Library as Incubator Project Launched by SLIS Students

The co-founders of the Library as Incubator Project have launched the project’s virtual “hub,” www.libraryasincubatorproject.org.  Three UW-Madison SLIS students are the project managers: Laura Damon-Moore, Erinn Batykefer, and Christina Endres. 

The Library as Incubator Project seeks to learn how artists (writers, visual artists and performing artists) use libraries in the research, creation and promotion of their artistic work. The presenters are in the process of creating a web resource that highlights artists and projects that have been "incubated," in part, by library collections, spaces and/or staff. It will also serve as a resource for librarians who want to better serve artists patrons through programming, collections, and partnerships.

Damon-Moore, Batykefer and Endres are presenting a WLA Conference program about their project  November 4 in Milwaukee at Hilton Milwaukee City Center, 10:30 a.m.

Learn more about the Library as Incubator Project at the conference, or subscribe online via Facebook, Twitter, or RSS feed on the website to get updates and announcements. 

libraryasincubatorproject.org
libraryasincubatorproject@gmail.com
Facebook: Library as Incubator Project
Twitter: IArtLibraries

Foundation Silent Auction Seeks Donated Items

On behalf of the WLA Foundation, I want to remind all conference attendees about the Silent Auction at the WLA conference in Milwaukee.  Once again this year we will have both an on-site and an online silent auction.  Last year’s auctions raised more than $4,000 for the Campaign for Wisconsin Libraries and with your help we should be able to surpass that amount this year!

We need your help in two ways:  first, by donating items for the auction and, second, by bidding on the items either online or in person at the conference.

Donated items that have created bidding excitement at past auctions include (but are not limited to –creativity is appreciated!):
• Fine arts, including jewelry, paintings, sculpture, pottery
• Products or services that a library or librarians would find useful (story hour, consulting)
• Entertainment packages (theater or sporting event tickets, golf packages)
• Hotel packages (e.g., weekend getaways with one or more meals included)
• Theme baskets (a great and economical gift donation for library staff to create collectively!)
• Trips inside or outside Wisconsin
• Collectibles, antiques and memorabilia

Keep the following guidelines in mind as you consider donating items for the auction:
• Please donate items that are $50 or higher in value
• Items are tax-deductible as charitable contributions at their actual value
• WLAF owns the items once contributed

In addition to the satisfaction of raising money to support the Campaign for Wisconsin Libraries and adding to the fun of Silent Auction bidders, those who donate auction items will benefit by:
• Having your name listed on the bid sheet and on the receipt provided to the winning bidder.
• Name recognition on the conference Web site auction information
• Receiving recognition on the WLA website

So, don’t forget to donate those “unused” or handmade treasures you have on hand to the Silent Auction held during the conference.  Visit the WLA Conference Silent Auction site for more information and access to the Auction Contribution forms:
http://www.wla.lib.wi.us/wlaf/silentauction/auction.html

See you in Milwaukee!
--Joe Rice, 2011 Silent Auction Chair

Wisconsin Teen Wins Step Up to the Plate @ your library Grand Prize

CHICAGO – The American Library Association reports that twelve-year-old Kelsey Willems, Green Bay, will soon be on her way to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, N.Y., thanks to the resources at her school library and some quality family time with her father.

In the grand prize drawing for the Step Up to the Plate @ your library program, Baseball Hall of Fame Library Director Jim Gates pulled Willems’ entry from the 1,000 eligible entries baseball fans nationwide sent in over the spring and summer.  For her win, Willems and her father will head to the Hall of Fame at the end of the month to attend its World Series Gala event and receive a behind-the-scenes tour of the library and archives.

Developed by the American Library Association (ALA) and the Hall of Fame, Step Up to the Plate officially wrapped up its sixth season with the national drawing. The program teamed up two American classics - baseball and libraries - to promote libraries and librarians as essential information resources. People of all ages were encouraged to use the print and electronic resources available at their library to answer a series of trivia questions developed by the Hall of Fame’s library staff.

Willems’ language arts teacher and her school librarian introduced the Step Up to the Plate program to students.  Students were encouraged to practice researching skills at home by completing the answers and submitting them for the grand-prize drawing.

Willems’ had an additional resource at home in her father, Robert, a lifelong Milwaukee Brewers fan. Father and daughter worked to answer the questions together and used the skills she had learned at her school library to verify the answers online.

“It’s a good year to be a both a Brewers and library fan,” said Willems’ mother. “Kelsey and her sister always use their school library, and as a family we visit the public library once a month.”

