Tip Jar

What is strategic planning, and why is it important?

It is a process that helps your library set priorities, focus energy and resources, ensure that your library and your stakeholders are working towards common goals, and assess and adjust your library’s direction in response to a changing environment.

We know you all are doing so much with too little. Strategic planning helps to ensure that your library and staff are focusing time and resources on what will most benefit your community and achieve your goals. Developing research-based goals helps to keep you on track as you make decisions on funding, organizational structure, programming, outreach, and more.

IFLS is here to help you plan for your library’s future. Did you know that we can help guide you through a strategic planning process? Reach out to Katelyn (noack@ifls.lib.wi.us) for more information.

Spring Delivery Study…

…is next week!

Well, this is cool!

Medar de la Cruz, a library worker who delivers books to people in jail in NYC has won the Pulitzer Prize for his illustrated piece in the New Yorker,  The Diary of a Rikers Island Library Worker.

Science Festival ’24 free kits: sign up now, don’t get waitlisted!

This year the science festival is running October 14-20th and the theme is Agriculture. It’ll be the same process as last year, creating a kit with multiple activities. The kits would arrive a week before the festival. You can list any special events you’re hosting that week (https://www.wisconsinsciencefest.org/host/) and it will be promoted on our website.

Last year’s program was so popular that a lot of libraries were waitlisted. If a library was waitlisted last year and registers again this year, it will be given priority. They will likely be taking a max of 3 libraries from each system (IFLS is reaching out to see if that could be expanded for our very big system!) so the sooner you fill the form the better. Libraries will have the option of selecting 25 or 50 kits that would be fitting for their site. Any kits that leftover after the festival week, libraries can use them as they so choose. This might be a great opportunity for collaboration!

Science In A Bag Registration Form Link

Share what you know!

(from Shauna M. Koszegi, Outreach and Continuing Education Consultant, Southwest Wisconsin Library System, skoszegi@swls.org)

One of the only reasons I started presenting at statewide conferences is because a colleague told me my topic would be a great fit for it. 

And I am certain that you have something worth sharing with others this year!

The deadline for proposals for the 2024 WLA conference is next WEEK, Friday, May 17th. If you would like any help thinking through ideas for a proposal I welcome you to reach out.

Submit your proposal using this form: https://bit.ly/4a7D9KK

WPLC Annual Meeting recording is available

The WPLC had their annual meeting at the end of April. Check out this recording to hear about Digital Library statistics, upcoming WPLC projects and more! For additional information or to view the slides, visit the WPLC website.

Libraries and Climate Action

Our friends at the Space Science Institute (leads of the Solar Eclipse Activities for Libraries program) are seeking your input for a symposium meant to begin to identify the role of public libraries in climate action. This survey is to inform the design of the 2024 Climate Action Symposium: Exploring Collaborations with Libraries, Community-Based Organizations, and Public Health Agencies. The focus of the survey is on public library STEM learning programs and activities related to climate change science, climate change’s impacts on public health, and community sustainability and/or resiliency. The estimated time needed to complete this survey is 9 minutes. All information you provide will be completely confidential.

John Cotton Dana Award application deadline is May 10

Each year, up to eight $10,000 awards are granted by the H.W. Wilson Foundation. The John Cotton Dana Awards will be announced in June 2024 by the American Library Association and EBSCO Information Services. Applications for the 2024 John Cotton Dana Awards should be submitted electronically and received by May 10, 2024.

Neurodiversity Webinars

In case you missed it, check out the excellent webinars from the Spring Webinar Series: Neurodiversity at Work.  All archived webinars the IFLS sponsors or co-sponsors are also available from the IFLS website, too!

Don’t miss out: register by May 10

There is still time to sign up for these workshops about great new books and getting ready for challenges to materials!  Check them out, and register by 5/10:

May 15, 4-7 pm :  The CCBC is bringing all 238 books that made their best-of-the-best lists for 2023 so you can have hands-on browsing time from 4-5 and again from 6:30-7, and they will highlight some of them with booktalks from 5-6:30.  This session is great for readers advisory, collection development, book list-creation, and idea-generating, not to mention it being a demonstration of what an engaging and entertaining booktalk can be!  Register here.  More info here. This workshop provides 1.5 hours of continuing education for director certification.

May 16, 9:00-3:00:  Materials Challenge Readiness workshop from 9:30-12Great New Books presentation from 1-2:30 (a repeat from the one on the 15th).  As you can see, that also allows time for book browsing those awesome books.  The CCBC librarians are extremely good at providing a safe place to discuss and learn about intellectual freedom concerns and challenges!  More info here.  Register here.  You can come to both parts of just one.  The whole workshop provides 4 contact hours of continuing education for director certification.

Library Worker Survey

If you are NOT a manager, director, coordinator…in short, if you are someone who often doesn’t get first crack at attending in-person workshops or conferences, this survey is for you.  We will be providing as much support as possible for library workers to attend, so please let us know what kind of event would be most relevant and helpful for you by filling out this survey by May 17.

 

On the IFLS Calendar