Tools for Community Engagement and Innovation (ALA)

Tools for Community Engagement and Innovation:

The following tools have been customized for library use. Links to tools will download PDF files.

• Turn Outward (PDF): Are you mostly “turned inward or outward”? Librarians may use this tool to assess the focus of their efforts in the community as they further shift their orientation from internal to external.

• Aspirations (PDF): This tool helps librarians to focus on their community’s aspirations, identify next steps for creating change, and to create an aspirations-based story for their community as a starting point for library action.

• Intentionality (PDF):  Librarians may use this tool to test the external orientation and mindfulness of their community engagement choices and decisions.

• Sustaining Yourself (PDF): This tool helps librarians to personally map the components that feed their motivation and commitment for community work.

• How Librarians and Libraries Can Lead Community Conversations for Change (PDF): This conversation guide, inspired by The Work of Hope by Richard C. Harwood, provides a step-by-step plan for librarians to convene small group community conversations about shared aspirations and to share their findings with the community.

http://www.ala.org/transforminglibraries/libraries-transforming-communities

Computers in Libraries 2014 call for proposals

Call for Speakers

Hack the Library!

Call For Speakers

If you would like to participate in Computers in Libraries 2014 as a speaker or workshop leader, please submit a proposal as soon as possible (September 16, 2013 at the very latest).

Hacking and hackathons are perhaps better known in the geek community, but Computers in Libraries 2014, is taking a page from their book and looking to hack, or change in our case, our ideas, strategies, and practices in using technology and other methods to engage our communities. Libraries are changing – building creative spaces with learning commons and makerspaces; engaging audiences in different ways with community managers and embedded librarians; advocating for learning and literacy in new and exciting ways.
Computers in Libraries has always highlighted and showcased creative and innovative practices in all types of libraries, but this year with our theme, Hack the Library!, we plan to feature truly transformative and cutting edge services and practices along with the strategies and technologies to support them. The conference program is filled with ideas, leading edge practices, tips and techniques for creating innovative libraries, engaging communities, as well as designing and delivering strategic services that are of primary importance to our communities. The emphasis is on thinking outside of the box, learning from other industries, finding strategic partners, and creating value for our user communities with new tools, techniques and skills that build innovative and priority services.
Information Today, Inc., a key provider of technology conferences for more than thirty years with Internet Librarian and KMWorld, is pleased to announce the 29th annual Computers in Libraries – the most comprehensive North American conference and exhibition concentrating all aspects of library technology. Our theme, Hack the Library!, highlights the creative solutions, technologies and practices that those working with computers in libraries or libraries in computers are dealing with today. The conference offers a multifaceted program designed to meet the needs of librarians, community and information managers, systems professionals, researchers, webmasters and web managers, content evaluators, intranet strategists, portal creators, and information specialists. The focus of the conference is on leading edge technology that allows us to engage with, and bring strategic value to, our user communities. It provides the latest information and practices for you to make informed choices for your community -- whether it is an academic, corporate, non-profit, public, or school library community.
Computers in Libraries caters to all interests and all levels of knowledge, offering five simultaneous tracks plus many workshops, networking opportunities, and an extensive exhibit hall. This year’s tracks and themes encompass: Innovative Libraries & Practices; Internet@Schools; Community Building: Partnerships & Collaboration; Changing Your Library Culture; Social Media, Learning & Literacy; Creative Making & Makerspaces; Digital/Virtual Library Services; Research & Critical Thinking; Integrating Systems & Strategies; Information Discovery & Search; Technology Planning; Managing Content & eResrouces; Web Tools & Leading Edge Technology; Architecture & Infrastructure; Managing Information and Knowledge Assets, eLearning & Training, Web Design & Development, Streaming Multimedia, and more. Speakers are knowledgeable, authoritative and focus on practical applications, “how to” solutions, and case studies as well as technical and managerial issues. Please consider sharing your knowledge and ideas; send us a proposal to speak. Below are some of the topics we hope to cover, but don’t let this list limit your imagination! We look forward to hearing from you.
Possible Topics (suggestions only – the more creative the topic, the better!)

