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Category Archives: General
Data Doodles: Rural Nature of Nebraska Public Libraries
Of the 93 counties in Nebraska, 80 have been designated as non-metropolitan.1
Within these rural counties there are 225 public libraries, or about 84% of the state’s 268 libraries. Among these rural libraries, 88% provide services to cities or villages with fewer than 5,000 residents. And within this group, 57% of the total number of Nebraska libraries serves a legal service area population of fewer than 1,000 residents.
The following table, based on locale categories devised by the U.S. Department of Education, provides a broad picture of how the majority of Nebraska’s public libraries serve small, rural communities.
|
Urban-centric |
Nebraska |
||
|
City |
Large: |
2 |
|
|
Midsize: |
0 |
||
|
Small: Territory inside an urbanized area and inside a principal city |
0 |
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
Suburb |
Large: |
5 |
|
|
Midsize: |
2 |
||
|
Small: Territory outside a principal city and inside an urbanized area |
0 |
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
Town |
Fringe: |
2 |
|
|
Distant: |
9 |
||
|
Remote: Territory inside an urban cluster that is more than 35 miles |
30 |
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
Rural |
Fringe: |
3 |
|
|
Distant: |
46 |
||
|
Remote: Census-defined rural territory that is more than 25 miles from |
169 |
||
|
Total |
268 |
||
|
Source: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Common Core of Data (CCD), Identification of Locale Codes, from http://nces.ed.gov/ccd/rural_locales.asp. |
|||
1 According to the “core-based statistical area” system used by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.
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Sparks! Ignition Grants for Libraries and Museums – Application due 2/3/2014
Deadline: Feb. 3, 2014
Amount: $10,000 – $25,000
Awarding institution: Institute of Museum and Library Services
The Sparks! Ignition Grants for Libraries are a special funding opportunity within the IMLS National Leadership Grants for Libraries program. These small grants encourage libraries and archives to test and evaluate specific innovations in the ways they operate and the services they provide. Sparks Grants support the deployment, testing, and evaluation of promising and groundbreaking new tools, products, services, or organizational practices. You may propose activities or approaches that involve risk, as long as the risk is balanced by significant potential for improvement in the ways libraries and museums serve their communities.
Eligibility: Libraries that fulfill the general criteria for libraries may apply. In addition, institutions of higher education, including public and nonprofit universities, are eligible.
For more information: http://www.imls.gov/applicants/detail.aspx?GrantId=19
2013 Public Libraries Survey Ready for Submissions
The Nebraska Public Libraries Survey for the 2012-2013 fiscal year is now open and ready for data input. You can access the online survey form by going to http://collect.btol.com and entering your library’s user name and password. The survey is due on Friday, February 14, 2014.
The arrangement of the report has changed slightly and there are some additional questions and modifications to data elements this year, so you will want to check out the resources on the Library Commission’s Data Services page. Here you will find:
- A link to the Bibliostat Collect survey form,
- A blank copy of the survey for download that is useful for data collection prior to online entry,
- A Tip Sheet to help you complete the survey,
- Instructions for finding your Overdrive holdings and circulation statistics,
- Definitions of the data elements contained in the survey,
- And full instructions on completing the survey.
The information provided through this survey is used to determine accreditation status and state aid awards, so please be diligent in completing it accurately.
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Window Shopping in Nebraska Memories
With the holiday season just around the corner I thought it would be the perfect time to do a bit of window shopping in Nebraska Memories. While I’m not sure all of the items on display would be the best option for gift giving it is still fun to look.
Let’s start our window shopping in Omaha at the S.S. Kresge Store. While I don’t know for sure I believe these two photos of window displays were taken at the Kresge store in downtown Omaha at the corner of 16th and Harney. 
The Window display of candy includes candy canes, lollypops, and boxes of candy. The other photo taken at the Kresge Store is of a Kleenex window display. This photo from 1938 shows that Kleenex are good for both the home and the office.
