Reports included below are:

U of M Twin Cities Campus, Wendy Pradt Lougee

Regional System Libraries, Chris Olson

University of Minnesota Coordinate Campus, Bill Sozansky

Metro-Area Public Libraries, Patricia Conley

Multi-county, Multitype Library Systems, Ruth Solie

Public Libraries, Mary Lukkarila

Private Colleges, Dan Gjelten

University of Minnesota – Twin Cities Campus Report

Wendy Pradt Lougee, University of Minnesota - TC June 4, 2010

Effective May 1, Stephen Hearn, formerly Authority Control Coordinator and Database Management Section

Head, is now the Libraries' Metadata Strategist, taking the lead role in developing and coordinating local

standards and policies for non-MARC metadata. Stephen's authority control responsibilities will be transfered to

Chew Chiat Naun, whose job title is now Cataloging Policies and Practices Strategist.

A project to add genre and form terms to over 6500 catalog records for films and videos was completed. The

headings have been used to create a beta site that helps users search films and videos by the most popular genres

appearing in the records: http://www.lib.umn.edu/media/index.phtml

Another Science Quiz Bowl Success

Librarians in the Science & Engineering and Mathematics Libraries again hosted a successful Science Quiz

Bowl on April 25. We broke records for participation and interest, with over 120 students from the Institute of

Technology (College of Science and Engineering) registering, and another 20 on the waiting list. To learn

more, see our web site: http://sciweb.lib.umn.edu/sciencequizbowl/. Also check out the fun promotional video

we developed this year: http://mediamill.cla.umn.edu/mediamill/display/65403.

SCImagine! 2010: "Collaborating across Continents: Students Designing Clean Sustainable Solutions"

Reflecting the library's role as an intellectual gathering place, the Science & Engineering Library again hosted

SCImagine, its annual spring science showcase. This year, student projects from Civil Engineering 5180 were

on display. Three teams of University of Minnesota students joined forces with three teams from the Indian

Institute of Technology in Roorkee, India, to develop engineering solutions and sustainable business models to

address the urgent need for clean water and clean cooking. These teams competed against other teams from

institutions across the U.S. We're pleased to report that one of the UofM teams won the competition and will be

going to India to put their plan into practice. See http://sciweb.lib.umn.edu/scimagine/index.phtml.

Successful Library Seminar Held for Science and Engineering Faculty

The Science and Engineering Library and the University Libraries' Information Literacy Collaborative hosted a

1 1/2 day seminar for instructors in the Institute of Technology on May 19-20, 2010. The purpose was to create

and support a community of faculty and instructors committed to helping students develop information and

communication skills. The seminar introduced participants to a variety of Libraries services and tools that they

could integrate into their courses. The seminar included sessions on information literacy, library and Google

research tools, copyright, scholarly communication, and data management and offered consultations with

subject librarians for integrating these resources into current and future assignments. Here are a few comments

from faculty and instructors responding to questions on beneficial aspects and feedback overall:

"Revelations about what the library can and does do to facilitate faculty and student productivity."

"I learned about available resources and talked with fellow faculty about issues related to effective

pedagogy."

"Very informative. I learned a lot. It makes me think of new ideas and more effective teaching

strategies."

"Thank you all for a fun & informative workshop!"

Learn more at http://sciweb.lib.umn.edu/test/Sciweb/seminar2010/. For more information, contact Kate Peterson

at katep@umn.edu.

-- here's text and link you could use for the Minitex report. Bill used the text I supplied in sharing this within

the state.

-------- Original Message --------

Subject: preservation link

Date: Thu, 20 May 2010 12:17:50 -0500

From: Wendy Pradt Lougee <wlougee@umn.edu>

Reply-To: wlougee@umn.edu

Organization: University of Minnesota Libraries

To: William DeJohn <w-dejo@umn.edu>

I have the internal announcement set, but am waiting for Karen to announce AP reorg. She initially said "any

day," but now is asking for further input. Sorry. We could certainly have a reference to the committee report. I

sent bill dejohn text to use in sharing within the state. Let me dig out and share with you.

Here's the link page to the preservation task force.

https://wiki.lib.umn.edu/Staff/PreservationConservationTaskForce

The tiny URL is at the top of the page. The quick summary that you

might use is something like the following:

-----

the University of Minnesota Libraries engaged Sam Demas (Carleton) as a consultant to lead a process of

review related to a preservation and conservation program for UMN collections. Sam worked with force to

assess the Libraries' infrastructure and needs and also evaluated new models for conceiving of a preservation

program in a digital age. The resulting report is available at: http://z.umn.edu/p5 The Libraries are

now moving to implementation phase, which will include broader consultations about the role of the UM's

collections in the state and region.

The Libraries have started our multi-year Google books scanning project, part of the CIC/Google partnership

agreement. Materials will be pulled from all TC library locations, including Law and MLAC, scanned by

Google, and returned to the shelves within six to eight weeks. We have sent two shipments and received one

returned shipment. In addition to appearing online in Google Books, the scans are being loaded into the

HathiTrust. Additional information is available at http://blog.lib.umn.edu/lib-

web/news/2010/04/university_of_minnesota_librar.html .

The project has been covered by various local media; communications director Marlo Welshons has gathered

links to these stories at http://delicious.com/marlowelshons/buzz+google.

HSL at the Medical Library Association Meeting

HSL was well-represented at the annual meeting of the Medical Library Association, held May 21-26 in

Washington, DC. Papers were presented by Amy Donahue (Entering the World of Online Collaboration: A

Case Study of Librarians on EthicShare.org), Liz Fine (Developing Expert Subject-specific Searchers with a

Continuing Education Program for Staff), Anne Beschnett, Michelle Brasure and Erinn Aspinall (HeLP MN

Seniors: An Evidence-based Health Literacy Program), André Nault (The Path to a Faculty Appointment for

Liaison Librarians), and Linda Watson and Layne Johnson (Harnessing Health Information and Translating

Knowledge Among Institutional and Community Partners: A Case Study at the University of Minnesota).

