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It's Almost NaNoWriMo!

Thursday, October 11, 2018

Time to Offer Your Community Authors Virtual Creativity Tools!

Pressbooks allows writers to easily create professional-quality ebooks that can then be "published" to Wisconsin Digital Library's BiblioBoard,

In your community, around the state, throughout the country, and around the world, budding authors are priming their pens to create their own fabulous works of fiction during National November Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)!

NaNoWriMo logo

For nearly 20 years, the annual event has given writers a communal nudge with the challenge to write at least 50,000 words of a novel during the 30 days of November. The non-profit program has encouraged libraries to host write-ins and events to foster local communities of creative writers, and they offer programming ideas, graphics, and resources on their Come Write In page. Today, October 11, NaNoWriMo offers an online workshop for aspiring authors to help them achieve success creating a novel in one month.NaNoWriMo "Come Write In" logo

But did you know that Wisconsin public libraries now have a place for local works to be made available to all Wisconsin residents? Biblioboard is part of the Wisconsin Digital Library, made possible through the Wisconsin Public Library Consortium, a cooperative project of Wisconsin's sixteen public library systems, with funding provided by the DPI from an LSTA grant provided through the Institute for Museum and Library Services. Logo of the Institute for Museums and Library Services

The Biblioboard project also includes licensing for any resident in Wisconsin to use Pressbooks, a user-friendly tool to create and format ebooks and PDFs for publication. See the article from  July 6, 2018 describing the utility. Once the work is created and saved in ePub or PDF format, the work can be submitted through Library Journal's SELF-e program to be showcased in the Indie Wisconsin Statewide Collection on Biblioboard, and to also be considered for national exposure.

Wisconsin Author Project logo        Biblioboard logo

With Biblioboard and Pressbooks, you can easily host a "maker space" for local authors and aspiring writers. And NaNoWriMo provides an excellent opportunity to gather your writers and cultivate an ongoing relationship with some of the creative voices in your own community. Write On!

By John DeBacher, Public Library Development

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Final PLSR Report: COLAND Invites Input in Public Listening Sessions

Friday, March 15, 2019

Guest Post from COLAND Chair, Bryan McCormick

The Public Library System Redesign (PLSR) Steering Committee recently turned in the Final Recommendation Report to the State Superintendent, Ms. Carolyn Stanford Taylor, completing the work that so many individuals throughout the state participated in and helped make possible. This was a huge undertaking and everyone involved in the process should be very proud of this achievement. To my knowledge no one else nationally has been successful with a statewide effort such as this; front line staff providing the information to help make decisions that will benefit our library patrons. It was not the legislature or government officials deciding on best courses of action, it was those of us in the library community.

Upon receiving the report, COLAND (the Council on Library and Network Development) has been informed that the Superintendent would like for there to be one final round of comments and has asked that several listening sessions be held across the state. COLAND is setting up four in-person listening sessions, to be held regionally throughout the state. The four sites and dates, as well as a link to the final report, can be found on the COLAND page here. One call in session for those unable to make it to one of the regional sessions will be scheduled and announced later in the process. I would encourage anyone with comments about the report to attend one of those meetings and provide feedback. COLAND will then compile and share feedback with the Superintendent.
Thank you again to all who have participated in this project, and to the future implementation of ideas that will further support and strengthen the programs, services and resources that Wisconsin’s public libraries provide to their patrons.

Bryan J. McCormick
COLAND, Chair

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Virtual COLAND listening session on the PLSR Steering Committee Final Report

Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Register to Connect on Tuesday, April 30 from 2 to 3:30 pm, via Skype

 

The Public Library System Redesign (PLSR) Steering Committee recently submitted the final Recommendation Report to the State Superintendent, Carolyn Stanford Taylor. In response to the report, Ms. Stanford Taylor requested a final opportunity for community input. To fulfill this request the Council on Library and Network Development (COLAND) scheduled four listening sessions throughout the state, which were completed last week. COLAND will also conduct a "virtual" listening session, hosted through DPI's Skype. The session will be conducted next Tuesday, April 30, from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm. Registration is required for this session in order to maintain an orderly progression of responses. To register for the session, complete this form with your email address, full name, and your library and system affiliation. You will then receive an email response with the link to the Skype session, along with a reminder message next Tuesday morning. During the session, an online form will be provided for those who do not have a microphone or prefer to submit their comments in writing, as was the case at the in-person sessions.

