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Category Archives: Information Resources
VA Fry Scholarship for Surviving Family Members
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and TAPS (www.taps.org) recently started working together to ensure surviving family members are connected to their VA benefits. This includes the Marine Gunnery Sergeant John D. Fry scholarship (http://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill/docs/factsheets/fry_scholarship.pdf), which provides Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits to children of Service members who died in the line of duty after Sept. 10, 2001. The benefit includes full in-state tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance and a books and supplies stipend.
By working with non-profit organizations like TAPS helps us stay connected and ensure all eligible dependents know – and use – the Fry Scholarship, hosting economic competitiveness summits across the country, and launching new online employment tools, we continue to work hard to connect transitioning Servicemembers, Veterans and their family members with meaningful employment and rewarding careers.
Additional information can also be found at, http://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/14212/program-works-with-va-to-support-family-members/.
SBA Launches Accelerator Competition to Award $2.5 Million for Small Business Startups
The Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that the SBA is launching a $2.5 million competition for accelerators and other entrepreneurial ecosystem models to compete for monetary prizes of $50,000 each. To award the prizes, an expert panel of judges will consider each applicant’s stated mission, founding team members and business goals among other core components. The deadline for applying is August 2, 2014.
The panel will give particular attention to, and the SBA encourages, applicants that fill geographic gaps in the accelerator and entrepreneurial ecosystem space. It is well known that the most successful accelerators to date were founded on the coasts. Through this competition, we are looking to support the development of accelerators and thus startups in parts of the country where there are fewer conventional sources of access to capital (i.e., venture capital and other investors).
In addition to accelerators which fill the gaps described above, we are also seeking accelerators which are run by and support women or other underrepresented groups. Lastly, special consideration will be given to any accelerator models which support manufacturing.
For the purposes of this competition, Growth Accelerators include accelerators, incubators, co-working startup communities, shared tinker-spaces or other models to accomplish similar goals.
Over the coming months, SBA will be working with a number of partners such as the Global Accelerator Network (GAN) and others to host a number of Demo Days across the country. Demo Days provide opportunities for networking and the sharing of best practices among accelerators and other entrepreneurial ecosystem models. The first Demo Day of 2014 was held in Austin, Texas at the Capital Factory and concurrent with the South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival. Thirteen accelerators across multiple industries and geographies gave five minute pitches to a room full of their peers. SBA is working to develop more of these events to happen in different cities around the country in 2014. Finalists in the competition will also be participating in a Demo Day remotely, thus there is no requirement for applicants to participate in the in-person events.
To apply visit sba.gov or challenge.gov. For additional questions, contact accelerators@sba.gov.
Gardens Galore
I think the great botanist Luther Burbank had it right when he wrote: “Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful: they are sunshine, food and medicine to the soul.” This is the time of year when the gardeners amongst us delight in planning, purchasing for, and planting their gardens. In eastern Nebraska the onions, spuds and peas were planted weeks ago and the daffodils are over until next spring. Vegetable and flower seedlings are on sale everywhere–markets, grocery stores, building supply stores, and nurseries. Nebraskans of earlier times loved gardening too, as photos of gardens and nurseries in Nebraska Memories tell us. The color postcard above feaures 25 acres of gorgeous peonies abloom in the J.F. Rosenfield Peony Gardens in Omaha. Rosenfield had a farm near West Point, Nebraska, and bred many peonies, which he sold from his nursery.
Plumfield Nurseries in Fremont was in business for many years. In the photo on the left cannas are planted in front of the nursery wall. 
A mass planting of cannas is the centerpiece of the photo on the right at Westfield Acres, home of Frank and Jessie Fowler of Fremont.
Gardening is also good for the mind, and several Lincoln schools had gardens that students worked in. The McKinley School was located at 230 S. 15th Street and the children are shown posing with hoes and trowels in this 1913 photo.
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 information, or contact Beth Goble, Historical Services Librarian, or Devra Dragos, Technology & Access Services Director.
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Join Us Online April 30 for Smart Investing: Reference Strategies and Resources
Learn how librarians can take advantage of “Smart Investing: Reference Strategies and Resources,” a self-paced course to promote confidence and competence in responding to library customers’ questions on personal finance and investments. The April 30 edition of NCompass Live: Smart Investing: Reference Strategies and Resources will give you a guided tour to the resources that can help you direct your library customers to the best in money management resources.
