American Libraries articles from January 2009

American Libraries archives from January 2009

Dear President Obama
January 1, 2009... As you become the 44th president of the United States of America, probably the last thing you need is more people telling you what they want you to do for them. From the Headquarters of the American Library Association in Chicago, it looks to me...

A Trio of Opportunities: President's Program to Feature Nobel Peace Prize Recipient
January 1, 2009... In 2006 the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank "for their efforts to create economic and social development from below." During ALA's Midwinter Meeting in Denver, attendees will have a...

IMLS awards $500,000 grant for UIUC-CALA partnership.(ALA)(Institute of Museum and Library Services)(University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)(Chinese American Librarians Association )(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... The Institute of Museum and Library Services has funded a partnership program between the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) Libraries and the Chinese American Librarians Association (CALA) with a $499,895 Laura Bush 21st...

Obama, Biden are sent congratulations.(ALA)(Barack Obama and Joseph Biden)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... In letters November 12, 2008, ALA President Jim Rettig congratulated President-Elect Barack Obama and Vice President-EIect Joe Biden on their elections. To Obama, Rettig said, ALA "stands ready to partner with you in your plans to...

ALA joins women's history museum Push.(ALA)(American Library Association)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA has added its name to the list of national organizations supporting the National Women's History Museum (NWHM) project. In 1999, the President's Commission on the Celebration of Women in American History called for a women's history...

Presidential gamer.(ALA)(Jim Rettig)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA President Jim Rettig celebrates the Association's first "National Gaming Day @ your library" November 15 by playing the drums at Chesapeake (Va.) Public Library System's Dr. Clarence V. Cuffee branch as spectators look on. Hundreds of...

Guide to reference available online.(ALA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA Publishing has announced the launch of the new online edition of Guide to Reference that offers more than 16,000 print and Web reference resources, introductory essays and annotations, and tips for LIS reference-course exercises and...

Spectrum Scholars Get Additional Funding
January 1, 2009... The Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College in Boston and the University of Oklahoma's School of Library and Information Studies in Norman are providing $5,000 In matching scholarship funds to two Spectrum scholars:...

Calendar.(ALA)(Brief article)(Calendar)
January 1, 2009... ALA EVENTS Jan. 23-28: Midwinter Meeting, Denver, www.ala.org. Mar. 8-14: Teen Tech Week, www.ala.org./yalsa. Mar. 12-15: Association of College and Research Libraries National Conference, Seattle, www.ala.org/acrl. Apr,...

Lincoln-constitution exhibit deadline nears.(ALA)
January 1, 2009... January 30 is the deadline to apply for the "Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil "War" traveling exhibition hosted by ALA's Public Program Office and funded by a National Endowment for the Humanities grant to the National Constitution...

Teen Tech Week registration open.(ALA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA's Young Adult Library Services Association has launched its 2009 Teen Tech Week (TTW) website at www.ala.org/teentechweek. TTW will take place March 8-14. with a theme of "Press Play @ your library," encouraging teens to take...

Best interactive kids Software named.(ALA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA's Association for Library Service to Children has selected its fall 2008 list of Great Interactive Software for Kids, which recognizes high-quality computer programs and digital media for children 14 years of age and younger. The...

Sites chosen for Astronomy exhibit.(ALA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Forty public libraries will host the ALA Public Programs Office's "Visions of the Universe: Four Centuries of Discovery" traveling exhibition developed in cooperation with the Space Telescope Science Institute Office of Public Outreach and...

"We Shall Remain" library kit available.(ALA)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... A 28-page library event kit for the PBS American Experience miniseries "We Shall Remain" is available online at www.pbs.org/weshallremain/libraries. Produced by WGBH-Boston, "We Shall Remain" tells the story of pivotal moments in U.S....

ALSC updates best websites for children.(ALA)(Association for Library Service to Children)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA's Association for Library Service to Children has updated its Great Web Sites for Kids, the online resource containing hundreds of links to commendable websites for children. The site features links to valuable sites of interest to...

