Libraries mean business.  ~ Aspen Walker (Douglas County Libraries)

• We help people get their small business started, and provide resources to help them excel and persist.
• We draw folks into town and commerce centers, and then they spend their money in area businesses (did you know that the Philip S. Miller Library is the number one reason people visit downtown Castle Rock, Colorado? Between January-July of this year, the library has already 285,566 visitors. That’s almost 9,500+ people a week! And when they do visit, they spend at least $20 in surrounding stores. We’re an anchor store… with a benevolent [and fun!] social purpose).
• We offer an amazing return on investment. I only pay $42 a year in taxes to fund my local library, but I enjoy hundreds of dollars worth of materials and services every year. In fact, for every dollar invested in my library district, we return at least $5 in value. Magic? No. It’s the sheer wonder of the public library.
• We help people find jobs. My friend Tana, shared a poignant story with me earlier this year, based on an actual experience she had working in public libraries:

I just remember his hands; nails short and squared, fingers wide and knobby, his skin thick and calloused. Hovering over the keyboard, index fingers extended, carefully, slowly plucking out the letters in an introduction to be inserted into an email application for employment, they were easily the size of my face.

The man, a journeyman plumber, was hesitant. It was a new feature of his profession to have to submit his resume and bids electronically… He needed help opening an email account; questions of passwords and etiquette were answered – but really, how could I answer the larger question in his eyes? Is the world changing too fast? How do people suddenly catch up with the digital tsunami that has swept through every industry, every profession?

It made me sad for a moment to imagine those strong, capable hands suddenly left idle because an employer’s new mandate required email applications. But then I realized that here he was, hunched in a library chair, eyes glued to the screen, brow furrowed, making the leap into the future – with my help! “Got it?” I asked just to make sure he was going to be okay. “Yup. Think so… If I need you again, you’ll be around to help, right?”

Hopefully.
#coBHAG #SaveLibraries

StoryBlocks.org is a project of the Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy (CLEL), an advisory group to the State Library. CLEL received a federal grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to create the videos and Web site. The goal is to build awareness and to encourage parents and others to engage with children from birth on early language and pre-literacy skills. The methods used in the videos are based on brain and child development research that show the impact that songs, rhymes and stories have on very young children.

Eight Colorado public libraries helped to fund the project:  Arapahoe Library District, Denver Public Library, Douglas County Libraries, Fort Morgan Public Library, Lafayette Public Library, Salida Regional Library and Westminster Public Library. Donations also came from two non-profit organizations: Friends of Food for Thought and Library People and one anonymous donor.

View press release (PDF)

For more information on StoryBlocks.org, contact Patricia Froehlich, youth services senior consultant at the Colorado State Library, 303-866-6908.

Connect children and youth with your library’s space science resources! Join us for a FREE NASA-supported workshop designed to help you bring space science to your programs through hands-on activities.

Harmony Library
4616 South Shields
Fort Collins, Colorado 80526
September 2-3, 2010

“Explore! Hero Moon” will acquaint you NASA’s investigations into the ongoing saga that has shaped our Moon. Discover our scientific, cultural, and personal understanding of Earth’s nearest natural neighbor. Scientists and educators from the NASA Lunar Science Institute and the Lunar and Planetary Institute will share space science information, resources, hands-on activities, and demonstrations developed specifically for you to infuse into your programs with children and youth ages 8 to 13 and their families.

The workshop is FREE. A $150 stipend is available for 30 participants. A stipend request form will be emailed to participants on a first-come-first-accepted basis.

Space is limited! Register by July 16, 2010.

View flyer (PDF)

Thanks to Peter Bromberg, Assistant Director at the South Jersey Regional Library Cooperative (SJRLC), for this information.

We all know that Web 2.0 tools are essential for communicating and creating in today’s fast-paced world. If there are tools that you or your staff want to learn more about, or if you just need to brush up on the basics, please visit the Colorado Libraries 2.0 website.

Colorado Libraries 2.0 is a FREE learning program to help library staff become familiar with Web 2.0 tools. The program is designed in modules associated with categories of tools:

1. Communication
2. Collaboration
3. Visual Communications
4. Personal Learning Environments (PLE)
5. Productivity Tools
6. A capstone project – Your PLE

Additional modules will be available in 2010.

Join with others from your library to get the most from the program !

Colorado Libraries 2.0 was created by Reach – Leading Learning in Libraries – a group of library staff members committed to sharing continuing education opportunities with others.

• * 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)

Library Consortium Summit planning committee seeks proposals for presentation and poster sessions for the fourth CALC Summit. The Summit will be held at the Sheraton Denver West Hotel (6th Ave & Union) on May 20-21, 2010.

Collaborate Like You Mean It!
We’ve all heard that collaboration is important, but how can academic libraries forge lasting, effective partnerships both within and outside their institutions? What makes some partnerships succeed, and others fail?

Come share your successes, failures, research, and innovative ideas related to academic library collaboration. We’re particularly interested in proposals that address:
• Collaboration to expand library services or improve student success
• Collaboration to develop Web 2.0 applications
• Strategies for building and maintaining partnerships
• Inter-institutional collaboration
• Institutional barriers to collaborative efforts, and how to overcome them
• Assessing the success of collaborative efforts
• Collaboration with non-library partners
Presentation Options:
1. Concurrent Presentations:
A speaker or team of speakers presents for 45 or 75 minutes, with a 15-minute Q&A session after the presentation. Presentations that involve discussion, audience participation, or activities are strongly encouraged.
2. Poster Sessions:
A graphical presentation (paper or digital) of research results, case studies, projects, or ideas. Poster presenters will discuss their work with attendees during the poster session time slot (likely to be 1 hour long.)
Details:
Presentation and poster proposals will be reviewed and competitively selected by a committee of academic librarians.
Proposal Requirements:
• Names and full contact information of presenter(s)
• Title of presentation or digital poster session
• Abstract and brief outline (200 words max)
• Desired presentation length (45 or 75 minutes) or poster session
Submit proposals using this online form:
Proposals are due by February 12, 2010. You’ll be notified about the status of your proposal by March 12, 2010.
For more information visit www.calcweb.org or email jay.devaughn@ccaurora.edu
Sponsored by:
CALC – Colorado Academic Library Consortium
CLiC – Colorado Library Consortium
CoALA – Association of Colorado Libraries – Academic Division

In the morning, Kathy Barco from the Albuquerque Public Library presented ideas for 2010 summer reading, including decorations, crafts, celebrations, activities, refreshments, programs, and more. The themes are “Make a Splash @ Your Library” (children) and “Make Waves @ Your Library” (teens).

The afternoon included discussion of after-school programming, a report on the LSTA Early Literacy (CLEL) Storytime grants, an update on State Library youth services initiatives, and of course distribution of the 2010 statewide summer reading program manuals.

Here are some of the photos I took during the day. Enjoy!

Kathy Barco presenting an activity (making fish headbands out of balloons), and some of the participants enjoying their new looks.

The fabulous staff at the College Hill Library in Westminster.

Attendees working on and proudly presenting their completed summer reading craft activities:

“The TechAtlas tools guides your library through building a technology plan, starting with defining your mission and vision, creating goals and objectives, and leading through the budgeting of your expenses. We’ll share important tips for those of you who are applying for E-rate funds and creating a technology plan as a requirement for that program. You will also see a live demonstration of TechAtlas and hear best practices about technology planning and how to help lead your library into the future through effective planning.”

The webinar is free, but registration is required.

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.