This online training course was originally developed for Santa Clara County Library District (SCCLD) reference staff. It is available to all Nebraska librarians who would like to improve their reference strategies and knowledge of financial literacy concepts and resources.
This online curriculum is being offered as part of the Nebraska Library Commission and Northeast Library System’s “Smart Investing @ your library® Builds Nebraska Communities” project funded by a $100,000 FINRA Investor Education Foundation grant. Although the 22 public libraries participating in that project will benefit by receiving Financial Literacy Resource Kits and customer financial literacy training in their libraries later this year, all of Nebraska’s libraries are welcome to participate in the online librarian training.
This program is made possible by a grant from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation through Smart investing@your library®, a partnership with the American Library Association. The project is coordinated in Nebraska by the Nebraska Library Commission.
Health Happens in Libraries: New Resources from WebJunction
Here are the newest resources to support your library’s efforts in connecting patrons with Affordable Care Act and other health information needs!
- Registration is now open for the May 28 webinar from the Health Happens in Libraries team focused on Technology Planning for eHealth (2 PM ET/11 AM PT). You can learn more and register here. We look forward to learning together about how public libraries can leverage their technology infrastructure to better serve the health information needs of patrons!
- Enroll America is hosting a webinar on April 23 on Shifting Gears: The Enrollment Landscape Post-March 31 (2 PM ET/11 AM PT). Learn more and register to join this timely conversation here.
The Health Happens in Libraries team has organized content to support libraries as they continue to help patrons Navigate the Marketplace. Although the official open enrollment period to sign-up for individual healthcare coverage through the Marketplace has ended, libraries can use these resources throughout the year to plan for future enrollment periods, connect with local partners, and to help patrons who may be eligible for special enrollment circumstances.
Webinar Watch: Older. Wiser. Want to start a Business?
Want to start a business and be your own boss? Be a ‘Boomer-preneur’. Free how-to webinar for 50+ entrepreneurs April 24, 2:00 – 3:00 PST.
Small business ownership is an attractive option for many baby boomers who want to do something they care about, are good at and enjoy. And entrepreneurship can be a way to turn a hobby or passion into additional income.
You’re ready for a new challenge …..….. and thinking about starting your own business. There is no time like the present, and now could be YOUR time!
- Find out what it takes to get started, and if owning a business is for you.
- Hear successful over-50 business owners tell how they got their business off the ground.
- Connect with free one-on-one face-to-face counseling to help you get started.
It’s free, but registration is required here: http://over-50nevada.eventbrite.com or call 775-827-4923
To Join the Webinar: 1-888-858-2144 Access Code: 7039554
ALSO: Log on to the website: https://www.teleconference.att.com/servlet/ATTClogin to view the presentation.
Doc Spot: FRED
Short for Federal Reserve Economic Data, FRED is an online database consisting of thousands of economic data time series from national, international, public, and private sources. Created and maintained by the Research Department at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, FRED goes far beyond simply providing data: It combines data with a powerful mix of tools, new and old, that help the user understand, interact with, display, and disseminate the data.
For example, FRED now features new graphs. They are visually more appealing, and also have new capabilities. Users can share graphs easily, embed a graph into a blog, and also now create stacked graphs. If you are interested in seeing it in action, here’s an example of a stacked graph of the components of GDP (GDP = Consumption + Investment + Government + Net Exports).
FRED also has user dashboards. When a user creates an account in FRED, s/he may also create a dashboard of personally selected data. Users can create multiple dashboards, and they may be open to the public or kept private. US Economic Indicators is an example of a public dashboard.
Last, but not least, FRED now has a blog. It will have posts about twice a week, and will highlight interesting data and FRED graph features. It’s a great way to keep up on the latest features and data in FRED.
If you haven’t visited FRED recently (or ever), go take a look–you’ll be glad you did!
Looking for free refugee health information in multiple languages?
Healthy Roads Media has reformatted a DVD, (Safe , Smart, and Healthy) from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services into short videos, now viewable on their website. There are 28 segments, produced in 33 languages, with two new personal hygiene topics in 16 languages. All are available as streaming web videos.
Check them out at the Healthy Roads Media Refugee Health Orientation page.
