BCLTA WEEKLY BULLETIN – June 26, 2009

CONTENTS

Announcements
Featured Grants
Featured Resources
Upcoming Events
Member Information Requests
Advertisements

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• 2010 BC Library Conference Call for Volunteers:  The 2009 British Columbia Library Conference, sponsored by BCLA, BCLTA and HLABC, was a huge success....there were 600 registrants and evaluations were very positive. Help us make the 2010 BC Library Conference in Penticton, April 22-24, equally--or more--successful!

Heather Compeau, the Chair of the 2010 BC Library Conference Planning Committee (CPC) is seeking volunteers for the following CPC positions:

• Exhibits Coordinator,
• Hospitality Coordinator,
• Sessions Coordinator,
  Sponsorship Coordinator,
• Publicity Coordinator,
• Author Talks Coordinator, and
  Web Site Coordinator.

These coordinators will form the 2010 BC Library Conference Planning Committee, along with the positions listed in Note #3 below. The general responsibilities of the Coordinator positions are outlined in a Word document sent as an attachment along with this bulletin.

Once the Coordinators are in place, the Conference Program Sub-Committee will be constituted by the Conference Chair.  The Committee will consist of a core group of members including:  Conference Chair,  BCLA Continuing Education Chair, designates from BCLA Sections ALPS and YAACS, the Executive Directors of BCLA and BCLTA, and the HLABC designate. The call for program proposals will go out in late July.

If you are interested in applying, please email a brief expression of interest to the Conference Manager, BCLA Executive Director Alane Wilson at execdir@bcla.bc.ca by July 3, 2009. Your expression of interest should form answers to these questions:

• Why do you think you would do well in the position?
• What experience do you have that would help make the BCLC 2010 conference
  planning committee and the conference successful?
• Will you have the support of your organization to commit the time needed?
  

Decisions will be made by July 10 by the Chair of the CPC, the Executive Directors of BCLA and BCLTA, and the President of HLABC, and will be made based on:

• current membership in either BCLA, BCLTA or HLABC,
• any relevant experience,
• declared "fit" with the position, and
• organizational support.

Please note:

1. We seek as much as possible a balance on the conference planning committee among the representatives of the three sponsoring organizations (the British Columbia Library Association, the British Columbia Library Trustees' Association and the Health Libraries' Association of British Columbia.) Although we welcome everyone’s interest, as the 2010 conference will be held in Penticton, we may give preference to volunteers from the Okanagan Valley.
   
   
2. Most meetings of the CPC can be attended in person or by teleconference. Not all Coordinators will be expected to attend every meeting—attendance will vary according to the planning calendar needs (established by the Chair and the Conference Manager). BCLA covers travel expenses to meetings and to the conference, and registration is waived. As the Conference Planning Manual is being rewritten, 2010 CPC members will have the opportunity to provide input on policy decisions related to conference expenses and revenue.
   
   
3. In addition to the positions listed above, the BCLA Assistant Treasurer acts as the Conference Treasurer and is a member of the CPC. The BCLA Office Manager is the Conference Registrar. The Executive Director of BCLTA and the President of HLABC are ex officio members. For the 2010 Conference, Hazel Fry will be the Local Arrangements Coordinator and her sub-committee has the responsibility for Social Events coordination (this includes conference sponsored receptions, tours and social gatherings).

Expect to work hard and have a lot of fun!

• Summer MLA Receptions Begin: Libraries around the province have begun holding summer MLA receptions to recognize the provincial government contribution to libraries and to demonstrate to our elected representatives the importance of maintaining this funding.  A reception was held by the North Coast Library Federation on June 23, and receptions are scheduled for June 26 in Kelowna and Invermere.  Houston Public Library has an event scheduled for July 8 and Salmo has asked its MLA to attend a Summer Reading Club event at the end of July.  Does your library have a reception or other event planned?  If so, please pass along the details to BCLTA at execdirector@bclta.org.  And don’t forget to send photos and event summaries for posting to the BCLTA website!

• Need Help Coordinating NDP Attendance at Your Library’s MLA Reception or Event?  NDP staffer Amber Nash has advised BCLTA she is available to assist in coordinating NDP MLA attendance at library receptions and events over the coming months.  If you are trying to select an event date that will work for your NDP representative, please call Amber at 250-953-4607 or email her at amber.nash@leg.bc.ca.  

