A Message from the State Librarian
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During these troubling times, the State Library commends you for all you are continuing to do to reach out to your communities to meet their needs for library and human services. The American Library Association has been using the slogan “Libraries Transform” for several years. It continues to be a most relevant phrase as libraries change service models and adapt to provide what is most needed currently. Arizona libraries are shining examples of doing that well!
Library Development is also transforming the ways it fulfills the mission of empowering libraries with
consulting, grant funding, resources, and training
. In-person consulting and training moved online, and work with federal grant funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Grants to States program has been refocused to emphasize meeting needs in response to the coronavirus.
Not only is the State Library distributing the CARES Act funding, but LSTA internal project funds are being reassigned to assist libraries’ changing needs. Examples include offering the
Arizona Reading Program Outreach: Special COVID-19 Opportunity
, the purchase of
Niche Academy
and
PCI Webinars
, and funding scholarships to online conferences that are replacing in-person events.
Support is being continued for your sub-grant projects; WebJunction with its many learning opportunities for library staff; and the statewide database package, which the State Library supports collaboratively with the 15 County Libraries.
More details on these projects are in the articles below. If you have questions or suggestions for additional ways the State Library may be of assistance, please reach out to
Library Development
or to
me
.
Stay safe and well,
Holly Henley
State Librarian
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Resources & Opportunities
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CARES Act Funding Rolls Out
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On April 21, the State Library received $657,394 in CARES Act funding from IMLS to help “prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, including to expand digital network access, purchase internet accessible devices, and provide technical support services.”
State Library staff developed three funding opportunities to support Arizona residents through their libraries.
The first phase allowed libraries of all types to request Chromebooks, video equipment, as well as protection and sanitation kits. Libraries from 13 counties submitted applications and at least one library from each of those counties received an award.
During the second funding opportunity, over 50 Arizona libraries applied for grants of $4,000 each to support internet access, digital literacy and other projects that respond to the coronavirus pandemic.
A third phase will focus on library partnerships with museums and workforce development organizations. For more information, please visit
https://azlibrary.gov/libdev/funding
and watch this space!
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Electronic Resources for
Workforce Development
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As libraries partially reopen, online resources can assist job seekers returning to work.
Career Transitions includes valuable resume and cover letter advice, job application support, and interactive interview practice for job seekers of all levels and experiences. It also features personalized guidance in exploring career paths, assessing strengths, matching jobs to skills and interests, searching current job opportunities, and more.
Help promote this resource with these
tools.
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The Learning Express Library provides jobseekers a collection of interactive tutorials, e-books and articles that can help them develop the core knowledge and skills needed to find a career and support career success.
- The Career Preparation Center includes resources on job searching, interviewing, and networking skills.
- The Computer Skills Center includes resources to improve jobseeker skills on today’s most popular software applications.
To improve the discoverability of these Learning Express Centers, create direct links by following these
instructions
.
For more information about Career Transitions, Learning Express or any of the other statewide databases provided by the Arizona State Library with federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, please contact
Mary Villegas.
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Arizona Libraries
Reimagine
Summer Reading
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With social distancing still the norm for many Arizona communities, libraries are stepping up with alternative methods of encouraging summer reading and learning. From curbside checkout, grab and go activity kits, free books, partnerships with emergency meal providers, virtual programs and events, online summer reading software to track reading, play games and earn prizes online to outdoor story walks and family scavenger hunts, libraries have responded with creativity and innovation to meet the needs of their community.
Each month throughout the summer you can read more about how an innovative library has reimagined their summer programs through a special Library Spotlight article in the Library Services Newsletter (see below) and the Arizona Libraries Facebook page.
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Arizona Libraries Reimagine
Summer Reading - June Spotlight
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Tamara Applegate of the Vernon Public Library plans to provide Summer Reading Packets with reading logs, stickers, activities, and books. The Vernon Public Library, which is part of the Apache County Library District, was one of the libraries selected to receive 250 children’s books to support the summer reading program as part of the
Arizona Reading Program Outreach: Special COVID-19 Opportunity
.
