• Marketing 101: A Quick Course in Improving Your Statistics, Generating Positive Press for Your Library, and Building the Career You've Always Wanted
• Are Library Vendors Protecting Privacy?
• Four Color Academia: Comics and Graphic Novels in the University Library
• Understanding Copyright and Transformative Fair Use
• Workplace Bullying in Libraries
• Rapid Reviews: Lightning Fast Booktalking
• What's Playing at the Library? How Collaboration Can Bring Your Film Screenings to the Next Level
• Invigorating Academic Library Instruction

Jack Martin's first library job was when he was thirteen. It was not a job he wanted. It was one his mother forced him into.

There he was, a brooding teenager, and working at a library in Cornelia, Georgia--a tiny city that's known for its big sculpture of a big red apple on a big white obelisk. At the time, thinking about his new job in the library, young Jack thought, "I'm a big enough loser, and this will make it worse."

And yet working in a library never made it worse for Jack Martin. After that little library in Cornelia, he spent time at one in Athens, GA. Then, feeling the pull of Rhode Island's anchor for the first time, he found himself in Providence, where he worked at the Providence Public Library, the Washington Park Library, and the South Providence Library. Jack says that it was here, in Providence, that h

e discovered he enjoyed working with young people.

He next left Providence for New York City, where, at the New York Public Library, he started doing the things many of us have already read about or heard about because they're so notable. Mixing museum education with human rights education-and digital with social media-he worked to oversee and run programs for young people in one of the most complex, diverse library systems in the nation. For instance, in a program called "NYC Haunts," he and other librarians helped kids design their own mobile, GPS-linked games, which would encourage their players to investigate New York's "ghosts" in its actual neighborhoods. (In one game, the players are prompted to visit Edgar Allen Poe's moldering cottage in the Bronx to earn a clue.) It's in programs like this one that Jack reveals his knack for making learning and the inspection of history thrilling.

So it's a boon to the community to have Jack and his creative vim

 back in Providence as Executive Director of the Providence Public Library.

On one of the first relatively nice days after all the frigid temperatures, I met Mr. Martin before the Library opened. We hadn't even gotten to the interview when he asked me, "Do you want to see something?"

From his office, he led me through hallways and stairwells (Jack seems to navigate via antennae through PPL's maze) before we arrived at the Library's entrance, where two people were installing a herd of life-sized unicorn cutouts. Though these creatures weren't yet galloping in the correct direction, they nevertheless sparkled with pink and purple majesty.

Jack explained that the unicorns are part of a program that the libraries at Brown, RISD, and the Providence Athenaeum are running and that once they got wind of this program at PPL, they wanted to be included, too. Jack here stressed the importance of becoming involved with and supporting creative efforts like these.

"The unicorns are beautiful. They're whimsical," he said. Furthermore, they'd come attended by activities fun for all ages-not to mention rich historical talks about unicorn iconography.

"I want to see things I've never seen before!" Mr. Martin said.  Then, through another series of passageways, we somehow got back to his office.

Our interview now underway, Jack said that though at times it's good to follow and support the programming efforts of other institutions, it's crucial also to take the lead role. As an example, he described the "Whale Guitar" project, in which artists Jen Long and Rachel Rosencrantz worked with PPL's special collections librarian, Jordan Goffin, to peruse the Nicholson Whaling Collection in order to research the history of the whaling industry and the long plight of whales. Inspired by their findings, the artists designed and assembled an original guitar shaped like Moby Dick, which they use to engage audiences in thinking about the history of whaling, as well as the present day struggles of whales in trashed oceans and jammed shipping lanes.

As he described this program to me, what struck me as so highly unusual about it is that it has a built-in exhibition component; that is, after Ms. Long and Ms. Rosencrantz ran their program last April-June, they were ready to take it with them on the road to other places in the nation and on the globe, which is an effect that then encourages other institutions to collaborate naturally with the Providence Public Library.

Speaking of this synergy of myriad institutions exchanging roles of leadership and support-all via programming, exhibition, and community feedback-Jack said, "We want to create movement and be a part of movements."

What's next for Jack and the Providence Public Library? The Unicorns in Residence project officially opened March 9 and will run through early summer. The public can go visit the unicorns during regular library hours. In keeping with the spirit of collaboration, PPL, Brown, the Providence Athenaeum and Providence Community Library are hosting programming about unicorns including unicorn-related materials curated by Brown University.  

