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Colorado State Library News

November 19, 2009
Visit the State Library's Booth at the CAL Exhibit Hall!
Libraries. A place of endless possibilities. The heart of many stories.

Two people meet in nonfiction and fall in love. A boy finds salvation in his local library and becomes the first in his family to attend college. A suburban mother of four relies on the library's expert reference service to start her own business, and later is named "Entrepreneur of the Year."

Come visit the State Library's booth at the CAL exhibit hall to share YOUR story! You can write it, type it, or tell it (we will have flip cameras). Read fantastic stories of your colleagues and celebrate the many ways libraries transform lives.

Need more reason? Submit YOUR story and become eligible to win one of these fabulous prizes!

November 18, 2009
ALA and Safeway Love Libraries
Through a partnership with the American Library Association (ALA), Safeway Inc. is rolling out five Safeway-brand cereal boxes with back-panel content about libraries and librarians. The cereal is available at Safeway’s 1,500 U.S. stores across the U.S.

November 12, 2009
CSL at CAL Schedule (PDF)
CSL presentations and involvement at the 2009 CAL Conference. Stop by our booth on Friday and Saturday to hear about the latest services and resources we can offer Colorado libraries.

November 11, 2009
Closer Look Report on Public Libraries and Web Technologies
The Library Research Service has released its most recent Closer Look Report, "U.S. Public Libraries and the Use of Web Technologies." We visited the websites of nearly 600 public libraries in the U.S., including all CO public libraries, looking for the presence of web technologies, including those identified as "Web 2.0". This report details our findings about what public libraries are doing on the web, and the characteristics that "early adopters" share.

November 5, 2009
Colorado Libraries Blog (PDF)
A joint blog between the Colorado State Library and the Colorado Library Consortium.

November 2, 2009
School Library Survey
The deadline has been extended for the Annual School Library Survey. School librarians now have until Monday, November 30th to respond to the online survey. To date, 402 of the estimated 1,400 school libraries have started the survey. For complete instructions visit LRS.org or send questions to LRS@LRS.org or call 303-866-6900.

October 29, 2009
Libraries: a Place of Endless Possibilities (PDF)
Come to the Colorado State Library booth at the 2009 CAL Conference and tell us how libraries have transformed your life. We can attest as to how they have transformed our lives!

October 1, 2009
I’m an Online Learner
The Colorado State Library and the Colorado Library Consortium offer WebJunction courses for Colorado library staff at a discount. Online learners:

  • Access hundreds of WebJunction self-paced courses in technology, library service, and management
  • Improve work skills and performance without leaving their desk
  • Pay $10 per course
  • Earn a certificate of completion for successful completion
  • Have access to the course material for one year

September 15, 2009
Workshop Opportunities

September 14, 2009
LSTA Grant Awards Announced
The Colorado State Library today announced grants to 10 school, public and academic libraries for innovative projects designed to improve library services and life-long learning.

September 2, 2009
Public Library Programs for September and October
Library Card Sign-Up, Banned Books Week, and more.

August 25, 2009
Reports for the 2009 Summer Reading Program
The 2009 Summer Reading Report is now available. Please designate one contact per jurisdiction to fill out the report; it should not be filled out by branch.

For the libraries that received mini-grants, the 2009 LSTA Mini-Grant Report is also now available. Please complete this report for whichever branch outlet received the grant money. For library jurisdictions that received several mini-grants, make sure to fill out one report for each branch outlet that received money.

August 14, 2009
READ Lapel Pins - (Order form CLOSED)
You may now place your order for READ pins for the 2010 "Make a Splash @ Your Library” and “Make Waves @ Your Library" summer reading programs.

August 6, 2009
Statewide Marketing Campaign
The Colorado State Library (CSL) is leading the development of a statewide marketing effort that focuses on the power of libraries to transform lives and that captures the hearts, minds and support of Colorado residents.

