If you have an idea for a My Library Is... blog post, send it to the RAILS Communications Team at communications@railslibraries.info.
Posted on March 29, 2021
Keeping students engaged with the library during the pandemic has been challenging. Over the past year as the building was closed or offered reduced hours, we haven’t been able to serve as the traditional third place where students can visit after school, gather to study, or meet for programs.
Posted on March 22, 2021
In 2020, the Illinois Community of the Special Libraries Association (SLA) faced a new challenge: how to make members feel engaged and connected to their association and fellow members when in-person events were no longer an option. As president-elect, I was responsible for the bulk of our programming.
Posted on March 18, 2021
Deepening community connections in a pandemic is no easy task, so it was a win-win when Rock Island Public Library found an opportunity to help digitally under-served Rock Island-Milan School District #41 students connect to remote and blended learning, and also increase their access to digital books.
Posted on March 15, 2021
When we have a message we want to share with the public, we turn to our list of what I like to think of as tools, and decide which will best help us get the word out. Depending on the message, we use a combination (or all!) of these tools: social media posts, print and electronic newsletter blurbs, flyers, bookmarks, press releases, blogs, etc.
Posted on March 12, 2021
Posted on March 11, 2021
Lake Forest Library and Lake Bluff Public Library are proud to present their joint nonfiction reading program called Read Between the Ravines. This Two Communities, One Nonfiction Book program brings together Lake Forest and Lake Bluff with the purpose of enhancing nonfiction literacy and inspiring discussion around real-world issues.
Posted on March 8, 2021
Textbook affordability and accessibility issues are not new. We have seen alarming articles on how the rising costs of required course materials is overburdening college students and thwarting their efforts to achieve their educational and professional goals.
Posted on March 5, 2021
My Library Is part of a group of small libraries in rural west central Illinois that has been focusing on Early Childhood Literacy with the support of the Tracy Family Foundation.
Posted on March 2, 2021
As March marches in, I can't help but think where I was a year ago--give or take a week. As I reflect upon the bustling school library I left, and the one I am currently in, I have to work hard to conjure up what was. Pandemically speaking, I (and dare I say many of my school librarian colleagues) have had to reinvent themselves and their methods very quickly.
Posted on February 25, 2021
At the end of 2020, Hudson Area Public Library District found a hopeful and fun fact while reviewing patron statistics. Out of 977 active patron cards, 955 of those cards had been used in the prior six months. While their world was closing in, patrons – almost all of them – were using their cards to explore the universe. That’s smart pandemic behavior.