Starting April 1st and all the way through most of June, they are going to unleash the programming blow-out of all blow-outs called "Don't Stop the Music!", which is a celebration of the history of music in Rhode Island. In this extravaganza of all that's sonic, there will be more exhibits, lectures, classes, workshops, and, of course, live music than could possibly be listed in the space of this bulletin. (Here's the website: http://tech.pplspc.org/music/index.html)

Before I left the Library that day, Mr. Martin again led me through it on a tour, buzzing as he went along through corridors, chatting about exciting plans for spaces and resources. As he showed me around, to myself, I couldn't help but to think, "Thank you, Jack's mom, for getting your kid into the library."

How do you get library patrons to support the library?  In Westerly, you make them laugh!  On Saturday, February 28 the Westerly Public Library hosted "Laughs for a Cause," a comedy night designed to support Westerly library's technology initiative.  

Planning started for the comedy night back in December, with the library's Development Committee.  Administrative Services Manager, Rachel Doyle, who helped put the fundraiser together said the committee noticed that many of the library's needs involved technology, ranging from updating the wireless system to creating a mobile computer lab, so they decided to focus fundraising efforts on the library's technology initiative.

So, why comedy?  Westerly is unique in that most of the town's organizations, such as the library, senior center, etc.  are not run through the town, they are all non-profit organizations, so standing out among all the other town groups' fundraising is important.  The Development Committee wanted to create an event that would appeal to a wide audience.  Since everyone enjoys a good laugh, a comedy night seemed like a fun place to start.  

How did it work?

The Development Committee worked with local businesses to procure six enticing and local action items, which included a Sunday brunch at the Ocean House for 6; 18 holes of golf for four, including golf carts at the Weekapaug Golf Club and framed prints of Watch Hill and Wilcox Park. After another round of comedy, fund-a-cause bidding began. Guests were given brochures outlining the library's technology needs and goals, and this is where they were asked to raise their paddles to pledge $1,000, $750, $500 or even $50 to help fund new technology for the library.  

Overall, Laughs for a Cause was a huge success for the library.  Over $10,000 was raised for the technology initiative.  "We were thrilled with the community response."  said Executive Director Brigitte Hopkins, "It was wonderful to see the community come together to help make the Westerly Library an even better."

As many of you know, AskRI.org has a new home and new staff. Providence Public Library is excited to welcome Beatrice Pulliam and Stacie Parillo as the new AskRI.org team. Previously, Beatrice was Head of Technology and Access at the Providence College Library where she led many successful emerging technology and marketing initiatives. Stacie was Head of Collections and Digital Initiatives Manager at the Newport Historical Society in Newport, RI where she worked to create accessibility for a mostly hidden collection.

While they are expecting to re-launch AskRI.org with a new portal/website by fall 2015, there are a few recent changes you should be aware of.

EBSCO's Discovery Service (EDS) has been added. With a single search box, located on the AskRI.org homepage, users can now query for direct access to full-text content available through AskRI databases. The EBSCO homepage has also been updated, and requires libraries to change their access link.

Proquest's African American Heritage and Heritage Quest have been combined so that one link takes you to both resources.

Libraries can find links to EDS, the new EBSCO and ProQuest homepages, as well as code to implement an EDS search box on the News page of AskRI.org.

They'll also be making the rounds at conferences around the state this spring, including the Learning First Alliance RI Conference in March and the School Librarians of RI (SLRI) conference on April 10th at the downtown Providence Marriott.

If you would like to receive periodic updates from AskRI.org, subscribe to their newsletter: http://prov.pub/askri_subscribe 

Winning Entry: Danny, Champion of the World

PPL Announces the Following New Staff Members

--Bethany Plummer-Ricci, of Smithfield, began as Grant Writer on January 12.  She was previously a grant writer and grants manager at Dorcas International Institute since April 2010.  Beth earned a B.A. degree from Emerson College with a Literature Concentration.  Her background of corporate, government, and family foundation sources and grant requirements and her excellent writing and organizational skills will assist the Library in revitalizing its Development Department.

--Brynn Bruno, of Providence, began as Director of Development on January 21. She comes to PPL from Savannah, GA, where she was most recently the Capital Campaign Director at Benedictine Military School since 2012. In addition to a wealth of development and fundraising experience and proven track record, Brynn holds a degree in Law from Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, DC, an M.B.A. from the University of Arkansas College of Business, Little Rock, AR, and a B.S. in Finance from Columbia University, New York, NY.

