PLA e-News, March 18, 2004 
Volume 7, Number 3 

Spotlight on PLA Gold Partner - Veicon Technology
PLA Workshop on Creating Library Policies Deadline
PLA Conference Draws Record-Breaking Attendance in Seattle
PLA to Sponsor 'Join the Major Leagues @ Your Library'
PLA Public Library Advocacy Campaign
Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library
National Library Week - ALA Collecting Information
RFP from National Network of Libraries of Medicine
Fulbright Scholar Program

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Spotlight on PLA Gold Partner Veicon Technology

Since 1998, Veicon Technology has been a pioneer and successful world class partner with libraries - providing innovative public access solutions to meet the changing needs of their patrons.  By using  most recent IT technology
and thin client systems, combined with Veicon's  proprietary patented V-Link system,  Veicon offers IPAS (Integrated  Public Access Solution) to library customers which is highly cost-effective,  secure and easy to support. Veicon's IPAS(TM) solution allows the library  customers to stretch their operating budget, while reducing staff involvement and headaches.  Some of the  unique features include: "built-in virus  protection,"  "flexible filtering with CIPA compliance option," and "remote system  management." Veicon was the sponsor for PLA's Internet Café at the National Conference in Seattle and sponsors other library events in an effort  to give back the support they have been getting  from their  library customer base.

Contact Information:

Veicon Technology, Inc.
15201 NW Greenbrier Parkway, Bldg B5
Beaverton, OR 97006
Phone:   503-645-1551
Fax:       503-645-2072
Contact person:
Stewart Bartlett  (ext 228)
E mail: stewb@veicon.com

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PLA Workshop on Creating Library Policies Deadline

The deadline for registering for the PLA sponsored one-day workshop on creating library policies being held on April 27, 2004, in Scottsdale, Arizona, is April 2, 2004. 

In June 2003, PLA released the latest entry in the "For Results" series titled, Creating Policies for Results: From Chaos to Clarity.  This workshop taught by June Garcia and Sandra Nelson, the book's co-authors, will provide library staff members who are responsible for writing their library's policies, the information they need to make the best use of the book's exercises and templates.Participants will leave this program ready to complete a policy audit, write or revise policies, and communicate effectively about the library's policies with the board, the staff, and the public. You can find more information and an application on the PLA web site, www.pla.org.   Workshop space is limited so sign up today!

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Public Library Association 10th National Conference Draws Record-Breaking Attendance

Award-winning writer, poet and film producer Sherman Alexie ("The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven" and "Reservation Blues") addressed a record crowd, as he brought to a close the largest-ever Public Library Association (PLA) National Conference. Almost 8,700 library staff, exhibitors, authors and guests packed the Washington State Convention & Trade Center, in Seattle, on February 24 to 28. The conference brought more than $12 million to the city, making it one of the 10 largest conventions scheduled in Seattle for 2004.

"Seattle clearly loves libraries, and the Public Library Association has loved being here," said PLA President Luis Herrera. "The energy of this conference has been thrilling. The millions of Americans from all walks of life that depend on their public libraries for information, entertainment, and community engagement will be the beneficiaries of this experience. The smartest card in their wallet - now more than ever - is their library card!"

From the opening session with Pulitzer Prize-winner Anna Quindlen and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Director Bill Gates, Sr., hundreds of workshops, events and discussions drew standing-room-only crowds. Advocacy on behalf of libraries, funding, recruitment, technology, multicultural outreach and youth services were among the key issues generating conversation and interest among attendees.

While describing her lifelong dream of becoming a writer, Quindlen remembered "standing in my public library as a teenager and trying to figure out where my book would sit on the shelf: between Proust and Ayn Rand."

Other presenting authors included: Harlan Coben ("Tell No One" and "Gone for Good"), Peter Dexter ("Paris Trout"), Jayne Ann Krentz ("Truth or Dare"), Nancy Farmer ("The House of the Scorpion") J.A. Jance ("Exit Wounds") and Ridley Pearson ("Middle of Nowhere").

The exhibit hall also was sold out and filled with almost 800 booths featuring library-related products and services from firms like BBC Audiobooks America, EBSCO Information Services, Random House and Tech Logic Corporation.

