Idaho Commission for Libraries

Dylan Baker at Ada Community Library shared this in our last SPLAT meeting, and I loved Wolfram Alpha as soon as I started playing with it. I loved these results. This is like the genius-educational version of a search engine.

I was impressed to say the least.

We are Teachers provides great resources for both public and school librarians. Here are their recommendations that can give you ideas to help parents prevent summer brain drain!

Partnership ideas & more:

With the passage of election reform legislation, library districts (and cities, etc) will see a difference in how elections are handled. The legislation, HB 372, is 98 pages long, but fortunately only a handful of pages pertain to libraries.

Library districts will hold an election as usual in May 2010, but after January 2011, counties will conduct elections. Here are some highlights:

The FY 2010 Library Services and Technology Act.(LSTA) Allocation Plan is posted on this website under Funding. This document is a brief overview of Idaho's LSTA grant programs and the Eligibility Checklist provides information for potential applicant libraries to verify their eligibility to apply.

For those with bookmobiles, this page - www.ala.org/bookmobiles - has not only bookmobile stickers that you can make, but also a list of resources for bookmobile service. From the Association for Rural and Small Libraries Listserv.

The Idaho Commission for Libraries is pleased to announce the receipt yesterday of a $15,000 grant from the Fred Meyer Fund for the “Books for Summer Readers” project. One hundred eighteen Idaho public libraries applied by the May deadline to receive free paperback books to distribute to their summer readers. Approximately 6,200 children will receive books.

Check out the Get Your Geek On campaign over at http://geekthelibrary.org/.

According to the site, "Geek the Library is a community-based public awareness campaign designed to highlight the vital role of public libraries for individuals and communities, and raise awareness about the critical funding issues they face."

I saw this while attending Meridian's Silverstone Branch opening. Doesn't take a lot of space, and the price is relatively small too!

Okay, just came across the term this morning -- Immersive Internet which is a collection of emerging technologies combined with a social culture that has roots in gaming and virtual worlds.

This has been an email thread that I thought I would share...unusual items that libraries throughout the US are checking out to their patrons:

Auto repair tools (Wyoming library)
Binoculars
Bones (medical school library)
Braille writer
Cake pans
Crafter glasses for people who work on watches and small crafts Drum pads Electronic devise that enlarges text on TV

First one -- Handheld Librarian Online Conference focusing on mobile library services.
July 30, 2009 -- $49 for individual -- $89 for group

I read a blog called "Designing Better Libraries" and one of their recent posts was very interesting about what atmosphere or state of mind is presented to our customers when they visit our libraries. http://dbl.lishost.org/blog/2009/06/11/who-is-in-charge-of-the-atmosphere/

Yeah! To date 37 Idaho public libraries have expressed interest in participating in the year-long subscription to Career Information Systems via the Department of Labor. Still looking for the other 67 public libraries!

Is your library interested ? Still time to consider .. contact me at shirley.biladeau@libraries.idaho.gov today!

New sections of code on executive sessions are underlined:

The American Library Association (ALA) is working with the White House, in partnership with the Corporation for National & Community Service, to get libraries involved in a national volunteer initiative that will run from June 22 to September 11, 2009.

I stopped by Nampa Public Library on Saturday, and I heard all about how many visitors they've been getting, how many more than usual (last week they had two days with over 1,800 people!) and saw this amazing zine! The zine is a little comic strip about the library and is interspersed with facts about things. I love it! It's awesome!

Here's what the new section of code will say for agenda notification:

67-2343 (4) An agenda shall be required for each meeting. The agenda shall be posted in the same manner as the notice of the meeting. An agenda may be amended, provided that a good faith effort is made to include, in the original agenda notice, all items known to be probable items of discussion.

Be sure to check out the changes in the Idaho Open Meeting Laws -- these impact the boards of both city and district libraries. You can read more on the Idaho Commission for Libraries' Website under Library Laws.

The Idaho Commission for Libraries and the Idaho Department of Labor are collaborating to bring Idaho public libraries access to Career Information Systems database for one year.

JPL received a Game Wave console this morning. We've already set it up and played a bit in the staff area -- it is fun! We sampled a trivia game and a gem matching game. This is a great console for libraires because:

* play is simultanious -- no waiting for turns

* 6 people can play at a time!

* it is easy to learn the game remotes

* games are family friendly and often educational