Confessions of a reference librarian: IAmRUSA launches interview series

For Immediate Release
Tue, 10/29/2013

CHICAGO — On October 28, the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) debuted its first week-long interview session as a part of its IAmRUSA series. Each week IAmRUSA will feature a different interviewee for participants to ask questions about their professional careers, their passions and anything else involving librarianship. Hosted by ALA Connect, anyone interested may join the IAmRUSA community; participants do not need to be RUSA members. 

If you are interested in participating as an interviewee, contact Kirk MacLeod at kgmcleod@ualberta.ca or Sarah Hammill at hammills@fiu.edu for more information.

The Reference and User Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, represents librarians and library staff in the fields of reference, specialized reference, collection development, readers’ advisory and resource sharing. RUSA is the foremost organization of reference and information professionals who make the connections between people and the information sources, services, and collection materials they need. Learn more about the association at www.ala.org/rusa.

View the original article here

IFRT accepting nominations for 2014 Eli M. Oboler Memorial Award

Subscribe

(Click for full-size)

Download Original

]'>

For Immediate Release
Mon, 10/28/2013

CHICAGO — The American Library Association (ALA) Intellectual Freedom Round Table (IFRT) is seeking nominations for its 2014 Eli M. Oboler Memorial Award. The biennial award is presented for the best published work in the area of intellectual freedom and consists of $500 and a citation. Nominations will be accepted through Dec. 1, 2013.

The award was named for Eli M. Oboler, the extensively published Idaho State University librarian known as a “champion of intellectual freedom who demanded the dismantling of all barriers to freedom of expression.”  Works to be considered for the award may be single articles (including review pieces), a series of thematically connected articles, books or manuals published on the local, state or national level in English or English translation. The work must have been published within the two-year period ending the December prior to the ALA Annual Conference at which it is granted. The 2014 award is for work published between 2012 and 2013.

The Oboler nomination form is available on the ALA website. Nominations and supporting evidence should be sent to:  Shumeca Pickett, ALA, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611. Telephone: 312-280-4220 or 800-545-2433, ext. 4220. Fax: 312-280-4227. Email: spickett@ala.org.

The Intellectual Freedom Round Table (IFRT) provides a forum for the discussion of activities, programs and problems in intellectual freedom of libraries and librarians; serves as a channel of communications on intellectual freedom matters; promotes a greater opportunity for involvement among the members of the ALA in defense of intellectual freedom; promotes a greater feeling of responsibility in the implementation of ALA policies on intellectual freedom.  

View the original article here

Win $1,000 with the MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens

For Immediate Release
Tue, 10/29/2013

CHICAGO — YALSA members who have run an exceptional reading or literature program in the 12 months leading up to Dec. 1, 2013 are eligible to apply for the MAE Award for Best Literature Program for Teens, which recognizes an outstanding reading or literature program for young adults.

Do you run a spectacular teen book club that engages underserved audiences? Did your summer reading program or literature festival connect teens with literature in an innovative way? Have you connected teens to literature or helped them gain literacy skills via some other exciting means?  If so, you could win $500 for yourself and an additional $500 for your library by applying for award.  Individual library branches may apply.

The MAE Award is sponsored by the Margaret A. Edwards Trust. Applications and additional information about the award are available online.  Applications must be submitted online by Dec. 1, 2013. For questions about the award, please contact the jury chair, Laurie Amster-Burton (laurieab@gmail.com).  The winner will be announced the week of Feb. 9, 2014.

Not a member of YALSA yet? It's not too late to join so you can be eligible for this award. You can do so by contacting YALSA’s Membership Marketing Specialist, Letitia Smith, at lsmith@ala.org or (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390. Recognize the great work you are doing to bring teens together with literature and apply today.

For more than 50 years, YALSA has worked to build the capacity of libraries and librarians to engage, serve and empower teens.  For more information about YALSA or to access national guidelines and other resources go to www.ala.org/yalsa, or contact the YALSA office by phone, (800) 545-2433, ext. 4390, or e-mail, yalsa@ala.org.

View the original article here

AASL13 storytellers to weave flights of fancy

CHICAGO — Three master storytellers will share their craft as part of the American Association of School Librarians’ (AASL) 16th National Conference & Exhibition taking place Nov. 14-17, 2013, in Hartford, Conn. Performers Carol Birch, Bill Harley and Valerie Tutson will appear at the storytelling festival and help attendees celebrate the everyday and fantastic in a casual evening of traditional and original tales. Admission to the festival is included in the price of registration, and a Q&A and book signing will follow the performance. More information on the event is available at national.aasl.org/storytelling-festival.

