NCompass Live: Is It Copyrighted? Can I Use It?

NCompass live smallJoin us for next week’s NCompass Live: “Is It Copyrighted? Can I Use It?”, on Wednesday, July 9, 10:00-11:00 am Central Time.

Copyright! Complicated, confusing, and not clear-cut. What does a librarian need to know? Michael Sauers and Laura Johnson, from the Nebraska Library Commission, will present scenarios to discuss, as we all shine a light on the subject and try to figure out what a librarian needs to do.

Upcoming NCompass Live events:

  • July 16 – Engaging Writers with a Community Novel Project
  • July 23 – Opportunity – Collaboration – Engagement: UNL Extension’s Community Vitality Initiative
  • July 30 – Tech Talk with Michael Sauers
  • August 13 – Harlequin Take Me Away: the NLC Booktalks Romance

For more information, to register for NCompass Live, or to listen to recordings of past events, go to the NCompass Live webpage.

NCompass Live is broadcast live every Wednesday from 10am – 11am Central Time. Convert to your time zone on the Official U.S. Time website. The show is presented online using the GoToWebinar online meeting service. Before you attend a session, please see the NLC Online Sessions webpage for detailed information about GoToWebinar, including system requirements, firewall permissions, and equipment requirements for computer speakers and microphones.

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Rising City Memories

An assortment of items from Rising City Community Library joins Nebraska Memories as its newest collection. The photographs and postcards in the collection highlight many aspects of Rising City’s history.

Rising City DepotRising City was established when the Omaha & Republican Valley Railroad was extended across Butler County in 1878, and the collection includes photographs that show the town’s railroad roots. In this photograph, the town’s railroad depot appears to be a site of bustling activity.

The establishment of the railroad brought increasedOpera Block population to the area, and businesses grew accordingly. The business community of Rising City is well represented in this collection. Images of local businesses, including a hotel, banks, and a meat market, provide a Ruins of the Opera Blockview into Rising City’s business scene throughout its history. One of the most notable commercial buildings in Rising City was a prominent brick building known as the Opera Block. This structure was built in 1892, and it was destroyed by fire in 1923. This collection includes scenes of the destroyed building after the fire.

Samuel and Polly RisingA group of portraits of members of the Rising family, after whom the town is named, is another highlight of this collection. Samuel W. Rising (seen here with his wife Polly) and his son Albert W. Rising each gave 40 acres of their land to be used for the Rising City town site. Portraits of Samuel’s other sons, Dennis and Joseph, are in the collection, as well.

Take a moment and explore this collection to get a glimpse into Rising City history, and be sure to 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 Services Librarian, or Devra Dragos, Technology & Access Services Director.

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Throwback Thursday: Nebraska traveling library, Strang circa 1900-1920

SB 9036

The traveling library was a program of the Library Commission where they provided books to towns which did not have libraries.  The wooden box holding the screen door open is how the books were transported to the towns.

 

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Benches Encourage Reading

benchSeussFifty “book benches” are illustrating the joys of reading on the streets of London this summer.  Each book-shaped bench is covered with a colorful picture.  The benches are part of the National Literacy Trust’s Books about Town campaign  to celebrate books and reading.  Benches feature Sherlock Holmes, James Bond, Mary Poppins, the works of Dr Seuss, and many others. This fall, the benches will be auctioned off to raise funds for the NLT.  It’s an impractical wish, but wouldn’t it be great to have one of them?

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Who’s Most Likely to Speak Up?

Governing magazine answers that question and provides some interesting insights on getting participation and feedback from community members.  “The Citizens Most Vocal in Local Government,” by Mike Maciag, discusses the results of a survey by the National Research Center on the demographics of people who participate in discussion and debate of local issues.  It offers helpful info for library directors and boards who are working on strategic planning and looking for community input.

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Small Business Administration at work in Nebraska…

SBANebraska beef plant reopens, creates jobs thanks to SBA International Trade Loan financing

For five years, the meatpacking plant in this part of ranch country in northwest Nebraska stood vacant and silent. Now, thanks in part to new owners and SBA financing, the plant has re-opened as a supplier for organic, natural grass-fed, premium and halal beef for domestic and overseas markets, and given a small town a big economic jolt.