The purpose of the campaign is to ensure the future of libraries statewide and build the Colorado library brand by increasing awareness of the transformational aspects of libraries and the positive impact libraries have on their communities. The spirit of the campaign will be courageous, humorous, and the final messages will be delightful and unexpected.

The CSL management team has convened an advisory committee with statewide library representation and together we are working with Barnhart Communications, the same firm that worked on the Wyoming campaign.

July 23, 2009
LSTA Grant Application Review Process (PDF)
This is a competitive grant application and review process. Each LSTA grant application must stand on its own merit. The staff at the Colorado State Library and teams of volunteer peer reviewers will evaluate all applications and recommend projects for funding. This document outlines the numerous selection factors taken into account during the review process.

July 8, 2009
Community Conversations Mentorships
The Special Populations & Issues Committee seeks libraries to continue the Community Conversations Project to encourage outreach to new, diverse groups. Apply by August 15.

June 11, 2009
Online Town Hall Meetings - FY09-10 LSTA Grant Project Discussion
Times: June 24th, 12pm-1pm AND June 26th, 9am-10am
Bring your questions regarding potential projects addressing this year’s LSTA goal: “Colorado residents will be able to access resources and services electronically through libraries to meet their information and learning needs.”

June 6, 2009
"Be Creative" This Summer at a Library Near You (PDF)
Public libraries across Colorado are gearing up to offer summer reading programs for students of all ages. Along with reading programs, libraries will offer events, crafts, prizes and other fun activities to promote the enjoyment of a good book. See the Summer Reading Program section of our website for more information.

June 2, 2009
READ Posters
A downloadable PDF version of the READ poster is now available, featuring Dwight D. Jones, Commissioner of the Colorado Department of Education.

May 26, 2009
New Data and Publications from LRS

  • Recently LRS published the preliminary data from the 2008 Public Library Annual Report. For more information and links see the blog post.
     

  • Results from the 60-Second Survey: Libraries and the Economic Recession were just published on the LRS blog. To no one’s surprise, library usage is up as people look for jobs, create resumes, apply online, and follow-up with potential employers. Read more or comment on the LRS blog. 

May 21, 2009
ARRA Information Page for Libraries
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) offers some funding opportunities for all library types. Click here to find additional information about ARRA and how libraries can get involved.

May 19, 2009
Professional Development Calls (PDF)
Mini-trainings on diversity presented by the Special Populations & Issues Committee, Colorado State Library. Visit the Diversity page for more information.

May 13, 2009
Statewide Meetings To Be Held For AskColorado
A series of regional meetings throughout the state will be held to mark the 5th anniversary of AskColorado. The purpose of these meetings will be to update librarians about AskColorado and demonstrate how having a statewide collaborative virtual reference service can help boost the image of libraries overall.

April 30, 2009
LSTA Grants 2008-2009
The reach of this year's awarded LSTA competitive grants went beyond the original 16 awardees. Several of the grantees developed innovative projects that included outreach and partnerships with other libraries. This Google map shows how 16 awards enriched 38 individual libraries throughout the state!

April 23, 2009
New Guidelines for Donating to State Prison Libraries (PDF)
Colorado’s youth and adult correctional facility libraries are the information centers for their residents. To help the public donate useful materials, use the new guidelines for Department of Corrections libraries. More information on the Colorado Libraries Blog.

April 13, 2009
National Library Week Celebrations (PDF)
All public, school, academic and special libraries across the country are celebrating National Library Week April 12 – April 18. The theme for the week is “Worlds Connect @ your library” and this year’s spokesperson is the children’s author and actress, Jamie Lee Curtis. More information can be found at the American Library Association’s Web site.

February 27, 2009
Libraries and their Role in the Nation’s Economic Recovery
Now that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) has been signed into law, the work to restore our economic stability will become a national priority. Libraries are playing a key role in helping our communities with a multitude of services including resume building, online job searching and free classes. Click here to find additional information about ARRA and how libraries can get involved.

EBSCO Training
Learn about the state AIRS database products through this archive of hands-on EBSCO training sessions and live webinars. Additional online resources to help you or patrons learn and use the databases more effectively are available FREE for download and viewing.