The Association's Associations: AASL
January 1, 2009... EQUIPPING STUDENTS WITH 21ST-CENTURY SKILLS The American Association of School Librarians (AASL) is the only national association for school library media specialists. Its mission is to advocate excellence, facilitate change, and develop...

Member alert: annual program proposals sought.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Members are invited to submit a program proposal for ALA's Annual Conference, July 9-15 in Chicago, as part of President Jim Rettig's "Creating Connections" initiatives. The deadline for submissions is February 6. Proposals must be...

Boyd, Torres to speak at AASL conference.(ALA)(Marco Torres)(Danah Boyd)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Internationally recognized authority on online social networking sites danah boyd, along with Marco Torres, author and filmmaker, will speak during ALA's American Association of School Librarians 14th national conference and exhibition, "Rev...

ACRL adds first interest group.(ALA)(Association of College and Research Libraries)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... ALA's Association of College and Research Libraries has formed the Residency Interest Group (RIG), the first interest group approved by ACRL's board of directors. RIG supports the creation, implementation, management, and promotion of...

Illinois librarian aids in Latino outreach.(NEWS)(Semiramis M. Grady)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Illinois librarian Semiramis M. Grady is one of the voices in a radio public service announcement (PSA.) effort that reaches out to the nation's Latinos. Grady is part of the team that helped create ALA's outreach campaign "en tu biblioteca,"...

The Association's Associations: ACRL
January 1, 2009... NATIONAL CONFERENCE GOES GREEN The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) is going green in 2009. The division's 14th national conference, to be held March 12-15 in Seattle, will showcase a wide range of eco-friendly practices....

Popular games support literacy in libaries.(National Gaming Day)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Thousands of libraries across the country participated in ALA's first "National Gaming @ your library Day" November 15. The event was developed to show the recreational and educational value of board and video games. In honor of the event,...

Philadelphia Still on Track for Branch Closings
January 1, 2009... Despite an outpouring of public concern and a cautionary note from city council, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter seemed unwavering in his November decision (AL, Dec, p. 22) to permanently close 11 out of the 54 branches of the Free Library of...

Nashville Mayor Wants City Library to Enfold Media Centers
January 1, 2009... Officials of the Metro Nashville Public Schools were taken aback by a press conference Mayor Karl Dean held November 20 at Nashville Public Library's East branch, at which he announced that the city library would begin taking over the operation...

PJS for children.(U.S. & International)(pajamas)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Williamson County (Tenn.) Public Library Assistant Director Jutie Duke (left) and Director Janice Keck stand in front of a display of donated children's pajamas that were distributed November 8 to residents of Fairview, Tennessee, who lost...

Harvard Law Professor Challenges Anti-Piracy Statute
January 1, 2009... A Harvard law school professor has taken on the defense of a 24-year-old Boston University graduate student who is challenging the constitutionality of a lawsuit filed against him by the Recording Industry Association of America. The suit seeks...

Meet the beedle.(U.S. & International)(The Tales of Beedle the Bard)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... One of only seven handwritten and hand-illustrated copies of J. K. Rowling's newest book, The Tales of Beedle the Bard, is unveiled December 3 at the New York Public Library by Arthur A. Levine (left), Scholastic coeditor of the Harry Potter...

Tango flaps on.(CENSORSHIP WATCH)(And Tango Makes Three)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... And Tango Makes Three, which topped the list of challenged titles compiled by the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom in 2006 and 2007, has ruffled feathers in the Ankeny (Iowa) Community School District. Parents...

Later, TTYL.(CENSORSHIP WATCH)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... The superintendent of the Round Rock (Tex.) Independent School District has removed from the collections of six middle-school libraries the young-adult novel TTYL, a cautionary tale about predatory behavior told through instant-message...

