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Image credit: Jerseyville Public Library.

My Library is ... Bringing "Senior Storytime" to Local Assisted Living Facilities

9 March 2023

Beth Smilack

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The Jerseyville Public Library has been presenting Preschool Storytime for as long back as most staff members can remember. It is a program presented once a month where children ages 2-6 can gather at the library and have a story read to them, sing and dance along to some fun tunes and use their little hands to make a special craft. The children enjoy it so much and have a great time.

So, this got us thinking “why should kids have all the fun?”. There are several assisted living facilities in our small community with active senior citizens who for some reason or another are not...

Reminder: Applications for My Library Is... Grants for School Libraries Due March 2

20 February 2023

Dan Bostrom

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The application period for the My Library Is... Grants for School Libraries is open and runs through Thursday, March 2. In 2022, RAILS awarded $78,232.80 in My Library Is... Grants to 20 school libraries. These grants help recipients focus on projects that tell the library story and increase visibility and support for school libraries. For more information, please visit the My Library Is... Grant for School Libraries website.

My Library Is... Conversation with Dawn Scuderi

6 February 2023

Dan Bostrom

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My Library Is... Conversation with Dawn Scuderi

Celebrating Makerspace Success

26 January 2023

Maridsa Choute

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Makerspaces in libraries are great. While makerspaces allow people to get creative and discover new ideas for projects, using the new equipment can be daunting for those who are unfamiliar with it. That’s why The Workshop Lab at Palatine Library District created an easy and accessible way to introduce members to the new space.

This past holiday season at Palatine Library, members were invited to visit The Workshop Lab to make personalized gifts for generously low prices. The Holiday Gift Guide was designed to teach members how to maneuver the new equipment while creating...

Milner Library at Illinois State University

Tackling Textbook Affordability

3 January 2023

Stacy Palmisano

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When Illinois State University conducted a Textbook Affordability survey in the spring of 2019, it was clear there was a problem—one felt by institutions across the United States. The survey found that 73% of students did not acquire a textbook due to cost, 89% delayed purchasing a textbook or other materials, 69% reported purchasing a required material that the professor didn’t use, and 32% reported taking on credit card debt to purchase classroom materials. In response to these obstacles, Illinois State University’s Milner Library developed a plan to address textbook affordability by...

Objects printed at Illinois State University Milner Library

Sparking Creativity and Advancing Research with 3D Printing

29 December 2022

Stacy Palmisano

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3D printing was launched at Illinois State University’s Milner Library as part of our Make It Space initiative in the fall of 2018. Initial interest was strong, but our staff was flooded with requests after we moved the printer to a highly visible, publicly accessible space. Since then, we’ve had requests from students for everything from tuba mouthpieces for musicians in Illinois State’s marching band, The Big Red Marching Machine, to model wrens for use in doctoral research projects in the School of Biological Sciences (plus everything in between, such as mini Boba Fett figurines and...

Someone wearing a sweatshirt that says "I like you, but if zombies chase us, I'm tripping you."

Making a Makerspace: A Library-Win Fable

26 December 2022

Donna Forbis

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Once upon a time, there was a library nestled amid farm fields in Central Illinois. Now, this library was not big, but its patrons loved the library, and the library loved all the people that came to visit. The kind people who ran the library wanted to do everything they could to provide materials and services to their patrons that could not be found elsewhere.

One day, the library staff heard about makerspaces, places where patrons could come to be creative, making crafts, using tools they might not have at home, or gathering with other like-minded creative people. The library...

Teaching Essential Digital Literacy

19 December 2022

Susan Wolf

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In May of 2022, a patron came up to the Reference Desk at the Northbrook Public Library asking for help with her new cell phone. She said that she had previously used a flip phone, but was told by her phone provider that they no longer supported it and that she needed to get a smartphone. She said that she didn't know how to use a smartphone, even to make or receive a call and she was concerned she was going to miss an important call from her doctor. Even though we don't usually schedule same-day 1:1 technology instruction appointments, we made an exception so that she would not be without...

Library Exhibit in the Southeast Asia Collection

19 December 2022

Stacy Palmisano

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Northern Illinois University Libraries are home to a vital, growing Southeast Asia (SEA) Collection, probably the largest in Illinois. The university is home to a Center for Southeast Asian Studies (https://www.niu.edu/clas/cseas/index.shtml) and several Southeast Asian languages are taught on campus, including Thai, Burmese, and Indonesian. The library is a vital part of Southeast Asian studies on campus, with a collection of hundreds of thousands of items. Some of these fascinating items are displayed in periodic...

Meet Aseel! A Chicago Ridge Public Library Patron Story

16 December 2022

Stacy Palmisano

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"In Chicago Ridge, everyone is here for one another and is always ready to help whenever they see someone in need." Aseel Alhamidi

Aseel Alhamidi graduated high school in 2021 through the library partnership with Smart Horizon’s Career Online High School Program. Eleven Chicago Ridge residents have graduated from COHS since the library began offering it in 2016. If you are interested in completing your high school education and you live in Chicago Ridge, reach out to us to learn more about this unique online program.

Aseel has lived in Chicago Ridge for over 12 years. She was...

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