Open Range Beef purchased the shuttered plant from the city of Gordon in late June 2013, and have spent the last few months upgrading the operation with state-of-the-art equipment and material. With the purchase and re-opening, the business also created 100 new jobs, said co-owner Pat Shudak (pictured, left), a big deal for a town of around 1,800 people.

The company was approved for $3.8 million in financing in April using the SBA’s International Trade Loan program, one of only four guaranteed loans of this type in the four-state region this fiscal year.   Beef Plant

The 36,000-square foot plant expects to hit a target of 250-300 head of cattle per day, or about $120 million worth of cattle per year, from local ranchers for its USDA-certified beef processing operation. Open Range Beef chiefly will serve Rastelli Foods, a New Jersey-based humane and sustainable agricultural company with high-end clients in both domestic and overseas markets.

Serving as a hub for specialty and organic meats for export, the company had to buy more expensive equipment such as hot water to clean carcasses, and follow strict guidelines. For example: there’s a long list of specific requirements for meat to be certified halal if it’s to be exported to Muslim customers.

“We’ll be sending beef to Japan, Hong Kong, the Middle East, Europe,” Shudak added.  “The qualifications and restrictions are long; some dictate cattle only be 30 months or younger, and some countries don’t allow importing certain parts, such as livers, kidneys and parts outside the main cuts of meat.  Each country’s certification is different.”

Because the plant is mid-sized, explained co-owner Jill Noetzelman, “we can switch gears whenever we need to for custom slaughtering, which benefits meat producers and the packer,” a competitive advantage over bigger plants, such as those which process up to 5,000 head of cattle a day. Those enormous operations leverage economies of scale with relatively inflexible work flows can’t allow for smaller, specialty orders.

As a result, Shudak claimed, Open Range Beef’s operation expects to have a direct positive impact of nearly $5 million a year and an overall economic impact of $22 to 25 million a year for the area.

“We also purchase our supplies as much as possible locally from retail, lumber yards and hardware stores,” Noetzelman said, a move which generates significant secondary economic benefits for the town from the plant’s presence.

“It’s too soon to say what our revenues look like,” Shudak added. But the outlook is bright: “The cattle market was at an all-time high when we took over, and it’s even looking a lot better now.”

Ranchers also will benefit with Open Range Beef’s location: the next closest packing plants for livestock producers in the area are Lexington and Hastings, Neb., and Fort Morgan, Colo., some hundreds of miles away.

Shudak said the ownership team moved from building a solar development company in Hawaii as part of its investment portfolio to the specialty beef industry after a high school friend of Shudak’s mentioned he had considered going into the fast-growing specialty beef business. Private equity supplied the financing to purchase the plant, but the team needed more for the equipment, operating capital and cattle purchases.

“This wasn’t a conventional loan like for a retail or storefront business,” Noetzelman said. So they turned to BizCapital, a multi-state lender which offers competitive loans to small- and medium-sized companies located in underserved markets, and one of Missouri’s Lenders of the Year for 2012, and First Bank of the Lake, an Ozarks-based lender experienced with SBA applications. With their help over the six-month application process, Open Range Beef was approved for $3.8 million in financing in April 2014 using the SBA’s International Trade Loan program, one of only four guaranteed loans of this type in the four-state region this fiscal year.  This program which offers a 90 percent guarantee to the lender, offers access to capital for a small business in a position to expand existing export markets or develop new export markets.

“I don’t believe we would have put this together without the SBA,” Shudak said. “The nice thing is that we had a lot of equity in this plant and had real strong appraisals. In approving our loan, the SBA focused on job creation, helping the local economy, exporting, things that really matter to our business. Without the SBA, we found banks weren’t keen on certain businesses, and packing houses were one of them.”

And for a good reason: the business of beef harvesting and processing industry is cash-intensive and a volatile commodity-based one.

Shudak said future plans call for expansion of the plant’s cooler space and adding more jobs as the company’s capacity grows.
“The majority of our employees we have now we first hired at the beginning for construction work during the renovation,” Shudak said. “When we started the remodeling there was a real lack of available construction crews in the area, so we brought in a construction manager and hired former plant workers and trained them.”

When they finished the construction work, those same employees put down their hammers and put on their frocks, and Shudak noticed “there’s a huge amount of pride in the building, because they did the work to bring it back.”

