In This Issue
- Two Tools: Assessing Inclusivity and Building Partnerships
- Selecting and Weeding AV Materials
- Feed Your Face While You Feed Your Mind
- IFLS News
- Upcoming Events
|
|
|
Two Tools: Assessing Inclusivity and Building Partnerships
After many months of hard work, the Inclusive Services Institute has created an Inclusive Services Assessment Tool for libraries! The Inclusive Services Institute is a group of librarians, with representation from every system in our state and leadership from the Wisconsin Public Library Development Team, that was tasked with creating a tool for public libraries in Wisconsin to use to help assess where they are, and what they have left to do, in creating inclusive, welcoming, and accessible spaces and services for everyone.
The tool is ready to be looked at, tried out, and evaluated by libraries of all sizes. I hope you will consider taking a look at it and providing some feedback to the ISI so that the tool can be made more useful to everyone!
To find it: Go to this page and scroll down to the Inclusive Services section. The tool is available as a Word document, and you can download it there!
The second tool is in response to what we hear a lot from library staff: you need help with developing partnerships and community connections. Sometimes it can be tricky to know who to reach out to, why you might want to do so, and what you might say when you finally get someone on the phone.
With that in mind, we have created a tool to help you get connected with people who might be able to help you. This one is specific to helping you connect with people who could be useful contacts in providing service to people who are experiencing economic hardships.
It is available as a Google Document so that everyone on your library staff can have access to it and you can use it while out in the community.
You can find it here. You will need to make a copy and save it to your Google Drive in order to use it for your library. Let Leah know if you have questions or comments!
Many thanks to Reb Kilde, Katherine Elchert, Paula Stanton, Hollis Helmeci, and Martha Kaempffer for their help creating this resource. This article is written by Leah Langby, Library Development & Youth Services Coordinator. |
|
Selecting and Weeding AV Materials
Audiovisual materials are important in public library collections for several reasons:
- To offer your patrons a wide variety of formats for learning and entertainment;
- To meet the needs of visual learners as well as the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act for the visually and reading impaired patrons in your community;
- These collections are in demand and may circulate more per item than much of your print collection.
As with all of the public library collection, your patrons and their needs should be the primary consideration for your selection decisions. Other issues to consider:
- How will your AV collection support your library’s goals?
- Will your AV collection focus on all or only certain genres?
- What is the popularity or interest in the creator, title, and genre?
- Will you collect abridged versions of audiobooks?
- Do particular publishers have better quality recordings?
- Reviews?
You may look for reviews in the same print and online reviewing sources that review print materials including Publisher's Weekly, Booklist, and Library Journal. For audiobooks, check out Audiofile Magazine, where you'll find reviews, a blog, and free newsletters. Note: Audiofile reviews are included with the bib information of Overdrive titles as well.
One special consideration for DVD selection is whether the title has been officially released by its studio. Please be aware of bootleg copies of popular movies/TV series. One site that provides release dates is VideoETA. Paula Stanton created a great webinar for IFLS and you can access it with these links;
Weeding AV formats is not much different from weeding your print collection. You will be withdrawing materials based on usage, popularity, relevancy, condition, and what your library goals are. Let your collection development policy guide your weeding for content and subject coverage. If you are weeding for space, a key consideration will be circulation statistics. If you are weeding by specific format, get to know who in your community is using the different formats and on what devices. One special consideration beyond author/title when weeding audiobooks is the narrator. Some listeners follow popular narrators, no matter the author or subject.
When weeding print, think MUSTIE (Misleading, Ugly, Superseded, Trivial, Irrelevant, and may be obtained Elsewhere). For AV, consider the WORST:
- Worn out
- Out of date
- Rarely used
- Supplied elsewhere
- Trivial or faddish
If you have any questions or help with the collection development process, please contact IFLS Library System staff.
Maureen Welch, IFLS Reference & ILL Coordinator
|
|
Feed Your Face While You Feed Your Mind
“If you don’t look forward to cleaning the house and baking when it’s your turn for hosting book club, this might be the club for you: Six St. Croix County libraries are starting a new Traveling Book Club that will rotate each month between different restaurants. We think it will be fun to explore different towns and eateries while you meet new people and try new books.” That is how the Woodville, Baldwin, Roberts, Somerset, Hudson, and Deer Park Libraries introduced this new program to their publics. Karen from Woodville got the idea from the struggle small libraries have to maintain a consistent book club. She thought a Progressive Dinner concept might be applied to make it more fun, and 5 other libraries agreed to try the experiment. Each library director will take a turn facilitating at a local grill or supper club and promises not to enjoy a cocktail until the discussion is over. J The first meeting is in October of 2018 at the Phoenix in Baldwin. Should be fun!
Want to be part of the St. Croix County Traveling Book Club? Register at your local library and order a copy of the book.
|
|
|
|
IFLS News
IFLS is changing its name to better reflect what we do. We are in the process of changing it to IFLS Library System. So as we move forward, you will see the transition to the new name.
Another change includes the look and content in our NewsFlashes. Want something featured in an upcoming newsletter, or are you doing something in your library that you want to share? Contact Joanne @ gardner@ifls.lib.wi.us.
We've got a form you can fill out to give us feedback what you would like to see in NewsFlashes. |
|
|
|
|
Upcoming Events
You are able to register for upcoming workshops and webinars by clicking on event. Information on continuing education opportunities is also available on the IFLS Website.
|
|
|
|
|
