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<h1 align=center style='text-align:center'><a name=Top></a><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Letter To Libraries Online</span><o:p></o:p></h1>
<p align=center style='margin-bottom:12.0pt;text-align:center'><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>An Electronic Newsletter from the
Oregon State Library.......Volume 20, Issue 6, June 2010</span><br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><a name=Board></a><b><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Library Board News</span></b><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>BOARD
TO DELIBERATE ON BUDGET CUTS ORDERED BY THE GOVERNOR</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>On May 25th the State Economist
delivered the bad news that the state budget for the 2009-11 biennium was out
of balance by about $560 million in the General Fund. In response to this
Governor Kulongoski immediately ordered a 4.5% across the board reduction in
all General Fund budgets in all agencies. At the State Library we use General
Funds for Talking Book and Braille Services, the Ready to Read Grant program,
and for positions in Library Development Services and Library Administration.
The Library’s share of the reduction is about $152,000. At press time the
staff was developing a plan to present to the State Library Board at their
meeting on June 11th at the Seaside Public Library. The State Librarian has
sent a message to public library directors warning them that significant
reductions to the Ready to Read Grant program are likely, depending on Board
action on June 11th.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
GOVERNOR APPOINTS ALETHA BONEBRAKE TO STATE LIBRARY BOARD</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Governor Kulongoski has
appointed Aletha Bonebrake of Baker City to the State Library Board of Trustees.
She will replace Doug Henrichs of Milton-Freewater who will retire from the
Board in July after serving two four-year terms. Bonebrake is a retired
librarian who has been a leader in the Oregon library community for many years.
She was the highly-successful director of the Baker County Library District
from 1985 to 2007. The Library was recently named a runner-up for the </span><em><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Library Journal</span></em><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'> Best Small Library in the U.S. award.
She also served as President of the Oregon Library Association in 2006-07, and
is still active in OLA as a member of the Legislative Committee. In 2007 she
was elected to the City Council in Baker City. Bonebrake holds an MLS degree
from the University of Wisconsin. “We are grateful that the Governor
choose such a highly-qualified Oregonian to serve on the State Library
Board,” commented State Librarian Jim Scheppke. “Our Board will
certainly benefit from Aletha’s experience, commitment and knowledge of
Oregon libraries and their needs.”</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
STATE LIBRARY BOARD MEETS IN SEASIDE</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The State Library Board will
meet on June 11th at the Seaside Public Library in Seaside. The Board will hear
recommendations from the Library Services and Technology Act Advisory Council
on inviting libraries to submit full competitive grant applications for projects
in 2011. The Board will also hear recommendations from the Board Budget
Committee on the Agency Request Budget for the 2011-13 biennium. The Committee
has developed a draft of the Budget that will be presented to the Board for
their consideration. The Talking Book and Braille Services Advisory Council
will also be making recommendations, including a plan to expend donation funds
for 2010-11. An “Open Forum” will be held at 11:30 a.m. Anyone may
address the Board at the Open Forum on any topic.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
BUDGET COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS FEW INCREASES TO STATE LIBRARY BUDGET</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The State Library
Board’s Budget Committee has held three meetings, beginning in February,
and has developed a proposed budget for the 2011-13 biennium that will be
presented to the full Board on June 11th. Given the projected $2.5 billion
shortfall of General Funds in the next biennium, the Committee took a very
conservative approach in developing the budget. Overall the proposal is only
2.2% higher than the budget for the current biennium. The $15.6 million budget
includes $1,448,693 for the Ready to Read Grant program. This amount is only
$1,251 more than the budget for 2009-11. It is equivalent to about 94¢ per
child per year, the same funding per child as this biennium. The only new
initiative in the Budget Committee’s proposal is a two-year project to
perform conservation work on about 7,500 historical documents and other items
in the Library’s special collections that are most at-risk of loss in the
next ten years. The Library recently had a conservator assess the collection
and the project will follow her recommendations for proper stewardship of the
library’s rare and unique historical materials.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><a name=OSLNews></a><b><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>State Library News</span></b><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>OPPOSING
VIEWPOINTS NOW AVAILABLE</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>In late April, the Oregon State
Library Board approved adding Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center (OVRC) to the
suite of Gale products offered statewide, and as of May 14th, libraries can add
this popular resource to their websites. To access your library-specific URL
and the database icon, go to the relevant Gale support site for libraries
–<a href="http://galesupport.com/oregonacad/">academic</a> or <a
href="http://galesupport.com/oregon/">public & tribal</a> - and enter or
click on your institution’s name. For training materials, click on the
big OVRC bubble in the top right corner of either support site. Opposing
Viewpoints is also available to K12 students and educators via <a
href="http://secondary.oslis.org/find-information">OSLIS</a>. By early June,
Gale plans to update the Opposing Viewpoints interface to a platform called
Think. Because of that impending change and the fact that some librarians are
on vacation in the summer, we will go light on the webinar trainings in June
(16th & 17th) and offer multiple sessions in August (24th & 26th) and
in late September or early October. Watch the listservs for times and the fall
dates. If your library already subscribes to OVRC, a Gale rep will contact you
about a credit. <a href="mailto:caroline.drexler@cengage.com">Caroline Drexler</a>
(800-877-4253 ext 8471) is handling credits for academic libraries, and <a
href="mailto:Lindsay.smith@cengage.com">Lindsay Smith</a> (800-877-4253 ext
8374) is doing the same for public and tribal libraries. Questions? Contact <a
href="mailto:marykay.dahlgreen@state.or.us">MaryKay Dahlgreen</a> or <a
href="mailto:jennifer.maurer@state.or.us">Jennifer Maurer</a> in Library
Development. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS FOR TALKING BOOKS</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Talking Book and Braille
Services (TBABS) has recently received newly designed brochures and posters.
