Vision: * Libraries move communities into the future. Every resident of Colorado will discover their library to be a place of curiosity & discovery; ideas & experiences; inspiration & imagination. They are places of endless possibilities.

Mission: * Libraries are excited about patron’s questions, we assist patrons with their needs during transitional times in their lives. What’s Next?!

Goals: * To shift the general public’s perceptions so they understand that libraries change with the times, are not just books and provide critical help to people during times of personal or community transition.  * To reinvigorate the value of libraries and secure future funding of Colorado Libraries.

Tagline: * What’s Next?! Your future. Libraries help get you there

We are moving forward and have the logo, mark, fonts and style guide. Please refer to the style guide for explanations on file types. These are all available on the Brand Items page.

We are working on the website and marketing kits which should be ready by the CAL conference in October 2010.

Contact Debbi MacLeod with any questions.

It has been quite a few years since CAL conducted a survey to ask you if the association is meeting your needs.  With the Board in the midst of writing a strategic plan, we decided it was time to put our finger on the pulse and find out what you want from CAL. Not only are we looking for feedback from our members, but non-members as well. Please take 5 minutes to answer this short questionnaire. It is very important that we hear from you as we plan for our future.

Now you can read or listen to the fantastic stories of your colleagues and celebrate the many ways libraries transform lives.

• Listen to some of the library stories on our YouTube channel
• Read the rest of the stories on our presentations page from CAL ‘09

The Colorado Association of Libraries (CAL) recently honored the Colorado State Library’s Plinkit service with its “2009 Library Project of the Year Award” at the association’s annual conference in November.

This award recognizes a creative and innovative project which furthers library service within the state of Colorado.

Christine Kreger, Plinkit Service Coordinator said, “Libraries today are all about building community and being accessible to their patrons. I am honored to be a part of a project like Plinkit that offers small libraries across Colorado the opportunity to put their library online and to connect to their communities 24/7.”

Kreger shared the honor of accepting the award with two other staff members. Software developer and system administrator Stephen Gregory ensures that the Plinkit system is solid and humming. Service administrator Jim Duncan watches finances and guides with strategic direction.

At the award’s dinner, three other state library staffers were cited for their contributions and support of the Plinkit service: Mark Ferguson, Sharon Morris and Gene Hainer.

Two people meet in nonfiction and fall in love. A boy finds salvation in his local library and becomes the first in his family to attend college. A suburban mother of four relies on the library’s expert reference service to start her own business, and later is named “Entrepreneur of the Year.”

Come visit the State Library’s booth at the CAL exhibit hall to share YOUR story! You can write it, type it, or tell it (we will have flip cameras). Read fantastic stories of your colleagues and celebrate the many ways libraries transform lives.

Need more reason? Submit YOUR story and become eligible to win one of these fabulous prizes!

• A “flip” digital video camera
• Library stories journals
• A tricked-out messenger bag
• Summer Reading Fun Pack

State Library at CAL schedule (PDF)

• * Share with you the latest services and resources we can offer Colorado libraries
• * Hear how libraries have transformed your lives

CSL at CAL 2009 – Schedule (PDF)

Since these are the two largest sources of CAL income, the association’s finances are as strained as everyone else’s. As a result, the board is investigating options that will allow CAL to continue to serve our members and the Colorado library community.  This includes issuing a Request for Quotes (RFQ) for a management company that may prove to be a less expensive alternative to our current situation.  We want to stress that no decisions have been made, but as good librarians we simply want to have all the information as we plan for CAL’s next step.

What can you do to help?  Renew your membership.  Register for the conference. Encourage your friends and colleagues to do the same.  Share your ideas with board members. Together, we’ll weather this storm and position the association for a sustainable future.

Submitted on behalf of the CAL Board

Come to the Colorado State Library booth at the 2009 CAL Conference and tell us how libraries have transformed your life. We can attest as to how they have transformed our lives!

View our “library love stories” (PDF)

The meeting began with lunch and a meet and greet with librarians from around the state.  Attendees were treated to a tour of Penrose Library; the tour highlighted the rare book collection and the Research Center. The August Brown Bag was another great opportunity for instruction librarians to come together and share best practices!

During the “cool tools show & tell” Carrie Forbes demonstrated the use of the SMART Board for library instruction, which she says is a great way to keep students interested during the sessions.  Lynne Fox (UC Denver Anschutz Medical Campus) presented on Pan-Opto which is being used at Anschutz to record classes.  Lyda Ellis (UNC) presented on the use of Jing and Screenjelly, two screen capture tools that are freely available on the web; she also showed Embedr, a free tool that allows a user to create video playlists from video sites on the web.  Lorrie Evans (UC Denver) showed how UC Denver librarians are using Google Docs to create and embed surveys.

If you are a CAL member interested in joining COLIG please visit our Web page http://www.cal-webs.org/interestg9.html.  The next meeting will be on Friday at the CAL Conference from 11:30-12:15.  COLIG hosts two Brown Bags each year, one in May and one in August.

The Colorado Association of Libraries’ 2009 Power On annual conference is just a month away and we are looking for volunteers to help make this our best conference yet!  To help those of you who may still be wondering if you’re the person we’re looking for, consider the following:

• If you get a charge out of working in a fun, friendly environment…you might be a CAL volunteer.
  If answering questions and solving problems gives you a warm fuzzy feeling inside …you might be a CAL volunteer.
• If your day is made by making computers bend to your will …you might be a CAL volunteer.
• If greeting people and pointing them in the right direction brings a smile to your face…you might be a CAL volunteer.

Anyone registered for the CAL conference can be a CAL volunteer!  After you’ve registered, just click on the volunteer link and tell us what you’d like to do and when you’re available to help.  There are volunteer
opportunities at the registration desk, cyber café, ticketed events, exhibits hall, preconferences, and workshops.  You can even ask to be scheduled with a friend. 

New this year!  All CAL volunteers will receive a $10 refund off their conference registration fee!  (Refunds will be issued at the conference.)

Sign up today – we look forward to seeing you!