Queer response.(CENSORSHIP WATCH)(Queer as Folk)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... In response to a patron complaint about the inclusion in the collection of DVDs of the Showtime cable-television series Queer as Folk at the Lamb branch of the Pueblo (Colo.) City-County Library District, officials have moved the series to...

Streep Set to Play Dewey Librarian
January 1, 2009... Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep is reportedly slated to star in the big-screen adaptation of Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World. Streep would portray Spencer (Iowa) Public Library Director Vicki Myron, who wrote the...

FBI lists most coveted library books.(U.S. & International)(Federal Bureau of Investigation)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Some seven months after charging James Brubaker in the theft of hundreds of books from at least 100 academic and public libraries in the United States and Canada (AL, June July 2008, p. 23-24), the Federal Bureau of Investigation has...

Nerdfighters unite!(U.S. & International)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Hank Green and student Taylor Fuchs exchange gifts during the Great American Tour de Nerdfighting November 9 at Menchville High School in Newport News, Virginia, while John Green signs a copy of his new novel Paper Towns. The Greens discussed...

Las Vegas school libraries safe for now.(U.S. & International)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... While eliminating 105 middle and high school librarian positions was proposed as part of the solution to a $120-million shortfall, caused by state funding cuts, at Clark County (Nev.) School District, the district opted for other cuts to...

Dad Foils Plan for School "Librateria"
January 1, 2009... A Washington State parent has convinced officials of the Federal Way (Wash.) Public Schools that students who will attend a school still on the drawing board will benefit from a dedicated space for a media center that is separate from the...

Ludwig at the library.(U.S. & International)(Ludwig van Beethoven)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Beethoven paid a visit to the Richland County (S.C.) Public Library November 2 in the form of Clarence Felder, a RCPL Literary Resident and cofounder of Actor's Theatre of South Carolina. Felder was abetted in his program "Beethoven: His...

A grand entrance.(U.S. & International)(Joseph Krauskopf Memorial Library)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... The Friends of the Joseph Krauskopf Memorial Library of Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, gather November 12 at the handicap-accessible library door for which they raised $115,000. The gift celebrates the 150th birthday of...

Wayne state turns LIS program into school.(U.S. & International)(Wayne State University)(Library and Information Science)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... The board of governors at Wayne State University in Detroit voted December 3 to authorize the creation of the School of Library and Information Science, effective May 6, 2009. The school will house the existing Library and Information Science...

Libraries Nix Dissed Christmas Displays
January 1, 2009... In separate incidents, the holiday-spirit sensibilities of library patrons have trumped tradition at the Oberlin (Ohio) Public Library and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: The first library heeded public comment by removing an...

Mean Grinch, no flinch.(U.S. & International)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Five-year-old Larry Lancaster is unperturbed in the face of the fearsome Grinch. The Dr. Seuss creation came to the Northwood branch of Baltimore's Enoch Pratt Free Library November 13 as part of Pratt's "Children's Book Celebration Books...

Ethiopian hero.(U.S. & International)(Yohannes Gebregeorgis)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Children's author and Ethiopia Reads founder Yohannes Gebregeorgis signs books for a young fan November 25 at Hennepin County (Minn.) Library. Gebregeorgis emigrated to the U.S. from Ethiopia in 1983 seeking political asylum. He left his job...

Global Reach
January 1, 2009... UNITED KINGDOM 1 Between 1997 and 2003, Iranian scholar Farhad Hakimzadeh cut out pages from more than 150 rare books at the British Library and Oxford University's Bodleian Library in order to replace missing or damaged pages in copies that...

Newsmaker: Richard Gottlieb
January 1, 2009... Richard Gottlieb's USA Toy Experts is a provider of business-development services to the toy industry. He combines an MBA in global management with 35 years of consumer products experience to help toy manufacturers large and small increase their...

