Issue: 43 April - June 2021
Libraries Serve During the Pandemic
Patrons Act To Make Sure Legislators Know
Throughout the pandemic, patrons have used everything from books, movies, music, and digital media, to online programming, in-library computer access, circulating Wi-Fi hotspots, scanning, copying, printing, and so much more. While the country was shut down, MCFLS libraries kept the public connected, entertained, and accessing educational materials.

In response, patrons from all over Milwaukee County sent hundreds of postcards to their state legislators in support of their local libraries.

Library Legislative Day looked a little different this year. While directors and representatives usually travel to Madison to talk about the impact of public libraries, that was not possible this year. Instead, attendees scheduled virtual meetings with legislators over three days: February 16, 17, and 18. Supportive patrons wanted to make sure that the virtual nature of the discussions didn't lessen their import, and so participated in the postcard campaign.

Library Legislative Day may be over, but it's never a bad time to contact your representatives to let them know the library is important to you. Find your legislators and their contact information online here!
Brown Deer Library Moves In!
The Brown Deer Public Library has moved to a new location at 5301 West Brown Deer Road. The grand opening celebration was Saturday June 12th. Among its many exciting features, the library offers a Drive-Up window.
Check out the hours for the building and for drive up. And be sure to head in for a visit to the new building!
OverDrive Collection Expands
Our OverDrive collection is expanding yet again, both with new funding for traditional acquisitions and an entirely new collection.

The Milwaukee County Board has given MCFLS libraries $50,000 for the purchase of high demand e-book and e-audiobook titles this year. In addition, the Milwaukee Public Library has generously added just over $500,000 in the past year to this collection as well. While there are a lot of advantages to being part of a state-wide consortium for digital materials, the purchase of these additional titles means Milwaukee County library users have improved access to priority checkouts. Don't be surprised if you start moving up a long hold list more quickly!

In addition to more titles, you may notice that the Wisconsin Public Library Consortium (or WPLC) has an entirely new collection: e-magazines. These titles, over 3200 subscriptions are now available in OverDrive and Libby! Recently, the RBdigital magazine service was acquired by OverDrive. This gives library card holders access to a statewide collection of digital magazines through the WPLC. No more toggling between multiple apps on your device. Everything is now available in Libby. Thousands of different magazines are available for you to browse and check out immediately. The browsing and checkout of e-magazines remains smooth and easy to figure out.
Don't forget you may enjoy titles online directly through Wisconsin's Digital Library. That's just another way to access the same content found in OverDrive and Libby.
Wisconsin DPI Works to Improve Broadband Long Term
To help improve internet speeds across Wisconsin, the Department of Public Instruction teamed up with Measurement Lab, a non-profit broadband advocacy organization, to test home internet connection speeds. The data collected this spring will give the Governor’s Task Force on Broadband Access (and other broadband task groups) the information it needs to target improvements where internet speeds and performance are poor.

Nearly 190,000 internet speed tests were performed by Wisconsin residents, with an average of 3,388 tests per day. For more information on the DPI’s effort to close the digital equity gap, visit the agency’s website.
Featured E-Resource - Beanstack
We want to make sure you know all MCFLS libraries (in fact all Wisconsin libraries) have access to a free reading tracker called Beanstack. Beanstack helps readers of all ages to manage what they are reading! There is a smartphone app, or you can use Beanstack via a web browser. Identify your local library, register and you are ready to go. Features include the ability to log reading for multiple readers at a time, log multiple books at a time and log titles by scanning the ISBN with your phone's camera.


NOTE: If you use the 1000 Books before Kindergarten app, please be aware that it will be discontinued after December 31, 2021. MCFLS has been very proud to be able to support and offer this app with the Bridges Library System, but moving forward we will rely on Beanstack mentioned above. The web page for 1000 Books before Kindergarten will remain available.
To see other online resources available for your residency, go to the CountyCat Databases page and choose your municipality.
The Milwaukee County Federated Library System (MCFLS) serves communities and libraries throughout Milwaukee County.