New York City Librarians Plan Zombie Walk
Oct 23rd
Join us on October 30th for our Librarian Zombie Walk to City Hall!!!.
So it’s time for mid year budget adjustments. What’s that you say? I thought we were done until next year! Nope. The mid year budget adjustment will result in a further cut of 5.4%. These new cuts will result in even less service hours and more layoffs.
Our library budgets have already been cut to the bone, and these further reductions in funding will just degrade library service further. We’ve already lost Saturday Service in most of the city. It’s likely these cuts will be the end of what we have left. So those working parents taking their kids to the library on the weekend? Tough, not open. Can’t return your books during the week because you work 60 hours just to live? Tough, closed on the weekend.
Heroic Librarians
Oct 23rd
from i09, twenty supreme fictional librarians.
Now, if you were to add REAL librarians to the mix, that would rock…
“Cutting librarians cuts out the heart of communities”
Oct 20th
The Seattle Times editorial is here.
“Little Librarian Playset” discussion on boingboing
Oct 20th
Check it out
http://m.boingboing.net/2010/10/19/little-librarian-pla.html
California’s School Librarians
Oct 19th
From the OC Register: In California, as we plod through this not-so-great recession, there are two kinds of education-related cost cuts in play – the sexy kind and the not-so-sexy kind.
Any reduction in spending that might crank up the number of kids in a third-grade classroom, for example, is easy for parents and other tax payers to understand. Same for cuts that wipe out arts classes or PE or, the latest craze, several school days a year.
Teacher Librarian Marie Slim dresses the part of “rock star” during her “Read Like a Rock Star” 2009 book fair at Troy High School to raise funds for new books.
All those cuts, popular or not, attract attention and debate. In short, they’re sexy.
But farther down on the radar is another kind of cost cutting – the one that wipes out the often stereotyped resource known as the school librarian.
We all know the images of the school librarian. She shushes. She shelves. She sits, quietly, behind a desk. Dewey Decimal anyone?
Not sexy.
But head into Orange County’s school libraries and you’ll discover what [this OC Register reporter] found: passionate, dedicated, tech-savvy teacher librarians.
Des Plaines Library Could Close in December
Oct 15th
Facing a $600,000 shortfall, the Des Plaines Illinois library could close in early December if it doesn’t get the money needed to tide it over until the end of the year.
The library board has asked the city council for up to a $1.5 million loan, which has yet to be voted on. The library is waiting for nearly $3 million from Cook County tax receipts.
“They have to come in front of the city council and justify why they want this loan . . . [and] justify to the city council that they are making the necessary cuts so they won’t have to come to us for loans in the future,” Mayor Marty Moylan said.
He said the library needs to return to its core mission of making “basic reading material available.” Moylan said he has heard comments in the community that the library shouldn’t, for example, be in the business of loaning out CDs and movies for free.
My Elevator Speech
Oct 14th
So you meet someone new, and they say, “What do you do?”
I could start by saying, “I’m a public librarian.” But let’s be honest, that simple statement could be tainted by the myriad of perceptions and preconceptions the other person uses to color their own reality (and after all, we know there are a host of stereotypes out there about librarians). First impressions last, and I want to shape and frame this one-time opportunity.
So here’s my ten-second elevator speech:
“I help people change their lives, connect with their community, and boost their local economy, while enjoying the present and preparing for the future. I do this without a charge, because you have already paid for my services.”
Chances are, they will say, “Wow. Tell me more.”
And that’s my golden chance to tell them all about the wonders of public libraries, which can be summed up (and expanded upon) with four simple messages:
1. Libraries change lives.
2. Libraries build community.
3. Libraries mean business.
4. Libraries are a smart investment.
See also:
http://bhagcolorado.blogspot.com/
OCLC’s From Awareness to Funding
#savelibraries
#CObhag
School Library Grant Opportunity for CA, NV & NY
Oct 13th
(GlobeNewswire via COMTEX) — City National Bank today announced that it is now accepting applications for grants to support literacy-based projects at public and private elementary, middle and high schools in California, Nevada and New York.
Educators interested in applying for a literacy grant can access an online application by visiting www.readingisthewayup.org/literacy.asp. Any full-time teacher, librarian or administrator at schools in counties where City National has offices is eligible to apply. California counties include Alameda, Contra Costa, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Ventura. The Nevada counties are Carson City, Clark, Douglas and Washoe.
Approximately 100 grants totaling up to $75,000 may be awarded. Grants will provide up to $500 for the recipients to create, augment or expand literacy projects that are judged to be creative and engaging, and that may help improve student achievement.
More details here.
How Libraries Are Managing…A Few Ideas
Oct 13th
Libraries across the country are struggling to remain relevant and productive in an increasingly digital society. Stanford University has decreased their engineering library by 85 percent, with the majority of books now available to students online. The D.C. Public Library offers downloadable versions of books, audiobooks, music, and videos via OverDrive. And the New York Public Library recently ran a promotion rewarding loyal patrons who check in using Foursquare — the first person to reach 25 check-ins was rewarded with NYPL schwag.
Other libraries have simply struggled to stay afloat following drastic budget cuts. In March, the Charlotte Mecklenberg Library Board of Trustees voted to close 12 branches and lay off nearly 150 employees. Eventually a compromise was reached to keep the branches open, but hours of operation and staff salaries were slashed. In Jersey City, N.J., three branches that were slated to close last week have managed to hold on a bit longer, though they’re basically on life support.
A handful of ailing libraries nationwide have even turned to private firms like Library Systems & Services to help with running their operations — a hugely controversial move among library loyalists.
Here in the Lowcountry (SC) hours have been chopped and nearly 20 percent of the staff positions are vacant thanks to a budget shortfall totaling over $700,000. Charleston City Paper
Do You Tweet? #AndyPoll
Oct 12th
New Jersey Librarian Andy Woodworth wants to know…
So, what library issue is on your mind today? GO. Answer & RT plz
Lots of interesting issues, so please add yours and contribute to the conversation!
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