WorldCat Policy Revision Draws Librarians' Ire
January 1, 2009... OCLC's proposed "Policy for Use and Transfer of WorldCat Records," released November 2 and revised November 5 and 19, was greeted with a host of critical blog postings and two online petitions opposing it. Among the provisions that disturbed...

Getting animated.(TECHNOLOGY)(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... Nicole Smith helps her son Ian make a movie using Laramie County (Wyo.) Library System's Animation Station. Part of the My Library Place interactive children's literacy center, the station lets kids make their own stop-motion videos that they...

Working in Beta: Libraryweb Labs Let Users Shape Service
January 1, 2009... Innovation in libraries can be slow and hidden. "Something libraries have not been great at historically is experimenting in public," Ken Varnum, web systems manager at the University of Michigan Libraries, told American Libraries, noting the...

Popularity Shuts Down Europeana; 10 Million Hourly Hits Strain Site
January 1, 2009... Be careful what you wish for: You just might get it. That's what happened to Europeana, an online project of the European Union. Launched November 20, the much-hyped free digital library of Europe's cultural heritage crashed the next day,...

We Are What We Search: What Our Search Terms Reveal about US
January 1, 2009... I am not a packrat (despite what you might have heard). I do admit to saving things--selected things--against the day they might come in handy. Synchronicity struck the other day when I ran across an old article I'd saved that perfectly fit my...

Selling a New Technology: Tips for Securing Buy-In at Your Library
January 1, 2009... I'm sure you've heard this story before; maybe it's even happened to you. A librarian comes back from a conference all excited about a new technology she learned about. She thinks it would be a perfect fit for her library and presents her idea...

How the World Sees Us
January 1, 2009... "A kind, quiet woman with cocoa skin and soft eyes, Emma seems familiar and accessible, like a neighborhood librarian who helps you find the right book...." Journalist KELLIE MURPHY describing a woman with HIV in a cover story, "Facing the...

A.I.G.(Brief article)
January 1, 2009... A.I.G. BANKS CAR COMPANIES CITIES DO YOU HAVE a BOOK ABOUT the IMPACT Of the ECONOMIC CRISIS? As companies fall like dominoes, the library stands In their path, representing the solution but also among the victims of...

Leading the Way, Globally: What Leaders Have Taught Me about International Librarianship
January 1, 2009... As I write this, I'm overlooking Republic Square in Yerevan, Armenia. I'm on my third visit to work with Armenian libraries as a U.S. Department of State library speaker/specialist. My library development trips to Armenia, combined with similar...

Goming @ Your Library: The Universal Appeal and Educational Value of Games Transcend Barriers of Age
January 1, 2009... Playing games in today's public and school libraries is a profoundly social experience for library patrons both young and old. Age is no longer an indicator of interest, aptitude, or expertise. In fact, with videogames the younger the player the...

From Awareness to Funding: An Insider Shares Lessons Learned When Public Awareness Fell Short in Minneapolis
January 1, 2009... Minneapolis Public Library and the suburban Hennepin County Library made history last January when they merged, creating a single system serving 1.1 million with a collection of more than 5 million items. The unprecedented measure, which...

Testing the Web 2.0 Waters: Get Your Feet Wet with Tools to Help You Network, Organize Digital Photos, and Manage Bookmarks and Blogs
January 1, 2009... It's pretty difficult to avoid all the commotion about Web 2.0 nowadays. It seems to always be on the news, in magazines, and featured at conferences. So you've been meaning to start playing around with this stuff, but you've been busy. You're...

I Love My Librarian
January 1, 2009... More than 3,200 individual library users nationwide nominated a librarian for the inaugural Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times "I Love My Librarian" Award, to show their appreciation for the services library professionals offer...

The Mile-High City Awaits: A Nobel Peace Prize Recipient, Authors, and the Year's Best Youth Media Awards Highlight Conference Agenda
January 1, 2009... An anticipated 10,000-plus attendees, including exhibitors, authors, and guests, are expected to be on hand at the Colorado Convention Center (CCC) and at several area hotels for ALA's Midwinter Meeting January 23-38 in Denver. The headquarters...