The Vernon Public Library will partner with the nearby elementary school to include Summer Reading Packets with the free lunch distribution. The Vernon Elementary School is extending their meal program to the first 4 weeks in June, offering warm meals on Tuesdays and Thursdays and then distributing sack lunches on their bus on Mondays and Wednesdays. The Vernon Library also plans to have one of their library staff ride the bus and assist in distributing the Summer Reading Packets with the lunches. This will be a great opportunity to maintain the in-person connection with the library patrons!
Have you reimagined Summer Reading at your library? Contact
Donna Throckmorton
to share you story.
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Women’s Suffrage Youth Books
for Libraries
The American Library Association (ALA) is pleased to partner with the
Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission
(WSCC) to distribute 6,000 women’s suffrage youth book sets to libraries across the country. Public and school libraries are encouraged to
apply
for the book sets by
June 15, 2020
.
This generous donation celebrates the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment and highlights the importance of libraries as hubs of civic education and engagement.
ALA and the WSCC look forward to
getting books to libraries
and into the hands of young readers, and to commemorating the diverse suffragists on whose shoulders we stand today.
Contact
Jazzy Celindro
, for more information about the project or with questions about the application.
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LSTA 2020 Subgrants Awarded
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The State Library awarded $850,000 in
Library Services & Technology Act
(LSTA) grants throughout the state for more than 60 library projects. The grant money was made possible with federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Some of the projects funded by the grant program include:
- Access to justice for self-represented litigants
- Extended reality training for teachers
- Wi-Fi hotspot lending
- Audio-enabled books for children
- Makerspaces in urban and rural communities
- Kindergarten readiness activities
- Physical literacy for aging adults
- Business start-up kits
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Census 2020 Still Underway
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The 2020 Census is the first to be conducted primarily online. The results will allocate billions of dollars in federal funding to local communities over the next decade, including
more than $1 billion
to libraries. Census data also determine representation in Congress and state and local governments, and are widely used by researchers, bu
siness, and other organizations (including to
plan for library services
).
Libraries around the country continue to support Census efforts in the following ways:
The U.S. Census Bureau is keeping the public updated about operations during the pandemic. See their
Operational Adjustments
webpage.
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Professional Development News
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2020 Association of Rural and Small Libraries Annual Conference
Each year the
Association of Rural and Small Libraries
hosts a conference for library staff from rural and small libraries. This conference is designed with topics specific to the needs of these libraries. Topics range from children’s programming to fund-raising, to dealing with boards, to keeping up with technology and more.
The theme for this year’s conference is
SOAR with Libraries: Sharing our Amazing Resources
. It will be held in Wichita, Kansas from September 30- October 3, 2020 and as of this writing, the conference committee is still planning to host an in-person event.
Early bird registration begins on June 15. The Arizona State Library offers Continuing Education Scholarships to attend conferences like this one.
Scholarship applications
can be found on the Continuing Education page. Please email the completed application to
Ann Marie Creegan
for consideration.
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New!
Niche Academy for
Arizona Library Staff
With libraries closed to walk-in customers and many staff working remotely, this is a great time to catch up with continuing education and professional development. To help staff gain access to quality tutorials, the Arizona State Library has purchased access to
Niche Academy
. Niche Academy is a collection of webinars and tutorials that are produced specifically for libraries.
The Academy for Arizona Library Staff
has a collection of over 200 tutorials arranged by category.
The Academy is categorized by topic for easy access to the webinars and tutorials. Some of the topics that are included are Customer Service, Collection Management and Programming. There is also a recently added
COVID-19
category that contains many valuable webinars on reopening our libraries.
If you have any questions or problems accessing these tutorials and webinars, email
Ann Marie Creegan
.
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Here are the live webinars for June (all times Mountain Standard Time):
June 3 @ 9:30 am- 10:30 am
The way you communicate with the outside world has a lot to do with how people perceive not only your own library, but all other libraries as well. External communication affects library usage, reputation, brand, and even funding. Since most libraries create their fliers, bookmarks, posters, web pages, social media posts, brochures, etc. as they’re needed, they usually don’t look at them as a whole. This webinar will lay out the steps to perform an external communications audit so you can see the big picture. Then the presenter will recommend how to make your message and branding consistent, which can elevate your library’s place in its community.
