In This Issue
President's Corner ~ Miss Jones to be Honored in Hall of Fame ~ Updates and Highlights from Greenville, Cranston and PCL ~ New OLIS Website ~
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Hello everyone!
RILA is starting off the new year with a bang! We are in the middle of our strategic planning process. We are working with consultants to identify the main goals and areas of improvement which RILA should focus on in the next 3-5 years. These include expanding and diversifying membership, developing the RILA Board, improving communication with our members and partner organizations, stepping up our education and career advancement initiatives, and increasing our advocacy throughout the state.
Much of the data for our goals was pulled from the RILA survey we distributed last Fall, as well as in-person and phone interviews conducted by our consultants with members of the RI Library community. Do you have other goals and initiatives you would like to see RILA address? Please let me know at president@rilibraries.org
Another new initiative from RILA are new joint memberships with the Coalition of Library Advocates (COLA) and Cornucopia of Rhode Island (CORI). RILA is excited to partner with these organizations to improve services to its members. You may have seen these new membership partnerships on your renewal notices. If you would like to learn more, you can visit our website or contact membership@rilibraries.org.
Thanks!
Kieran Ayton
RILA President
president@rilibraries.org
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Miss Jones, Former Smith Hill Librarian, to be Honored in Hall of Fame
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Mary C. Jones, a beloved member and community activist of the Smith Hill community, will be honored at Providence City Hall on January 31 as a recipient of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Hall of Fame Awards 2018. The public awards
Facebook event page
) will take place in the Council Chambers of City Hall from 5:30PM - 7:00PM and will be hosted by Mayor Elorza. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Mary, who was affectionately known to everyone, even her own children, as "Miss Jones", worked at Smith Hill Library for 40 years. She worked tirelessly to help poor residents of Providence obtain better housing, access affordable health care and health education. Miss Jones played a key role in improving the schools in the Smith Hill area and worked with other community leaders to find creative ways to support teachers and create more jobs for residents.
As a librarian, Miss Jones developed many programs promoting cultural awareness, education, health issues and advancement for marginalized groups and people of color. When faced with funding cuts, Miss Jones fought diligently alongside dozens of other library staff and patrons to keep all the libraries open. Two of the programs she introduced, the "Keep Our Families Warm Campaign," providing residents with seasonal winter clothing, and the Children's Christmas Party, with free toys, food and fun, still take place every year at Smith Hill Library.
Miss Jones served on the board of the Neighborhood Health Center for over 35 years, was a founder of the Smith Hill Community Development Corporation and a co-founder of CHIC, which worked with landlords and tenants to fix up buildings. She worked with a host of state and local politicans, including Claiborne Pell, Jack Reed, John Pastore, Rhoda Perry and Maryellen Goodwin. She worked with both of the Chafees as well as city mayors Joe Doorley, Buddy Cianci, Joe Paolino, John Lombardi and David Cicilline plus all Ward 12 councilmen from the late 1960s to the present member, Councilman Terry Hassett.
Miss Jones' lifetime achievements have been previously recognized through the Jefferson Award and a place on the Providence College Wall of Fame. Sadly, she now suffers from Alzheimer's Disease and lives in a nursing home but the fruits of her work continue to grow and flourish in Providence. Miss Jones' daughter, Althea Graves, continues her mother's legacy of community work in Smith Hill and serves on the Board of Providence Community Library.
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The Office of Library and Information Services is pleased to present a reorganized and redesigned website to the Rhode Island library community. For an overview of the changes, read the
announcement
by Karen Mellor,
Chief of Library Services.
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News From the RI Library Community
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Highlights from the Greenville Library
Greenville, RI – The Greenville Public Library celebrated the holiday season by participating in two fun events. On Saturday, December 2
nd
, the library participated in Smithfield’s 2
nd
Annual All Lit-Up Christmas parade. Greenville Library decorated a truck and invited staff and friends to ride along Library Director, Dorothy J. Swain, served on the All Lit-Up Parade Committee for her second year.
On Saturday, December 9
th
, the Friends of the Library hosted their 3
rd
annual Afternoon of Fun with Santa event. Children had the chance to meet Santa and Mrs. Claus, listen to Santa read
The Night Before Christmas
, sing along with friends, make a holiday craft, and enjoy a special treat at this all ages family event.
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Greeenville Library float at Smithfield’s 2
nd
Annual All Lit-Up Christmas parade.
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Greenville Library 3
rd
annual "Afternoon of Fun with Santa"
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News from Cranston Public Library
After 14 years of service, Linda Tirocchi has retired from her position with Cranston Public Library. Linda worked at both the Central Library and the Knightsville Branch over the years, and her last day was December 29.
On December 7, Cranston Public Library received a Merit Award from the American Institute of Architects RI for the renovation of the Central Library's Children's Room. The renovation was designed and constructed by LLB Architects and Chirico Construction Co, Inc.
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2nd Annual PCL Spelling Bee
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"Compete to Bee the Best Speller in PVD!"
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Get ready for another chance to compete for the coveted title of Best Speller in Providence! The PCL Spelling Bee returns to AS220, where you can enjoy drinks, great company and cheer on your favorite speller.