Denver Dishes: A Dining Guide to the Mile High City
January 1, 2009... Denver's restaurant scene is much like the city itself--friendly, forward-thinking, and fun-loving. And, in a city where the likable two-term mayor founded downtown's first brewpub, eating and drinking well rank up there with spending time...

Library Champions: American Library Association Would like to Thank Its 2008-2009
January 1, 2009... In the late 1990s, twenty-one companies partnered with ALA to launch the Library Champions program. This innovative program allowed companies to actively support and convey the value of library-and librarianship advocacy in the 21st century. ...

Copyright or Copy Wrong? Indigenous Populations Require Nontraditional Legal Protection for Their Traditional Cultural Expression
January 1, 2009... It doesn't take long before dinner conversation about "traditional cultural expression" turns into a debate over the effectiveness of copyright law. That's what happened November 12 at the Madison Hotel in Washington, B.C., when Wend Wendland of...

Cathy Adams.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Cathy Adams has been named manager of the Noble, Oklahoma, branch of the Pioneer Library System.

Shelley Barba.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Texas Tech University in Lubbock has named Shelley Barba metadata librarian.

Ronald Bluestone.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Ronald Bluestone has been promoted to chief of the Library of Congress's Science, Technology, and Business division.

Robin Clark.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Robin Clark has become director of Sump Memorial Library in Papil-lion, Nebraska.

Connie (Tiffany) Corcoran.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Connie (Tiffany) Corcoran retired as director of Tuolumne County (Calif.) Library December 31.

Karl Debus-Lopez.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... The Library of Congress has named Karl Debus-Lopez chief of the Acquisitions and Bibliographic Access Directorate U.S. General Division.

Johanna Drucker.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Johanna Drucker has become professor of bibliography at the University of California at Los Angeles Graduate School of Education and Information Studies.

Laine Farley.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... November 24 Laine Farley was promoted to executive director of the California Digital Library at the University of California in Oakland.

David Farrar.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... November 10 David Farrar became director of East Baton Rouge (La.) Parish Library.

Claudia Foutz.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... The California Library Association has named Claudia Foutz interim executive director.

Libby Gorman.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Libby Gorman became evening services coordinator at North Carolina Central University in Durham October 15.

Dalene Hawthorne.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Dalene Hawthorne has been named director of Arkansas City (Kans.) Public Library.

Carol C. Hewlett.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Carol C. Hewlett has been appointed director of Jackson George Regional Library System in Pasca-goula, Mississippi. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Susan Hildreth.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Seattle Public Library has selected Susan Hildreth as city librarian.

Stuart Hinds.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Stuart Hinds is now head of special collections at the University of Missouri at Kansas City.

Judith Hiott.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Houston Area Library Automated Network has appointed Judith Hiott as network chief.

Cheryl Houts.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Cheryl Houts started as community librarian at Santa Clara County (Calif.) Library's Campbell branch October 7, replacing the retiring Terri Leban.

Kerry Magruder.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Kerry Magruder has been appointed curator of the history of science collections at the University of Oklahoma in Norman.

Susan Malbin.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Susan Malbin has joined the American Jewish Historical Society in New York City as director of library and archives. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Scott B. Mander.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has named Scott B. Mander- nack head of research and instructional services.

Philip Melzer.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Philip Melzer is the new chief of the Library of Congress's Acquisitions and Bibliographic Access Asian and Middle Eastern Division.

Danielle Patrick Milam.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Las Vegas-Clark County Library District appointed Danielle Patrick Milam director of development.

Paul F. Miller.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Paul F. Miller has been named community librarian for Santa Clara County (Calif.) Library's Los Altos branch. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Jeffrey Monseau.(Currents)
January 1, 2009... Jeffrey Monseau became college archivist at Spring-field (Mass.) College in September.