Step Up to the Plate @ your library is part of the Campaign for America’s Libraries (www.ala.org/@yourlibrary <http://www.ala.org/@yourlibrary> ), ALA’s public awareness campaign that promotes the value of libraries and librarians. Thousands of libraries of all types – across the country and around the globe - use the Campaign’s @ your library® brand. The Campaign is made possible by ALA’s Library Champions, corporations and foundations.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, a Partner in the Campaign for America’s Libraries, is a not-for-profit educational institution dedicated to fostering an appreciation of the historical development of the game and its impact on our culture by collecting, preserving, exhibiting and interpreting its collections for a global audience, as well as honoring those who have made outstanding contributions to our National Pastime.

Other Campaign Partners are Carnegie Corporation of New York, Disney Book Group, Dollar General Literacy Foundation, FINRA Investor Education Foundation, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), Lifetime Networks and Scholastic Parent & Child magazine

For more information, visit www.atyourlibrary.org/baseball <http://www.atyourlibrary.org/baseball> . Megan McFarlane
Campaign Coordinator
The Campaign for America's Libraries
312-280-2148

Jeff Dawson, Two Rivers Library Director, Presents at Gates Foundation Event

The Lester Public Library's use of photography and social media were on stage at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Global Libraries initiative Peer Learning meeting in Seattle on September 20. According to Jeff Dawson, director of the library,  the project has "transcended technology to create an emotional bond between the library and the community it serves."

To read more about the library's project and the Global Libraries initiative, see Jeff's October 5 article in the Herald Times Reporter.

Wisconsin Rapids Library Touted as Heart of the Community

The Wisconsin  Rapids Tribune published an excellent article about the McMillan Memorial Library in Wisconsin Rapids, touting the value to users. Mayor Mary Jo Carson calls the library the community's living room. 


"I can't tell you the value it brings to our community, Mayor Carson said. "Many people consider the library the heart of the community, and that's a good explanation of what the library is."

Library director Ron McCabe describes the educational nature of the library's programs and services, including the cultural education provided by events showcasing jazz and blues, along with movies and other programs. Read the complete article...

Easy Reader Cork and Fuzz: The Babysitters Wins 2011 Burr/Worzalla Award

The 2011 Elizabeth Burr/Worzalla Award winner is the sixth book from the popular and loveable easy reader series, Cork and Fuzz: The Babysitters, written by Wisconsin native Dori Chaconas and published by the Viking Group. The Children’s Book Award Committee of the Wisconsin Library Association’s Youth Services Section annually awards the Burr/Worzalla to the most distinguished work in literature for children written and/or illustrated by a Wisconsin book creator.

In Cork and Fuzz: The Babysitters, Dori Chaconas tells another chapter in the lives of her characters Cork and Fuzz, the muskrat and possum duo. Dori tells a charming and amusing story, weaving in lots of humor and fun, with a good lesson to be learned as Cork and Fuzz learn the responsibilities of babysitting and the importance of helping others.

The Children’s Book Award Committee also named Barbara Joosse the 2011 Notable Wisconsin Author/Illustrator for her contribution to the world of children’s literature. To also recognize nominated books the Committee thought noteworthy, 5 titles were selected for Outstanding Achievement in Children’s Literature, written and/or illustrated by Wisconsin book creators:
My Garden by Kevin Henkes (Greenwillow Books)
Shark vs. Train illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld (Little Brown and Co.)
Art and Max by David Wiesner (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
The Boys by Jeff Newman (Simon & Schuster)
The Reinvention of Edison Thomas by Jacqueline Houtman (Front Street)

The Elizabeth Burr/Worzalla Award is made possible by the Worzalla Publishing Company, Stevens Point, through a grant to the WLA Foundation.

The 2011 Children’s Book Award Committee members consist of Linda Jerome, La Crosse Public Library, Chair; Barbara Huntington, retired, DPI-DLTCL; Ruhama Kordatzky; Jennifer McNaughton, Greendale Public Library; Jeni Schomber, Beloit Public Library; Elizabeth Timmins, Muehl Public Library; Dawn Wacek, Rice Lake Public Library.

Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame Inductees Announced

The Steering Committee of the Wisconsin Library Heritage Center, a program of the Wisconsin Library Association Foundation, has selected seven individuals to be inducted into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame (WLHF) in 2011. They are Norman D. Bassett (1891-1980), Orilla Thompson Blackshear (1904-1994), Daniel Steele Durrie (1819-1892), Gilson G. Glasier (1873-1972), Ginny Moore Kruse (1934- ), Walter Mcmynn Smith (1869 – 1938), and Ella T. Veslak (1897-1996). Their induction into the WLHF will take place during the Awards & Honors Banquet at the Wisconsin Library Association Conference in Milwaukee on November 3. These seven inductees will join twenty-two other individuals who have previously been inducted into the WLHF.