• Innovative Libraries, Practices & Services • Culture Changing Techniques • Ebook Publishing, Distribution & Lending • User Friendly Interfaces for Positive UX • Building Strong Communities • Content Management & Curation • Enterprise Information & Knowledge Management • Understanding Community Needs & Opportunities • Finding & Working With Partners • Tools for Spreading Information & Ideas • Creating Tomorrow’s Learning Environments • Connecting People & Technology • Creating Strategic Value • Top Tips for Teaching Adults • Cutting Edge Information Tools • People Capabilities & Libraries • Innovative Ways to Connect with Clients • What’s New in Library Platforms? • Gaming & Learning • Streaming Content to Mobile Devices • Library Performance Improvement • Information Discovery & Visualization • Intranets & Portals in Action • Web Design & Usability • Folksonomies & Metatagging • Digitizing Collections • Making Interfaces Usable • Cool Web Tools • Streamlining Systems & Workflow • Information Architecture • Building Community Partnerships • Usability Testing for Web Sites • Web Development Tips & Tools • Writing & Publishing for the Web • New Technologies & Libraries of the Future • Funding Technology • Co-ordinating Web Teams

• Mobile Computing • Transforming Library Spaces • Gauging Customer Needs • Measuring Impact of Services • Streaming Multimedia • Digital Repository Management • Illustrating Value & ROI • Aligning With Strategic Priorities • Creative Management Practices • Beyond 2.0 for Libraries • Community Management • Social Listening • Making Tough Choices • Future Net/Web Strategies • Leading Edge Technologies • Experimenting & Learning • Social Media & Libraries • Strategic Library Competencies • Managing Digitally • Maximizing User Experience • Technology Planning • Building Technology Alliances • Building & Using Taxonomies • eLearning Strategies & Cases • Digital Rights Management • Managing Electronic Resources • Virtual Library Services • Acquiring & Managing Content • Evaluating Web Resources: Tools • Personalization & Customization • Content Management Tools • Collaboration Software • Search Engine Tips & Tools • Teaching Tips for All Ages • Distance Learning Technologies • Digital Archiving • Lessons Learned From Techies

If you would like to participate in Computers in Libraries 2014 as a speaker or workshop leader, please submit a proposal as soon as possible (September 16, 2013 at the very latest). Include the following brief details of your proposed presentation on the form: title, abstract, a few sentences of biographical information that relate you to the topic, and full contact information for you and your co-presenters (title, address, email, phone & fax). All abstracts are reviewed by the Organizing/Review Committee and notification regarding acceptance will be made in the fall.

Code for change

Code for Change

Up to $10,000 of In-Kind Support for Charities

We are pleased to announce the 2013 call for applications for our Code for Change. This is the fourth year of the the program and we are excited to make an impact again.

Code for Change is a unique in-kind donation program to support select charitable organizations. Every year, we set aside 10% of our profits to put towards the Code for Change program. As part of the program, we will match your organization dollar-for-dollar, up to a maximum of $10,000 of in-kind support to help increase your reach through web, social and print media.

This means that our company will donate, in-kind, our professional print/web design and development services equal to the amount that your organization is willing to contribute to a project.

If you are interested in participating in the program, please review the following documentation and fill out an application form.

Please note, it is essential to fully investigate the eligibility requirements of this program before applying. It is important to understand that all projects must be developed through the services provided by Pixel Sweatshop and the applying organization must be able to contribute matching funds for their project.

Questions?
Call (250) 661-0414

http://www.pixelsweatshop.com/code-for-change

Edge Benchmarks

The Public Library Association (PLA) is very excited to be part of a national effort to create Edge, the first-ever set of benchmarks for public access technology in public libraries. Recognizing that public libraries are sometimes the only means by which millions of people access computers, the Internet, and other technologies, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is funding the work of the Edge Coalition—13 organizations including PLA and program leader Urban Libraries Council. The Coalition is dedicated to developing benchmarks and tools for public libraries to strategically plan, advocate, and ultimately meet their communities’ needs for public access to technology.

What is Edge?

The Edge Benchmarks point to practices that will help libraries evaluate and continually improve public technology services in their communities. The benchmarks are divided into three main categories that assess:

1.        Community Value (Benchmarks 1–3): External practices that connect the library to the community.

2.        Engaging the Community & Decision Makers (Benchmarks 4–6): Specific programs, services and supports that enable people to get value from their use of technology.

3.        Organizational Management (Benchmarks 7–11): Internal management and infrastructure.

Within these categories are a series of benchmarks and indicators to measure specific activities. The Edge Coalition has arrived at these measures by surveying current library practices and collecting feedback from library leaders across the country.

How does Edge work?