Posters were presented by Anne Beschnett, Michelle Brasure, Karla Block and Jennifer Hootman (Consumer

Health Information Outreach: Training Public Library Staff), and André Nault (Introducing Yahoo Pipes and

Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Feeds to Faculty and Journal Clubs). Linda Watson and Wayne Loftus met

with the Committee that is busy planning the annual meeting for next year in Minneapolis, and most of us took

turns staffing the MLA 2011 booth to entice our colleagues to visit Minnesota.

Aleph v20 upgrade

The Libraries successfully migrated from Aleph v19 to Aleph v20 in late March.

Discoverability Phase II

The Libraries‟ Web Services Steering Committee (WSSC) launched "Discoverability Phase 2.” This phase

intends to build on some of the principles and activities identified in Phase 1 and will support the Libraries' goal

to enhance discovery and delivery. More specifically, the charge asks that the group "develop recommendations

for strategic disclosure of metadata from our local systems to external discovery environments, and articulate a

vision and rationale for the discovery services we privilege through a local web presence." Those interested in

Discoverability Phase I may find its detailed report at: <http://purl.umn.edu/48258>.

Submitted by Wendy Pradt Lougee, University of Minnesota, TC Representative

Regional System Libraries Report Chris Olson, Director, Metropolitan Library Service Agency (MELSA)

June 4, 2010

Arrowhead Library System – Submitted by Jim Weikum, Director ALS Member Library Strategic Planning

For over a year, I have been reporting on the progress made by the consultant (Whitney Crettol)

ALS engaged to conduct strategic planning processes for each of our member public libraries.

This month should see the wrap-up of the fourth (of seven) “clusters” libraries. As Whitney

finished this group of libraries, the process will pass the half-way point. The next cluster will

include the Duluth Public Library, although their process will be proportionally more extensive

than for other member libraries. We‟ve started internal discussion as to how commonalities now

emerging from member libraries will shape the resulting planning process for ALS in 2011-2012.

ILS Search & Cost-Sharing Changes

ALS continue our effort to secure the services of a library consultant specializing in library

technology to determine the most effective approaching to selecting our next generation ILS.

Two consultants have declined, both presumably on the cusp of retirement. We‟re now talking

with a third consultant and preliminary indications are promising.

Another Retirement @ ALS

Hollaye Plerchee announced her plans to retire at the end of May after 23 years at ALS.

Hollaye is usually the person answering the phone when you call ALS or greeting you when you

walk in the door. Her office skills are endless and she rarely met a jammed photocopier than she

couldn‟t cure. Along with a retirement last year, and the untimely passing of Rita Grierson, in a

little more than a year we will have lost well over 80 years of staff work experience.

Legacy Projects @ALS

Rebecca Patton continues to coordinate projects and activities formulated by ALS‟s Legacy Fund

advisory committee and subsequently approved by the ALS Board. The projects have generally

been very well-received, with the museum and concert passes proving especially popular (thanks,

MELSA!). A bus trip to the Museum of Russian Art and The Minneapolis Institute is scheduled

for early June and already nearly filled. While there is certainly great value to this program, it

remains very staff intensive not just for Rebecca and Shari, but for many other ALS support staff.

East Central Regional Library – Submitted by Barbara Misselt, Director Migration – We opened May 24th with our shiny new Evergreen ILS. All the test data loads have gone well and

basic functionality is all there. We have a full working system with our data, software has been loaded at all the

branches, Branch Librarians have had training.

Strategic Planning – Focus groups were scheduled April 13th to May 13th in all 14 branches and 2 link sites.

Misselt also rode the Outreach routes and talked to people coming to the 6 stops. Thus, we‟re touching all 22

communities where we provide library service. Simultaneously, we‟re running an online and print survey, linked

to our website. The planning committee will meet June 7th to receive results of focus groups and survey. They

will set priorities and revise or rewrite the Mission Statement. The Board will meet June 14th to consider and

affirm the priorities, after which staff will write the plan – to go to the committee and Board in July.

Gas leak – Rush City branch was closed Tuesday, April 20th when arriving staff detected the smell of gas. The

utility company turned off the gas coming in and county engineers have been working in the building. They‟ve

found a number of problems with the gas lines behind the walls and also determined that an HVAC unit needs to

be replaced. The building was renovated in 2007. The county is in the process of determining the best way to fix

the problems. For now the gas is off and there is no hot water or heat. Fortunately, the weather is warm enough

for no heat, and cool enough to not require air conditioning.

Legacy programs – A planned bus tour to Art in Bloom is wildly successful, and a second bus has been

reserved. The four plays are scheduled for early summer and a number of other activities are scheduled.

Staffing – Heidi Cava, former Outreach Librarian is the new Rush City Librarian. Lisa Kosin, former Branch

Library Aide at Chisago Lakes, is the new Outreach Librarian. Both Heidi and Lisa are high energy, creative

problem-solvers and I‟m delighted with their initiatives.

Lake Agassiz Regional Library --Kathy Fredette, Director

Local Library News

Saturday hours, eliminated last year in Fosston due to the Polk County budget shortfall, were restored

on Feb. 6th and the additional open hour (2-3pm on Mondays) was restored in McIntosh as of Feb. 8

th.

The City of Mahnomen (a community of 1,200 on the White Earth Indian Reservation) is struggling and

cut janitorial service for the library (thought our branch librarian could help clean the restroom).

They‟ve had their LGA reduced from $500,000 to $300,000 and now an additional $23,000. It‟s been

worked out short-term so that someone from the Street Dept. will clean the restroom, but they‟ll

probably cut LARL (hours) to pay for janitorial. Just the beginning, I‟m afraid, of more to come across

the region.

New carpeting was installed at the Moorhead Library in February and looks great. The City of

Breckenridge will install new windows in the library this summer. We‟re also working on a re-design

and installation of self-checkout for the Hawley Library to coincide with the City replacing ceiling tiles

and installing new carpeting.

At the request of the local nursing home director, McIntosh Branch Librarian Julie Malmanger has

started holding her storytime once a month at the nursing home, thus making it an intergenerational

program.