--Angela DiVeglia will begin as Curatorial Assistant on March 16.  This position will assist the Library's Special Collections department in exhibition design and management as well as collections and program support. Angela is a Providence resident who was previously employed as Adult Services & Reference Librarian at the Rochambeau Branch of Providence Community Library.  She earned a B.A. in English from Amherst College and her Master of Science, Library Science from University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.  Angela also has experience working with special collections and archives, as well as in exhibitions.  

--Shannon Lake will begin as Teen Educator/Librarian on March 23.  Shannon hails from East Lansing, Michigan and was employed most recently as Teen Services Lead Librarian at East Lansing Public Library.  She has also worked in teen services in Nashville Public Library.   She has a B.A. degree from Tennessee State, and a Master of Library and Information Science from Wayne State.   She's an active YALSA member.

April 7, 2015, 5:00 - 7:00, Governor's Room, RI Statehouse 

• Light refreshments will be served: 5:00 - 5:30.
• Main program: 5:30 - 7:00.
• Free and Open to the Public.

Guest Speaker: Brian C. Jones of The Library Report

The COLA Sweetheart of the Year Awards recipient this year is Bob Aspri.

Business Meeting: The Nominating Committee submits the following slate for membership vote at the Annual Meeting:

• Officers: Chair, Gale Eaton; Vice-Chair, Brigitte Hopkins; Secretary-Treasurer, Neeltje Henneman
• Board members, for a three-year term ending in 2018: Emilie Benoit, Jay Litman, Patricia Raskin, and Tom Viall

ACRL-NE 

Annual Conference

Spacing Out with the Library: An Exploration of Collaboration Across the Physical, Virtual and those Places in Between
 
Friday, May 8, 2015 @ College of Holy Cross, Worcester, MA
 
As the academic library evolves, it is wherever students and faculty are conducting research and learning, and within physical and virtual spaces intentionally designed to encourage scholarship, collaboration and production. Librarians and our colleagues across our campuses and beyond are actively engaged in building and assessing the most useful discovery services, the most valuable collections, the most cost-effective learning resources, the most effective collaborative spaces ... for the best education and research. What does it take to expand "the library" beyond its traditional physical space? With whom are we working to expand our services?
 
Keynote speakers for 2015 are Marie S.A. Sorensen, AIA NCARB LEED AP, Architect and Principal-in-Charge of Sorensen Partners | Architects + Planners, Inc., and David Weinberger, Senior Researcher at Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet & Society. Full conference information is at http://conference2015.acrlnec.org
 
Register at: https://2015acrlnec-annual-conference.eventbrite.com 

NELLS

The New England Library Leadership Symposium (NELLS) is jointly sponsored by the New England Library Association (NELA) and the six New England state library associations and is offered every 2 years.  The purpose of the symposium is to foster the mentoring and development of members of the library community who are eager to grow leadership skills. This is a week-long summer academy and leadership retreat for early to mid-career librarians (3-15 years' experience), paraprofessionals, Trustees and Friends of Libraries.  NELLS is a valuable experience for anyone working in the library field.
 
The Rhode Island Library Association and Office of Library & Information Services seeks applicants to represent Rhode Island at the 2015 NELLS session.  Individuals interested in this immersive professional development experience are encouraged to apply!  Attendees may be recommended by someone or may make their own application  Each applicant must be a current member of RILA or NELA to be eligible.  Deadline is March 20.  Selected attendees will be notified in late spring and this year's session takes place in early August.    

NELLS 2015
August 3-7, 2015
Rolling Ridge Retreat & Conference Center
North Andover, Massachusetts
Facilitator: Maureen Sullivan, ALA Past President
 
For more information and to download an application form: http://nelib.org/advance-your-career/nells/     

ILART

High School to College: Reprise and Next Steps

What:       A RILA-ILART Discussion Gathering

Where:     Cranston West High School Library, 

 80 Metropolitan Ave                    

 Cranston, RI 02920

When:      Tuesday, March 31, 4 - 5:30pm

The Rhode Island Library Association's Information Literacy Action Round Table (ILART) invites you to join us on Tuesday, March 31 for a follow up discussion about the high school to college library transition. Susan Samotey Evje will review the results of her research about what information literacy skills college librarians felt that college freshmen were lacking. Mary Moen will provide an update of her analysis of Patricia Owens' "A Transition Checklist for High School Seniors," examining the results from last spring's ILART discussion.

In connection with our conversation, we will also be starting a list of school librarians and academic librarians wishing to collaborate on transition topics in the classroom, library tours, research purposes, and beyond. 

Limited to 40 attendees.

Please RSVP to join us: