The Office of Commonwealth Libraries
Harrisburg, PA 
 
 
Compendium  
                                                                                           October 28, 2010
Office of Commonwealth Libraries Mission Statement
The Office of Commonwealth Libraries, within the Pennsylvania Department of  Education, operates a major research library and leads the development of the state's public, school, academic and special libraries to meet the information, education and enrichment needs of its residents.
IN THIS ISSUE
Plans for the Use of State Aid
Electric Cost Savings
Summer Reading Input Wanted
Library News
2011 Plans for Use of State Aid
and Standards Achievement  

Instructions for completing the 2011 (2010-2011) Plans for the Use of State Aid and Standards Achievement online forms, accessible at the Bibliostat Collect website, are available here on WebJunction.

The Plans for the Use of State Aid and Standards Achievement are available online through Bibliostat Collect at http://collect.btol.com.  Bibliostat Collect is best viewed using Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher or Firefox 1.5 or higher or any other Web browser compatible with these browsers.
 
The plans and achievement forms, required for a library/system to receive state aid, provide invaluable information for making the case for future support of libraries.  The Plans for the Use of State Aid reflect the anticipated expenditures of the library or system in the major categories of Personnel, Materials, Operating and Capital.  The intent of the Budget is to summarize the result of the library's budget process.  The Standards Achievement forms should reflect the status of the library in relation to each standard.  Answer YES to only those standards the library meets at the time the form is being completed.  If a standard is not met at the time the form is completed, answer NO to the statement and describe in the notes field the library's plan and a timeline to achieve the standard.
 
Local libraries that are members of a library system should wait for instructions from their system headquarters before filling out the online forms. Please contact your District Library Consultant for assistance in completing the plans and achievement forms.

New this year: The signature sheets have been modified to streamline the process.  Please print the appropriate signature sheets on the color paper indicated, if possible.   

The completed online form, including signature pages and any other enclosures are
due to District Library Consultants by November 22, 2010.

The total state aid payment projection is based on the 2010-2011 state aid to public libraries subsidy of $53,513,000.  The projected amount of state aid  for each independent local library and each library system can be found on the Pennsylvania Department of Education website or by following this breadcrumb trail:
PDE Home >> Grants and Subsidies >> Library Funding >> Projections and Summaries of State Aid to Pennsylvania Public Libraries.

District Library Centers should not include their district aid in the plan.
Electric Cost Savings Possible for Libraries through CoStars Aggregation

Libraries in many areas of the state have already seen price increases with the removal of electric price caps.  For libraries in other areas of the state, the cap will come off at the end of this year. Pennsylvania's Department of General Services may be able to offer an option for libraries through the CoStars program.

Working with the Penn State Facilities Engineering Institute (PSFEI), DGS began offering the services of its Energy Procurement team to assist CoStars members with shopping for better electric rates in 2009. 

CoStars is a cooperative purchasing program in which members can take advantage of contracts already bid by the Commonwealth.   Local government and nonprofit organizations may become members for free, but must join to access the benefits.   Through this program, members have the ability to purchase a range of products and services, from rock salt to vehicles, under the same prices and terms as the Commonwealth.  Members save money by avoiding administrative costs associated with conducting a separate bid and by taking advatage of the combined purchasing power of the Commonwealth and other members.

If interested in the electric aggregation program, a library should become a member of CoStars.  The next step is to provide DGS with billing data.  Twelve months of billing data is required for each account. Click here for a data sheet.   For PPL accounts, the process can be done via www.pplelectric.com by "sharing" accounts with DGS.  That allows them to view the account information and download it.  The document "COSTARS PPL Web Tutorial" provides instructions on how to complete that process.

PECO has a more rudimentary tool available on their website at https://www.peco.com/PecoWebPresentment/, where you can get this needed information by entering in the account number and the ZIP code of the service address for the account.

For the other electric utilities you may need to contact their customer service line and request  12 months of data in a workable Excel format.  Libraries can then complete the data sheet of electric usage and email it to the address provided.

PEPPM


Similar to the CoStars program mentioned above, PEPPM, is a technology product procurement site for schools, libraries, government and other eligible non-profit agencies.  Join for free. 
 
Surplus Property

DGS also offers surplus state property for sale

 
Learn about funding opportunites at WebJunction Pennsylvania.  
Summer Reading 2012

Planning for the Collaborative Summer Library Program has already started for 2012 and your help is needed. 

The 2012 theme is "Night."  The slogan for children is "Dream Big - READ!" and the teen slogan is "Own the Night." 

The manual is developed by members of the Collaborative which includes all public librarians in Pennsylvania.  READ MORE on how to share your original stories, games, songs, puzzles, and other concepts and ideas to make the 2012 programs useful and enjoyable for everyone. 

Send any suggestions to Patti Sinclair at 306 Virginia Terrace, Madison, WI  53726 (608 231-2467) [email protected] or send them to your state representative to the Collaborative Summer Library Program, 
Anne Kruger/ Youth Services Advisor, at the Bureau of Library Development (717.783.5741) [email protected].
Library News

"Verizon Foundation Awards More Than $170,000 in Literacy Grants to Pennsylvania District Center Library Organizations:
Libraries in the Keystone State Enhance Programs Using Verizon Thinkfinity.org Resources," MarketWatch October 27, 2010. 
 WebJunction Pennsylvania 

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