Database Updates

We dropped our subscriptions to NoveList and Auto Repair Reference Center databases and replaced them with

two products which our staff feel will be superior, Books & Authors and Chilton's Automotive Repair. In

addition, by moving from EBSCO to GALE products, we‟ve saved $3,259.

Website Update

The new LARL website was unveiled to the public on Feb. 24th. The vast majority of people seem to have

adjusted to the changes and are pleased with the improvements. This is probably one of the longest website

births on record! It took almost 3 years from the time we started exploring, during which we had a change in

Public Information Directors and changed from using Drupal to Wordpress MU as the content management

system. We‟ll be doing a postcard mailing to all residents in the region in May, along with some incentives to

check out the new site and register your email address.

Metropolitan Library Service Agency/MELSA - Chris Olson, Director MELSA‟s Aggregate Calendar of Events

Along with the rollout of the redesigned website for MELSA, we have added an aggregate calendar of all of the

member libraries‟ Evanced calendars. Hennepin County is not using this specific software, but plans are

underway to map their information into the aggregate. This means that library web users can find library

programs in the Twin Cities by a multitude of search factors… from age to location to Legacy-sponsored.

Individual library systems can promote their own activities or link individuals to the multiple system site here:

http://host6.evanced.info/melsa/all/eventcalendar.asp

Make Your Next Stop The Library Bumper Stickers

The “Make Your Next Stop the Library” bumper stickers are part of our 2010 campaign involving general

library promotion outside of the library. We started with gas pump toppers with this artwork in January and

February, and the Promotions Team suggested bumper stickers, which are a terrific way to have library fans

promote our message around town. For distribution, a number of libraries are passing them out at major literary

events this spring and summer… and at least one system plans to put them in the teen packets for Summer

Reading (if they do not have cars they have lockers and backpacks).

MELSA Receives LSTA Funds For “Brain Fitness” Project

We were recently notified that MELSA will receive a LSTA grant for $76,750 to implement a library service

program geared for seniors. The Brain Fitness Project is designed to improve the quality of life for seniors due

to increased knowledge brain health and brain fitness techniques and the adoption of lifestyle changes to

incorporate what they have learned and experienced through the Brain Fitness Stations and the Maintain Your

Brain® workshops. MELSA will work with the Alzheimer‟s Association MN-ND Chapter, which also serves

seniors, for educational and promotional pieces of the project.

Best Buy Foundation Supports Promotion for Homework Rescue

In our hopes to connect directly with teens on Homework Rescue (with the generous financial assistance of the

Best Buy Foundation grant for $50,000), we are considering a proposal from WCCO-TV that involves their

Sports Rally programming, which happens at metro area high schools every Friday night, September through

November (13 games). The TV spots are hosted by Frank Vascellero (anchor) and involve exposure at the 5, 6

and 10 p.m. broadcasts, as well as us being on site at the high schools for the big games from 5 - 10:30 (where

we can distribute Homework Rescue info, invite attendees/viewers to text in "stump the librarian" questions,

etc.).

OLLI Workshops Feature Twin Cities Libraries

The Osher Lifelong Learing Institute (OLLI) sponsored a six-week continuing education program featuring

libraries in the Twin Cities. Organized by Jack Cole, former Hennepin County Library and MELSA trustee, the

programs were held at Brookdale, Saint Paul Central/JJ Hill, Hennepin County Library – Minneapolis Central,

the Minnesota Historical Society, Minneapolis Institute of Art and the Andersen Library at the University of

Minnesota. The students heard about Minnesota libraries from Bill DeJohn, the future of the public library

from Kit Hadley, toured the libraries from an architectural perspective and visited numerous special collections

at the remaining libraries.

Northwest Regional Library -- Barbara Jacquet Kalinoski, Director

Public Services

Materials: We‟ve been sponsoring a series of region-wide e-book presentations to groups such as Lion‟s and

Kiwanis clubs. We‟re finding people are very interested in the product once they learn how to access it. We‟re

also making a push to review/withdraw adult non-fiction collections in all Branches.

Programs

NWRL is gearing up for the Summer Library Program with professional performers appearing in region-wide

kick-off events and weekly programming planned thereafter. Individual branch librarians are showing their own

creativity with programs as well, from an “Art & Dessert” in the Thief River Falls Public Library to the bi-

weekly events coordinated with „Family Nights.” A patron left a message in the comment box to say “I can‟t

believe the good job you guys are doing here! It‟s like a little piece of heaven right here on earth.” Now that‟s

what we like to hear.

Technology

As part of the Author Expo contract, Marnie Swedberg is bringing the NWRL website up to speed with Twitter

and Facebook. She will be training staff in the near future.

Staff

We hired a “Branch Librarian” for the Thief River Falls Public Library to free up time for our new MLS

employee to become the region-wide “Public Services Coordinator.” She is assigned to regular visits of the

Branches and will be responsible for evaluations of branch staff as well.

Legacy

A good portion of my time has been taken to design a structure for Legacy Programming. The Author Expo is

underway and plans are in place for our summer “Camp Bookwinkle” and the three workshops on “Digitize

Your Family Story” which will take place this fall. These programs are planned for all branch libraries and will

be repeated next year (with new authors and artists) to reduce administrative time.

Plum Creek Library System—Mark Ranum, Director

Legacy Update

Legacy programming has been well received by local communities, with every library community and some

other communities receiving programming. The PCLS/PLS Connecting MN Readers and MN Writers programs

with MN Book Award Authors are popular and engaging. Writing workshops will be offered around the

systems in June. The latest project is to provide bus tours to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum in Walnut Grove

from PCLS and PLS libraries. We expect to have 500 to 1,000 people take advantage of this opportunity

throughout the summer. Programming is clearly at an all time high in PCLS.

Budget and Staffing

FY2010 and FY2011 budget planning and staffing implications have taken up a significant part of my time in

the past 4-6 weeks. Mary Rae Oxborrow, long time PCLS cataloger, will be taking a phased retirement option

and reducing her hours by 50% starting June 1 and then again in January 2011 until she retires in April of 2011.

Barb Kruse, currently automation staff, will take on the duties of cataloging and train extensively during this

time. This staffing change was the alternate to reducing all staff to 32 hours per week due to budget constraints.