Read more about the inductees on the WLHC Blog, written by Larry Nix.

Message to Read to Lead Task Force: Literacy Role of Libraries is Critical

Recently, the WLA and the Wisconsin Educational Media & Technology Association crafted a memo to  Governor Walker's Read to Lead Task Force, in order to highlight the important role that libraries play in improving literacy. A portion of that memo appears below, or you can read the entire memo:

As statewide associations of librarians, we are excited to see the Governor convene the Read to Lead Task Force. We thank him and all of you for your efforts thus far.  As we are sure you know, school and public librarians provide effective literacy programs to children on a daily basis. We believe it would be valuable for the task force to consider the perspective of librarians as you conduct your work. This document illustrates ways Wisconsin children benefit from interactions with these professionals through early literacy programming, summer reading programming and curriculum-related programming. Please let us know if our associations can be of assistance to the task force as you move forward.

Read the complete memo.

Waukesha Public Library is WLA's 2011 Library of the Year

The Wisconsin Library Association Awards and Honors Committee confers the 2011 Library of the Year award upon Waukesha Public Library. The award is conferred upon any type of Wisconsin library, library system or library network for distinguished achievement in service. The staff, library board or administering body, and the community or people served shall all be involved in the work for which recognition is sought. The award shall be based upon such activities or accomplishments as user oriented services, development and participation in networks and systems and cooperative planning with other libraries, collections, professional growth opportunities and employee job satisfaction, and changes or improvements in physical facilities resulting in better service.

Waukesha Public Library exceeds the five award criteria particularly in regard to strong community partnerships with organizations such as the School District of Waukesha, local businesses, UW-Waukesha, Carroll University, Waukesha County Technical College, Waukesha Civic Theater, the West End Artists Association, Waukesha County Project Head Start, Waukesha County Historical Society, and more.

Waukesha Public Library has been fortunate to complete a two-phase building project which has culminated in better service to patrons from children to seniors. Waukesha Public Library has shown a history of being proactive as demonstrated by its initiation of an integrated library system with two other Waukesha county libraries, fostering the system for nearly a decade, and then recently gifting it to the Waukesha County Library System for the entire county to utilize. Waukesha Public Library recognizes the importance of public art and has made itself a destination for many reasons including a space to experience visual art.

Waukesha Public Library is clearly appreciated within its own community, and we are happy to recognize its achievements as well.  From the facility to the staff to the programs and community partnerships, Waukesha Public Library has much of which to be proud and is a great example of a Library of the Year.

Congratulations!
--Rebecca Dougherty, Chair, WLA Awards & Honors Committee

Betty Backus, Union Grove, Wins WLA Citation of Merit

The Wisconsin Library Association Awards and Honors Committee confers the 2011 Citation of Merit award upon Betty Backus, Volunteer at the Graham Public Library in Union Grove, Wisconsin. The Citation of Merit is conferred upon Wisconsin citizens who are neither librarians nor library trustees, who have made outstanding contributions to quality library services.

Betty exceeds the award criteria by being an exemplary library volunteer for almost 20 years. Betty not only maintains but created Union Grove's local history collection by indexing and creating metadata from local papers, collecting information on local families, businesses, and community events, and continually combing local resources for additional information. She serves as the unofficial local genealogist and historian for Union Grove and its surrounding communities including Yorkville, Dover, and Paris. As if that were not enough, she also organizes the library's profitable annual book sale including recruiting more volunteers.

Members of the WLA Awards and Honors Committee are happy to honor Betty with the Citation of Merit and envy Graham Public Library and Union Grove for having such a fantastic volunteer.  Congratulations!
--Rebecca Dougherty, Chair, WLA Awards & Honors Committee

WLA Foundation Announces 2011 Scholarship Recipients

The WLA Foundation has announced the recipients of 2011 scholarships totaling $4,900 for both library and continuing education. 

The Library Education Scholarship of $1,150 goes to Angela Terrab, who will attend the UW-Madison SLIS this fall. Terrab said, "The financial support offered by this scholarship will give me more flexibility to find the right balance between school, work, and community service."


Matthew Heindel, Janesville, will receive a $900 Sally Davis Scholarship for individuals pursuing their MLS at UW-Madison SLIS.  


The Vida Cummins Stanton Scholarship of $1,300 for individuals pursuing a career in youth librarianship at UW-Milwaukee SOIS goes to Stacie Karlin, Manitowoc.