The brochures and posters share a design and color scheme that features
mountain peaks, tree silhouettes, and even some ocean waves—showing some
of Oregon's regional diversity. The text on the new design reads: “A World
of Reading Awaits You” in order to promote reading as a lifestyle that
can be made possible for print-disabled Oregonians through TBABS. If your
library or outreach services department is interested in receiving some
brochures and/or posters, please contact Elke Bruton, Public Services
Librarian, at 503-378-5455. The posters are 11” x 22” so that they
can be easily displayed on a community events or message board.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><a name=OtherNews></a><b><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Other Library News</span></b><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>TWO
WINS AND A MAJOR LOSS FOR LIBRARIES IN THE MAY ELECTION</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>The Hood River County Library
may become the third Oregon county library to close in recent years after
voters defeated a library district proposal in May. The county libraries in
Jackson and Josephine Counties have reopened, but plans are to close the Hood
River County Library in Hood River and its two branches in Parkdale and Cascade
Locks July 1 because the county can no longer fund the library. The Library was
attempting to pass a special library district with a permanent tax rate of 70¢
per $1,000 of assessed valuation. This amount of funding would have restored
the library budget to what it was in 2008-09, before a 30% cut that went into
effect this year that cut library hours and services. The vote in Hood River
County on the library district proposal was 46% in favor of the measure and 54%
opposed. <br>
<br>
The two measures that passed in May were a five-year local option levy for the
Sweet Home Public Library and an annexation measure for the part of Tualatin
that is in Clackamas County. The Sweet Home Public Library levy passed with 56%
in favor. The Library has been supported by a local option levy for the past 24
years. The measure will increase the current levy by 20¢ per $1,000 to 82¢ per
$1,000. The residents of the portion of Tualatin that is in Clackamas County
voted by a 52% majority to join the Clackamas County Library Services District.
They had been left out of the district when it was formed in 2008. They will
now pay about 40¢ per $1,000 to the district and thereby be entitled to library
borrowing privileges at any Clackamas County Library and throughout the Metro
area.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
NUMBER OF SCHOOL LIBRARIANS TUMBLES IN 2008-09</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>In May the Oregon Department
of Education released statistics on Oregon public schools for 2008-09 as part
of the <a href="http://www.ode.state.or.us/search/results/?id=227">Oregon
School Directory</a>. The number of “library/media specialists” was
down by 17% from the prior year to only 376. The number of school librarians is
the lowest it has been in decades. In 1980 there were 818 school librarians
working in Oregon public schools. The number for 2008-09 is equivalent to only
one librarian for every 1,500 students in Oregon schools, and only .29
librarians per school. Hopefully, House Bill 2586 which passed the Legislature
in 2009 will help begin to turn things around. It requires every school
district, beginning this year, to plan for a “strong school library
program." The Oregon Association of School Libraries is working with the
Oregon Department of Education to develop Oregon Administrative Rules to
implement HB 2586.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
NIKE EMPLOYEE FUND SEEKS GRANT PROPOSALS</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><a
href="http://www.oregoncf.org/Templates/media/files/grants/nike_grant_guidelines.pdf">The
Nike Employee Grant Fund</a> has been established at The Oregon Community Foundation.
Through this fund, Nike employees will work with the foundation to award
$500,000 per year to nonprofits. This is Nike's "backyard" program,
engaging employees in aiding nonprofits in communities where local Nike
employees live - Clackamas, Columbia, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill
counties in Oregon and Clark County in Washington. Grants will be one-year
awards, generally between $5,000 and $20,000. Most grants will be awarded
through the lens of sport, for projects that use sport or physical activity to
leverage other community benefits, but some grants will be awarded for projects
that address broader family and children's issues. The first applications are
due June 15. </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p align=center style='text-align:center'><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
KEEPING UP WITH NWCENTRAL.ORG </span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Training for library staff is
more important than ever, especially when that training is affordable and
accessible. The <a href="www.nwcentral.org">Northwest Central</a> website is a
gateway for locating free webinars, tutorials, and other learning tools. Use
the Events listings (available in list or calendar view) to find training
opportunities in your region or online. Use the Resources listings to find
handouts, presentations, weblinks and other learning tools for your type of
library job. Please support strong libraries by sharing your training resources
on Northwest Central.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><a name=PS></a><b><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>P.S. (From the State Librarian)</span></b><span
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<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>We are nearing the end of a
decade of investment by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation in building the
public access computing capacity of Oregon public libraries. What a tremendous payoff
we have seen from that investment!<br>
<br>
A decade ago Oregon public libraries and public libraries across the U.S. were
mostly wary of the idea of jumping into public access computing with both feet.
