlibrariesnews@gmail.com

New Programs for Children Directory Available

The 2010 edition of Programs for Children, the performers manual for children that we put out every other year, is now available: http://libraries.vermont.gov/sites/libraries/files/cbec/programdirectory10.pdf

Anyone looking for an author to speak, a magician or storyteller to entertain, or a nature expert to teach (among many subjects), should check here for ideas.

We will also have a few hard copy editions available. If you need it in print form, we can send you a copy.

Grace

Grace Worcester Greene
Youth Services Consultant
Vermont Department of Libraries
109 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05609
Tel.: 802-828-6954
Fax: 802-828-1481
Email: grace.greene@state.vt.us

Call for Papers for Journal of Interlibrary Loan, Document Delivery & Electronic Reserve

Call for Papers for Journal of Interlibrary Loan, Document Delivery & Electronic Reserve
The Routledge/Taylor & Francis peer-reviewed Journal of Interlibrary Loan, Document Delivery & Electronic Reserve (JILDDER) is now accepting articles for Winter 2010 and Spring 2011 publication. Of particular interest to JILDDER are articles regarding resource sharing, unmediated borrowing, electronic reserve, cooperative collection development, shared virtual library services, digitization projects and other multi-library collaborative efforts including the following topics:
Read more→

Call for Papers: History of State Libraries

State Library Agencies: A Special Issue of Libraries & The Cultural Record

Libraries & The Cultural Record, a peer-reviewed journal of history published by the University of Texas Press, invites submissions for a special issue devoted to exploring historical perspectives on state library agencies in the United States. Contributors are encouraged to consider the topic in diverse ways. Possible themes might include (but are not limited to):