Marty Magee
mmagee@unmc.edu
Are You Signed Up For the TRIAL Mailing List?
Are you signed up for the Nebraska Library Commission’s TRIAL mailing list? If so, then you know I just sent out a mailing list message with instructions on how to log in to Infobase Learning’s open trial of over 20 of their popular online databases, including Ferguson’s Career Guidance Center, Issues & Controversies, and World News Digest.
If you’re not signed up for the Nebraska Library Commission’s TRIAL mailing list, then you missed this juicy announcement, along with at least three others in the last two weeks announcing free trial access to McGraw-Hill’s AccessScience and AccessEngineering databases, the new ProQuest Research Companion information literacy solution, and six CountryWatch databases.
To make sure you don’t miss future trial announcements go to the Nebraska Library Commission Mailing Lists page and subscribe today! To request copies of recent trial announcements you might have missed, contact Susan Knisely.
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Map Exhibit
Did you know there are over 5,500 items in Nebraska Memories? Having that many items is wonderful and I’m always wanting to add more however unless you make a conscious effort to look at everything you may not see each of these 5,500+ items.
One addition we made as part of the roll out of the New Memories was to add the map exhibit on the home page. This new exhibit provides us with a way to highlight some of the items included in Nebraska Memories. Periodically we will change the images to highlight different collections, items and topics. To learn more about the highlighted items click anyplace on the map to display the map exhibit page. Here you will find a list of the items currently being highlighted and links to the full records for each item that includes additional information and a larger version of the item.
The current exhibit of 13 items highlights some of the snow and winter scenes found in Nebraska Memories. While you may be thinking it’s time to update the images and get rid of snow I want to point out the photo titled Crawford business area, blizzard of 1927. Someone has written the date April 18-’27 on the front of it. Because the snow piles are so high I was curious to know how much snow Crawford received around this time period so I did a few quick searches and located the digitized version of the book Climatological data Nebraska Section, Volumes 24-32 by the National Climatic Center, National Climatic Data Center (U.S.). The climatological date for the month of April 1927 starts on page 15 of this document. While I did not find the total snowfall for Crawford I did find this: “The average for the Northwest Division of the State was 21 inches, which is the greatest April fall in that Division during the 38 years of record.” Going back to page 13 of the same document it shows that the Northwest Division had already received an average of 16.2 inches of snow in March. These numbers could explain the large piles of snow visible in the picture.
For those of you who have had enough snow don’t worry we are working on a new map exhibit to go up in April. This new exhibit will be snow free. It will include a picture of Grandpa using his “Waterloo” to plow a field, a group of folks celebrating National Air Mail Week 
and more than one graduating class. When you see the new exhibit don’t forget all you need to do to learn more about any of the featured photos is to click on the map.
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.
You can now follow us on Google+ and Tumblr
If you’re a user of either Google+ or Tumblr, you can now follow the commission on those services. As a reminder, you can check out all of the Social services where you can find us on our Social Networking Links page.
Free webinar “New Additions: The Catalog of U.S. Government Publications & Related Service Enhancements” now open for registration
Register today for the live training webinar “New Additions: The Catalog of U.S. Government Publications & Related Service Enhancements” which will be offered on Thursday, April 10, 2014.
- Start Time: 1:00 p.m. Central Time/Noon, Mountain Time
- Duration: 60 minutes
- Summary: Attendees will be guided through a tour of the latest additions and enhancements to the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications. The New Titles feature, FDLP eBooks, and GPO’s MetaLib will all be explored.
Registration is required. Space is limited on a first-come, first-served basis. Upon registering, an e-mail confirmation of registration will include instructions for joining the Webinar.
Registration confirmations for the Webinar will be sent from <sqldba@ icohere.com>. To ensure delivery of registration confirmations, registrants should configure junk mail or spam filter(s) to permit messages from that email address
CountryWatch Database Trials
CountryWatch Inc. is offering Nebraska libraries trial access to the following databases through May 15, 2014:
- CountryWatch Premium Online
- CountryWatch Youth Edition
- CountryWatch Forecasts (Macro, Energy, Metals & Agriculture)
- CountryWatch Election Central
- CountryWatch Political Intelligence Briefing
- Country Profile Video Series
Trial URL: http://www.countrywatch.com/login.aspx
Trial access instructions were distributed via a March 20, 2014 message to the TRIAL mailing list. If you did not receive this information and would like to have it sent to you, please email Susan Knisely
Discounted pricing and ordering instructions for these databases are available online.
