Author Archives: Jennifer Wrampe

AASL nationwide video contest asks students how school libraries change lives. The American Association of School Librarians (AASL), in collaboration with ProQuest, Abrams, and SchoolTube, announces the launch of the School Library Month 2014 student video contest “Lives Change @ your library.” Contestants are urged to let loose their creativity and use humor, drama, music and/or special effects to illustrate how the school library program changes a student’s life. Contest rules and eligibility can be found at www.ala.org/aasl/slm/2014/video.

“The theme for this year’s School Library Month, ‘Lives Change @ your library,’ is perfect for a student video contest,” said Gail Dickinson, AASL president. “School libraries change lives by teaching students to think critically, apply knowledge learned to new situations, share knowledge with others, and pursue personal growth. I look forward to seeing how our most important stakeholder – the student – interprets the influence their school library program has in their life.”

Submissions for the video contest will be accepted through April 15, and winners will be announced during School Library Month on April 29. Contest judges will select three winners from all entries received. Only one winner per school will be awarded. Prizes will be awarded to both the student videographer and the student’s school library program. The student prize is a full set of School Library Month spokesperson Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid books provided by Abrams. The school library program will receive a one-year subscription to CultureGrams, an online database from ProQuest that brings the world to the library and classroom. In addition to earning prizes, the winning videos will be featured on the AASL, ProQuest, and SchoolTube and websites and social networking platforms.

The American Association of School Librarians, www.aasl.org, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), promotes the improvement and extension of library services in elementary and secondary schools as a means of strengthening the total education program. Its mission is to advocate excellence, facilitate change and develop leaders in the school library field.

Charles “Chuck” Schroeder, newly hired executive director of the UNL Rural Futures Institute will headline the Nebraska Museums Association annual meeting and conference April 1 and 2 in Cozad, The Palisade native and former museum director will engage museum staff and volunteers in considering ways their organizations can help rethink and revitalize rural life.

Other sessions include a collections care clinic with objects conservator Deborah Long of the Gerald R. Ford Conservation Center in Omaha, who will help diagnose particular storage and deterioration problems on April 1. Librarians who are interested in attending only the conservation workshop are encouraged to see details on the NMA website.

Roundtable sessions on grant funding, heritage tourism, agricultural history, social media for museums and more are scheduled for April 2. Tours of museums in the area will feature stops at the 100th Meridian Museum, the Robert Henri Museum & art in the Wilson Library & Homestead Bank in Cozad; the Heartland Museum of Military Vehicles and the Dawson County Historical Society in Lexington; the Pony Express Station, Gothenburg Historical Society and the Sod House Museum in Gothenburg.

A $45 NMA member registration fee includes an evening reception on April 1 at Cozad’s Chipper Hall and breakfast and lunch on April 2. Non-member registration is $60. Blocks of rooms are available at group rates through March 11 in Cozad, Gothenburg,and Lexington. For more details, visit www.nebraskamuseums.org

The Nebraska Museums Association brings together individuals and organizations engaged in providing educational experiences, preserving collections, and connecting people with museum resources related to art, history, science, natural history, and the humanities across the state. It provides workshops, conferences, on-line resources and discussion groups to help museum staff and volunteers create strong public service to their communities.

Lynne Ireland
Deputy Director
Nebraska State Historical Society
PO Box 82554
Lincoln, NE 68501

p: (402) 471-4758
f: (402) 471-3100
lynne.ireland@nebraska.gov

Your Nebraska source for the histories we share

Five hundred libraries, of all types, will be helping their communities become money smart, April 5-12. Money Smart Week @ your library® is a partnership initiative between the American Library Association and the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago to expand Money Smart Week® to libraries across the country. Nebraska libraries are invited to join them in presenting programs related to personal financial literacy for all ages, and all stages, of life. Libraries are partnering with community groups, financial institutions, government agencies, educational organizations, and other financial experts to help library customers learn to better manage their personal finances. General topic areas range from “Credit and Debt Management,” to “Kid’s and Money,” to “Retirement Planning,” to “Savvy Shopping and Bargain Hunting.”