Admission is just $5 in advance, $10 at door and $10 to compete. Sign up to spell from 7:30PM (we recommend that you arrive promptly to avoid disappointment).
Your hosts for the evening will be Matthew Lawrence and Cynthia Reed.
To obtain tickets online and more information, visit www.provcomlib.org/bee. The PCL Spelling Bee is sponsored by the Friends of PCL and proceeds from the fundraiser will be used to support the work of PCL.
When:
Friday, Jan 26, 2018, 8:00PM -10:00PM
Where:
AS220, Empire Street, Providence
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Advancement and Involvement Opportunities
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Learn About Cornucopia of Rhode Island (CORI)
By Brenda Andrade, CORI President
The mission of Cornucopia of Rhode Island is to serve the library community of color. Our objectives are to promote library services to people of color within Rhode Island and the development of librarians and library staff of color. These objectives are met by:
- Providing a forum that encourages the exchange of ideas and the discussion of issues, problems and concerns of librarians and library staff of color;
- Mentoring librarians and library staff of color and encouraging librarianship as a profession to people of color;
- Promoting the development and delivery of multi-cultural collections, services and programs;
- Fostering outreach into the community across cultures and languages;
- Promoting professional and educational activities;
- Engaging in charitable and social activities;
- Collaborating with other organizations to achieve similar goals.
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The Membership Committee Needs You!
The Membership committee is looking at expanding its own membership in the hopes of expanding out recruitment efforts to bring in more members for RILA. The committee is looking to have members with backgrounds of all types of libraries and skill sets. Help us as we make connections out in the library community in order to grow RILA's membership.
One of our priority projects is going to be to explore the possibility of expanding what we can offer as member benefits. We will be exploring possible discounts that membership in RILA might be able to provide from the cost of attending workshops and conferences through various companies and organizations to potential savings when purchasing from vendors.
If you are interested in joining the Membership Committee, please feel free to contact Aaron Coutu at membership@rilibraries.org. Also, feel free to contact us if you have any ideas about possible benefits we should explore! Help us make RILA an organization that everyone connected to libraries wants to join.
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New England Technical Services Librarians (NETSL) Executive Board is Seeking Nominations
New England Technical Services Librarians (NETSL) Executive Board is seeking nominations for its annual NETSL Award for Excellence in Library Technical Services. The NETSL Award recognizes and honors significant New England-based contributions to the field of library technical services. Eligible librarians include those who live outside of New England but whose service to the profession has impacted New England libraries, and those who reside in New England and have made contributions on a national level through publications, service, or innovations in practice.
NETSL wants to hear about those technical services librarians who have inspired others. Do you have a colleague who has tackled today's challenges in technical services and triumphed? Do you know a person who leads the way in innovation, collaboration, or data integration? If you know someone who merits any or all of these descriptions, please consider submitting a nomination. You do not need to be a member of NETSL to make a nomination.
The next NETSL Award will be presented at the annual conference to be held on Monday, April 2, 2018 at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA.
Eligibility for nomination:
- Nominations must be accompanied by a written statement that includes the reasons for nomination and a narrative summary of the nominee's career and achievements. The person's resume or CV may be used to meet this requirement.
- Nominees are not required to be NETSL/NELA members.
- Current members of the NETSL Executive Board are not eligible for consideration.
Submit your nomination online
by
Friday, January 26, 2018
. The Board reserves the right to suspend the Award for a year if no suitable candidate is nominated.
Many thanks from the
2017/2018 NETSL Executive Board
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Conferences, Proposals & Meetups
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Join us for the RILA Communications Meetup!
When
: Friday, January 26 @ 10am
Where
: Culinary Arts Museum @ JWU
315 Harborside Blvd. Providence RI
What
: Interested in contributing to the RILA communications? We’re starting to build a community that represents all areas of the RI library community to be the connecting voice of RILA. Come and stop by for some free food and conversation!
How to Join:
email communications@rilibraries.org to let us know you’ll come (or if you can’t come but still want to contribute)
Thanks in advance!
David Meincke and Rachael Juskuv
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Newsletter Changes: Your Opinion
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We're working on ways to make the newsletter a great resource to connect all those who have an interest in Rhode Island Libraries. What do you think? Do you have some suggestions?
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The Rhode Island Library Association
is a professional association of Librarians, Library Staff, Trustees, and library supporters whose purpose is to promote the profession of librarianship and to improve the visibility, accessibility, responsiveness and effectiveness of library and information service throughout Rhode Island.
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The RILA Bulletin is produced by the RILA Communications Committee. The RILA Communications Committee is responsible for publicizing and supporting Rhode Island Library Association activities using a variety of communication tools. Responsibilities including publishing the RILA Bulletin, managing social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, and exploring other mediums as needed. The Communications Committee may cooperate with the publicity efforts of the Public Relations Committee to promote library services statewide.
Rhode Island Library Association members can contribute content to the RILA Bulletin by emailing the editors: communications@rilibraries.org
Rachael and David
Rhode Island Library Association
Thanks for reading to the end of the Newsletter.
You did it!
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