The Diversity Scholarship of $900 goes to Melissa Nicholas, Madison, and the $650 George Bauer Continuing Education Scholarship goes to Penny Johnson, Baraboo Public Library. 


The WLA Foundation Board allocates scholarship amounts based on a percentage in each scholarship endowment. The Scholarships Committee reviews applications and determines the recipients. This year's committee: Sharon Lake, Paul Nelson, Jane Pearlmutter, Jane Roeber and Alice Sturzl.

Ask Cathy Markwiese About Jeopardy! ... but not just yet

Milwaukee--Milwaukee Public Library's own Cathy Markwiese (Database Maintenance) will be appearing on Jeopardy! the week of July 25th. But don’t ask her about it just yet. Cathy is under contractual obligation not to discuss how she did until after her appearance. But be sure to tune in the week of July 25th to see for yourself.

Cathy took the online test for Jeopardy! in January of 2010. “I had just finished chemotherapy and was feeling kind of broken,” Cathy said. “I wanted to do something that would make me feel like myself again.”

After completing the online quiz, Cathy was invited to Chicago in August to compete with other finalists before being chosen to appear on the program. “I met some really amazing people,” Cathy said. “The whole experience was really kind of mind-blowing for me.”

So what’s it like onstage at Jeopardy!? The show only records on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.  A week’s worth of shows are taped in a single day.  Each contestant station has an individual elevated platform that can be raised to make all the contestants appear at the same height. “At each filming break one of the crew would come running over and say ‘Can we help you down, Cathy?’ since my platform had to be raised quite high.”

The buzzers are super-sensitive and you’re “blocked out” if you try to answer the question too quickly. A member of the crew activates a frame of lights around the board to signal when contestants can try to answer.

Host Alex Trebek was very interested in Cathy and her story and made a point after the show of getting to talk to her about her experience. “He asked me all about the chemotherapy and what it was like,” she said. “He kind of made a bee-line for me after the program and left the other contestants to talk amongst themselves.”

So tune in and see how you stack up against Cathy and the other contestants. While we don’t know yet how she did, there’s no question she represented MPL with her usual class and character.
--Sandra Rusch Walton, MPL Marketing & Public Relations Officer

Milwaukee Public Library's Green Roof Wins Mayor's Design Award

MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee Public Library’s green roof, high atop Central Library in downtown Milwaukee, has won another award – a Mayor Tom Barrett Design Award. The green roof was recognized in an awards ceremony on May 25, 2011 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s School of Architecture and Urban Planning.

The Mayor’s annual design awards recognize design excellence throughout the City of Milwaukee. A project is selected for its contribution to the character of its surroundings, adding value to its neighborhood, and contributing to the urban fabric. MPL’s green roof was entered in the Spaces and Places category.

Library Director Paula A. Kiely accepted the award on behalf of MPL and the team that worked on the green roof design, construction, and ongoing updates and maintenance. The architect for the project is HGA Architects, and the contractor is F.J.A. Christiansen Roofing Co.

The Mayor’s Design Award is the latest public recognition for Central’s green roof. Earlier, MPL received awards from the Public Policy Forum and The Business Journal of Greater Milwaukee. For more information on MPL’s green roof, go to http://www.mpl.org/file/green_index.htm.

Ron McCabe: Libraries Play a Key Role in Education

This column, by WLA President-elect Ron McCabe, appeared in the Wisconsin Rapids Tribune on June 24.

In our democracy, everyone is allowed and encouraged to participate in the political, social and economic life of their community, state and nation. Public education is the most powerful means we have to encourage and enable this participation. Libraries play a vital role in this effort to create a more perfect union.

Education often begins in the classroom, but it doesn't end there. Libraries provide opportunities for lifelong learning that extend beyond the classroom and beyond graduation. Libraries allow us to share costly educational resources that we might not be able to purchase on our own. Today, networks of library cooperation expand this local sharing by providing access to library collections throughout the state and nation.

As president-elect of the Wisconsin Library Association, I am learning more everyday about the amazing contributions of libraries of all types to the education of the citizens of our state. Here are a few examples that relate to public libraries. I was surprised to learn that more people visit Wisconsin's public libraries every week than the Packers home game attendance in an entire season. There were 35.5 million public library visits in 2009. These visitors borrowed 65.6 million books and other materials that year.

Wisconsin is the No. 1 state in public library resource sharing. If all of the library materials borrowed from other libraries were purchased by home libraries, the Department of Public Instruction calculates the cost of these materials at more than $100 million per year. NorthStar Economics estimated the direct economic impact and the impact of Wisconsin public library services to be $753 million in 2008. In the same study, NorthStar estimated that the annual return per dollar of public tax support for Wisconsin's public libraries was $4.06.

