Such fun kids activities! My kids love all of their events and crafts.
18 September 2019
Comments: 0
16 September 2019
Comments: 0
To better advocate for Quincy Public Library, we decided to ask patrons and library users if they would be willing to speak at City Council meetings in support of library programs.
Our goal was to have people speak about different services that were important to each of them. Admittedly, speaking in public to the City Council can be a daunting experience and some patrons with wonderful stories were reluctant to speak publicly. Nevertheless, the people who did step up were able to present compelling stories that had a positive impact on council members and the public in attendance...
10 September 2019
Comments: 0
Early in 2019, the East Moline Public Library launched a capital campaign to make the case for their new building. To learn more about it, East Moline Public Library Executive Director Laura Long answered our questions on the success of the campaign so far.
Can you start by telling me a little bit about how this campaign began? ...
13 August 2019
Comments: 1
“I’m not really a joiner.” The words fell out of my mouth before I really knew what I was saying. I had said the same thing so many times in my life that it felt like a cliche, but I realized in that moment that it had been a while since I had given it much thought. It was late 2017, I was at the ILA Annual Conference and someone had just suggested I join an organizational committee to get more involved in professional development, but I didn’t feel like I had enough to offer. I had hung back from similar opportunities throughout my academic and professional careers, always thinking I was...
.jpg)
13 August 2019
Comments: 0
Every Saturday afternoon for the past three years, approximately 40 residents of The Mather settle in to view the Saturday Science Series. These films come from libraries all over the area through interlibrary loan and are handled very efficiently by the Evanston library staff. I think this program could be extended to other senior facilities in the Evanston area as it gives residents a view of the wider world that they may no longer be able to access through travel.
6 August 2019
Comments: 0
Finishing a novel is a triumph for any writer. For Hollie Smurthwaite, it’s doubly thrilling.
Earlier in the year, she had submitted her manuscript, The Color of Trauma to the "Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Contest."
Weeks later she received a phone call informing her she was one of three finalists from the state.
“I had a Sally Field moment! ‘They really like me!’ I felt the excitement of a preteen getting to meet her idol,” she said.
Then, days before the winner was publicly announced, Hollie was shocked when, while being...
6 August 2019
Comments: 0
A Life Filled with Great Books: The Winner of Our Winter Reading Program Shares Her Secret
Sarah Brimer, winner of the library’s Winter Reading grand prize drawing for an iPad, can finish a book in two days.
Sarah, who moved to Northbrook from New York three years ago to live with her daughter, is 102 years old. She quips that for someone her age, reading is about the only hobby she can indulge in.
“First of all, I’m an old lady. What else can I do? I can’t run around the block!”
But her self-deprecating humor belies her fanatical interest...
2 August 2019
Comments: 0
Walking through the doors of the Still Bar & Grill in Bartlett to join in on the Bartlett Public Library District’s BookLite book club conversation sounds a bit nerve-wracking when you don’t know many people present, but Bartlett resident Cristina Ligocki absolutely loved it.
“It was a dream come true,” Ligocki said, referencing her experience at the Booklite book club.
The book discussed was “Beach Town” by Kay Andrews, and Ligocki said she was proud of herself and what she’s accomplished by being able to read an English book as 17 years ago...
31 July 2019
Comments: 0
I really just wanted to host the Skylab from the Peoria Riverfront Museum. That’s all.
And how can you blame me? Have you seen it? It’s this giant inflatable dome and, once inside, it’s a planetarium.
Anyway, it turns out, there’s a space requirement. And, at 25 by 25 feet, it’s not a small requirement for a rural library. Of course, I can’t meet that requirement, so I can’t host. And, somehow this comes up in conversation.
“You know you can host events at the senior center, right?”
This is, turns out, how the best partnerships are formed.
After an...
30 July 2019
Comments: 0
Over the past 10 years, I have utilized a number of strategies to engage my teachers and communicate the value and importance of library resources, especially the value of a certified teacher librarian. I created a library menu, using humor and visuals to offer choices from quick lessons all the way through fully co-taught units. Our teachers are split-up into subject and tracked level teams to best align curriculum and standards. I get to attend these meetings as well as occasionally present on topics like useful Google cheats, Destiny hosted OERs, specific print or electronic resources...
Pages
The My Library Is ... campaign
is a project of the Reaching Across Illinois Library System.