It looks like in 1937 grocery stores liked to display their canned goods by stacking them in the form of pyramids. This can be seen in two photos of grocery stores in Omaha. In the picture of the Saratoga Grocery and Meat Co. they are advertising a canned food sale in the window and have many can pyramids on display. 
The I.W. Rosenblatt Food Store also has an impressive display of canned items on display in their window. Their mammoth canned food sale includes peas, corn, apricots, kraut and Pet milk.
Today the thought of having a one cent sale seems unlikely but in 1931 
the Harley Drug located at 1101 O Street in Lincoln had a huge once cent sale. The window display shows numerous items along with two large signs shaped as the number one that appear to list a number of items for sale.
The last window on my window shopping trip is that of the Capitol Hardware that was located at 1447 O Street, Lincoln in 1946. Their window is full of Sunbeam electrical appliances. The display includes waffle baker, toaster, Mixmaster, iron (for $9.95), razor (for $15.90). A sign also states that “the Sunbeam Man” will be in the store all day Saturday!
I hope you enjoyed our window shopping trip in Nebraska Memories. We didn’t see all of the window displays today so there are more to see in Nebraska Memories.
Visit Nebraska Memories to search for or browse through many more historical images digitized from photographs, negatives, postcards, maps, lantern slides, books and other materials.
Nebraska Memories is a cooperative project to digitize Nebraska-related historical and cultural heritage materials and make them available to researchers of all ages via the Internet. Nebraska Memories is brought to you by the Nebraska Library Commission. If your institution is interested in participating in Nebraska Memories, see http://nlc.nebraska.gov/nebraskamemories/participation.aspx for more information, or contact Beth Goble, Historical Projects Librarian, or Devra Dragos, Technology & Access Services Director.
Free toolkit on starting a school library friends group available from United for Libraries
United for Libraries has made available a free toolkit geared toward school librarians looking to create a friends of the library group.
“Friends Groups: Critical Support for School Libraries,” available at www.ala.org/united/friends, gives tips on gaining school support; raising the profile of the school library; generating excitement; establishing a friends group of parents, faculty and community members; creating a student friends group and more.
“With school libraries closing across the country, it is becoming more important than ever before for school librarians to develop friends groups,” said United for Libraries Executive Director Sally Gardner Reed. “Friends have been keeping public libraries open and even staving off budget cuts for years – they can do the same for school libraries.”
Also available at www.ala.org/united/friends are two additional free toolkits. “Libraries Need Friends: Starting a Friends Group or Revitalizing the One You Have” includes tips on membership, outreach, fundraising and more. “Academic Library Friends: A Toolkit for Getting Started – You Can Do This!” by Charles D. Hanson, director of Kettering Library Services, Kettering University, provides a framework for starting a Friends group at a community college or university.
United for Libraries: The Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations, is a division of the American Library Association that supports those who govern, promote, advocate and fundraise for libraries. United for Libraries brings together library Trustees, advocates, Friends, and Foundations into a partnership that creates a powerful force for libraries in the 21st century. For more information or to join United for Libraries, visit the United for Libraries website or contact Jillian Kalonick at (312) 280-2161 or jkalonick@ala.org.
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Gov. Heineman Names Twyla Hansen Nebraska State Poet
Gov. Dave Heineman today named Twyla Hansen of Lincoln as the Nebraska State Poet. Hansen, 64, will be the first female to hold the position.
Twyla Hansen is an accomplished poet, with an extensive publishing history both in books and periodicals. She has received numerous awards and honors for her poetry, including the High Plains Book Award, the WILLA Literary Award, and twice being awarded the Nebraska Book Award.
Gov. Heineman has named the State Poet from the recommendation of a five person State Poet Selection Committee, coordinated by the Nebraska Arts Council, Humanities Nebraska and the Nebraska Library Commission.
State Poet Selection Committee member and Executive Director of the Nebraska Arts Council, Suzanne Wise, said, “We are excited that Governor Heineman has named Twyla as State Poet. She forms a nice bridge between the older generation of Nebraska poets and the younger poets, which know her as a good collaborator and mentor in her own right.”