Volusia County Library System’s Ormond Beach branch will present “Dressing On A Dime—shopping tips from the second hand clothing world—learn how recycling & repurposing thrift store fashions can save money.” Marshall Public Library in Pocatello (ID) has teamed up with the police department to present “Scams, Cons, and Frauds: How to Protect Yourself and Your Money,” with the Pocatello Police Department offering instruction to older library customers on how to protect themselves from financial scams and frauds. Bristol Public Library (CT) is planning a session on “Taking Control: A Financial Planning Starter Kit” to help library customers learn the eight steps for taking control of their finances through budgeting, spending plans, setting goals, managing debt, and more. The Iberia Parish workshop, “Home Buying and Financing 101: What Inside Tips You Need To Know,” will bring library customers together with area experts in real estate to discuss different types of loans and lender advantages. Floyd J. Robinson Memorial Library in Raleigh (MS) will host “Helping Your Money Last in Retirement,” a workshop on ways to make money last in retirement and the challenges ahead for retirees. The Chester Fritz Library at the University of North Dakota is hosting a program for faculty, students, and staff on “Money Smart–Understanding Credit Scores and Cash Tiers.” For some communities, offering programs in languages other than English is important. Kern County Library (CA) has a session on “Curso Bancario Basico,” and Pima County Library (AZ) will be providing homebuyer education with “Aprende el Proceso de Comprar Casa.”

Money Smart Week @ your library® information and resources for Nebraska libraries can be found at Money Smart Week® or contact:

Michael Dowling,
Director
International and Chapter Relations Offices
American Library Association
50 E Huron St
Chicago, IL, USA
p +1 800-545-2433 ext. 3200
f  +1 312-280-4392
http://www.ala.org/iro

Preservation Week is April 27 – May 3, 2014. The Preservation Week website is here to help Nebraska librarians to host a Preservation Week celebration. Join Donia Conn for tips on how to host an event, find a speaker, and use the Preservation Week web site to its fullest. Upon completion of this webinar, you will be able to confidently navigate the Preservation Week web site to assist in planning and hosting a Preservation Week event.

Any librarian thinking about planning a Preservation Week event or those already working on one should plan on attending. Join your colleagues for this free webinar at 1:00 p.m. Central/Noon Mountain on Wednesday, Feb. 12.

“Hosting a Preservation Week® Event” is a free webinar from the Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS) and is generously supported by Acme-HF Group and George Blood, L.P. celebrating Preservation Week.

Donia Conn is an independent consultant for small and mid-sized cultural heritage institutions. She has worked in the fields of conservation and preservation for almost 20 years, specializing in book conservation and preservation training. She presents workshops and webinars on preservation and digitization topics, consults with institutions on disaster planning and preservation issues and is adjunct faculty for the Simmons College Graduate School of Library and Information Science teaching Preservation Management and Collections Maintenance. She has been one of the people working on developing Preservation Week since 2009.  She is also the host of “Dear Donia,” a feature of Preservation Week.

To register go to GOTOWEBINAR : https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/627890216

For questions or comments related to this free webinar, contact Julie Reese, ALCTS Events Manager at 1-800-545-2433, ext. 5034 or jreese@ala.org.

The time has come to DIY @ your library! Registration for Teen Tech Week™, the Young Adult Library Services Association’s (YALSA) annual celebration of digital literacy and technology via the library, is now open at www.ala.org/teentechweek.

Teen Tech Week™ is March 9-15, 2014, with a theme of DIY @ your library, and is a chance to demonstrate the value your library gives to the community.  Use the week to raise awareness about how your library creates a space to extend teens’ learning beyond the classroom where they can explore, create and share content. From maker spaces, to coding classes to online knitting clubs, libraries can leverage the do-it-yourself theme to show how libraries provide meaningful contributions to the educational and social development of the teens in your community.

“Teen Tech Week is a great opportunity for libraries to showcase all of the great digital resources and services that are available to teens and their families,” said YALSA President Shannon Peterson. “Signing up for the site helps demonstrate that libraries around the country consider technology an important part of teen lives and an important part of the programs and services offered by libraries.”

For more information and to join, please visit the Teen Tech Week website. Help get the word out about this event with the hashtag #TTW14.

Check out the new ALA Graphics Winter 2013 catalog featuring YALSA’s Teen Tech Week theme — DIY @ your library® on the cover. Emphasize your participation with the new poster and bookmark to show that libraries can connect in meaningful ways with the teens in your community. Visit the ALA Store online to purchase your TTW products today.

Teen Tech Week is a national initiative sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association and is aimed at teens, their parents, educators and other concerned adults. The purpose of the initiative is to ensure that teens gain the digital literacy skills they need—with the help of libraries—in order to be successful in school and prepared to participate in a 21st century workforce.

