Get Ready for Advocacy Day! (MHLS Bulletin) 2.21.23

Vol.23-08 | 2.21.23

Get Ready for Advocacy Day!

Let’s get ready to speak up for libraries! MHLS has put together a checklist to prepare you for Library Advocacy Day on February 28th.

Send a letter to your representatives in Albany to let them know how critical libraries are! The New York Library Association (NYLA) is asking Library Advocates across the state to tell their legislators that libraries need increased funding. #LAD23 Take Action Campaign!

Plan to join us in Albany for Library Advocacy Day on Tuesday, February 28th!
Register for Library Advocacy Day! Schedule of appointments will be emailed to you before Advocacy Day (You must register through the MHLS online calendar to receive this email.)
Make your transportation plan: Directions | Parking Please note: there will not be coordinated buses to Albany this year.

View the recording of the MHLS Advocacy Day Briefing that was held on February 14th with Executive Director, Rebekkah Smith Aldrich.

Download the 2023 MHLS Advocacy Guide

Follow your state representatives on social media so you can tag them in posts about the importance of public libraries.

Visit https://midhudson.org/library-advocacy-day/ for talking points, social media tools and more!

MHLS Libraries

Shout out to the Patterson Library for going viral! With well over 150,000 likes and still going, their popular TikTok video shows the great ways a public library can help their community. Congratulations Patterson Library!

Professional Development

The New York Library Association (NYLA) 2023 Conference Program Proposal submissions are now open! Proposals are being accepted for Pre-Conference and during Conference. Pre-Conference programming can be half-day programs or full-day programs the Wednesday before the Conference begins. The Conference program sessions are 75 minutes in duration, with the anticipation of 60 minutes of content, and 10 minutes of Q&A.

NYLA Annual Conference Proposal Guidelines
PDF of the Program Proposal Submission Form - View the details you will need to gather prior to submitting.
Conference Program Proposal Submission Form

Program proposal submissions will be accepted until March 7th, 2023.

Resource Sharing & Sierra

To help libraries address increased demand for e-resources, OverDrive has recently donated a new collection of simultaneous use titles at no cost to us. Available to our users through January 31, 2025, The Everyone Reads Collection contains over 200 eBooks and audiobooks that will always be available, without holds or checkout limits.

Sustainable Libraries

The AARP Community Challenge is accepting 2023 applications to fund quick-action projects that can help communities become more livable for people of all ages. Organizations are eligible to apply for more than one grant opportunity and may submit multiple applications. The AARP Community Challenge is accepting applications across three different grant opportunities, two of which are new this year. Applications are due March 15th, 2023. Please visit their website for more information and guidelines.

Programming

American Library Association (ALA) invites library workers to apply for ALA’s Great Stories Club (GSC), a thematic reading and discussion program that engages teens who are facing difficult challenges through literature-based library outreach programs.

View the project guidelines and apply online by March 15, 2023.

ALA will distribute implementation grants to 100 libraries to host GSC programming on two themes: “Deeper Than Our Skins: The Present Is a Conversation with the Past” and “Finding Your Voice: Speaking Truth to Power.” These themes, created by scholars Maria Sachiko Cecire and Susana M. Morris, will feature books that explore questions of race, equity, identity and history.

For each theme, ALA will award up to 50 grants to eligible institutions. Up to 50 libraries will be selected to receive a "Deeper Than Our Skins" grant, and up to 50 libraries will be selected to receive a "Finding Your Voice" grant.

Registration is now open for ConnectedLibFEST, the first ever connected learning event specifically focused on small and rural libraries. This virtual experience takes place on Wednesday and Thursday, March 15th, and 16th, from 1 PM to 5 PM. Each day brings together library staff, researchers, and community members to learn from and with each other about bringing Connected Learning to small and rural library settings. Small and rural libraries are already using the principles of connected learning in their work. They do this by building relationships with youth, community members, and stakeholders; fostering interests of teens through library services; and creating opportunities for academic and life success. Learn more and register here.

Trustee Resources

Ask Me Anything (AMA) with Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, MHLS Executive Director & Co-Author of the Handbook for Library Trustees of New York State is a monthly installment where Rebekkah will answer your questions! Feel free to submit your question here or contact Rebekkah at rsmith@midhudson.org with the subject line: AMA Trustee Question.

Q. Does a library board’s committee meetings fall under New York State Open Meetings Law?

A. It depends on which type of library you are asking about. According to the New York State Committee on Open Government, public library board’s committee meetings do fall under the provisions of the Open Meetings Law. Association library board’s committee meetings do not.

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