Want to receive email notification of future database trials and discounted pricing? Make sure you are signed up for the Nebraska Library Commission’s TRIAL mailing list. You can learn more about mailing lists maintained by the Nebraska Library Commission, including how to subscribe, on our Nebraska Library Commission Mailing Lists page.
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New Government E-Books Available
New government e-books are available on the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications website. While you’re there, be sure to check out other government titles available online.
Featuring the Film: How Book Adaptations Get Patrons Reading
“For many readers, news that their favorite book will be adapted to film can be thrilling. Films bring the words to life, create new worlds and transform beloved characters into living, breathing flesh and blood. Films make us see these books in new ways, especially when artistic license is taken in condensing and enlivening long books into neat, two-hour packages.
And yet… how often have we heard friends lament, or complain ourselves: the book was better! Sure, films are great, but they don’t offer the same inclusion of the book. Watching a film, the viewer is merely an observer, and doesn’t feel everything the character feels, as you would when reading the book. There are no limits, no restrictions, no computer-generated-images trying to suspend your disbelief.
However, what most people don’t understand is that the standoff between books and film is like trying to decide if chocolate bars or chocolate ice cream is better. They are two completely different mediums, and should be experienced differently, with different expectations. Once we settle on the fact that there is no reason to qualify one over the other, films can become a terrific resource for programs intent on the celebration of reading!
Film screening tie-ins are a wonderful addition to any community or all campus reads programming. Indeed, being introduced to the film first often encourages readers to pick up the book, enriches book discussions, and motivates reluctant readers to turn out. ” (Reprinted from Books in Common–http://www.booksincommon.org)
To get you started with some book-to-film ideas, here are a few titles available from the Book Club Kits at the Nebraska Library Commission:
What about “Beer, Yeast and Louis Pasteur?”
There is an answer…Aren’t you curious about the why? Learn about historical topics, such as the Garfield assassination or “Beer, Yeast, and Louis Pasteur” , or Super Heroes with a Serious Message (produced in cooperation with Marvel Comics) through a new National Library of Medicine website called “Circulating Now.” It’s available at: http://circulatingnow.nlm.nih.gov. This interesting new website seeks to choose those gems from the library and focus some attention on them by presenting an applicable picture and short commentary. You can subscribe to receive updates via e-mail, or through RSS. Sign up today!
This is a guest post by Marty Magee of the National Network/Libraries of Medicine.
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Let’s Dance!
Since prehistoric times people have danced. Whether celebrating at special occasions, preserving their cultural heritage, or just having a good time, Nebraskans like to dance. In Nebraska Memories you can find some great examples.
Folk dancing was popular at the Nebraska State Normal Schools in Kearney and Wayne. In the photo above from the University of Nebraska Kearney collection young women are participating in a May Pole Dance. In this picture from the Wayne State College collection a Folk Dancing Class is performing. When these women graduated and began teaching, they probably taught their students to folk dance.
Speaking of having a good time, by the early 20th century, establishments like the Soukup and Petrzilka Tavern in Brainard had sprung up in many Nebraska towns. The white building attached to the back of the tavern in this pre-1911 photo from the Boston Studio collection was a dance hall. Can’t you imagine the patrons dancing to a Czech polka band and enjoying the Storz beer advertised on the outside wall of the tavern?
The Durham Museum Collection includes the two photos below. The 1939 picture on the left makes me wonder if the folks watching the band at the ballroom at Klug Park were there to jitterbug. They certainly are packed into the room, which must have been pretty hot on that July day! 
The couple on the right at a 1938 dance at the Logan Hotel are more formally dressed at what was probably a private party.
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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National Archives to release more Clinton records
The National Archives plans to make public another 4,000 pages of documents from the Clinton White House on Friday, including previously unreleased records related to Vice President Al Gore’s 2000 presidential campaign and the 2000 recount in Florida.
The Clinton Presidential Library intends to make a second batch of records available to the public, part of about 30,000 pages of documents expected to be released from Bill Clinton’s administration in the coming weeks. The records have been highly anticipated as former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton considers a 2016 presidential campaign.