For more information see http://www.ala.org/news/press-releases/2013/11/yalsa-announces-2014-teen-tech-week.

Below  are some titles from the Nebraska Library Commission Collection that may help with Teen Tech Week. As always, please contact the Information Services Team if you’d like to check out any of these titles:

The Handheld Library:  Mobile Technology and the Librarian, edited by Thomas A. Peters and Lori Bell, Z680.5 .H36 2013
The Information Behavior of a New Generation:  Children and Teens in the 21st Century, edited by Jamshid Beheshti and Andrew Large, ZA3075 .I5325 2013
Semantic Web Technologies and Social Searching for Librarians, by Robin M. Fay, Michael P. Sauers, ZA4240 .F39 2012
Teens, Libraries, and Social Networking, What Librarians Need to Know, edited by Denise E. Agosto and June Abbas, Z718.5 .T446 2011
UContent:  the Information Professional’s Guide to User-Generated Content, by Nicholas G. Tomaiuolo, ZA4482 .T66 2012

Money Smart Week^® is a public awareness campaign designed to help consumers better manage their personal finances. This is achieved through the collaboration and coordinated effort of hundreds of organizations across the country including businesses, financial institutions, schools, libraries, not-for-profits, government agencies and the media. These groups come together once a year to stress the importance of financial literacy, inform consumers about where they can get help, and provide free educational seminars and activities throughout the week. The participation of Nebraska libraries is critical to the success of this effort.

Programming is offered to all demographics and income levels and can cover any facet of personal finance—from establishing a budget, to first time home buying, to estate planning. The effort was created by the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago in 2002. Money Smart Week partners will be hosting events during April 5 – 12, the week immediately prior to National Library Week.The Money Smart Week partner registration page is now open. (If your library participated and registered last year you don’t need to re-register). Please take a few minutes to get registered. Use the link below and scroll down the page to the Partner Registration Section ‘Step 3-Ready to Register? Click Here’ (Make sure you select ‘library’ as your organization type when you register) at http://www.moneysmartweekpartners.org/registration

The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago has included logos and other promotional material that you can download for free to use at http://www.moneysmartweekpartners.org/logos. For states or regions where a statewide coalition has been created, specific logos are available. Also included are the Money Smart Week @ your library logos, posters, etc. The signage poster is still from last year but will be updated soon. This year there are also posters with space included to allow you to add your programs, name, etc.

For those who would like to purchase bookmarks or posters ALA is offering, for purchase, bookmarks and posters to help you promote Money Smart Week @ your library. The cost for a pack of 250 bookmarks is $10 (plus $7 shipping) and 24” X 36” posters are also $10 (plus $7 shipping). Please place your orders by February 7. They will be printed and distributed the first week of March, a month before MSW.

Applications for cycle two of the Citizens-Save-Libraries grants from United for Libraries, made possible by a grant from the Neal-Schuman Foundation, are due April 15.

The 10 libraries that are selected will receive two days of onsite consultation by advocacy experts, who will help friends of the library groups, library directors and trustees develop individual blueprints for advocacy campaigns to restore, increase or save threatened library budgets.

Among the criteria to apply is a willingness to “pay it forward” by sharing what is learned with others in their states through presentations at local conferences, articles written for the state library association journal and a willingness to answer questions and support other advocacy campaigns via digital media and Skype. The first 10 libraries were selected in 2013.

As part of the grant, a Citizens-Save-Libraries Power Guide that lays out a step-by-step blueprint for libraries to follow in generating advocacy campaigns is available to all libraries at no cost. The Power Guide is available at www.ala.org/united/powerguide.

To apply for the grants, visit www.ala.org/united/grants_awards/neal-schuman.

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.

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.

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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

Readings by winning Nebraska writers and book designers will highlight the Nebraska Center for the Book’s Celebration of Nebraska Books on October 26 at the Nebraska State Historical Society’s Museum of Nebraska History, 15th and P Streets, in downtown Lincoln. Presenters will include the following 2013 Nebraska Book Award Winners:

Fiction writers: Joy Castro, Hell or High Water and Sean Doolittle, Lake Country: A Novel.

Non-fiction writers: Ron Hull, Backstage: Stories from My Life in Public Television; Lisa Knopp, What the River Carries: Encounters with the Mississippi, Missouri, and Platte; Tom Lynch and Susan Maher, Artifacts & Illuminations: Critical Essays on Loren Eiseley; James Potter, Standing Firmly by the Flag:  Nebraska Territory and the Civil War, 1861-1867; and Robert Puschendorf, Nebraska’s Post Office Murals: Born of the Depression, Fostered by the New Deal.