The Edge Benchmarks enable libraries to score themselves against best practices that define access and quality. Later this year, every library participating in the Edge Initiative will have access to an online assessment tool. Libraries that adopt Edge will be supported by training and a toolkit of customizable materials. These tools are designed to help demonstrate the positive impact of technology services in the community.

http://www.ala.org/pla/advocacy/edge

Hobbema community library brings together people

 Newspaper: Three articles written by Michael Chan from Wetaskiwin Times, July 24, 2013

Education day brings boost to Hobbema Library projecthttp://eedition.wetaskiwintimes.com/doc/Wetaskiwin-Times-Advertiser/wepr_072413/2013072301/6.html#6

University of Alberta grads head to Hobbema to talk science

http://eedition.wetaskiwintimes.com/doc/Wetaskiwin-Times-Advertiser/wepr_072413/2013072301/8.html#8

Educational science program comes to Hobbema

http://eedition.wetaskiwintimes.com/doc/Wetaskiwin-Times-Advertiser/wepr_072413/2013072301/6.html#22

Gates Foundation 2014 Access to Learning Award

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is currently soliciting applications for its 2013 Access to Learning Award (ATLA), which recognizes the innovative efforts of publiclibraries and similar institutions outside the United States to connect people to information and opportunities

through free access to computers and the Internet. The award is given by Global Libraries, an initiative of the foundation's Global Development

Program. The recipient of the Access to Learning Award will receive $1 million (U.S.).

The foundation's Global Libraries initiative invites applications from libraries and similar organizations outside the United States that have created new ways to offer these key services:

•  Free public access to computers and the Internet.

•   Public training to assist users in accessing online information that can help improve their lives.

•   Technology training for library staff.

•   Outreach to underserved communities.

Applications for the 2014 Access to Learning Award must be submitted via an online submission process no later than September 30, 2013. The application form is available only in English and must be completed in English to be eligible for consideration. You may find these and additional

information on eligibility requirements and the process of selection on the

ATLA website.

.

Applications for the 2014 Access to Learning Award must be submitted via an online submission process no later than September 30, 2013

.

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/what-we-do/global-development/global-libraries/access-to-learning-award-atla

Canadian Museum for Human Rights

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights is envisioned to be a national and international destination, a centre of learning where Canadians and people from around the world can reflect and be inspired about human rights. The base building is substantially complete since the end of 2012 and Inauguration of the Museum will take place in 2014.

 

http://humanrightsmuseum.ca/home

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

As the nation's largest philanthropy devoted solely to the public's health, we have a unique capability and responsibility to confront the most pressing health and health care problems threatening our society. Our efforts focus on improving both the health of everyone in America and their health care—how it's delivered, how it's paid for, and how well it does for patients and their families. As we invest in improving systems through which people receive care and in fostering environments that promote health and prevent disease and injury, we expect to achieve comprehensive, meaningful, and timely change.
We are guided by a fundamental premise: we are stewards of private funds that must be used in the public's interest. Our greatest asset isn't our endowment; it's the way we help create leverage for change.
We create leverage by building evidence and producing, synthesizing and distributing knowledge, new ideas, and expertise. We harness the power of partnerships by bringing together key players, collaborating with colleagues.....

http://www.rwjf.org/en/about-rwjf/our-mission/our-founder.html

Gates Foundation Awards $1 Million for Library Innovation Partnership

Posted on July 13, 2013

Gates Foundation Awards $1 Million for Library Innovation Partnership

 

The Chicago Public Library has announced a $1 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in support of a partnership to create a new model for innovation, experimentation, and decision-making within libraries.

Awarded to the Chicago Public Library Foundation through the Gates Foundation's Global Libraries initiative, the grant will fund a partnership between CPL and the Aarhus Public Libraries system in Denmark, which will work with design firm IDEO to rethink the mix of services and programs offered by libraries and the role they play in a rapidly changing world. To that end, IDEO will work with library staff to evaluate current challenges and formulate response to those challenges that better serve their communities.

The results of the collaboration will be presented at an international libraries conference in Chicago in June 2014. A toolkit detailing potential projects and design methods as well as measurement tools that can be used to test new ideas quickly will be made available six months after the conference, CPL commissioner Brian Bannon told Library Journal.

"This grant gives us the opportunity to tap into the design thinking process that IDEO has used to help hundreds of organizations innovate and grow," said Bannon. "Now more than ever, libraries and librarians need such tools to help them identify and address their users' rapidly evolving needs, through flexible, nimble, and responsive decision making and program design."

Top Innovators public library service

ULC 2013 Top Innovators

Learning: Howard County Library System (MD) HiTech: The Road to a STEM Career delivers cutting-edge science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education using hands-on technology projects, experiential learning and peer-to-peer communications.

From LJ: Howard County Library System was also named 2013 Library of the Year by Library Journal

Civic and Community Engagement: Los Angeles Public Library (CA) Your Path to Citizenship Starts at the Los Angeles Public Library program provides a safe place for immigrants to access a wide range of services. Nearly 10,000 people have taken advantage of the resources available in “citizenship corners” in all 73 library locations.