Please feel free to share this information and the registration link with anyone who was unable to attend one of the in-person listening sessions, including trustees, other librarians, or interested public. The feedback, both from the in-person sessions and the virtual sessions, will be compiled and made available to COLAND members for their next regular meeting on May 10 at the Tomahawk School District. 

Written by John DeBacher, Public Library Development

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ALA releases new Libraries' Guide to the 2020 Census

Thursday, May 23, 2019

Today, the American Library Association released the Libraries’ Guide to the 2020 Census, a new resource to prepare libraries for the decennial count of every person living in the United States.

The Guide contains practical information to assist library staff in addressing potential patron and community requests regarding the upcoming 2020 Census. The Guide includes:

  • basic information about the Census process;US Census 2020 logo
  • highlights of new components in the 2020 Census, such as the online response option;
  • frequently asked questions;
  • a timeline of key Census dates;
  • contact information and links to additional resources.

ALA teamed with the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality to develop the Guide, with support from ALA’s 2020 Census Library Outreach and Education Task Force.

ALA plans to provide additional resources for library practitioners in the months leading up to Census Day on April 1, 2020. The Libraries’ Guide to the 2020 Census is available for free download at ala.org/census.

Helping residents and others who use your library's Wi-Fi or public computers to complete their census survey online can benefit your community, schools, and county in the future, since every individual counted helps to maximize federal and state funding for municipal services. Assignment of House of Representatives seats, federal funding apportionment, and our own LSTA "Grants to States" award are all based on the decennial census. More information on the importance to your community can be found in this blog post from last July, and more information specific to Wisconsin can be found in this post from January to help you learn how to determine is a "Complete County" committee has been established in your community or county.

Adapted from an ALA press release by John DeBacher, Public Library Development 

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WiLSWorld 2019 Coming Up This Month

Monday, July 1, 2019

WiLSWorld 2019 is coming up on July 23rd and 24th at the Pyle Center in Madison! WiLS, with the WiLSWorld Planning Team, have been busy putting together presentations and people and panels on the topics you have shared you're interested in learning more about. Here are just a few of the highlights:

• Keynote speaker Rebecca Stavick, co-founder of Open Nebraska, Library Journal Mover & Shaker, and member of the Urban Libraries Council Executive Board.

• Plenary speaker, Madison Public Library - Pinney Branch's own Sarah Lawton, LJ Mover & Shaker, featured speaker at Library Journal’s Design Institute, and member of the PLA Task Force on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Social Justice.

Programs on library data, web accessibility, ebook innovations, library as publisher, expanding broadband access, and so much more!

• Tuesday social hour at Camp Trippalindee

• Wednesday morning workshops on how to get things done with process design, talking the language of user experience, and making the case for open educational resources.

• A reduced-cost Wednesday afternoon workshop on the role of libraries in advancing racial equity with plenary speaker Sarah Lawton and Gordon F. Goodwin from the Government Alliance on Race and Equity, a program of Race Forward.

Register online here to reserve your spot on this timely conference!

Guest posting by Andrea Coffin, WiLS Community Liaison, acoffin@wils.org

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PLSR Implementation Plans Presented to COLAND

Tuesday, July 23, 2019

On Friday, July 12, DPI staff John DeBacher and Ben Miller presented a draft implementation plan for carrying out recommendations included in the Public Library System Redesign Steering Committee Final Report to the Council on Libraries and Network Development (COLAND). The plan includes a column with dates to indicate when work on individual recommendations will begin, and when subsequent activities to carry out the recommendations are anticipated. 

A number of the individual recommendations - including many of the related activities -include "Implementation Teams" in the process. Those teams will be comprised of individuals in the library community who are identified to be stakeholders or to have relevant expertise and experience in the activity area. As those specific activities draw near, DPI staff will put out calls for nominations for each Implementation Team - please do not contact us prior to that formal call to express interest. The calls for nominations will be shared here as well as through related DPI communications channels as aspects of follow up activities unfold. Selections will be made based on considerations to foster a balance between users of the System Services (public libraries), system employees, as well as geography and size.

To repeat, please take a look at the Implementation Plan, note the timeframe for the Recommendations and their Activities, and watch this space for the Implementation Teams's calls for nominations as well as for announcements and reports of PLSR project developments.