Writers of books for children and youth: Ted Kooser, House Held Up by Trees and Nancy Plain, Light on the Prairie: Solomon D. Butcher, Photographer of Nebraska’s Pioneer Days.

Cover/Design/Illustration artists: Elysia Mann, In Times of Considerable Wars and Interludes by Don Welch and Nathan Putens, Nebraska’s Post Office Murals: Born of the Depression, Fostered by the New Deal by Robert Puschendorf.

The celebration, free and open to the public, will also feature presentation of the Nebraska Center for the Book’s Jane Geske Award to the Nebraska Library Commission for exceptional contribution to literacy, books, reading, libraries, and literature in Nebraska. 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 Pope Geske was a founding member of the Nebraska Center for the Book, former director of the Nebraska Library Commission, and a long-time leader in Nebraska library and literary activities.

This year the Celebration marks the ninth year of One Book One Nebraska, selecting and promoting a book title for Nebraskans to read to celebrate the literary richness of our state. O Pioneers! is the 2013 One Book One Nebraska, and Nebraska libraries and other literary and cultural organizations across the state are hosting activities and events to encourage all Nebraskans to read and discuss the same book (see http://onebook.nebraska.gov.)

The Nebraska Center for the Book Annual Meeting will be held at 2:30 p.m.—just prior to the 3:30-6:30 p.m. celebration. An awards reception honoring the winning authors, book signings, and announcement of the 2014 One Book One Nebraska book choice will conclude the festivities.

The Celebration of Nebraska Books is sponsored by Nebraska Center for the Book, Humanities Nebraska, and Nebraska Library Commission, in partnership with the Nebraska State Historical Society, Museum of Nebraska History, and the Friends of the University of Nebraska Press. 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.

In conjunction with Teen Read Week, ALA’s the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) created an online campaign to raise awareness of the important role libraries play in helping teens develop and master critical literacy skills. Nebraska library staff and supporters are invited to help get the word out about it by using a platform called Thunderclap to flood Twitter and Facebook with the “take action to support teen literacy & libraries” message. The Thunderclap allows people to pledge a Twitter, Tumblr or Facebook message that is unleashed at the same time. It’s completely safe and will automatically post exactly one message on your behalf at noon CT , on Oct. 19. The message has been pre-created by YALSA and says: “Teen Read Week is ur chance 2 support teen #literacy & #libraries! Check out these 10 easy ways 2 take action! http://ow.ly/pBXXy” 

It takes 10 seconds to join the Thunderclap so you can send out the message—here’s how:

•             Click on this link http://thndr.it/GJ9MSd
•             Choose Twitter, Facebook and/or Tumblr
•             From the new screen, log into your Twitter, Facebook and/or Tumblr account
•             That’s it!  You can opt to share the Thunderclap with others (please do!), or just close the box

Please sign up for the Thunderclap by no later than 11:00 a.m. CT, on Oct. 19.  To learn more about Teen Read Week, visit www.ala.org/teenread. To learn about other ways to support library services for teens, visit www.ala.org/yalsa/advocacy

The American Library Association (ALA) is now accepting nominations for the ALA Excellence in Library Programming Award, sponsored by the ALA Cultural Communities Fund. The award recognizes a library that has created and presented an exemplary cultural/thematic program or series in the past year (Sept. 1, 2012 – Aug. 31, 2013) that encouraged community participation, planning or sponsorship, addressed a community need and made a measurable impact. All types of libraries are eligible — school, public, academic and special — but the nominated program or series must have been for a public audience. To learn more about the award, and the 2013 award winning programming, visit http://www.ala.org/awardsgrants/ala-excellence-library-programming-award.

The award consists of $5,000 and a citation of achievement that will be presented during the ALA Awards Presentation at the 2014 ALA Annual Conference in Las Vegas. Submit your application here: http://www.ala.org/tools/ala-excellence-library-programming-award-nomination-form.

Through a generous challenge grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the ALA Public Programs Office established the ALA Cultural Communities Fund to support cultural programming in all types of libraries. Ten years later CCF continues to make possible high-quality professional development for librarians, development of new program models and recognition of excellence in library programming through achievement awards. To see a list of donors who have generously supported CCF, please visit http://www.ala.org/offices/ppo/ccf/ccfdonors.