• Geekthelibrary.org – OCLC, with $5 million in funding from the Gates Foundation, has begun a national advertising campaign in the United States to promote public libraries.  A description of the program is available at www.oclc.org/us/en/advocacy/ and you can check out the campaign roll-out at www.geekthelibrary.org.  As well, a Board Chair in Savannah, GA has written an article on “How ‘geeking’ helps the public library” at http://savannahnow.com/node/742520.
  
  
• Connecting with the Community: The Irving K. Barber Learning Centre has established an advisory committee to help guide its efforts with BC communities. “I am looking forward to interesting and engaging discussions with our advisors. They represent an exciting cross section of education and community-based services,” says Sandra Singh, the Learning Centre’s Director. “As well, they bring diverse geographic and individual perspectives.” The advisory committee, which features 25 members and includes BCLTA President Andy Ackerman, will serve as a forum for discussion and consideration of the Learning Centre’s role and activities as it seeks to fulfill its wide-ranging Statement of Purpose (found at www.ikebarberlearningcentre.ubc.ca/about/charter.html).

Singh is keen to expand the Centre’s community-oriented services. “We have an expansive and inspiring mandate in terms of supporting British Columbians, and we need to better understand what role we might play that does not duplicate existing services – such as those provided by public libraries, post-secondary institutions, and service centres or agencies – but rather enhances and supports them.” The committee was established as a strategic point of connection between the Learning Centre, internal UBC stakeholders and the broader community. The committee is set to meet twice a year, with the inaugural gathering planned to take place this summer.

[Reprinted from the June 26, 2009 CLA Digest: http://cla.informz.net/cla/archives/archive_541872.html]

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FEATURED GRANTS

• Has your library taken advantage of a grant or funding program you’d like to pass along to the rest of the trustee community?  If so, please contact Errin Morrison at execdirector@bclta.org with the details.

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FEATURED RESOURCES

• Check out BlogJunction BC at http://webjunctionworks.org/bc/blog/ and read this week’s posting by BCLTA Executive Director Errin Morrison.  The topic is advocacy and an overview of BCLTA’s advocacy-related resources is provided, along with links to excellent materials and resources available through WebJunction.

• Making Cities Stronger: Public Library Contributions to Local Economic Development is based on data from a national survey and case studies from nine sites across the US, and provides new insights into the economic impact of public libraries in American cities. The report highlights ways in which library programming in the areas early literacy, employment services, and small business development, contribute to local economic development strategies. The study also identifies ways in which library construction is used to bolster place-based development in a wide variety of settings. Commissioned by the Urban Libraries Council, the study was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation.  Access the report online at www.urban.org/publications/1001075.html.
  
  
• The Library Use Value Calculator (http://maine.gov/msl/services/calculator.htm) helps you calculate how much your library is worth by looking at how much you would pay out-of-pocket for services offered free-of-charge at the local library.

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UPCOMING EVENTS

• June 26 – Summer MLA Receptions Begin
• October 1 – BC Library Reception at UBCM
• October 2 – Quarterly BCLTA Board Meeting

BCLTA welcomes the submission of upcoming events of interest to trustees.  Please send notice to Errin Morrison at execdirector@bclta.org to have your event included in next week’s bulletin.

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MEMBER INFORMATION REQUESTS

• BCLTA is interested in gathering examples of small library budgets to establish a best-practices repository for member use.  If you would be willing to share your budget for use as an example, please contact Errin Morrison at execdirector@bclta.org.  Anonymized budget documents are welcome.

• Do you have an information need, issue or concern you’d like to put to the larger trustee community?  If so, consider submitting a member information request to Errin Morrison at execdirector@bclta.org.  Often our best resource is each other!

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ADVERTISEMENTS

Advertising in BCLTA’s Open Door newsletter, weekly member bulletin and website is now available to businesses, consulting firms and others who provide goods and services of interest to library trustees and public libraries.  Please contact Errin Morrison at execdirector@bclta.org for information on BCLTA advertising criteria and pricing.

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