Written by John DeBacher, Public Library Development

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State Funding for Libraries - the Universal Service Fund

Friday, September 20, 2019

The Public Service Commission's Universal Service Fund

The State of Wisconsin Legislature has funded external public library services in recent years through appropriations drawing on the state's Universal Service Fund (USF), administered by the Public Service Commission (PSC). The fund, established in the Wisconsin 1993 Act 496 to help ensure that all Wisconsin "...residents receive essential telecommunication services and have access to advanced telecommunication capabilities." Throughout the first decade of this century, the fund was also tapped to support Wisconsin's regional Public Library Systems, gradually shifting System support from the state's General Fund until, over the past five biennia, System Services have been funded exclusively through the USF. The fund is based largely on fees assessed on commercial telephone and broadband services at rates set by the PSC.

Each two-year budget cycle, the PSC must report on its programs, including the USF. The most recent report can be found here. In addition, the non-partisan Legislative Audit Bureau (LAB) conducts an audit and issues a report each biennium. In past reports, the LAB had broken out Aid to Public Library Systems separately, including other library-related programs such as BadgerLink and the library contracts under "All Other Programs," as in the chart in the 2011-2012 report. However, in the 2017-18 report the LAB includes all appropriations administered by the DPI, including the Digital Learning Collaborative, as shown in this graphic display of program expenditures. The six programs administered by the DPI, DOA, and UW System accounted for over 87 percent of total expenditures for FY 2017-18, and nearly 86 percent of total expenditures for FY 2016-17. The amounts are shown in a table on page 26 of the full report, and an interactive chart of USF funds by agency highlights that the funding used or distributed by the DPI comprises more than half of the pie chart (54.7%). Fiscal Year 2018, the $15,513,100 in Public Library System Aid comprised nearly 42 percent of the total USF program expenditures.

Legislative Audit Bureau logo and text

Besides the programs administered by the DPI, the USF also supports state broadband and telecommunications discounts to schools and libraries under the TEACH program, administered by the Department of Administration. Most public libraries, library systems, and hundreds of school districts receive broadband services at a substantial discount through the program. The LAB reported two significant deficiencies in internal control over the USF that both related to the TEACH program. The report recommends that the agency:

  • review its automated process and correct any invoice errors, including for the differences we identified;
  • ensure that adequate documentation is maintained to support its review of the automated process and the amounts it invoiced educational institutions;
  • comply with statutes by requiring educational institutions to pay for each month of services received; and
  • report to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee by February 21, 2020, on its progress in implementing these recommendations and include information on the results of its review of its automated process.

The DOA has responded to the audit report, explaining that the invoicing lapse was due to delays in converting their school and library customers to the new network, and that corrective action is being taken. There were no audit findings related to the USF funded programs overseen by the DPI, including the aid to Public Library Systems.

Written by John DeBacher, Public Library Development

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Library Business Grant Opportunity: Application Period Open Now

Thursday, December 5, 2019

 

The American Library Association (ALA) recently received $2 million from Google.org to provide grants to 10-14 public libraries that have a strong history of providing services for small business and/or entrepreneurs for low-income and/or underrepresented groups in their communities. Here is the press release about that award. The application period for these grants is now open and closes December 13. ALA anticipates awarding grants from $50,000 to $150,000.

Libraries will be selected following a two phase review process. First libraries will indicate their interest and eligibility via a short application form. After an initial screening, a pool of libraries will be invited to complete a full application. A selection committee consisting of representatives from the Public Library Association, ALA’s Public Policy and Advocacy advisory committee and ALA’s Office for Diversity Literacy and Outreach Services will review those invited applications to select the cohort libraries.

For more information, interested libraries may email librariesbuildbusiness@gmail.com or visit the project website http://www.ala.org/advocacy/workforce/grant. Libraries may also view a recording of an informational webinar and view the webinar slides.

 

Submitted by Shannon Schultz, Public Library Development

 

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Digitization Kits Available to Wisconsin Libraries

Thursday, September 26, 2019

In collaboration with the South Central Library System (SCLS) and Recollection Wisconsin, 20 Digitization Kits have been distributed to library systems across Wisconsin. This project was made possible through WISE funding. The intended goal of this project is to increase the capacity of public libraries throughout Wisconsin to digitize local history resources. In turn, these history resources could be used to help preserve local history, aid in genealogical research, and support student inquiry around Wisconsin history. Digitized materials will be made available online through Recollection Wisconsin and DPLA.

 

Computer and scanner included with Digitization Kits
Photo by Shawn Vesely, courtesy of Recollection WI.