Koha Open Source Automation

PCLS automation staff and I have been working hard to investigate and explore Koha as our ILS. We have

Koha 3.0 running on a test server with real PCLS data. The current controversy with LibLime and the delay of

3.2 has stalled us somewhat in our work.

Southeastern Libraries Cooperating/SELCO -- Ann Hutton, Director

Personnel Update

Terry Glidden has joined the SELCO staff as the Web Development Technician. Terry has a Bachelors degree in

Computer Science from Mankato State University. He also holds an MBA from the Minnesota School of

Business and is in the midst of course work for a second Masters in Information Technology with an anticipated

graduation date of December 2010.

Two FY2011 LSTA Grant Projects Approved

Community School Media Centers as Online Partners will enable two school libraries in the Stewartville

Public Schools district to join the SELCO Integrated Library System and participate as Online Libraries.

The second Community Libraries as Online Partners grant will enable SELCO and the Chatfield Brass

Band and Music Lending Library to concentrate on a discrete collection of "big band" sheet music that is

currently unavailable.

Camp Read-A-Lot

SELCO will host its second annual Camp Read-A-Lot on August 10 and 11. The event will be held at the Eagle

Bluff Environmental Learning Center. Day 1 will focus on Early Literacy, Birth to Grade1 and Day 2

participants will study literature appropriate for children in grades 2-5.

Traverse des Sioux Library System -- Dayle Zelenka, Director

Budget Issues

Our Fee Structure committee is winding up. We have progressed full circle and have arrived where we started.

Everybody is having their budgets cut. Board-voted result – general belt-tightening and a 5% reduction in our

second-half fees to members. No staff or service cuts.

Despite the tight times, our minivan is giving up the ghost. Fortunately, the board set aside a reserve a couple

years ago for this purpose. As a compromise, we are downsizing and looking at getting a used, small- to mid-

sized sedan with better gas mileage. Test-drives are in progress.

Legacy Funds

Harmon Killebrew was a great success (450 attendees and glowing reviews) and we are gearing up for Annie

Griffiths Belt. We continue to get 8-12 subgrant applications per month, and are on track to spend all of our

grant.

Miscellaneous

Faribault County Library has dissolved. Funding has been redirected to Blue Earth Community, Wells and Muir

(Winnebago) libraries, which have adopted the stations.

Viking Library System -- Peg Werner, Director

Viking Library System staff moved into the new headquarters building February 7 - 8 during the last blizzard of

the winter. The new furniture set up was completed February 6, the central site equipment for the Horizon

system was moved and brought up on the new network on February 7, so that left mostly books and boxes for

the final day. We were able to get all of our shelving out of storage and set up the bookmobile, daycares, group

homes and nursing home collections in a single area – nice to see everything together for once. Everything is

now cleaned and unpacked and we are gearing up to finish the exterior work – cement repair, another layer of

asphalt in the parking lot, landscaping, painting, etc. The Grand Opening is being planned for mid-June.

The new Public Library Consultant, Gail Nordstrom, began work February 22 and has been very busy

coordinating the Legacy program. She has put together all of the forms necessary for the sponsorship

application with the help of the Legacy Steering Committee; the first round of applications have been received

and will be awarded this week; summer library programs have been lined up; and the launch of VLS‟s version

of the Minnesota Greatest Generation project kicks off in June with a dance featuring the big band sounds of

42nd

Street.

After long consideration, Viking Library System switched to a High Deductible Health Plan with a Health

Savings Account. It is with the same company, Principal Financial, and will apparently save the system about

$30,000. I am still not convinced it is the best option; as we see what healthcare reform brings, we will likely be

looking for a new company that offers more comprehensive coverage.

The Douglas County Library will be re-advertising their position for Library Director. It‟s a well-run and well-

funded library with a good salary and a new building in its future.

Fergus Falls Public Library will also be advertising for a new director with a start date of late November. Walt

Dunlap, the current library director, will be retiring at that time.

Submitted by Chris Olson, Regional System Libraries Representative

University of Minnesota Coordinate Campus Libraries Report

Bill Sozansky, Director, University of Minnesota, Duluth

June 4, 2010

University of Minnesota, Crookston – Owen Williams, Library Director

The UMC Library has purchased a number of new items for student checkout. The new equipment includes: a

helmet cam, portable hard drives, jump drives, scanners, webcams, and voice recorders. These are available for

use free to all UMC students. The library has upgraded the scanning workstation for the UMC Library digital

archiving project. The website for the project is: http://umclibrary.crk.umn.edu/DigitalProjects.html

University of Minnesota, Morris – LeAnn Dean, Library Director

The library staff is encouraged by the opportunity to post a job opening to fill a position that has been vacant

since August, 2009. Hopefully, we'll be inviting candidates for campus interviews in June and welcoming a

new Instruction and Access Coordinator at the end of the summer. Developing the library's FY 2011 budget has

been challenging as we wrestle with a decrease in operating funding. Summer projects include: adding photos

and West Central School of Agriculture Yearbooks to the UMM Digital Collection, working on collection

analysis and participating in the upcoming 50/100 campus celebration by preparing displays and planning

events. The West Central School of Agriculture served as a residential high school from 1910-1963 (100 year

anniversary) and the University of Minnesota, Morris liberal arts college welcomed its first students in the fall of

1960 (50 year anniversary).

University of Minnesota, Duluth – Bill Sozanski, Library Director

Starting August 1st. Lendley (Lynn) Black will become the UMD chancellor succeeding Kathryn A. Martin who

will have served as chancellor for over 15 years. One interesting fact is that both chancellors received their

doctorates in theater.