While the town’s residents, along with members from the nearby Oglala Sioux Tribe reservation, who filled many plant positions in the past, make for a healthy labor pool, the plant’s promised growth is enough so a challenge for Gordon’s city manager is to address potential housing shortages incoming workers likely are to face.

Open Range Beef also points to the area’s diverse work force as a benefit, with Native American, African-American, and Guatemalan and other Hispanic employees of all working ages on staff, and young professionals in the area also seeking to be part of the business.

“You know, our philosophy coming into the business here is that you treat your employees like family, appreciate each individual, and create the positive work environment where employees who spent 8-10 hours a day here want to come to work here,” Noetzelman said.

Reprinted from SBA.gov.   For more information about the U.S. Small Business Administration. and how it’s loans and grants can help, visit SBA.gov/Loans & Grants.

 

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Nebraska Sesquicentennial Commission

NE150One of the new Nebraska laws going into effect today, July 1st, 2014, will create a state Sesquicentennial Commission to plan for Nebraska’s 150th anniversary as a state in 2017. The Nebraska Sesquicentennial Commission will consist of 17 members appointed by the governor. Starting today, Gov. Dave Heineman will have 60 days to appoint the members.

The Sesquicentennial seal, at left, blends the Platte River with Chimney Rock and sandhill cranes.  It will be used for all official events and documents relating to Nebraska’s celebration of 150 years of statehood. Information about early planning and fundraising efforts is available online at Nebraska150.org

 

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Internet Librarian Conference (October 27-29) Discount

Information Today is offering a group discount through the Nebraska Library Commission to all Nebraska librarians who attend the 2014 Internet Librarian conference. This conference will be held at the Monterey Conference Center in Monterey, California on October 27-29. Detailed information about the conference can be found on the conference web page.

The price of the conference with the discount is $349 for the three-day event (October 27-29) and $99 on the Internet@Schools Track (October 27-28) and $649 for Library Leaders Digital Strategy Summit. (No discount rates are available for the pre-conference seminars).

To receive the discount you will need to register online and enter a promotional discount code assigned to the Nebraska Library Commission. (After successfully entering the discount code the discounted prices should appear on the Conference Options portion of the online form.) Online registration can be made until September 26. To request the discount code please contact Susan Knisely.

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Free Webinars List

The list of Free Webinars for July includes 43 different programs.  But if none of them do it for you, did you know that you could check  on programs offered in previous months?  Most Webinars are archived, and their shelf life is at least a few years, so why not view some not-so-oldies but goodies?  Just take the URL of the current Free Webinars list (http://nlc.nebraska.gov/CE/webinars.aspx) and after the character string “webinars” add the date in the format yyyymm.  So the URL for April’s list of Webinars, for example, is http://nlc.nebraska.gov/CE/webinars201404.aspx .  Last November’s list is at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/CE/webinars201311.aspx.  Listings go back to October 2011.

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NCompass Live: The 2014 Public Library Accreditation Process: What Do I Need to Know?

NCompass live smallJoin us for next week’s NCompass Live: “The 2014 Public Library Accreditation Process: What Do I Need to Know?”, on Wednesday, July 2, 10:00-11:00 am Central Time.

Richard Miller, Library Development Director at the Nebraska Library Commission, will discuss the public library Accreditation process for 2014. He will show how the application form works, relate that process to the required strategic plan, and describe a few changes made since 2013.

Join us to hear about Accreditation, and get a head start if your library is up for re-accreditation in 2014. If your library is not currently Accredited, you’ll want to participate also to explore the possibility of becoming Accredited. This presentation will be of special interest to public library directors and public library board members.

Upcoming NCompass Live events:

  • July 9 – Is It Copyrighted? Can I Use It?
  • July 16 – Engaging Writers with a Community Novel Project
  • July 23 – Opportunity – Collaboration – Engagement: UNL Extension’s Community Vitality Initiative
  • July 30 – Tech Talk with Michael Sauers

For more information, to register for NCompass Live, or to listen to recordings of past events, go to the NCompass Live webpage.

NCompass Live is broadcast live every Wednesday from 10am – 11am Central Time. Convert to your time zone on the Official U.S. Time website. The show is presented online using the GoToWebinar online meeting service. Before you attend a session, please see the NLC Online Sessions webpage for detailed information about GoToWebinar, including system requirements, firewall permissions, and equipment requirements for computer speakers and microphones.