Carol Birch understands metaphors rock! In her sure voice, literature’s appeal is appropriately conversational and intimate. Audiences respond to her infectious enthusiasm, and her peers have awarded her the Circle of Excellence for setting standards in excellence. Her style revitalizes language; her art is an absence of artifice and the stories she tells offer memories of characters worth remembering.

Bill Harley is a singer-songwriter, author, musician and monologist. He is considered by fans and peers alike to be one of the best storytellers in the country for his celebrations of commonality and humanity through comic narrative songs and confessional spoken works. A two-time Grammy award-winning artist, Harley uses song and story to paint a vibrant and hilarious picture of growing up, schooling and family life.

Valerie Tutson is an International Heritage Gallery Individual Artist who delights listeners with her tale-telling. Valerie draws her stories from around the world with an emphasis on African traditions. Her repertoire includes stories and songs she learned in her travels and experiences in Africa and stories from African American history.

“Storytelling integrates the head and heart,” said Audrey Daigneault, the local volunteer who helped coordinate the event. “Through stories we share our history, our imagination, our dreams and our humanity.”

The AASL national conference is the only national conference dedicated solely to the needs of school librarians and their roles as educational leaders. The 16th National Conference & Exhibition, "Rising to the Challenge,” will feature preconference workshops, concurrent sessions and an exhibition featuring companies relevant to the school library profession.

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.

View the original article here

Going beyond book sales to raise real money for your library

Subscribe

(Click for full-size)

Download Original

]'>

For Immediate Release
Mon, 10/28/2013

CHICAGO — Like library users, library donors hail from all walks of life. Regardless of the scope or complexity of library fundraising, successful efforts are always about forging and strengthening relationships with the range of stakeholders throughout the community. In “Beyond Book Sales: The Complete Guide to Raising Real Money for Your Library,” editor Susan Dowd and her team from Library Strategies, a consulting group of the Friends of St. Paul Public Library, share proven strategies that have brought in more than $1 million annually. Believing that private fundraising is a natural for libraries large and small, they start with 12 facts about library fundraising and focus on activities with the highest return. Tips and features include:

the gift pyramid model for developing the culture of giving that leads to big gifts;overcoming fears of sponsorship and embracing cause-related marketing;pitching the appropriate charitable gift;confronting common fears of requesting major gifts;the pros and cons of membership programs;

Dowd is a staff member of The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, where she serves as capital campaign coordinator and special projects coordinator. She is also a Library Strategies consultant. She holds a Master of Librarianship from Emory University and is certified in Fundraising and Fund Development from the University of Saint Thomas. She has authored a number of advocacy and fundraising toolkits for ALA’s Advocacy University and co-authored a how-to book on mergers for Minnesota nonprofits. She collaborated on “Beyond Book Sales” with co-authors, fellow Friends’ staff members and Library Strategies’ consultants Liz Boyd, Sue Hall, Ann McKinnon, Wendy Moylan and Peter Pearson.

ALA Store purchases fund advocacy, awareness and accreditation programs for library professionals worldwide. Founded in 1976 by Patricia Glass Schuman and John Vincent Neal, Neal-Schuman Publishers, now an imprint of ALA Publishing, publishes professional books for librarians, archivists, and knowledge managers. Contact us at (800) 545-2433 ext. 5052 or editionsmarketing@ala.org.

View the original article here

Scottoline, Kidd, Lippman, Henriquez at United for Libraries’ Gala Author Tea, sponsored by ReferenceUSA, at Midwinter Meeting

PHILADELPHIA — Lisa Scottoline, Sue Monk Kidd, Laura Lippman and Cristina Henriquez will be among the featured authors at United for Libraries’ Gala Author Tea, sponsored by ReferenceUSA, at 2 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 27 at the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia.  

Authors will discuss their writing life and forthcoming books. A light offering of tea, finger sandwiches and a variety of sweet treats will be served. A book signing will follow, with most books given away free and others available for purchase at a generous discount. United for Libraries will recognize the winners of the 2013 National Friends of Libraries Week Awards during this event.(For more information, visit www.ala.org/united/grants_awards/friends/friendsweek.)

Lisa Scottoline (“Accused,” St. Martin’s Press/Macmillan) is the New York Times bestselling author and Edgar award-winning author of 21 novels. She also writes a weekly column with her daughter Francesca Serritella for the Philadelphia Inquirer titled “Chick Wit.” There are more than 30 million copies of her books in print, published in more than 35 countries. She lives in the Philadelphia area with an array of disobedient pets.

Sue Monk Kidd (“The Invention of Wings,” Viking/Penguin) is the award-winning and bestselling author of the novels “The Secret Life of Bees” and “The Mermaid Chair.” She is also the author of several acclaimed memoirs, including the New York Times bestseller “Traveling with Pomegranates,” written with her daughter Ann Kidd Taylor. She lives in Florida.