On May 16, 2010, UMD Library in partnership with the Friends of the Duluth Public Library and the Lake

Superior Writers hosted the 22nd annual Northeastern Minnesota Book Awards (NEMBA). This year‟s featured

speaker Beatrice Ojakangas also led a writers‟ workshop. The winning books were as follows:

Fiction:

Minnesota Cold

by Cynthia Kraack

North Star Press

Poetry:

The Dark Honey: New & Used Poems

by Ellie Schoenfeld

Clover Valley Press

General Nonfiction:

Minong - The Good Place: Ojibwe and Isle Royale

by Timothy Cochrane

Michigan State University Press

Children's Literature:

Wintering

by William Durbin

Raven Publications

Memoir and Creative Nonfiction:

Knife Island: Circling a Year in a Herring Skiff

by Stephen Dahl,

Nodin Press

Submitted by Bill Sozansky, University of Minnesota, Coordinate Campus Libraries Representative

Metro-Area Public Libraries

Patricia Conley, Director, Washington County Public Library

June 4, 2010

Hennepin County Library -- Lois Langer Thompson, Director

Hennepin County Library opened Plymouth and Maple Grove libraries this spring. Both grand openings brought

hundreds of people to explore their new gathering spaces and check out items. These libraries opened with

expanded hours thanks to the revenue from the ballpark sales tax.

Preparation for the 2011 operating budget continues.

Current Legacy Programs that Hennepin County Library is a part of can now be found on our public website.

There is also a link to all past and present projects and initiatives, including in-person programs. It includes HCL

projects, and MELSA projects taking place at HCL locations. There is also a link to MELSA information about

Legacy funding.

Just over 1,200 customers have completed the “How did you find out about this program?” survey in the two

survey periods, November 2009 and February 2010. This data shows that people who attend our programs find

out about them most often through our public website or by a friend/family member. The public website is also

our customers‟ preferred way to find out about programs. These quarterly surveys help track the effectiveness of

various promotional tools in regards to events and classes. This will help us review data and determine how to

best align resources to provide the most effective communications.

More than 900 teens connected with businesses and organizations providing job, volunteer and internship

opportunities at the fourth annual Hennepin County Library Teen Job Fair on April 10 at Minneapolis Central

Library. Representatives from 30 businesses and organizations hosted information tables. Teens found out about

available positions, qualifications needed and how to apply. Many applied for jobs – and some were interviewed

right on the spot.

Hennepin County Library is in the top 10 of our population category (500,000+) in the 2010 edition of Hennen's

American Public Library Ratings. HCL is one of ten library systems that have been in the top 10 since the index

started in 1999. The 2010 ranking is based on statistics collected in 2008.

Thanks to the work of Hennepin County Library‟s IT unit, Hennepin County Community Corrections, and

Hennepin County IT, the Outreach library can now offer residents at the Adult Corrections Facility (ACF) more

access to job resources with the introduction of limited Internet access.

Nearly 125 Hennepin County Library employees celebrated milestone service anniversaries in 2009. At the May

11 Years of Service Celebration, employees were recognized by Library Director Lois Langer Thompson,

County Commissioner Mark Stenglein and Library Board President Therese VanBlarcom. As Thompson stated,

these employees' "passion and commitment to excellent library service raised the value of the library to the

community… Today is about celebrating and honoring you, the employees who make Hennepin County Library

such a great institution."

Ramsey County Library—Susan Nemitz, Director

The Ramsey County Library in Roseville will hold its grand opening on July 10, 2010. The facility is currently

closed for the move from a temporary facility to the permanent location. The collection is being RFID tagged.

The County is pursuing gold LEED certification.

The Ramsey County Library is studying the potential relocation of the Library in Arden Hills to the New

Brighton Community Center.

Washington County Libraries -- Pat Conley, Director

Spring is always a busy time for the public library and this spring at WCL has been particularly fun. We are

ready for summer in Washington County!

Fishing

In recognition of the importance of fishing in the lives of Minnesotans, Washington County Library has added

fishing kits to its offerings of "life event kits" at the county's branches at the R.H. Stafford Library in Woodbury

and Hardwood Creek in Forest Lake.

The kits include a rod and reel and tackle, as well as a Minnesota field guide to fishing, a Washington County

map, Fishing in the Neighborhood (FiN) program information, safety tips and Minnesota Department of Natural

Resources Fishing Regulations. In keeping with the library's role in promoting literacy, there will also be books

and DVDs about fishing, as well a collection of essays about fishing and hunting in the north woods by Gary

Paulsen, which portray a younger person appreciating nature.

To introduce the kits to the community and to provide community members with additional information on

fishing, “Let‟s Go Fishing…and have some fun!” was held on. Monday evening, May 24, at the R. H. Stafford

Library in Woodbury. Over 40 kids and their parents attended. Rick Walsh, of the Minnesota Department of

Natural Resources and Adam Griebie, Washington County Parks Coordinator presented the basics of fishing

including what gear to use and how to use it, how to fish, where to fish, fish identification and more. Library

users can borrow fishing gear for free from the Library. is sponsored by Washington County Library,

Washington County Parks, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and The Raft Foundation. Call R.

H. Stafford Library with questions at 651-731-1320.

The library already has available for loan a variety of kits. Book club kits fall into the traditional role of

libraries, providing enough copies of one book to supply an entire book club at once, along with discussion

questions. But Washington County Library goes beyond book club kits, providing "life event kits" for

borrowers. Those kits cover such topics as "having a baby," which will include a book, a DVD and ideas for

crafts to make with a child; a new pet in the family kit, which has recipes and molds for doggie treats; and a

relaxation kit, with tapes and music.

The fishing kits are a collaboration of the county library and Washington County Parks. Parks personnel are

always looking for ways to encourage residents to participate in the many outdoor activities available at county

parks, including fishing. The fishing kits are the result of the two departments working together to promote their

respective programs. Library volunteers will be needed to check the gear when it is returned, and to clean the

rods and reels. Also, there will be no reservation list; the kits will be checked out on a first-come, first-served

basis. County parks also have fishing gear that may be rented.

Volunteers Add Value!

Several years ago WCL developed an extensive volunteer management policy and process that has led to a

significant increase in volunteer assistance at the Library. If there has ever been an instance of "win-win" for

everyone, it is the contributions of these volunteers.

The library staff recruits, trains and uses the skills of a dedicated group of volunteers. In April, that group

numbered 73, putting in hours at each of the libraries branches, with the exception of Newport, the county's

smallest branch.