The Internet and the World Wide Web were still kind of a new thing. Maybe they
weren’t for everyone. Maybe everybody that needed access would have
access in a few years anyway. What about thorny issues like filtering and
privacy? What about having the staff to manage the service and the space to
accommodate it?<br>
<br>
All of these doubts and reservations were pretty much swept away when the Gates
Foundation decided to launch what they called the State Partnership Program in
all 50 states beginning in 1998. Oregon’s turn came in 2001. The
Foundation invested $2.2 million in 2001 and 2002. A total of 581 public access
computers were put into 180 public library facilities in Oregon. For a number
of libraries, it was their first public access computer connected to the
Internet. <br>
<br>
The State Partnership Program was not the end of the Gates Foundation’s
investment. In 2005-06 the Staying Connected Grant Program purchased an
additional 223 computers to help libraries that needed help in sustaining their
public access computing program. This was a matching grant program and many
libraries turned to their Friends and Foundations to provide the match.<br>
<br>
The third and final investment came in a new matching grant program in 2008
called Opportunity Online. When this program ends this year, another 604
computers will have been provided to 57 Oregon libraries.<br>
<br>
In our latest count of public access computers in Oregon public libraries, made
last fall, there were a total of 2,544 computers in about 215 libraries and
branches. There were nearly 5 million users of public access computers in
Oregon public libraries last year. That’s an average of about 13,500
users every day. <br>
<br>
Public access computing has become as important a library service as book and
media circulation and reading programs for children. We know from the latest <a
href="http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/OEA/popsurvey.shtml">Oregon Population Survey</a>
that about one out of every three Oregonians (29%) does not have high speed
Internet access at home. In the past decade Internet access has gone from a
“nice to have” to being essential for living. Without access to the
Internet students cannot complete their assignments, the unemployed cannot
apply for jobs, and people can’t secure government services. This will
become even more true in the future.<br>
<br>
The Internet has made public libraries an “essential service” in
every community. We owe a big debt of gratitude to the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation for envisioning this future for public libraries over a decade ago
and investing so much to make it happen. – Jim Scheppke</span><o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><a name=Contacts></a><b><span
style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Contacts at the Oregon State Library</span></b><span
style='font-size:12.0pt;color:black'><o:p></o:p></span></p>
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<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'><br>
Library Development: 503-378-2525, <a
href="mailto:marykay.dahlgreen@state.or.us">MaryKay Dahlgreen</a>, <a
href="mailto:mary.l.mayberry@state.or.us">Mary Mayberry</a>, <a
href="mailto:darci.hanning@state.or.us">Darci Hanning</a>, <a
href="mailto:ann.reed@state.or.us">Ann Reed</a>, <a
href="mailto:jennifer.maurer@state.or.us">Jennifer Maurer</a>, <a
href="mailto:katie.anderson@state.or.us">Katie Anderson</a>.<br>
<br>
Talking Book and Braille Services: 503-378-5389, <a
href="mailto:susan.b.westin@state.or.us">Susan Westin</a>.<br>
<br>
Government Research Services: 503-378-5030, <a
href="mailto:robert.hulshof-schmidt@state.or.us">Robert Hulshof-Schmidt</a>.<br>
<br>
State Librarian: 503-378-4367, <a href="mailto:jim.b.scheppke@state.or.us">Jim
Scheppke</a>.<br>
<br>
LTLO Editor: 503-378-2464, <a href="mailto:april.m.baker@state.or.us">April
Baker</a>.<i> Letter to Libraries Online</i> is published monthly by the Oregon
State Library. Editorial office: LTLO, Oregon State Library, 250 Winter St. NE,
Salem, Oregon 97301-3950, 503-378-2464, editor: <a
href="mailto:april.m.baker@state.or.us">April Baker</a>.<i> Letter to Libraries
Online</i> is available free of charge and is available only in electronic form
on the publications page at the Oregon State Library's homepage: <a
href="http://www.oregon.gov/OSL">http://www.oregon.gov/OSL</a>. Opinions
expressed in the articles are those of the authors and not necessarily those of
the Oregon State Library. News items or articles should be sent to <a
href="mailto:april.m.baker@state.or.us">April Baker</a>, or mailed to LTLO,
Oregon State Library, 250 Winter St. NE, Salem, Oregon 97301-3950.</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p><span style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>To unsubscribe from libs-or,
either send an 'unsubscribe' message to <a
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or visit the website: <a
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