Laura Lippman (“After I’m Gone,” William Morrow/HarperCollins) is the author of six New York Times bestselling novels in an oeuvre that includes the award-winning Tess Monaghan series, a collection of critically acclaimed stand-alone novels, and an anthology of award-winning short stories.

Cristina Henriquez (“The Book of Unknown Americans,” Knopf/Random House) is the author of the story collection “Come Together, Fall Apart,” which was a New York Times Editors’ Choice selection, and the novel “The World in Half.” Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Glimmer Train, Ploughshares and The Oxford American, as well as in various anthologies.

Advance tickets to the Gala Author Tea cost $55, $49 for United for Libraries division members. Onsite tickets cost $60, if available. Advance purchase is recommended. Event code: UFL1.

For more information on purchasing tickets and other United for Libraries events and meetings at the ALA Midwinter Meeting, visit www.ala.org/united/events_conferences/midwinter. For information about registering for Midwinter, visit www.alamidwinter.org.

United for Libraries: The Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations, is a division of the American Library Association that supports those who govern, promote, advocate, and fundraise for libraries. United for Libraries brings together library Trustees, advocates, Friends, and Foundations into a partnership that creates a powerful force for libraries in the 21st century. For more information or to join United for Libraries, visit the United for Libraries website or contact Jillian Kalonick at (312) 280-2161 or jkalonick@ala.org.

View the original article here

New app being tested to spot California whales so ships can avoid them

By Ronnie Cohen

SAN FRANCISCO | Tue Oct 1, 2013 4:15pm EDT

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Marine biologists have begun testing a smartphone application that would allow boaters and conservationists to identify whales outside San Francisco Bay so ships can avoid striking the endangered mammals.

Whale Spotter, the app developed by Conserve.IO, will be used to map the feeding grounds of the enormous creatures, which large ships too frequently strike as they migrate along the California coast.

Among the areas of greatest concern for marine biologists and environmentalists are five California marine sanctuaries, two that shippers must pass through when they navigate into San Francisco Bay.

"This app is an opportunity for citizen scientists - people who love these waters - to contribute to protecting whales in the sanctuaries, giving us extra eyes on the water," Jackie Dragon, a Greenpeace campaigner, told Reuters.

Trained observers with an interest in whales will use the application to report their whale sightings, along with the animals' behaviors, to a global database. Biologists will use information from the app to map the whales' locations.

In June, new information about migratory patterns led to the rerouting of three shipping lanes into the San Francisco Bay, but scientists say they need more information on the location of whales along the California coast.

Large vessels struck whales at least 100 times in California between 1988 and 2012, said Monica DeAngelis, a National Marine Fisheries Service marine mammal biologist.

She estimates the true number could be 10 times higher given that whale injuries tend to go unreported. Once struck, the creatures often sink to the ocean's bottom.

ENDANGERED RIGHT AND BLUE WHALES

Commercial shippers use another, similar app called Whale Alert along the U.S. Atlantic Coast to try to steer clear of critically endangered right whales, only 400 of which remain in the East Coast, said Brad Winney, co-founder of mobile technology company Conserve.IO, developer of both apps.

Winney expects to ultimately merge the two applications that would become available to shippers on global seas.

"The vision of Whale Alert and Spotter is to support the worldwide collection of data to help shippers avoid whale habitats and avoid striking and killing whales," he said.

In Boston Harbor, the app includes a sonic-sensing system that listens for the sound of the call of the right whale, although that capability is not currently envisioned beyond Boston because of the expense, Winney said.

California biologists are most concerned about protecting endangered blue whales, the largest animals on the planet. About 2,000 blue whales remain along the West Coast, and biologists believe ships are striking them as well, DeAngelis said.

The 3,500 or so large vessels that travel through the Golden Gate must pass through one or two marine sanctuaries, said John Berge, vice president of Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, which represents shipping companies.

Biologists are hopeful that boaters who use the app along the California coast will be better able to prevent collisions with the animals.

"I don't think it's the ultimate solution, but I think it's one tool to provide a better picture of where the whales are and hopefully to develop management strategies to avoid striking," Berge said.

A whale spotted in San Francisco Bay last week nearly caused the postponement of a race for the prized America's Cup.

Five dead blue whales, one a pregnant female, washed ashore in Southern California in 2007, raising awareness about the problem, Greenpeace's Dragon said.

"We're hopeful the public will see this as a great opportunity to help steward these waters and help us protect whales," she said. "Instead of having one or two eyes on the Bay, this is a chance to bring many eyes to the water."

(Editing by Alex Dobuzinskis and Cynthia Johnston and Diane Craft)

View the original article here