The Digitization Kits include a basic flatbed scanner and other equipment for scanning two-dimensional photos and documents. These kits were based on digitization kits created for New York METRO’s Culture In Transit project. SCLS procured equipment and assembled the kits in early 2019 and have made them available to library systems that expressed interest in pursuing digitization projects in a September 2018 Google Poll. These kits are comprised of identical hardware to help foster collaboration between systems, libraries, and other organizations in supporting and planning for digitization projects.


In July, 22 staff from 12 regional public library systems around the state participated in training workshops presented by South Central Library System and Recollection Wisconsin. The workshops were held in Madison at SCLS headquarters and in Keshena at the College of Menominee Nation Library. The goals of the workshops were to introduce the scanning kits, provide an overview of steps for systems to work with their member libraries to develop digital projects and contribute content to Recollection Wisconsin and DPLA, and build networks across regional library systems to share information and expertise. Tamara Ramski, Digitization Specialist for SCLS, walked through the workflow she uses when partnering with libraries. Craig Ellefson of SCLS gave an overview of the equipment and support resources. Emily Pfotenhauer of Recollection Wisconsin discussed metadata requirements and copyright considerations for digital collections.


Moving forward, libraries are encouraged to contact their systems to inquire about the availability of Digitization Kits for local projects. Recollection Wisconsin staff are available as a resource to help libraries and systems plan and carry out digitization projects (info@recollectionwisconsin.org). SCLS is happy to answer system questions to clarify project workflows (tramski@scls.info). For more information on this ongoing project, including documentation, templates, and resources, visit https://recollectionwisconsin.org/kits or check out the slides from the workshops.

Written by Emily Pfotenhauer and Ben Miller

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#eBooksForAll calls attention to positive and negative ebook lending models

Monday, September 23, 2019

We information professionals can’t possibly stay on top of everything that affects our libraries, so here’s a quick synopsis of the current situation with ebook lending via libraries. Perhaps you’ve been hearing about Macmillan Publisher’s newly proposed lending model? In a recent American Libraries article we learn, “Starting November 1, Macmillan will limit libraries to purchasing one copy of each new ebook and impose an eight-week embargo on buying additional copies.”

In a recent Library Journal article, Macmillan’s CEO John Sargent calls the new model a “response to our growing fears that library lending was cannibalizing sales.” He details a loss of revenue as a motivating factor saying, “the average revenue we get from those library reads (after the wholesaler share) is well under two dollars and dropping, a small fraction of the revenue we share with [authors] on a retail read.”

For big ebooks purchasers like the Wisconsin Public Library Consortium (WPLC), which coordinates the Overdrive buying pool for our state, this new lending model could have a huge impact. According to a January 9, 2019 blog post on the Rakuten OverDrive site, 65 libraries reached one million digital checkouts in 2018. With the buying power of a whole state behind us, WPLC is up at the top of the list. In 2018 both WPLC and the Toronto Public Library topped five million digital checkouts.

At the national level, the American Library Association (ALA) is following the issue closely. In a July 25, 2019 ALA press release, ALA President Wanda Brown says:

Macmillan Publishers’ new model for library ebook lending will make it difficult for libraries to fulfill our central mission: ensuring access to information for all. Limiting access to new titles for libraries means limiting access for patrons most dependent on libraries. When a library serving many thousands has only a single copy of a new title in ebook format, it’s the library – not the publisher – that feels the heat. It’s the local library that’s perceived as being unresponsive to community needs. Macmillan’s new policy is unacceptable.

In response to the Macmillan embargo, ALA recently launched a national campaign and hashtag: #eBooksForAll.

Though the hashtag was launched in response to a negative action by a Big 5 publishing company, there’s also good news for book lovers: Libraries Transform Book Pick. It’s a digital book club offering unlimited checkouts of “After the Flood” by Kassandra Montag. The title will be available October 7-21, 2019. As an Overdrive customer, WPLC can lend the book to everyone who wants to read it in that 2-week period, with no waitlists or holds.

For more information about the Libraries Transform Book Pick, please visit ilovelibraries.org/libraries-transform-book-pick. You can also follow the Libraries Transform Book Pick on ALA’s Facebook and Twitter and join the discussion on social media using the hashtag #LTBookPick. The Libraries Transform Book Pick is a collaboration between Booklist, the book review magazine of the American Library Association; Libraries Transform, the American Library Association’s public awareness initiative; and OverDrive, ALA Library Champion and lead sponsor of Libraries Transform.


 

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