Library volunteers are excellent public relations ambassadors for the library. They are comfortable around

books, and are avid readers, and ready to make recommendations or offer encouragement to others to read,

Lubbers said. Community members who visit the library enjoy the volunteers, and enjoy talking about books

with them.

In 2009, volunteers donated 8,619 hours to the library. Those hours grew by leaps, with the numbers of 2009

contrasting with the 2,368 hours put in by volunteers in 2006. Using federal calculations that a volunteer hour is

worth $20, WCL estimates that over $170,000 in volunteer time was provided in 2009.

NEH grant awarded: A More Perfect Union Bookshelf

Washington County is the home of Company B of the 1st Minnesota Volunteers, the first Union regiment to step

forward to serve in the Civil War. In commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the commencement of that

great struggle, WCL will begin a series of programs in the fall of 2010. It is therefore fitting that WCL has been

selected as one ofg 4,000 libraries across the nation to receive the We the People "More Perfect Union"

Bookshelf. The books and other materials will be on display at all nine branch libraries through mid-2011.

Included in the grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) are the rights to show Ken

Burns‟ Civil War series. Stay tuned for more events and information as this important year of commemoration

gets underway!

Legacy programming at WCL

WCL has had a great run of new programming funded from the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment

passed in November 2008 by the people of Minnesota. Neil Gaiman spoke to a large audience of 500 in April

and WCL has been able to provide story tellers and Native American dancers in several venues. Perhaps

uniquely WCL has also focused programming on textile art and book arts.

In April artists from the Minnesota Textile Center helped children create fabric art pieces in the style of

author/illustrator Eric Carle using textile art materials in a Community Story Quilt project. Children were asked

to decorate their block of fabric based on a favorite book, book character, story or fairytale. All blocks of fabric

are being sewn together to create a quilt for display in five library branches.

Performance Measures

WCL has prepared its annual performance measures report for the County Administration and Board. Among

the findings for 2009 is that for every $1 of property tax levy used to support that library, the return on

investment was $10. If you are interested in seeing the report, please contact Pat Conley at

pat.conley@co.washington.mn.us

Summer Hours at WCL

While I didn‟t want to mention budget reductions in 2010 and how that issue has dominated the last three

months, I should note that in order to accommodate staff reductions WCL has gone to summer hours for 2010

which represent a reduction of 7 hours per week from May 30 through

Submitted by Patricia Conley, Metro-Area Public Libraries Representative

Multi-county, Multitype Library Systems Report

Ruth Solie, Northern Lights Library Network June 4, 2010

As a group, Minnesota Multitype Library systems continue to create and promote the “Things on a Stick”

individual learning project for the MN library world. In 2010 we moved to a monthly newsletter, “Things on a

Stick News”, that features new tools each month. Subscription to the newsletter is open to anyone, and the

archived News can be found at http://thingsonasticknews.blogspot.com .

The 7 multitype systems facilitated and funded the initial meeting of the Library Futures Initiative - Steering

Committee meeting May 12, 2010, in St Cloud. This broadly representative group from the Minnesota library

community will begin the process of selecting the library “futurists” to look at, and plan for, Minnesota

libraries‟ successful evolution in the face of great change.

Southwest Area Multicounty Multitype Interlibrary Exchange [SAMMIE]- Robin Chaney, Director

PSP Teen Co-op is offering Make Waves at Your Library Grants to member libraries offering summer programs

for Teens.

Watch for the launch of SAMMIE‟s new web page in June 2010. With a new content management system,

SAMMIE staff will be do the updating in house. This will allow for quicker updates & a site that is more

responsive to Member Library needs.

North Country Library Cooperative (NCLC)- Linda Wadman-Director

NCLC has awarded five scholarships to members for five different events this year. Information from attendees

has been shared in assorted ways with others from the region.

With the fiscal year coming to a close, preparations are gearing up for the required annual audit which has

increased in price by several hundred dollars again this year due to more government requirements.

Recently NCLC has been looking for interested persons to fill several expiring seats on the board, including one

vacancy as a result of death. The academic representative seat which has been vacant for several years has

recently been filled with two community college representatives attending. :)

The Governing Board is revamping and adding to the policy manual. Job descriptions are also needing to be

revamped. That task will be tackled in the coming year.

A Minitex workshop on Scratch and SMILE is being planned for August 18 at the Grand Marais School

Technology Plaza. The facilities there will allow attendance of 24. Watch for more information soon.

Northern Lights Library Network (NLLN)- Ruth Solie- Director

The 22nd

Annual Spotlight on Books Conference was recently held at Sugar Lake Lodge near Grand Rapids,

MN. It featured nationally known authors/illustrators, books displays, networking, a workshop by Doug

Johnson, and much good food. The weather was perfect – and after 2 years of terrible weather conditions, that

was worth noting!

The NLLN Annual Meeting in April featured the programs and services of NLLN from the recipient/end user‟s

perspective and was well-received. Sen Dan Skogen participated in the event and gave his perspective on the

legislative climate and our state‟s future, and the luncheon speaker was author Kathy Sletto.

NLLN completed a revised strategic plan. In the face of great uncertainty about future conditions and needs, our

plan will be to continue providing multitype library services in the most effective manner possible, to provide

staff development/continuing education for library staff, trustees, and Friends, to support local multitype library

cooperation, and to advocate on behalf of all libraries.

In addition to our robust Continuing Education Scholarship program and a growing Professional Engagement

Program, we are introducing a new 2-pronged “special projects programs” – formal name to be determined -

that encourage multitype library cooperation projects at the local level, as well as several region-wide (or state-

wide) multitype library cooperation projects.

Metronet – Ann Walker Smalley, Director

MILI has concluded for the 2009-2010 school year. All of the content, including webinars, handouts, and other

material is available for use on the MILI wiki at http://metronetmili.pbworks.com/. Plans are underway for

school year 2010-2011.

The Metronet Information Literacy Summit was cancelled.

Camp Read-a-Lot is scheduled for August 3 & 4 at the Pavilion at Como Lake in St. Paul. Camp will have two

days of day camp and a virtual camp.