“There are so many fine writers in this state; I am truly honored and humbled by this selection. I look forward to working with students and citizens in the creative writing process throughout our great State of Nebraska,” said Hansen.
Hansen has done a great deal of community outreach, poetry workshops and readings, including at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and is a Humanities Nebraska Speakers Bureau member. Hansen has an undergraduate degree in Horticulture and a Master’s degree in Agroecology, both from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The appointment is for 5 years, serving from Dec. 1, 2013-2018. The position of State Poet was created in 1921. Hansen is the third State Poet, including John Neihardt who was named Nebraska Poet Laureate “in perpetuity” in 1927. She replaces William Kloefkorn who passed away at age 79. Kloefkorn was appointed in 1982 by former Nebraska Governor Charles Thone. Kloefkorn was a mentor to Hansen.
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Join the Nebraska Dewey Group Purchase
Join the Nebraska Dewey Group Purchase and save money on the print and web versions of the DDC!
Dewey in Print
The Nebraska Dewey Group includes the print versions of the Abridged Edition 15 (1 volume) and the 23rd edition of the unabridged Dewey Decimal Classification (4 volumes).
OCLC is offering 10% off of the original price on the DDC in print.
If your library is interested in ordering the DDC in print, you will find Pricing information on the online Book Order Form.
For more information about the DDC, please visit Dewey Services.
Dewey on the Web
Now your library can benefit from web-based access to an enhanced version of the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) database through WebDewey. OCLC is offering a discounted price to users who join the Nebraska Dewey Group.
WebDewey is the web-based, enhanced version of the unabridged and abridged print editions. Regular updates bring you changes implemented by the Dewey editorial team almost as soon as they occur. WebDewey also offers additional functionality not available in the print editions to make your classification work more efficient.
The new WebDewey Group subscription year runs from January 1, 2014 – December 31, 2014.
If your library is interested in subscribing to WebDewey, you will find Pricing information on the online WebDewey Order Form.
To see WebDewey in action, try the WebDewey 2.0: an overview demo.
If you have any questions about these Dewey products or the Nebraska Group, please contact Christa Burns, 402-471-3107, or 800-307-2665.
NOTE: OCLC Membership is NOT required to purchase Dewey products.
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Award for Promotion of Literature Presented
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
November 14, 2012
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Mary Jo Ryan
402-471-3434
800-307-2665
Award for Promotion of Literature Presented
The Nebraska Center for the Book presented the 2013 Jane Geske Award to the Nebraska Library Commission at the recent Celebration of Nebraska Books. The Nebraska Library Commission was honored for their extraordinary contribution to literacy, books, reading, libraries, or literature in Nebraska. Since 1901 the Nebraska Library Commission has been dedicated to statewide promotion, development, and coordination of library services. Underscoring the Commission’s long-term commitment to literature and literacy, several Library Commission staff members served on the founding board of the Nebraska Center for the Book in 1990—along with Jane Pope Geske. The Nebraska Library Commission has continued to provide staff support and funding to ensure that the activities and efforts of the Nebraska Center for the Book volunteers can be consistently delivered.
The Nebraska Center for the Book annually presents the Jane Geske Award to an organization, business, library, school, association, or other group that has made an exceptional contribution to literacy, books, reading, libraries, or Nebraska literature. The Jane Geske Award commemorates Geske’s passion for books, and was established in recognition of her contributions to the well-being of the libraries of Nebraska. Jane Geske was the director of the Nebraska Library Commission, a founding member of the Nebraska Center for the Book, a Lincoln bookseller, and a long-time leader in Nebraska library and literary activities.
The Nebraska State Historical Society’s Nebraska History Museum was the site of the 2013 Celebration of Nebraska Books, sponsored by the Nebraska Center for the Book, Nebraska Humanities Council, Nebraska Library Commission, Nebraska State Historical Society, and University of Nebraska Press. The celebration also featured presentation of the 2013 Nebraska Book Awards, including readings by some of the winning authors. A list of the winning books is located at http://centerforthebook.nebraska.gov/awards.html.