The National Archives said Friday’s installment will include a variety of topics, including the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, papers from health care adviser Ira Magaziner, the transition to the presidency of George W. Bush and records related to terrorism, including the Khobar Towers bombing in 1996.
The archives said other topics would include British Prime Minister Tony Blair, disability rights and documents from several presidential speechwriters.
The former secretary of state’s potential White House campaign has sparked interest in memos and records from her husband’s administration during the 1990s along with her work in public service. Clinton, a former New York senator, is the leading Democratic contender to succeed President Barack Obama should she seek the presidency again.
A first wave of documents released in February provided insight into the Clinton administration’s concern over the failed health care overhaul plan, which Hillary Clinton helped lead, and showed how advisers to the first lady tried to shape her public image. Magaziner was a top Clinton adviser during the health care effort so the new documents could offer more insights into that period.
The papers may also reveal details on the twilight of the Clinton administration, as Gore sought the presidency but ultimately lost to Bush despite winning the popular vote. The records could provide a behind-the-scenes look at how the White House viewed the recount saga in Florida and the abbreviated transition that took place before Bush’s inauguration.
Another topic of interest will involve records related to the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Congress passed the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992, which established an assassination records review board during the Clinton administration to carry out release of records.
About 5 million pages of documents from the Kennedy assassination have been released thus far and all records are to be released by 2017, with some exceptions.
The Clinton records were previously withheld by the National Archives because they were exempt from disclosure under restrictions related to appointments to federal office and confidential advice among the president and his advisers.
Once the restrictions expired in January 2013, the National Archives notified Obama and Clinton’s offices that they intended to release the records so both offices could decide whether to invoke executive privilege on some records. Both offices recently signed off on the release of the documents.
For this story and much more, visit The National Archives.
Reprinted from The AP/Washington Post .
Small Business Administration Grants Available
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced today that it will award grants to state and local economic development agencies, business development centers, colleges and universities to support programs for innovative, technology-driven small businesses under SBA’s Federal and State Technology (FAST) partnership program. Applications for the grants are open now through April 11.
The FAST Program is designed to stimulate economic development among small, high technology businesses through federally-funded innovation and research and development programs like the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR). The project and budget periods are for a 12-month period.
FAST may provide up to $100,000 per award to pay for outreach and technical assistance to science and technology-driven small businesses. The program places particular emphasis on helping socially and economically disadvantaged firms compete in the SBA’s SBIR and STTR programs.
FAST funding awardees must demonstrate in their proposals how they will help support areas such as:
- small business research and development assistance,
- technology transfer from universities to small businesses,
- technological diffusion of innovation benefiting small businesses,
- proposal development and mentoring for small businesses applying for SBIR grants; and,
- commercializing technology developed through SBIR grants.
Proposals will be considered from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories. Only one proposal per state may be submitted. Proposals must be submitted to http://www.grants.gov by 11:59 p.m on April 11.
Proposals will be evaluated by a panel of SBIR program managers. The SBA, the Department of Defense and the National Science Foundation will jointly review the panel’s recommendations and make awards based on proposal merit. The grant requires varying levels of matching funds from each participating state and territory.
Companies supported by the SBIR and STTR programs often generate some of the most important breakthroughs each year in the U.S. For example, about 25 percent of R&D Magazine’s Top 100 Innovations come from SBIR-funded small businesses.
For more information about the SBIR and STTR programs, visit SBA’s website at: http://www.sba.gov/about-sba-services/7050.
Government Printing Office Offers Free Ebooks
The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) is expanding its ebook program to allow free public access to titles in the GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP), a finding tool for federal historical and current publications. About 100 ebooks are now available for download, with new additions each month.
Through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), the GPO distributes certain government documents freely to 1,200 U.S. libraries. The GPO’s expanded ebook program meets the growing needs of the FDLP.
The CGP provides the option to find nearby Federal depository libraries that have specific publications as part of the FDLP and also offers direct links to publications that are online. Topics include the military, agriculture, science, health, and national security.
“Expanding eBooks is another example of GPO’s commitment to serving as the digital information platform for the Federal Government,” says Davita E. Vance-Cooks, public printer of the United States and the GPO’s CEO. “GPO and the library community will continue to work together to provide the public with greater access to Government information in multiple formats.”