The United States built the best system of public education in the world and the world's greatest economy. Since 1970, however, our country has declined in its educational performance compared to the rest of the developed world. In a recent international study, American 15-year-olds were ranked 15 of 34 nations in reading. Our students scored 17th in science and 25th in math. We cannot win the economic competition with other nations or even neighboring states if Wisconsin fails to provide a good education for its citizens. Supporting our school, technical college, university and community libraries contributes to the educational and economic success of our state and nation.

WLA Literary Award: "Burned: A Memoir" by Louise Nayer

The Literary Awards Committee of the Readers’ Section of the Wisconsin Library Association has chosen Burned: A Memoir by Louise Nayer of San Francisco (B.A. Madison, 1971) as the winner of the 2011 Wisconsin Library Association Literary Award, given for the highest literary achievement by a Wisconsin author for a book published in 2010.

Burned: A Memoir is a beautifully written, touching, and emotionally charged story of a family and the tragic event that changed their lives forever. Weezie is only 4 when the accident happens. Through her young eyes we see the struggle of her parents to recover not only their physical but emotional selves in the aftermath of horrific injuries. Weezie and her sister, swept away to other caregivers, struggle to understand what has happened and to believe they will be reunited with their parents.

“In recreating the setting, emotions, and dialogue, Nayer writes in a way that makes the reader feel like a part of the story,” said Jean Anderson, Co-Chair of the Literary Awards Committee. “We want to reach out and stop Weezie’s mom from lighting the match that ignited the fire. We are deeply touched by the resilience and strength shown by the author and her family and are grateful she chose to share her story with us.”

The Wisconsin Library Association Literary Award is made possible by a grant from the WLA Foundation.

Also recognized this year is Bette Pesetsky, who is being honored as the 2011 Notable Wisconsin Author for her body of work. Born and raised in Milwaukee, Pesetsky’s works include: Stories up to a Point, Author from a Savage People, Digs, Midnight Sweets, Confessions of a Bad Girl, The Late Night Muse, Cast a Spell, as well as many short stories published in anthologies and periodicals.

The 2011 Outstanding Achievement awards for 2010 publications include the following 10 titles by Wisconsin authors.
•    Deborah Blum (Madison)—The Poisoner’s Handbook
•    M. Caren Connolly & Louis Wasserman (Milwaukee), and
Zane Williams (Madison)—Wisconsin’s Own: Twenty Remarkable Homes
•    Susanna Daniel (Madison)—Stiltsville
•    Lesley Kagen (Cedarburg)—Tomorrow River
•    Danielle L. McGuire (Janesville)—At the Dark End of the Street
•    Michael Schumacher (Milwaukee/Kenosha)—Will Eisner: A Dreamer’s Life in Comics
•    Mona Simpson (Green Bay)—My Hollywood
•    Skibell, Joseph (Madison)—A Curable Romantic
•    Patrick Somerville (Green Bay)—The Universe in Miniature in Miniature
•    Mary Helen Stefaniak (Milwaukee)—The Cailiffs of Baghdad, Georgia

The 2011 Outstanding Achievement in Poetry awards for 2010 titles include the following four titles by Wisconsin authors.
•    B. J. Best (West Bend)—Birds of Wisconsin: Poems
•    Rebecca Dunham (Milwaukee)—The Flight Cage: Poems
•    Nick Lantz (Madison)—We Don’t Know, We Don’t Know
•    Nick Lantz (Madison)—The Lightning that Strikes the Neighbors’ House

The 2011 Literary Awards Committee members are: Jean Anderson (co-chair), Pat Chevis, Katrina Collins, Jane Jorgenson, Amy Lutzke (co-chair), Anne Paterson, Gerard Saylor, Andrew Scott, Deb Shapiro, and Jean Yeomans.

For more information about the work of the Literary Awards Committee, visit www.wla.lib.wi.us/readers/WLAC/lac.html.

Rome Public Library Seeks to More than Double Size

The Lester Public Library of Rome is looking to raise $900,000 for an expansion of the library from 2,500 square feet to 6,000 square feet. The Wisconsin Rapids Tribune reports that the South Central Public Library System recommended that the library be expanded to 12,000 square feet to serve the community properly. However, city officials wanted that scaled back. Director Lore Ponshock estimates that about 50 children attend summer library program throughout the week.

The library capacity according to fire codes is a maximum of 30 people. Early plans for the new library include a program room that would hold 60-85.