History Day @ your library is scheduled for November 10 at the Minnesota History Center. A call for proposals

on the theme “Geography in History: Impact, Influence, Change” will go out mid-summer.

Metronet is participating in the metro-wide History Day collaborative that is working to document library

activity around History Day. This effort was initiated and is coordinated by Jennifer Hootman, Minitex

Reference.

WebJunction Minnesota subscription will be renewed. Metronet is no longer a financial partner in WJMN. State

Library Services will do the management of WJMN.

Metronet and MELSA are sharing the cost of offering Trendy Topics fro Alliance Library System (Illinois) for

metro area library staff. Attendance at each of the monthly events ranges between 15 and 20.

Metronet staff member LeAnn Suchy presented as part of a panel on Google Buzz at Midwest Technology

Conference. She coordinated and presented as part of a panel Fast & Fun that presented Web 2.0 tools and other

tools in 7-minute segments.

A WindDown on the Census was held at Wentworth Library. 30 people heard Tom Gillaspy, State Demographer

& Professor Louis Mendoza, University of Minnesota, Department of Chicano Studies.

Ann Walker Smalley testified on behalf of the multitypes at the Legislative hearing on the OLA Report on

Public Libraries.

The multitypes initiated and funded a Steering Committee to plan and implement a Library Futures Initiative.

Representatives from all types of libraries and MEMO and MLA attended the first meeting on May 12. It is

expected that “futurists” will meet over the course of 9 months to discuss the future of library service in

Minnesota.

Central Minnesota Libraries Exchange (CMLE) – Patricia Post, Director Spring is the second busiest season for CMLE, next to Fall. Two of our four Governing Board meetings happen

in Spring, along with the end of year scramble to get interlibrary loan materials back before our 242 schools let

out for the summer. This year, we sense that there may be many staffing changes in the schools in the fall, which

has significant impact. Delivery preferences and arrangements are driven by individual staffing. Our ability to

easily begin ILL services in the fall is also dependent on staffing. Individual contact needs to be made whenever

we are aware of staff changes. For example, if a retiring person has always picked up their ILL materials at the

branch library where they live, new pickup arrangements will be likely for the new person. Continuity in

services when there are staffing changes continues to be one of our biggest challenges. SCSU student workers

(paid by federal work study dollars) continue to perform the task level ILL services, which makes this service

quite cost effective for CMLE. This also frees up CMLE staff to focus more heavily on systems,

communications and development of regional expressed needs for continuing education.

Other recent activities include:

Process and development of a new FY11 Strategic Plan through a subcommittee of the CMLE Board

New Consortium members: A new round of schools joined the North Star Library Consortium recently,

with Becker, McGregor and Maple Lake districts joining from the CMLE region

Work on facilitating the Library Futures Initiative: Patricia Post did the local logistics for convening the

first meeting of the steering committee in St. Cloud on May 12th. A second steering committee meeting

will take place on June 9th.

Training for doing webinars next year: CMLE staff will be working closely with SCSU IT staff this

summer to become proficient using Adobe Connect to offer webinars next year.

Training possibilities: CMLE staff sent out a Survey Monkey to its members proposing over 20 training

topics for next year to gauge interest. Participants were also asked about preferred learning formats,

locations, and optimal length of trainings.

Fall Annual Meeting: Planning has begun, and according to member response, an author and dinner

remain the highlight of this event. Breakout sessions for professional development are also offered.

Free reference materials and other donated materials: CMLE acts as the hub for these donations, then

disburses them further in the region. We received over 200 useful donations this quarter. Student

workers fill these orders.

Publicity and provision of over 100 free NASA print titles: This supports the MN STEM initiative and

CMLE partners with SCSU on this work. Last fiscal year over 2,000 items were distributed to Central

MN schools and libraries. Student workers fill these orders.

High school visits: 26 CMLE schools brought students to the Miller Center for research purposes this

year. With more high school students taking college credit, and with lacking K-12 book budgets, the

SCSU collections, including databases, are being used more heavily. Typically, the students are

provided a library instruction session, lunch on campus, and finally, through CMLE, they are able to

check out or order needed materials.

Submitted by Ruth Solie, Director, Northern Lights Library Network

Public Libraries Report Mary Lukkarila, Director, Cloquet Public Library

June 4, 2010

Cloquet Public Library -- Mary Lukkarila, Director

The Arrowhead Library System continues to develop Legacy Funds programs for member libraries. An art tour

will bring people to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and Russian Museum of Art on June 5. The buses

originate in International Falls and the North Shore. Two buses will bring people to the Minnesota History

Center from Cloquet on June 12. The Cloquet Public Library has also received a grant from the Minnesota

Historical Society for the Minnesota Bookshelf.

The library continues its reduced hours due to the loss of a half-time library aide, reduction to half-time of

another employee, and mandatory furloughs of 5 days per union employee. The library is now open 47 hours

per week during the school year, 43 hours per week summer.

Fergus Falls Public Library -- Walt Dunlap, Director With a calendar 2010 budget loss of $9,773.00 attributable to the City‟s LGA losses, Fergus Falls Public

Library has been forced to trim five hours of operation. The 57-hour week it relinquished had been stable since

2003 when it lost half of its 8-hour Saturday schedule. High school and community college students doing

shelving duty are not being replaced as they move on, and those responsibilities are being assumed by a mix of

permanent personnel and Youth CEP workers. The Friends of the Library have been assisting with much-needed

shelf reading duties.

The Library has renewed its NoveList subscription for a second year and contemplates addressing the growing

customer interest in downloadable books. A “TumbleBooks” subscription will be paid for by the Friends of the

Library, assuming access issues can be resolved.

Our “Extra Reading at the Library” (ERL) partnership with the Fergus Falls Public Schools will begin its ninth

season come June. Paraprofessional staffers from ISD 544 will provide youngsters help in choosing books at the

proper reading levels and provide one-on-one tutorials. The Pamida Foundation, ISD 544 Community

Education, and a local foundation are the lead donors in making the project possible. A dozen other local

businesses and organizations have donated about $3,000.00 to help beef up the “serials” book collection most

heavily used by the elementary school children. Other than promotion and circulation support, the “ERL” runs

independently of our Summer Reading Program schedule which runs into August.