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Nebraska Libraries Urged to Participate in September: Library Card Sign-up Month

Stan_Lee_PSA_728x90This September, Stan Lee, co-creator of Spider-Man, the Hulk, X-Men, Iron Man and the Fantastic Four, will encourage children to get the most important school supply of all: a library card.

As the Honorary Chair of Library Card Sign-up Month, Lee has donated his image to a print and digital public service announcement (PSA). ALA will place the PSA in magazines and on websites to remind parents and educators that a library card is a key tool in achieving academic success.

Lee’s latest creation is Zodiac, an action-packed illustrated novel written by Lee and Stuart Moore and illustrated by Andie Tong. In the first story, we follow Steven Lee, a young Chinese-American teen who is drawn into a mysterious conspiracy surrounding 12 mystical pools of energy and a power-hungry secret organization.

Librarians looking to promote Library Card Sign-up Month locally can download the print and digital PSAs featuring Lee at www.ala.org/librarycardsignup. Free customization is available.

In addition to the PSA, sample media tools are now available to remind the public of all the resources available for free with a library card. Tools include a sample press release, op-ed, proclamation and PSA scripts.

To download free promotional materials, visit www.ala.org/librarycardsignup.

Library Card Sign-up Month is a time when libraries across the country remind parents that a library card is the most important school supply of all. Thousands of public and school libraries join together each fall in a national effort to ensure every child signs up for their own library card.

The Campaign for America’s is Libraries is the ALA’s public awareness campaign that promotes the value of libraries and librarians. Thousands of libraries of all types – across the country and around the globe – use the Campaign’s @ your library® brand. The Campaign is made possible in part by ALA’s Library Champions.

Please comment below to share your plans for participation in Library Card Sign-up Month.

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Throwback Thursday: NLC circa 1926

NLC 1926

Interior photo of NLC located at University of Nebraska Campus Social Science Building Office, circa 1926

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Doc Spot: Drought Monitor Map

Good news!  Drought continues to lessen across Nebraska, according to the latest Drought Monitor Map for the week ending June 22, 2014:

DroughtMap

This map is just one of the many resources provided by the National Drought Mitigation Center, which is housed at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.  Visit the website for news, state and national maps, monitoring tools, information for kids, and resources for teachers.

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Going Postal…

In the more than two hundred years since Benjamin Franklin was appointed our first Postmaster General in 1775, the Postal Service™ has grown and changed with America.   Not only have there been changes in moving the mail (ranging from the basic horse and rider Pony Express, to stagecoaches, trains, boats, airplanes, and even dog sled), but there have also been changes in post office buildings. The types of buildings used, and the architecture of Nebraska post offices through the years can easily be seen in the many photographs and postcards found in Nebraska Memories.

Unnamed POThis first picture, taken by Nebraska photographer John Nelson, shows an early 1900’s Nebraska town with a dirt street lined with buildings. One of the stores has a sign on it that says, “Brown’s” which was also the post office.

It was not uncommon for a general store to serve as the town post office as well.  The building in this picture, with its’ plain front and wooden sidewalk, was not many years removed from and not much changed from frontier days style buildings.

 

Many buildings and businesses did double and even triple duty, like this undertaker, furniture and post office storefront in Papillion, Nebraska, circa 1907. PapillionPO

The building was located on the west side of Washington Street between First and Second Streets, but had a little more “modern” store front with big plate glass windows. Charles West (probably the man on the right) served as the Postmaster of Papillion from 1901 to 1914. The man on the left is an unidentified clerk.

This next photograph shows another style of  wooden building with a sign identifying it as the Loomis post office.  A long wooden porch covered by an awning runs the length of the building. The postmaster, Gust F. Carlson, stands on the porch, leaning against one of the awning’s support poles. Three other men stand with him, including Axel Veegert (second from right), a mail carrier. A car is parked on the dirt road in front of the building, with a container labeled “U.S. Mail” attached to its side. LoomisPO

Wooden buildings gradually gave way to larger and more grand buildings, as evidenced by these photographs from Fremont, David City, and Omaha, respectively.

FremontPOThis Fremont post office building was on the northwest corner of Sixth and Broad Streets, built in 1893 in the more ornate Richardsonian Romanesque style. This style included the hipped roof with parapeted gable dormers, windows with rounded tops, deep-set windows with transoms, arched entries, and the contrasting smooth and rough wall textures.

 

The David City post office was a one-story red brick building with wide steps leading to white double entry doors with arched contrasting brick-work above, arched windows with matching trim at each side of the door and smaller double-hung windows on the front and sides of the building, bushes around the foundation and lawn on two sides of the corner lot, a street light in front, sidewalks on two sides with brick streets in front. DavidCityPO

 

 

 

 

The postcard below, circa 1914, of the South Omaha branch of the post office, was located at 502 North 24th Street in South Omaha, Nebraska. The building was red brick, two stories tall, with arched windows and doors on the first floor and six columns on the front. SOmahaPO

 

 

The layout of the interiors of buildings that were used as post offices are of interest as well, as seen in the following pictures.

The post Office in Spalding, Nebraska had a long cabinet with many pigeon-holes stuffed with letters, and the postmaster’s desk in front; SpaldingPO

 

 

while another Post Office photograph shows a “Reading Room” where people could sit down at a desk to read their letters.  ReadingPO

 

 

 

 

There is also this photograph of what the post office boxes at the back of the Potter, Nebraska general store looked like:Potter PO

 

 

Thanks for joining me today as we journeyed back to look at Nebraska post office buildings from the past 100+ years.  I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!

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.

 

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What’s Sally Reading?

Books Full of Ideas…

Recently a discussion was held on YALSA-BK about holding a live Clue® game for teens.  One person noted that ideas on how to do this were included in RoseMary Honnold’s 101+ Teen Programs That Work (2003).  I looked through it several years ago and just took another look today.  It is a wonderful resource of ideas from those that need very little funding to those that need quite a bit.  She followed with a second book, More Teen Programs That Work (2005) which follows the same format and has many more ideas to use with teens.  The Library Commission owns both titles and you are welcome to borrow either one whenever they are here.  The publication dates show they are a tad old, but the ideas are still fresh.

Hayes011Patrick Eats his Peas and Other Stories by Geoffrey Hayes begins with Patrick claiming peas are “little green balls of mushy poison.”  Mother is patient and firm, finally Patrick finds his own way to eat a few peas.  The other stories involve Patrick helping with chores, taking a bath, and going to sleep.  Told in graphic novel format the appealing illustrations convey Patrick’s energy, his tendency toward trouble and his parents’ love and patience.  Great for beginning readers.

(The Nebraska Library Commission receives free copies of children’s and young adult books for review from a number of publishers.  After review, the books are distributed free, via the Regional Library Systems, to Nebraska school and public libraries.)

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NCompass Live: Tech Talk with Michael Sauers: Enter the Mozillarian: Weaving the Mozilla and Library Communities

NCompass live smallJoin us for next week’s NCompass Live: “Tech Talk with Michael Sauers: Enter the Mozillarian: Weaving the Mozilla and Library Communities”, on Wednesday, June 25, 10:00-11:00 am Central Time.

More and more librarians and library-lovers are realizing that they have a lot in common with Mozilla. While some people think Mozilla is just a tech company that makes Firefox, these savvy “Mozillarians” know that they’re more than that: Mozilla is a global community of people who believe that openness, innovation, and opportunity are key to the continued health of the Internet.

Mozilla creates initiatives like Webmaker and drives the Hive Learning Networks — both focused on advancing web literacy, connected learning, and digital skills. These programs spark creativity and innovation, as well as build tools, curricula, and a community of people dedicated to helping others. Initiatives that enable citizens to develop 21st-century skills, become creators and shapers of the web, explore interests and opportunities, and develop themselves and their communities. Which kinda sounds like, well, what librarians do 🙂

In this session we’ll highlight some Webmaker tools and resources, showcase some emerging Mozillarians, and give you some easy ways to get started by throwing a Webmaker Party.

Presenters: Åke Nygren, Stockholm Public Library; Chris Lawrence, Mozilla Foundation; Christine Prefontaine, Facilitating Change.