Feburary 23, 2009
2009 Summer Reading Mini-Grants Awarded
CSL awarded 70 Mini-Grants of $175 each to public libraries to support and promote the 2009 “Be Creative” and/or “Express Yourself” Summer Reading Program in their local communities. Priority was given to libraries below 10,000 Legal Service Area (LSA) population and libraries in non-metro locations.

February 19, 2009
Seven Colorado Public Libraries Recognized as "Star Libraries" (PDF)
The Library Journal Index of Public Library Service this week recognized seven Colorado public libraries on its 2009 list of “America’s Star Libraries.” The seven are Boulder Public Library, Douglas County Libraries, Fleming Community Library, La Veta Regional Library District, Pitkin County Library, San Miguel Library District #1/Telluride and Vail Public Library.

February 9, 2009
State Library Programs at the 2009 Spring Workshops (PDF)
State Library staff are offering many workshops around the state as part of the 2009 CLiC Spring Workshops. For more information and the complete workshop schedule, visit the CLiC Web site or call the State Library at 303-866-6900.

February 6, 2009
Reference Service Survey
In December 2008, LRS launched the 60-second survey, "Reference Service - Where is it Going?" The survey was prompted by a discussion on a national library listserv and clearly it was a hot topic with over 1,500 survey responses. See preliminary results on the LRS blog at http://www.lrs.org/blog/viewitem.php?post=270. 

February 3, 2009
2008-09 School Library Profiles Now Available
The 2008-09 School Library Profiles have been created and are now available for all school libraries that responded to this year's survey. To access them, go to http://www.lrs.org/school/profiles08/index.php. Thank you to the 830 schools who responded.

February 2, 2009
Power Libraries Program - Application Online 2/26/09 (PDF)
The Power Libraries Program (PLP) application for 2009 will be available online February 26, 2009. The Developing and High Performance rubrics as well as the criteria checklist are available now on the PLP Web site.

January 26, 2009
State Library COnnects Mailing - January 2009 Edition Posted
State Library COnnects is sent to Colorado libraries six times a year. The mailing offers information about resources, services, and available workshops to libraries and librarians throughout Colorado.

January 14, 2009
2008 Public Library Annual Report
The 2008 Public Library Annual Report (aka survey) is now open and taking data from all Colorado public libraries. Using an updated version of Bibliostat Collect, the survey is online at http://collect.btol.com/. The survey requires a username and password which were distributed to public library directors in a letter sent in early January. The report deadline is March 15, 2009. See www.LRS.org for more information.

January 14, 2009
Every Child Ready To Read Program Adds 10 Libraries in Colorado (PDF)
The Colorado State Library announced today that Colorado Libraries for Early Literacy, an advisory group to the state library, will expand the Every Child Ready to Read (ECRR) program to 10 more public libraries in Colorado. ECRR is a national initiative from the Public Library Association to promote pre-literacy skills in children from birth through age five in public libraries.

January 7, 2009
Mini-Grants for Summer Reading 2009
You may now apply for a Mini-Grant for the 2009 Summer Reading Program! The Colorado State Library will award 60 Mini-Grants of $175 each to public libraries to support and promote the 2009 “Be Creative” and/or “Express Yourself” Summer Reading Program in their local communities.  Priority will be given to libraries below 10,000 Legal Service Area (LSA) population and libraries in non-metro locations. 

Visit www.cde.state.co.us/cdelib/SummerReading/minigrants.htm for more information and to apply. Please submit the application and agreement form by Friday, January 30, 2009.

January 2, 2009
 AskColorado: Online Reference Success
Are you a new AskColorado librarian? Are you an AskColorado veteran looking to take your virtual reference sessions to the next level? Are you looking for concrete ways to engage better with patrons online? Then our AskColorado: Online Reference Success Webinar is just what you are looking for.

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See also: Centennial State Libraries Newsletter/Bulletin


For additional information, contact Gene Hainer, 303-866-6900.