June 10 @ 9:30 am- 10:30 am
Google is becoming one of the most powerful and prevalent agents of the internet. How can we harness the power of Google to help our patrons? Can we shield our customers from false or inaccurate information? Are we making the best of this titan of the internet? There are infinite ways to use Google; this webinar will show you how to be a guardian of Google search hacks, services, and boolean operators to hasten the endgame of your results.
June 17 @ 9:30 am - 10:30 am
Sometimes managing your library’s Facebook page can feel like shouting into the void! This presentation pulls back the curtain on Facebook’s algorithm and explores proven methods for increasing engagement with your public using easy-to-follow strategies. Join Nick Tanzi for the interactive and informative webinar and learn how to stop struggling and achieve social media success!
June 24 @ 9:30 am - 10:30 am
For the past several years, libraries have begun to embrace 3D printers and Makerspaces. Now more than ever, such equipment is becoming more affordable as well. Should your library implement these technologies? We'll help you decide. Participants will:
- Learn what 3D printing is and explore various use cases for your library.
- Discuss the necessary resources needed to implement a 3D printing program, including staff, time, and cost.
- Discuss ways to promote 3D printing and its usefulness to your audience.
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Upcoming WebJunction Webinars
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Access to WebJunction’s self-paced online library courses is now available and free to all library staff members. Simply create an account at
http://learn.webjunction.org
and then explore the catalog of library-focused courses and archived webinars. Certificates of completion will be available to you for any of the courses or archived webinars you complete from the catalog.
With the economy staggering, unemployment soaring to unprecedented heights, and families reeling from weeks of confinement and uncertainty, people are turning to their libraries for help. Many of the issues people are struggling with involve civil legal information; questions related to unemployment, debt/money issues, foreclosures and evictions, or family stressors are all on the rise due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this webinar, two law librarians highlight the most common civil legal issues they are seeing, provide guidance on key ways for public libraries to respond to civil legal needs, and discuss best practices for online reference services. Let’s work together to re-empower our struggling communities and demonstrate just how essential libraries are in times of crisis.
When: June 11, 2020
Time: 12:00 pm -1:00 pm Central Standard Time
Many libraries are moving their storytimes online to be able to engage with families during times of social distancing. If you want to launch virtual storytimes at your library, but don’t know where to start, this webinar is for you! This comprehensive introduction to virtual storytimes will include book selection and copyright, technology and social media tools, strategies for accessibility and inclusion, early literacy activities, and ideas for promotion. Learn lessons on how to create a dynamic and engaging online presence and building a rapport with your virtual audience.
When
: June 16, 2020
Time
: 11:00 am -12:00 pm Central Standard Time
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Upcoming
Infopeople
Courses
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Infopeople
offers a variety of webinars and self-paced online courses on topics of high interest for library staff. Webinars are free, and the Arizona State Library has purchased a block of registrations for the online courses. Arizona library staff may register for courses by sending an email to
Ann Marie Creegan
with the following information
:
- The course name and dates
- Registrant’s name
- Registrant’s email
- Library name
- Library address
- Library phone number
June 2020
Online Courses
- Basic Cataloging and Classification (LSSC) – June 2-June 29, 2020
- This four-week online course will provide an overview of library cataloging and classification and prepare you to do copy cataloging. Through reading materials, online forums, and individual exercises, you will gain knowledge of basic cataloging rules and tools, commonly used controlled vocabularies, the Dewey Decimal Classification system, and MARC21 format. Applying this knowledge, you will be able to decode MARC bibliographic records and perform basic copy cataloging.
July 2020
These online courses and webinars are planned for July. The date and description have not been released yet but it will be on the
Infopeople
website soon.
Online Courses
- Using Infographics for Board Reports (2-wk course) - Instructor: Beth Gallaway
- Workplace Burnout: Bouncing Back With Resilience - Instructor: Debra Westwood
Webinars
- ADA Compliance for Virtual Events
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Library Services is part of the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records, a division of the Secretary of State. The branches of Library Services include Library Development, the State of Arizona Research Library, the Arizona Talking Book Library, and E-Rate. Library Services programs and activities are supported in part with federal funds from the
Institute of Museum and Library Services
.
Holly Henley
State Librarian and Director of Library Services, Archives and Records
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