The best-selling items in the American Library Association (ALA) Graphics store were the librarian action figure - signed by flesh-and-blood library hero Nancy Pearl - and the new Orlando Bloom ("Lord of the Rings" and "Pirates of the Caribbean") READ poster. Parents, teachers and others can continue to find many of these bestsellers, including posters featuring Lemony Snickett and Neil Gaiman's popular "Sandman" character, online at www.alastore.ala.org .

To learn more about the largest association devoted to public libraries, or to see handouts from the conference educational programming, please visit www.pla.org .

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PLA to sponsor Join the Major Leagues @ your library(r); libraries invited to register for free program poster

The Campaign for America's Libraries is pleased to announce that the Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), is a new sponsor of the Join the Major Leagues @ your library(r) program.

"Join the Major Leagues @ your library" is a program developed by the American Library Association (ALA), Major League Baseball, and the Major League Baseball Players Association.  The program celebrates and promotes two of America's oldest institutions -- baseball and libraries -- while heightening awareness of 21st Century literacy skills: the use of computers and other media to obtain information and improve communications. The partnership is part of @ your library(r), The Campaign for America's Libraries, ALA's multi-year public education effort about the value of libraries and librarians in the 21st century.

"Join the Major Leagues @ your library is a great way for public libraries to engage in 21st century literacy efforts, especially since so many libraries already have relationships and existing literacy programs with local ball clubs," said  PLA President Luis Herrera.  "The program is also a natural fit as PLA launches it own @ your library advocacy campaign this year.  What better summer pastime than baseball and libraries. Kids will be saying 'take me out to the ballgame' as well as 'take me out to the library!"

The 2004 program will launch in the late spring and be promoted in public libraries as a summer reading initiative. It will run through mid-September. The centerpiece of the program is the "Join the Major Leagues @ your library" contest, an online baseball trivia contest that challenges participants to utilize the resources available at the library to answer baseball trivia questions of increasing difficulty. Available in English and Spanish, the trivia contest is featured on the campaign Web site at www.ala.org/@yourlibrary/jointhemajorleagues, and is also available at www.mlb.com. This year's trivia questions will once again be developed by the library staff at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, and will be organized by age group (10 and under, 11-13, 14-17 and 18 and older).

A new program poster featuring Major League Baseball players will be available free of charge to librarians while supplies last. To receive a poster, librarians are encouraged to register now on the Join the Major Leagues Website. One poster will be sent per library or library branch. By registering, librarians will also receive access to other promotional materials once the program officially launches to the public, including downloadable artwork and a resource toolkit.  New incentives and prizes will also be offered this year for libraries that bring in the greatest number of entries and for those that conduct the best local public relations effort.

The grand-prize winner of the 2004 program will receive a trip to a designated game of the 2004 Major League Baseball World Series next fall and first-place prizes will be awarded as well.

Look for more details on the 2004 program on the campaign Website at www.ala.org/@yourlibrary and in PLA's Public Libraries magazine coming soon.

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PLA Public Library Advocacy Campaign

An exciting new campaign to help promote the value of your library and public libraries nationwide was unveiled to public librarians at the PLA National Conference in Seattle. The campaign will reach out to national media and decision-makers to deliver our advocacy message. The campaign will provide sample press materials, posters, downloadable art, and other promotional materials to help get public attention and reach out to key groups in your community. The official campaign launch will be September, 2004 - National Library Card Sign-Up Month. In the meantime, we want to hear from public librarians about the campaign and what will help them most. This campaign is designed especially for you. The campaign must complement and enhance local marketing efforts. Please complete the online survey (see www.pla.org ) and tell us what you think about this new initiative.

