MHLS Bulletin - 2.26.13

Vol. 13-09 2.26.13

PLS Conference in Hyde Park, NY

The Public Libraries Section of NYLA will hold their one-day Spring Conference in Hyde Park this year Friday, May 3, 2013 at the Henry A. Wallace Center at the FDR Presidential Library and Home (4079 Albany Post Road, Hyde Park, NY).

Keynote speaker: Tim Stevens, Editor-in-chief of Engadget

Tim Stevens got his start writing professionally in the mid '90s, covering the gaming world while in college, and has since written on topics including business process management, software development, and of course lots and lots about gadgety type things. Called "the nicest guy in tech" by Fortune Magazine, he's also an avid gamer, and amateur motorsports enthusiast. Engadget is an online news outlet focused on technology, breaking gadget news and happenings in the world of consumer electronics. The site is updated many times per hour, every single day of the year, and features short (and not so short) news posts, product reviews, videos, photo galleries, editorials, and stacks of special featured content.

"PLS is proud to offer a variety of presentations on a wide range of topics relevant to public library staff-including a selection of programs on assisting different types of patrons, readers advisory for varied genres, and technology programs. Plus, an opportunity to tour the FDR Presidential Library and Home Museum and visit historic Hyde Park."

Sessions include:
Supporting Patrons with Intellectual Disabilities

Catherine Ottaviani, Director of Day Services at Dutchess ARC, will present a workshop on how to better interact with and assist patrons with intellectual (developmental) disabilities in the public library setting.

Full Frontal Shelving: Erotica in the Library

The popularity of 50 Shades of Grey has put the question of erotica front and center for library collections, but erotic tales have been part of literature and genre fiction for many years, and you may be surprised how much is already on your shelves. How do you expand your collection? Is there a good way to promote erotica to patrons? What about patron complaints? Presenters Anna Mickelsen, Reference Librarian at Springfield City Library (MA) and Kristi Chadwick, Director at Emily Williston Memorial Library (Easthampton, MA), will address these issues and more.

Mental Health Issues in Public Libraries

Janet Caruso, Director of Community Education and Marlene Taylor, Education & Training Coordinator at Mental Health America of Dutchess County will present tips & suggestions on the best ways to work with mentally ill patrons in a public library.

Technology Petting Zoo

Come explore some of the latest options in tablet computing! Alissa Maynard of Bethlehem Public Library will have the library's collection (Microsoft Surface, Google Nexus 7, Samsung Galazy Tab 2 10.1, iPad 2) for you to explore and play with (plus various e-readers from their circulating collection). Get hands-on with the technology your patrons are asking about! In addition, feel free to bring your own tech toys and knowledge to share with the group.

Check out the conference program and registration info here: http://bit.ly/Wj9owC

MHLS Announcements

Legislators in Albany are working towards completing budget negotiations by March 21st this year which means we need to accelerate our outreach to them to help them understand the need to fully restore library aid! Advocacy Day is on March 5th, the deadline to register to take the bus has been extended to Thursday, February 28th. For more information and to register for the event or to take the bus please visit http://midhudson.org.

A Message from Mike:

"We've been successful in persuading the state legislature to reinstate some of the funding we lost after 2008, when state funding for library services suffered cuts of nearly 30%. You know the consequences: six positions eliminated at the system and a 30% increase in the fee you pay for system services.

Over the past two years, we have been successful in persuading the legislature to restore funding to 80% of the funding we received in 2008. Because of this, we were able to reduce our 2012 member library assessment fee by nearly 20%. And we transferred $30,000 of the dollars you sent MHLS to your capital fund to offset future Millennium costs, such as the cloud fee.

If you're unable to join us in Albany on March 5, we hope you will call your state legislators today. Call and explain why library services are important in your community and why full funding should be restored. Call and explain how your library is a community anchor and how the system is a partner in your success. A list of your representatives and their contact information is on Mid-Hudson's website at

http://bit.ly/13u4wFX

Thank you for all the work you do every day to create enriched, better informed and more dynamic communities. Libraries rock!"

-Mike Nyerges, MHLS Executive Director

MHLS Libraries

MHLS welcomes Tracy Priest as the new director of the Pawling Library. Tracy was formerly the director at the Phoenicia Library.

Professional Development

The State Library is pleased to announce it is sponsoring a free webinar titled "Best Practices for Delivering Workforce Development Services in Public Libraries" on Wednesday, March 6th from 10:00 - 11:00am. This webinar is an activity related to the State Library's $9.5M federal ARRA project: Broadbandexpress@yourlibrary. Statewide, library staff have expressed concern over meeting their library's increasing responsibility for providing computer access and assistance to the unemployed and underemployed, as well as to people who need digital literacy skills. Webinar participants will be provided with organization, staff-training, facilities and partnership strategies during this sixty minute webinar. The webinar is interactive and is scheduled for March 6, no registration is required. To log in on March 6th at 10:00am go to: http://bit.ly/13a4LG2 Questions about the webinars should be directed to Mary Linda Todd at the State Library/Division of Library Development by calling 518.486.4858 or by email: mtodd@mail.nysed.gov

Marketing, Advocacy & Funding

Email Template Now Available to Advertise OverDrive: One of the best ways to promote your digital collection is through a channel you already use to connect with your patrons: email. It's a direct, easy, and effective means of raising awareness and generating interest. We've created an email template for you to use: http://bit.ly/VAyLuw. All you have to do is paste this image into the body of an email, add a hyperlink to the MHLS Digital Download Center [http://mhls.lib.overdrive.com], and send to your patron email list.

[Source: OverDrive's Digital Library Blog]

MHLS recommends that the minimum starting salary of a full or part-time librarian with an MLS degree be at least equal to that of a teacher with a master's degree in the same community.

Member Libraries are welcome to submit items of interest and job openings to the MHLS Bulletin: bulletin@midhudson.org.

The MHLS Bulletin is available on line at http://midhudson.org/bulletins/main.htm.