The Nebraska Center for the Book is housed at the Nebraska Library Commission and brings together the state’s readers, writers, booksellers, librarians, publishers, printers, educators, and scholars to build the community of the book, supporting programs to celebrate and stimulate public interest in books, reading, and the written word. The Nebraska Center for the Book is supported by the Nebraska Library Commission.
As the state library agency, the Nebraska Library Commission is an advocate for the library and information needs of all Nebraskans. The mission of the Library Commission is statewide promotion, development, and coordination of library and information services, bringing together people and information.
###
The most up-to-date news releases from the Nebraska Library Commission are always available on the Library Commission website, www.nlc.nebraska.gov/publications/newsreleases
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Remembering the Gettysburg Address
Next Tuesday November 19 is the 150th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg address. To commemorate the address, Ken Burns is starting a project to have everyone in America video record themselves reading or reciting the speech. People participating in this project include President Obama, Louis C.K., Taylor Swift, Martha Stewart, and Stephen Colbert. Hear Librarian of Congress James Billington recite the speech at the Library of Congress Blog. For more info on the project, visit Learn the Address . To read more about the speech, see the Library of Congress’ online exhibit.
NEH Museums, Libraries, and Cultural Organizations – Applications due Jan. 8, 2014
National Endowment for the Humanities Museums, Libraries, and Cultural Organizations (MLCO) grants provide support for museums, libraries, historic places, and other organizations that produce public programs in the humanities.
Grants support the following formats:
- exhibitions at museums, libraries, and other venues;
- interpretations of historic places, sites, or regions;
- book/film discussion programs; living history presentations; other face-to-face programs at libraries, community centers, and other public venues; and
- interpretive websites and other digital formats
Types of America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations awards:
- Planning grants support the early stages of project development, including consultation with scholars, refinement of humanities themes, preliminary design, testing, and audience evaluation.
- Implementation grants final scholarly research and consultation, design development, production, and installation of a project for presentation to the public.
Closing date for applications: January 8, 2014.
For more information, visit http://www.neh.gov/grants/mlco.
Data Doodle: Collection Spending Trends
For today’s doodle, I surveyed the 5-year trend in the amount Nebraska public libraries have been spending on print materials compared to electronic resources. The date range for the trend is fiscal year 2007/2008 through 2011/2012. The charts below illustrate how funds spent purchasing print materials have leveled off (-2.3%), while spending on electronic materials has risen sharply (+74.7%).
To analyze this trend another way: In FY 2008, 72% of collection expenditures went to print materials, but in 2012 this percentage had fallen to 67%. Spending on electronic resources in 2008 was 11.8% of collection budgets, but by 2012 the proportion of spending had risen to 19.7%. I’m certain this trend itself won’t surprise anyone in the library biz, but I was taken aback at the dramatic surge in spending on electronic resources.
BTW, this data was made possible by your participation in the annual Nebraska Public Libraries Survey, which begins again for the 2012-2013 fiscal year on November 18th.
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Win a Visit from Author Alexander McCall Smith
Send photos to Random House of a library holiday display featuring Alexander McCall Smith’s books , and you may win a visit from the author during his November 2014 tour. The deadline to enter the contest is January 3. See the rules and details at: http://www.scribd.com/doc/181789624/Alexander-McCall-Smith-Library-Holiday-Display-Contest.
The Big Read application available, announcing new titles
The Big Read is accepting applications from non-profit organizations to develop community-wide reading programs between September 2014 and June 2015. The Big Read is a national program designed to revitalize the role of literature in American culture and to encourage reading for pleasure and enlightenment.
Organizations selected to participate in The Big Read receive a grant, educational and promotional materials, and access to online training resources and opportunities. Approximately 75 organizations from across the country will be selected.
To review the Guidelines and Application Instructions, visit The Big Read website.