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Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library

Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library is a joint project of PLA and the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). Through this project, PLA has developed training and materials that will allow all public libraries to incorporate the latest in early literacy research into their programming for young children. As you know, children begin to leary literacy skills at birth. Many parents and caregivers, though, need to be taught the importance of early literacy and how to develop critical pre-reading skills so that every child enters school ready to learn to read. A training kit that will help librarians do this will be available soon from PLA/ALSC. The kit will contain everything you need to help parents and caregivers learn the importance of early literacy. For more information about the project and the training kit, visit www.pla.org/earlyliteracy.htm

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National Library Week - ALA Collecting Event Information

The American Library Association's (ALA) Public Information Office is in the process of collecting event information for National Library Week(NLW) and School Library Media Month. Our goal is to compile a diverse list of events that can be accessed by reporters via the ALA Web site. We will include the most creative and/or innovative events as part of our national media outreach efforts. The American Library Association's (ALA) Public Information Office is in the process of collecting event information for National Library Week(NLW) and School Library Media Month. Our goal is to compile a diverse list of events that can be accessed by reporters via the ALA Web site. We will include the most creative and/or innovative events as part of our national media outreach efforts.

If you would like to provide event information for your library, please follow this template:

{Name of Library}
{A brief event description telling its reader who, what, when, where}
{Library contact information and Web site address}

Please submit formatted event information no later than March 29, 2004, via e-mail to mmorales@ala.org

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New RFP announcement from the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NN/LM)

The National Network of Libraries of Medicine invites eligible institutions to submit proposals in response to its recently issued Request for Proposals (RFP) for Access to Electronic Health Information projects. The focus of this solicitation is on projects designed to improve access to electronic health information for such groups and organizations as consumers, underserved and minority health care professionals, public health workers, public libraries, and community-based and faith-based organizations. Single institutions may receive up to $10,000 and a group of two or more institutions may receive up to $40,000. The proposals should be submitted by June 4, 2004. A copy of the RFP and submission information is available at http://nnlm.gov/projects/funding/aehi_rfp2004/

For additional information, please contact your Regional Medical Library at
1-800-338-7657.

Washington, DC 20008-3009
tel: 202-686-6245
fax: 202-362-3442
dteutonico@iie.org

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Fulbright Scholar Program 2005-06 Professional Librarian Award in the United Kingdom

The United Kingdom Fulbright Commission has again announced an award for an assistant librarian to help provide professional library services for the Second Air Division Memorial Library, located within the Norfolk and Norwich
Millennium Library. The Second Air Division Memorial Library has three purposes:

*to act as a war memorial to the 6,700 US airmen and women stationed in East Anglia who were killed in the Second World War;
*to provide a current library and information service on U.S. culture and history;
*to provide an archive of Second World War memorabilia.

Norfolk County's libraries have 1.2 million volumes, service the inhabitants
of Norfolk and are administered by the Norfolk County Council. Service is
provided through 46 libraries and 17 mobile libraries which deliver services
across Norfolk. The service also has libraries in two prisons and in one
village shop. All libraries are connected to a DS Galaxy 2000 system and
enable public access to the internet and to ICT facilities through broadband
technology.

Visit http://www.2ndair.org.uk for more information about the Memorial
Library.

GRANT ACTIVITY:

*To help provide professional library services for the 2nd
Air Division Memorial Library, working as an assistant librarian with the
Trust Librarian and library assistants
*To contribute to managing the stock at the Memorial Library
*To maintain and develop the Memorial Library web site
*To develop links with schools, colleges, and universities
and maintain links previously established
*To develop the role of the Library and the four branch
collections, in supporting formal and independent learners of all ages
*To promote the Memorial Library and its purpose throughout
the community through public talks, promotional activities, and liaising
with the Norfolk Library and Information Service, other services and
organizations
*The award is for 12 months, beginning September 2005. There
is a possibility the grant may be renewed for an additional year.

BENEFITS:

Stipend is approximately 23,500 pounds sterling for 12 months plus round-trip travel for grantee, accommodation aid, and a leased car (for which a contribution will be required for private travel).

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS:

*U.S. citizenship
*Masters degree in library science
*Minimum of three years of recent experience in providing a
public library service, including the delivery of inquiry services and, in
particular, support for education programs to young people
*Experience with library stock management
*Public speaking experience
*Experience with Web site development and maintenance
*An interest in U.S. culture and history
*Advanced knowledge of the internet as an information source
*Ability to drive, a clean driving record, and willingness to
take the U.K. driver's test


DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS IS AUGUST 1, 2004

APPLICATION:

Visit the Web site of the Council for the International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) at http://www.cies.org  to download the application form and guidelines. (Click on the Fulbright Traditional Scholar Program



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