Daniel W. Casey Library Advocacy Award

Empire Friends, the Library Friends Roundtable of NYLA, offers this award to honor a volunteer member of the library community or a group whose efforts have contributed to the growth of libraries or friends organizations.

The nomination form can be found here. Nominations should include all relevant contact information, a description of the nominee's commitment to library service, and any supporting material. The deadline for nominations is July 17, 2008.

Grant Opportunity - Soul of a People

The American Library Association, in partnership with Spark Media, presents an innovative library outreach program to enhance and increase the nationwide impact of Spark Media's documentary film, "Soul of a People: Voices from the Writers' Project." Major funding for the library outreach program has been provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The film and library outreach programs will acquaint public, academic and special library audiences with the story of the largest cultural experiment in U.S. history - the Federal Writers' Project (FWP) of the Works Progress Administration - told against the backdrop of the Depression and 1930s America.

30 libraries will be selected to receive a $2,500 grant from the NEH to present five different public outreach programs during the period of the national broadcast of "Soul of a People" (Spring 2009). The grants will be used for scholar honoraria, book purchases, publicity and other program-associated costs. Libraries will be asked to enlist from a local college or university a lead project scholar with expertise in American history, the WPA and/or the WPA era, to help present and plan programs. The application and guidelines for "Soul of a People" and complete instructions for registering and applying can be found by clicking here. Deadline: July 11, 2008

New in the Professional Collection

Just added:

The Quality Library: A Guide to Staff-Driven Improvement, Better Efficiency, and Happier Customers
by Sara Laughlin and Ray W. Wilson

Jerry Spinelli to Speak

It's short notice, but if anyone is free next Tuesday, May 13 at 10:30 AM, author Jerry Spinelli will be speaking and signing copies of his brand new book, Smiles to Go, at Market Block Books in Troy. This is a special event, so you must call the bookstore to sign up. See http://www.marketblockbooks.com/ for details.

Nancy Pearl to Speak at Area Libraries

Nancy Pearl, author of bestseller, Book Lust: Recommended Reading for Every Mood, Moment and Reason and commentator about books on National Public Radio’s “Morning Edition,” is scheduled for a local, on-air interview on WAMC’s Roundtable, Tues., May 20, during her visit to the Capital District. Pearl will be coming to the area during the week of May 19, and will be speaking to the public and to library professionals, free of charge, at local libraries.

On Tues., May 20, 7-8pm, Pearl will speak to the public at the Saratoga Springs Public Library, 49 Henry Street, Saratoga Springs, on “The Pleasures and Perils of a Life of Reading,” presented by the Friends of the SSPL. Seating is limited and tickets are required.

On Wed., May 21, 2-3:30pm, at the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Public Library, 475 Moe Rd., Clifton Park, Pearl will address Adult Service Librarians with the topic “Opening Books, Opening Doors: Providing Effective Reader’s Advisory Service.”

At 7-8:30pm, also on May 21, Pearl will talk to Youth Services Librarians, again with the topic “Opening Books, Opening Doors: Providing Effective Reader’s Advisory Service,” but geared toward young and YA readers.

Pre-registration is required for all programs. Please contact Saratoga Springs Public Library or Clifton Park-Halfmoon Public Library to register.

MVLS Annual Dinner 2008

The 2008 MVLS Annual Dinner was held on Wednesday, May 7 at the Arkell Museum in Canajoharie. Check out all the photos from the event on Flickr. (While you're there leave a comment on the photo of your favorite beer bottle tower!)

Workshop - Developing Digital Projects

Date: Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Time: 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Place: Capital District Library Council
Cost: $40 for CDLC members; $60 for non-members (includes lunch)

Presenter: Tom Clareson, Program Director for New Initiatives, Palinet

This workshop will provide an overview of digitization. It will include discussion of the benefits and costs of digitization, basic principles of scanning, selecting and preparing material for digitization, making your material searchable once it has been scanned, the pros and cons of outsourcing digitization work, and basic information on selecting hardware and software for your project. The workshop is appropriate for those who are considering whether to begin a digitization project and for those who have already done some digitization and want to learn more.

Registration deadline for this workshop is June 10. The registration form can be found here.

Grant Opportunity - Fit for Life Libraries

In recognition of the growing role of libraries in providing free, reliable health information, Libraries for the Future (LFF) announces an expansion of Fit for Life (FFL), a national initiative to help public libraries promote lifelong health and wellness through community responsive programs. Fit for Life will focus on both physical and brain health, and will target audiences of all ages.

A generous grant from the MetLife Foundation has allowed LFF to offer training and grants of $10,000 to $25,000 to 15 urban library systems.

In addition, FFL libraries will be charged with launching community-wide public awareness campaigns to promote the importance of fitness and nutrition, offering health programming for individuals of all ages, distributing free health publications, and recording accomplishments related to all of the above. Each participating library will be required to submit a proposal in collaboration with at least five community organizations, to expand possibilities for community outreach and programming.

Proposals are due June 1. The RFP can be downloaded here.

25 Ways Libraries Can Support a Book Group

Check out this great post from the Book Group Buzz blog.

Teens' Top Ten

Nominations for the annual Teens’ Top Ten are now available, announced the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA). YALSA encourages teens to read the 26 nominees before the national TTT vote, which will take place during Teen Read Week, Oct. 12 –18.

Nominated titles were published between January 2007 and March 15, 2008 and chosen by the 15 teen book groups in YALSA’s YA Galley Project, in which publishers of young adult books provide copies of their recent titles to teen book discussion groups in libraries. In exchange, teen readers evaluate books for the publishers.

YALSA is currently accepting applications for 15 new YA Galley groups. The application forms, which must be submitted by a book group advisor who is a current YALSA member, are posted on YALSA’s Teens’ Top Ten site.

Also on the Teens' Top Ten site is a list of ideas for promoting the TTT nominations, and lists of past nominees.