Application deadline: January 28, 2014 by 4:00pm CST
We are proud to announce the addition of two new titles to The Big Read catalog this year:
The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu
Dinaw Mengestu tells the story of Sepha Stephanos, who fled the Ethiopian Revolution for a better life in America, and examines how an immigrant’s expectations match up to the reality of American life.
When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka
In this powerful and concise novel, Julie Otsuka describes the grim experiences of a Japanese-American family forced to live in an internment camp during World War II.
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IMLS National Leadership Grants – Applications due 2/3/2014
Institute of Museum and Library Services National Leadership Grants support projects that address challenges faced by the museum, library, and/or archive fields and that have the potential to advance practice in those fields. Applications are due February 3, 2014.
Successful proposals will seek innovative responses to the challenge(s) identified in the proposals, and will have national impact. IMLS invites libraries to address STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in their programs and projects in order to advance learning and support the acquisition of STEM knowledge at all ages, but particularly for at-risk youth.
Applicants that fulfill the general criteria for libraries may apply. These include public libraries, public elementary and secondary school libraries, college and university libraries, research libraries and archives that are not an integral part of an institution of higher education and that make publicly available library services and materials that are suitable for scholarly research and not otherwise available.
More information is available at http://www.imls.gov/applicants/detail.aspx?GrantId=14.
Library Journal Star Libraries 2013
The Library Journal Index of Public Library Service for 2013 was just released and there are nine Nebraska libraries in the top-rated list. Four of these libraries have earned stars in every edition of the index since it began. They are shown in bold type in the table below.
|
Expenditure Category |
Stars |
Library |
City |
|
$10K-$49.9K |
***** |
Bloomfield Public Library |
Bloomfield |
|
$10K-$49.9K |
*** |
Creighton Public Library |
Creighton |
|
$10K-$49.9K |
***** |
Genoa Public Library |
Genoa |
|
$50K-$99.9K |
***** |
Hartington Public Library |
Hartington |
|
$50K-$99.9K |
*** |
Oakland Public Library |
Oakland |
|
$100K-$199.9K |
**** |
Atkinson Public Library |
Atkinson |
|
$100K-$199.9K |
***** |
Central City Public Library |
Central City |
|
$100K-$199.9K |
***** |
Neligh Public Library |
Neligh |
|
$200K-$399.9K |
*** |
Falls City Library and Arts Center |
Falls City |
The source of data for the index is the annual Public Libraries Survey, which is compiled by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The statistics for the 2013 index are from the FY 2011 survey.
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Data Doodles: Integrated Library Systems in Nebraska
Here are some quick facts about the number and distribution of integrated library systems (ILS) in Nebraska public libraries. This data is gleaned from the annual Public Libraries Survey, which revealed in the FY 2012 report that 174 libraries were using an automated library system product. See the chart below for details.
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Read Aloud School or Community
There is still time to sign up to become a Read Aloud School or Community. The opportunity is available through November 1, 2013, and it only takes a few minutes.
Just go here and click on “School” or Community” depending on which one you represent. A community can be the public library, a book discussion group, a philanthropic organization, or other such group of people.
All it takes is a bit of time to fill out the form and submit it. No cost to you and one of several benefits of being a Read Aloud School or Community is the opportunity to request books at no cost to you to give away to children in your school or community. Join for the second (third, fourth, fifth, etc.) year and you are eligible to apply for a $250 competitive mini-grant to promote or celebrate reading aloud.
And while you are at it, save Friday, April 4, 2014 to hear Rob Reid talk about “Reid’s Read-Alouds” and “Making Lit Come Alive” – it is sure to be a wonderful day. You can see the “Save the Date” information now, and more details later also here on the web site. The Library Commission has seven of his books available for loan, such as Something Funny Happened at the Library and More Family Storytimes: Twenty-four Creative Programs for All Ages.
