As the Idaho Commission for Libraries (ICfL) wraps up the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) grant project, we continue to get the word out about online resources, evaluate the project’s impact, and support libraries’ efforts to bridge the digital divide.

Election dates are the third Tuesday in May (May 21, 2013) and the Tuesday after the first Monday in November (November 5, 2013) each year. On the Trustee page at http://libraries.idaho.gov/landing/trustees find the following election resources:

Libraries using OCLC's interlibrary loan tools will see significant changes to the interlibrary loan (ILL) system in 2013. OCLC is currently migrating from WorldCat Resource Sharing (on the FirstSearch platform) to World Share ILL (on the worldcat.org platform). All Idaho libraries will begin the process of moving to the new platform in August 2013.

The Idaho Commission for Libraries is thrilled to welcome Jeannie Standal as our new school library consultant. After earning a Master of Library Science from East Carolina University, Standal became the media coordinator for a middle school of 800 students in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

The Idaho Commission for Libraries (ICfL) proudly sponsored the 2013 “Letters About Literature” (LAL) contest, a national reading and writing promotion for young readers sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.

This year, Idaho’s Letters About Literature winners are:

Idaho libraries are invited to apply for the 2013-2014 Let’s Talk About It series by completing the application now available on the ICfL website (http://libraries.idaho.gov/files/LTAI%20application%202013-2014.pdf).

The Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) announced the winners of the 2013 Teen Video Challenge.  The Teen Video Challenge is a national competition for teens to get involved with reading and their public library's summer reading program.  Winning videos were selected at the state level to be recognized as an official CSLP Teen Video Challenge winner for 2013.

Not ready for an MLS, but want to sharpen your skills and enhance your resume?  The American Library Association's Library Support Staff Certification (LSSC) Program will be offering a series of three webinars about its LSSC program.   The webinars are free, but the program

The Idaho Commission for Libraries is hosting a free half-day pre-conference at the Idaho Library Association's annual conference this October. The conference will be held at the Nampa Civic Center October 3-4, 2013. The preconference is scheduled for Wednesday,  October 2nd from 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.