Northfield Public Library -- Lynne Young, Director

We held our birthday party on April 25 - 100th anniversary of the Northfield Carnegie Library. The Northfield

News published a nice 4-page section last weekend on the library, partially funded through a Legacy Grant. All

the speeches are published on the centennial blog on our website.

Of course, at the same time, we are coping with budget cuts. We are only going to be able to have the

bookmobile on the road for the Books & Stars program this summer. The library will remain closed on Sundays

and we'll close from 8-9 on M-Th. starting June 1. Sub and part-time hours will be cut commensurately. Full

time staff throughout the city are being required to take 3 furlough days between now and the end of the year.

We also cut the book budget by an additional $8,000.

The Books & Stars program is being sponsored through a grant from the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council.

Featured performers will include "Sons of the Beach" - 50's rock and roll; "Mu Daiko - amazing drumming;

Justin Roberts (this well-known children's music artist always draws a BIG crowd); "New Riverside Ramblers"

- Cajun dance music; "Stevie Ray's Improv Co" - instant comedy sketches; "Splatter Sisters" - Classic Kids

songs with audience participation; and "Xibaba" - Brazilian music for dancing and listening. These

performances are every Wednesday at different venues throughout Northfield, beginning June 16 and ending

July 28.

Rochester Public Library -- Audrey Betcher, Director

The exhibit “RACE: Are We So Different?” opened on May 17th. At the end of our first week, we already had

5,606 visitors. Volunteers also came together to create the quilt “Threads of Our Community” which was

unveiled on May 16th. The quilt is an art project demonstrating that there is a place for all people in the fabric of

our society.

Submitted by Mary Lukkarila, Public Libraries Representative

Private Colleges Report

Dan Gjelten, University of St. Thomas June 4, 2010

Carleton College – Sam Demas, Library Director Archives and library merger are proceeding apace, with initial focus on processing and scanning photo

collections, digital archiving, and exploring options for an archives management tool.

Making space in stacks by weeding JSTOR back files and consolidating duplicate journal backruns with St.

Olaf.

Developing criteria for co-location of other college services in the library.

Preparing a briefing paper for a new college president, who will begin work August 1.

Making progress in developing workflows and policies for data services within the library.

Completed painful journal cancellation review that resulted in a 7% cut in journal expenditures (print and

electronic).

College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University Libraries – Kathy Parker, Library Director

Along with Orrin Ausen, I represented private college libraries at the Minnesota Library Futures planning

meeting in May. This initiative, convened by the state's multitype library organizations, is intended as sort of a

think-tank on future library direction(s) which may yield ideas for collaboration or indicate state policy

development, and certainly will inspire individual libraries to take action in relevant areas. I'm on the steering

committee along with Orrin, charged with getting a structure in place for the actual "futurists" to do their work.

It is our intention that the generative force and real work of this initiative will come from newer professionals

and those with an entrepreneurial or creative outlook. I think this will provide an opportunity to let the next

generation of library leaders develop their strengths. At this point, the call for participation is planned for early

Fall 2010.

Macalester College Terri Fishel, Library Director Google Books - On Friday, April 16, as part of National Library Week, we hosted a presentation by Wendy

Pradt Lougee (U of M Libraries) and Jack Bernard (Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor) entitled "Google Book

Search and the End of Obscurity: the digitization of library collections and what it means for readers, scholars,

and libraries". A video of the presentation will be available later this summer from our DigitalCommons.

Spring Survey - As part of our preparation for an outside review, the library conducted a survey of our faculty,

students, and staff. We shared results and information with the community using our course management

system, Moodle, in order to allow for comments and feedback. We will be compiling the results into a more

formal report over the summer.

Senior Week and READ Posters - As part of Senior Week, the library sponsors a display of favorite books by

our graduating seniors. You can see the book selections on our website gallery. We also have a gallery of this

year's READ posters which are part of our National Library Week events.

Library Technology Conference 2010 - In cooperation with Minitex, we hosted over 450 attendees for this year's

LibTech conference. You can see presentations in our conference archive. Plans are underway for next year's

conference and you can follow developments at the LibTech 2011 website. The dates are set for next year if

you want to mark your calendars for May 16-17. Registration filled early, so please stay alert for Minitex

mailings that will announce when registration is open for next year's event.

University of Saint Thomas -- Dan Gjelten, Library Director The UST Libraries hosted the spring meeting of the Council of Academic Library Directors (CALD) on May

14th and used the meeting to discuss library space planning (with architect Jeffrey Scherer from Meyer Scherer

and Rockcastle) and Barbara Fister‟s survey of Chief Academic Officers (published in Library Journal

http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6726948.html.) Prior to the meeting, a survey (developed by Jeff

Scherer, Dan Gjelten and Kathy Parker) was distributed and those results informed the day‟s conversations.)

The Libraries were instrumental in leading a task force which made recommendations to the University

regarding new and more effective intellectual property policies.

After one complete semester of providing coffee service from our new shop, the results are very good, with

business being three times expectations and student response unanimously and enthusiastically positive.

Perhaps related, March O‟Shaughnessy-Frey gate counts were the highest for any March in history.

Library staff have presented at many conferences this spring, including the North American Serials Interest

Group, the Library Technology Conference at Macalester, the MN Academic Libraries Day, the Catholic

Library Association national meeting and the Electronic Resources and Libraries meeting in Austin, TX.

CLIC -Tom Nichol, Director CLIC continues to work on a strategic plan for the organization and held a meeting in May with Directors and

representatives of library staff brainstorming futures ideas in the following areas: CLIC values and constraints,

CLIC strengths, the larger context (academic libraries futures), CLIC budget, collection development,

leadership, CLIC projects and CLIC priorities. Planners have already drafted a new vision and mission

statement for the organization. In June, CLIC staff will gather to consider the implications of several content

management developments: E-book management for library human resource structures and responsibilities, the

building of digital collections in CONTENTdm and changes coming from our use of a new book vendor.

Submitted by Dan Gjelten, Private Colleges Representative