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2014 One Book One Nebraska Announced
Once Upon a Town by Bob Greene is Nebraska’s reading choice for the 2014 One Book One Nebraska statewide reading program. In this nonfiction story, bestselling author and award-winning journalist Bob Greene goes out in search of “the best America there ever was,” and finds it in a small Nebraska town few people pass through today—a town where Greene discovers the echoes of a love story between a country and its sons. During World War II, American soldiers from every city and walk of life rolled through North Platte, NE, on troop trains en route to their ultimate destinations in Europe and the Pacific. This small town, wanting to offer the servicemen warmth and support, transformed its modest railroad depot into the North Platte Canteen. Every day of the year, every day of the war, the Canteen—staffed and funded entirely by local volunteers—was open from five a.m. until the last troop train of the day pulled away after midnight. Once Upon a Town tells the story of how this plains community of only 12,000 people provided welcoming words, friendship, and baskets of food and treats to more than six million GIs by the time the war ended.
The One Book One Nebraska reading program, sponsored by the Nebraska Center for the Book, is entering its tenth year. It encourages Nebraskans across the state to read and discuss one book, chosen from books written by Nebraska authors or that have a Nebraska theme or setting. A committee of the Nebraska Center for the Book selected this book from a list of 71 titles nominated by 141 Nebraskans from across the state. The Nebraska Center for the Book board announced the choice for the 2014 One Book One Nebraska at the Celebration of Nebraska Books on October 26 in Lincoln.
Libraries across Nebraska will join other literary and cultural organizations in planning book discussions, activities, and events that will encourage Nebraskans to read and discuss this book. Support materials to assist with local reading/discussion activities will be available after January 1, 2014 at http://onebook.nebraska.gov. Updates and activity listings will be posted on the One Book One Nebraska Facebook group at http://www.facebook.com/onebookonenebraska.
One Book One Nebraska is sponsored by Nebraska Center for the Book, Humanities Nebraska, Nebraska Library Association, and Nebraska Library Commission. The Nebraska Center for the Book is housed at and supported by the Nebraska Library Commission and brings together the state’s readers, writers, booksellers, librarians, publishers, printers, educators, and scholars to build the community of the book, supporting programs to celebrate and stimulate public interest in books, reading, and the written word.
As the state library agency, the Nebraska Library Commission is an advocate for the library and information needs of all Nebraskans. The mission of the Library Commission is statewide promotion, development, and coordination of library and information services, bringing together people and information. For more information, contact Mary Jo Ryan, 402-471-3434 or 800-307-2665, www.centerforthebook.nebraska.gov or http://www.facebook.com/NebraskaCenterfortheBook
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Friday Video: Andrew Bell, The Man Behind Android Figures
Artist Andrew Bell stops by Google to share stories of his creative process and his path to becoming a professional artist. We hear from the man behind the Android collectible figures. Visual examples trace the origin and development of his style, showing off the diverse media and visual vocabulary.
Dia 2014 Mini-grants Available — Deadline is Nov. 30, 2013
The Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) is now accepting applications for mini-grants intended to prepare libraries to incorporate Día into their existing programs throughout the entire year. Mini-grants will be used to initiate a Día Family Book Club Program in libraries. Up to 15 mini-grants will be awarded at $2,000 each.
Intended as an expansion of El día de los niños/El día de los libros (Día), the mini-grants will be awarded to libraries that demonstrate a need to better address the diverse backgrounds within their communities.
The mini-grants are part of the Everyone Reads @ your library grant awarded to ALSC from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation. In addition to these mini-grants, funding from this grant will also allow ALSC to create a Día Family Book Club curriculum that will be accessible to all.
Mini-Grant Eligibility
- Must be a public library with a demonstrated need and the capacity to address the diverse backgrounds within their community and commit to incorporating Día into existing programs.
- Must be located within 20 miles of a Dollar General Store, distribution center, or corporate office (please visit Dollar General’s Store Locator at http://www.dollargeneral.com/storeLocator)
- Must have the capability to initiate a Día Family Book Club that will meet at regular intervals a minimum of 6 times.
The deadline for applications is November 30, 2013. For more information and to access the application, go to http://dia.ala.org/dia-2014-mini-grants-available.