Collections: Nashville Public Library (TN) Limitless Libraries increased circulation of school library resources by 79 percent since its launch in 2009. Today, it serves all 128 schools with two full-time collection development librarians and a materials budget of more than $1 million.

From infoDOCKET: Tennessee: Kent Oliver, Director of Nashville Public Library “Envisions Library of the Future” (July 9, 2013)

From SLJ: Libraries with No Bounds: How Limitless Libraries transformed Nashville Public Schools’ libraries (January 14, 2013)

Customer Experience: Calgary Public Library (AB) Grow a Reader Early Literacy App takes the fun, interactive contents from early childhood literacy programs and delivers it to parents via mobile devices. In less than two months, the Grow a Reader app was downloaded 1,200 times.

From infoDOCKET: Get to Know Calgary Public Library’s Free Early Literacy App “Grow a Reader”, Free for iPad and iPhone (March 27, 2013)

Economic and Workforce Development: Saint Paul Public Library (MN) NorthStar Digital Literacy Project has led to more outcome-driven digital literacy instruction by using assessments for pre- and post- tests and tailoring program content to the assessment standards. The certificate of mastery has also increased interest in computer literacy classes, particularly among non-English speakers.

Health, Wellness and Safety: Pima County Public Library (AZ) Library Nurses Program provides a safe and welcoming environment for all patrons and staff at library branches and minimizes the number of 911 calls. During the program’s first year, library nurses interacted with more than 2,800 patrons, and 911 medical calls from libraries fell by 20 percent.

From LJ: In the Library, With the Stethoscope (November 19, 2012)

From infoDOCKET:  Tucson: “More Than Just Books: Arizona Libraries Add Public Health Nurses” (March 31, 2013)

Operations: New York and Brooklyn Public Libraries (NY) BookOps: Shared Library Technical Services will combine acquisitions, cataloguing, processing, sorting and delivery of books and resources to the New York Public Library and Brooklyn Public Library and will save the two library systems up to $3.5 million annually.

From LJ: NYPL, Brooklyn Merge Technical Services (February 22, 2013)

Organizational Change and Strategic Management: San Francisco Public Library (CA) Community Impact through Renewed Engagement initiated a research process to renew community connections in five city neighborhoods. From walks in the neighborhoods, to ride-alongs with police, to interviews with community members, the teams spent three months gathering data and then presented their findings to community members and library staff.

Positioning the Library: Free Library of Philadelphia (PA) Flying High: Library of Philadelphia Touches Down in the International Airport provides library resources to airport travelers and employees. The library’s presence at the airport is part of its commitment to ensuring that the library remains a hub of possibilities for residents and those just passing through the region.

Sustainability: Sacramento Public Library (CA) Read and Feed: Partnerships for Building Healthy Communities supports a comprehensive healthy communities initiative in a neighborhood with a majority of its children living in poverty and limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables.

Special Honor

ULC is also honoring three libraries for their leadership in helping communities respond to crises.

Johnson County Library (KS) A Conversation about Sandy Hook engaged 94 community members for a conversation about the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

Queens Library (NY) Queens Library Responds to Hurricane Sandy by opening a mobile library site along the hard-hit waterfront to provide referral information and resource sheets for shelters, food and benefits. More than 8,300 visitors used the makeshift libraries during the first week.

Poudre River Public Library District (CO) Libraries as First Responders formed after a massive wildfire forced the evacuation of 3,000 people. Library staff worked with first responder agencies to serve as an information hub that provided up-to-date and reliable information throughout the crisis.

Read the Complete Announcement from the Urban Libraries Council

Direct to ULC Top Innovators (16 pages; PDF)

http://www.infodocket.com/2013/07/10/innovative-public-libraries-urban-libraries-council-announces-2013-top-innovators

Invitation to join the Walk for Water on July 19 at the Samson Cree Nation in Hobbema

Hello,

You may have seen my Water Walk posters distributed around the community. I am looking for Volunteers to assist in the Walk. I still need about 30. All volunteers will be given a special Shirt for their appreciation and a BBQ will follow up after the walk.

This Friday at the Community Market in Ermineskin, I will having a table to register walkers for a Walk for Water.  Please look out for me!

This Walk for Water is the First in CANADA to do this type of walk, and the first in CANADA to twin with a community in Africa :)  and Samson Cree Nation helps across the borders.

 Ashley Dennehy

Operations/Tribal Support

(780) 585 3793 Ext. 117

(780) 585 3797