Tag Archives: Library Development

#BookFaceFriday – “Librarian Tales” by William Ottens

This #BookFaceFriday really stacks up!

We are not done hyping NLC’s library science collection! It’s not just textbooks and curriculum, but fun reads like “Librarian Tales: Funny, Strange, and Inspiring Dispatches from the Stacks” by William Ottens (Skyhorse, 2020.) A book of anecdotes that is perfect for library staff and those who think librarians just read all day long. This Library Science Collection provides professional and reference materials for Nebraska librarians and library science programs. This includes all librarians and library science students. The checkout period is 4 weeks, and items can be sent through the mail or picked up in person. You can find all of these books and more in our catalog, or reach out to our reference staff for a recommendation!

“”In this delightful book, Ottens pulls back the cover of library life and the magic and mayhem found within. Librarians will recognize themselves in these wonderful stories, while readers will gain a greater appreciation for their favorite local library.”

Jill Grunenwald, author of Reading Behind Bars: A True Story of Literature, Law, and Life as a Prison Librarian

This week’s #BookFace model is the most adorable book stack I’ve ever seen.

Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!

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#BookFaceFriday – “Creativity for Library Career Advancement”

A bright idea for a #BookFaceFriday!

Voila! Did you know the Commission has a collection of library science titles? Our Library Science Collection provides professional and reference materials for Nebraska librarians and library science programs. This includes all librarians and library science students. The checkout period is 4 weeks, and items can be sent through the mail or picked up in person. We get new titles in all the time like “Creativity for Library Career Advancement: Perspectives, Techniques and Eureka Moments” edited by Vera Gubnitskaia and Carol Smallwood (McFarland, 2019.) You can find all of these books and more in our catalog, or reach out to our reference staff for a recommendation!

“An insightful collection…expertly organized and presented…an extraordinary, informative, comprehensive, and insightful contribution that is very highly recommended”―Midwest Book Review

This week’s #BookFace model is Jen Wrampe, NLC’s Administrative Staff Assistant. She pretty much keeps our office running; without her we wouldn’t even have pens to write with.

Love this #BookFace & reading? Check out our past #BookFaceFriday photos on the Nebraska Library Commission’s Facebook page!

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Community Needs Response Planning Workshops Scheduled

Community Needs Response Planning (aka Strategic Planning) Workshops have been scheduled in locations across the state and online.

What is a Community Needs Response Plan? You may remember it as the Strategic Plan required for Nebraska Public Library Accreditation. To more accurately represent the focus of the plan, we have renamed it. The process of writing the plan and the content remains the same – this is a change in name only, to better reflect why you are creating this plan and how you can use it in your community.

So, do you have a plan? The Nebraska Guidelines for Public Library Accreditation are community-based, so libraries need to know what their communities’ needs are in order to provide appropriate library services that meet those unique needs. That’s where planning comes in!

Christa Porter, NLC’s Library Development Director, will guide you through Community Needs Response Planning for your library. Public Library Directors, Staff, and Library Board Members are encouraged to attend.

Dates and locations:

  • January 26 – Lincoln
  • February 7 – O’Neill
  • February 20 – Grand Island
  • February 21 – Sidney
  • February 22 – North Platte
  • March 1 – West Point
  • March 8 – Online, GoToWebinar

To register for any of these sessions, go to the Nebraska Library Commission’s Training & Events Calendar and search for ‘community needs response’.NLC Logo

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Christa Porter: Director of Library Development

Christa PorterWe are reintroducing our staff member Christa Porter, who changed both her name and her job title since joining the Library Commission staff in 2000.

Last September, Christa (Burns) married John Porter and effective April 4th, Christa also will become the new Director of Library Development. So many congratulations are in order. Christa was born in Albany, New York. She earned her BA in English with a Specialty in Literature and Irish Folklore, from SUNY Binghamton and her MLS from SUNY Albany. As a young girl, her dad would take Christa and her sister Sarah to the Saratoga Springs Public Library every Saturday and she read her way through the Black Beauty and Narnia Series as well as many other science fiction and fantasy novels.  She found her way to a career in libraries in a rather serendipitous route as her dad found a work study position for her where he worked at SUNY Central Administration in Albany – specifically the OCLC offices of Nylink. This led her to enroll in Library School where she was fortunate to be assigned Bill Katz as her work study professor who was a helpful and considerable influence on her career.

Christa’s job at Nylink would prove an interesting segue for her first position at the Library Commission as NEBASE Member Services Coordinator. Most recently her role as Library Development Consultant involved speaking to many of you about E-rate among other topics. Christa is also the host of the Commission’s weekly NCompass Live online program and she assists organizations in the state to hold virtual meetings with GoToWebinar. In her opinion, the best thing about working in libraries is solving problems and finding answers to questions. “It’s always a treasure hunt. The best skill a librarian can have is the ability to say I don’t know, but I’ll find out.”

When Christa isn’t working, she enjoys being at home with John, spending time with family, relaxing, playing video games, or reading. Without hesitation, her all-time favorite author is Isaac Asimov. If Christa could switch careers, she would love to own a book or comic store combination coffee shop that served pastries and food, provided someone else was doing the books. Christa and John share their home with three cats: Logan, Luna, and Nushi. Despite being far from home, Christa says Nebraska offers friendly people, open spaces, and friends and family.

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Holli Duggan: Continuing Education Coordinator

holliduggan_3320_smMeet Holli Duggan (pronounced: DUG in) who joined the Library Commission earlier this year as our Continuing Education Coordinator.

Holli was born and raised in North Platte and attended UNK where she received degrees in English and Spanish. She received her MLS from the University of Missouri in addition to an MA in Teaching, Learning, and Teacher Education from UNL. She is currently pursuing her Ed.D. in Educational Studies at UNL.

Growing up, Holli was always at the library and a favorite childhood author was R.L. Stine. She aspired to be a librarian at a young age and has a resume that includes working at Waldenbooks, the UNK and UNL libraries, the Gere branch library in Lincoln, and Concordia. The most satisfying thing about her current position is helping people find resources to assist them to perform their job better and in turn, help their patrons more efficiently. When I asked Holli what she thinks of when I ask her about the Library Commission, she says it is awesome. She enjoys working together with others to better libraries in Nebraska. If she could switch jobs, she would be a Spanish translator or something science-y. If she won the lottery, the first thing she would do is go to Costa Rica.

During non-work hours, Holli is most likely doing classwork for her Ed.D. In the rare free hours, she enjoys reading, watching shows on Netflix, or doing Crossfit. If she could have dinner with anyone she would pick the author Lin-Manuel Miranda because it would be so much fun to talk to him. She fondly remembers that Stephen King’s Pet Sematary was the very first book she checked out of her library from the adult section.

Holli shares her home with her husband Zac, a chocolate lab mix named Kyrie, and three cats named, Loki, Beowulf, and Mei Mei. If she could choose two words to describe herself they would be driven and patient. It’s wonderful to have Holli on our team!
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