In this monthly feature of NCompass Live, the NLC’s Technology Innovation Librarian, Michael Sauers, will discuss the tech news of the month and share new and exciting tech for your library. There will also be plenty of time in each episode for you to ask your tech questions. So, bring your questions with you, or send them in ahead of time, and Michael will have your answers.

Upcoming NCompass Live events:

  • July 9 – Is It Copyrighted? Can I Use It?
  • July 16 – Engaging Writers with a Community Novel Project
  • July 23 – Opportunity – Collaboration – Engagement: UNL Extension’s Community Vitality Initiative

For more information, to register for NCompass Live, or to listen to recordings of past events, go to the NCompass Live webpage.

NCompass Live is broadcast live every Wednesday from 10am – 11am Central Time. Convert to your time zone on the Official U.S. Time website. The show is presented online using the GoToWebinar online meeting service. Before you attend a session, please see the NLC Online Sessions webpage for detailed information about GoToWebinar, including system requirements, firewall permissions, and equipment requirements for computer speakers and microphones.

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Registration now open for 25th Annual Nebraska Data Users Conference

UNODataRegistration is now open for the 25th Annual Nebraska Data Users Conference, August 19, 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Attend in-person in Omaha or via webcast to learn about the latest data products, methods of access, and applications.

This year’s program includes:

  • A special focus on aging and vital statistics.
  • Release of the initial results from the 2014 Nebraska Metro and Rural Polls.
  • Expanded hands-on computer trainings on American FactFinder, data websites/tools, and data mapping.
  • Facilitated lunchtime discussions, back by popular demand.

Attend the conference to learn about:

  • Census data basics.
  • Powerful online data tools.
  • The latest population trends.
  • Poverty and the new poverty measure.
  • Migration data and brain drain/gain.
  • Library resources and STEM.
  • Using data to apply for grants or to reach your audience.

Register early for full session options. The hands-on computer trainings have 30-person limits and will fill up fast.

 Visit the website or view the attached flier for more details. Register at http://www.unomaha.edu/cpar/register.php.

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Autumn 2013 State Publications List Available

For those wanting to add records to their catalogs for Nebraska state documents, the Autumn 2013 list of Nebraska E-Docs is now available at http://nlc.nebraska.gov/govDocs/ShippingLists/edocsalerts.aspx.

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NEH Museums, Libraries, and Cultural Organizations – applications due Aug. 13, 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; and other face-to-face programs at libraries, community centers, and other public venues.

NEH encourages projects that explore humanities ideas through multiple formats. Proposed projects might include complementary components that deepen an audience’s understanding of a subject: for example, a museum exhibition might be accompanied by a website, mobile app, or discussion programs.

Types of Museums, Libraries, 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 support final scholarly research and consultation, design development, production, and installation of a project for presentation to the public.

Closing date for applications: August 13, 2014.

For more information, visit http://www.neh.gov/grants/mlco.

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NEST 529, College Savings Plan Scholarships!

NEST 529, College Savings Plan Scholarships!

We are excited to announce the opportunity for children and teens, ages 3-18, to have their names entered into a drawing for a $529 scholarship. Fifteen names will be drawn, five each from our three Congressional Districts.  In order to be included in the drawing, children and teens need to complete their library’s summer reading program, as determined by each individual public library.  Additionally, each winner’s home library will receive $250.

Information, Official Rules, and a sample file for name submissions can be found here.

Instructions included on Tab 1 of the sample submission file are:

  • Please inform parents or guardians of the library’s intention to submit the children’s names for the drawing.  The parent or guardian has the right to exclude their child from the drawing.
  • Print out and post the Official Rules for the NEST 529 drawing.
  • As stated in the Official Rules — “Eligibility: Participation is open only to individual, legal Nebraska residents 3 to 18 years of age as of the date of entry.”
  • Include a phone number &/or email address to contact each child/teen. (Space for these is included on Tab 2 of the Excel file designed for submission.)
  • Libraries must submit contestant information electronically to the Library Commission.
  • If you do not have Excel or another spreadsheet program, send us the names electronically in an email.
  • In order to receive the scholarship, after the drawing the parents of the winners must agree to establish a 529 College savings account.
  • Email the completed file to Sally Snyder by the Deadline of 11:59:59 p.m., CT, on August 15, 2014.
  • Visit this Library Commission web page for links to the complete rules and a poster to display in your library.

Have a fun summer!

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