System Spotlight
By Staff
For all of our veterans and families of veterans, we wish you a reflective and meaningful holiday on Monday! Thank you for your service!
Future Dates & Training Opportunities (All Times in CST)
Click the arrow next to each week to open the list of available training opportunities.
Week of November 11th – November 15th
11th – Veteran’s Day
12th – 11 AM – 12 PM – New EBSCOhost Demonstration & Open Questions | Webinar/Zoom Link
12th – 2 PM – 3 PM – Twosday Takeaway: Nonboring Nonfiction |Webinar/Zoom Link
12th – 2 PM – 3 PM – How Do We Rebuild Trust in Authoritative Information Sources? | Webinar/Register Here
13th – 1 PM – 2 PM – Decoding Body Language: Myths and Truths | Webinar/Register Here
14th – 2 PM – 3 PM – Tools to Boost Confidence for Delivering Successful Powerpoint Presentations | Webinar/Register Here
Week of November 18th – November 22nd
18th – 3 PM – 4 PM – Funding Your Makerspace | Webinar/Register Here
19th – 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM – The Geopolitics of the Internet and Its Implications for the Governance of AI | Webinar/Register Here
19th – 2 PM – 3 PM – Build Essential Human Skills for Today’s Evolving Workforce | Webinar/Register Here
20th – CSLP Summer Library Program Orders Deadline
20th – 12 PM – 1:30 PM – Inspire, Advocate, Communicate: Library Data Storytelling | Webinar/Register Here
20th – 2 PM – 3 PM – Providing Mental Health Resources at Your Library | Webinar/Register Here
21st – 1 PM – 2 PM – Rural Health Resources | Webinar/Register Here
Consulting
By Sara Wilson
KLA 2024
As you can see, we had a blast at KLA! Since it was over Halloween, Richard and I both got into the holiday spirit with costumes. He was cosplaying for his anime and manga presentation and I was dressed as a “Reading Rainbow.” There were so many good, insightful presentations this year, including the welcome keynote by ALA President Cindy Hohl in which she encouraged us to come to our conversations and community in “a good way” and to use our knowledge and skills in library science to make a real difference in the problems that we see in our communities.
Haskell Township Library Director Sara Koehn’s presentation on HR was very useful and informative. As a professional in the field, she brought a ton of experience and insight to her presentation, navigating some complex questions that sparked interesting conversations. Thank you, Sara, for sharing your knowledge with us!
I took away so much from each presentation I attended, from how to navigate neurodivergent-specific issues in library work to getting ideas for summer library programs. It’s always good to see the consultants and directors from the other systems, as well. It was fun and informative and to those we saw and spent time with – it was great to see you there! 🙂 To those who weren’t there – we hope to see you next year in Manhattan! 🙂
Don’t Miss It!
How many times have you had a patron tell you they’re not interested in reading non-fiction because it’s “boring”? Not that you’re going to change their minds, necessarily, but SWKLS Collection Specialist Miguel Coca will tell you about some fun, fascinating non-fiction that is anything but boring! Join us next Tuesday, November 12th, at 2 PM for Twosday Takeaway: “Non-Boring Nonfiction.”
Accreditation Summary Updates
This week, I sent out Accreditation Summary Updates to let you know where you’re at with what you need to submit before the end of the calendar year. Please take a moment, if you haven’t, and look over the list to see what you still have to complete. We have a lot of libraries that are finished or close to it and a few that still have quite a ways to go. Please keep accreditation top of mind as we enter into the close of 2024. My inbox is wide open and ready to receive your documents/CE, so don’t be shy – send ’em my way! 🙂
Professional Collection CE Forms
Many of you have checked out books from our Professional Collection, but have forgotten to turn in your CE for having read them. I want to give you the credit you deserve, so as an incentive to turn in your CE hours for the books you read, I have created a Professional Collection CE Form to go out with every book that you check out from the Professional Collection. Keep the form, fill it out, and when you’re ready to return the book, just include the form with the book in your courier bag and we’ll take care of the rest. If you know you’ve read a book recently that you haven’t gotten credit for, I’ve included a Professional Collection Continuing Education Form as an attachment, here. Just download it, print it, fill it out, and send it to us over the courier or even scan it and send it by email and I’ll gladly add it to your file. You deserve to be recognized for the hard work that you do! Get those credit points that you earned! 🙂
Cataloging, Collection Development, and ILL
By Miguel Coca
Collection Development Inspiration
Adult Fiction
Children’s & YA Fiction
From the SWKLS Pro Collection
This richly illustrated and vastly inclusive collection uplifts the works of authors who are often underrepresented in the literary world. Using their keen knowledge and deep love for all things literary, coauthors Jamise Harper (founder of the Diverse Spines book community) and Jane Mount (author of Bibliophile) collaborated to create an essential volume filled with treasures for every reader:
• Dozens of themed illustrated book stacks—like Classics, Contemporary Fiction, Mysteries, Cookbooks, and more—all with an emphasis on authors of color and authors from diverse cultural backgrounds
• A look inside beloved bookstores owned by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color
• Reading recommendations from leading BIPOC literary influencers
Diversify your reading list to expand your world and shift your perspective. Kickstart your next literary adventure now!
The circ stats say it all: graphic novels’ popularity among library users keeps growing, with more being published (and acquired by libraries) each year. The unique challenges of developing and managing a graphics novels collection have led the Association of Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS) to craft this guide, presented under the expert supervision of editor Ballestro, who has worked with comics for more than 35 years. Examining the ever-changing ways that graphic novels are created, packaged, marketed, and released, this resource gathers a range of voices from the field.
Versed in Verso
The next Versed in VERSO is Tuesday, November 12th at 11:00 AM ET / 8:00 AM PT. The webinar is scheduled for 1 hour.
- Registration is open: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5334487812812578133
- There is space on the registration form to ask a question and we’ll answer as many as possible during the webinar.
The recording from October’s Versed in VERSO is posted here: Staff Dashboard > Support > VERSO.
Sharing about SHAREit
The next Sharing about SHAREit Q&A is scheduled for Wednesday, November 13, 2024, at 11am PT / 12pm MT / 1pm CT / 2pm ET.
Please let your libraries know that registration is open at: https://attendee.gototraining.com/r/1776780445993565700
Additional Sharing about SHAREit webinars are scheduled for:
- Wednesday, December 18 – Reports and Statistics
- Wednesday, January 22
The registration link for each session will be sent about a month in advance.
Technology
by Christopher Dressler
Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Week 3: Identifying Phishing
During week 3, I walked you through the process of identifying a phishing e-mail. I showed you how to check for obvious signs such as a generic greeting and spelling errors. I then went on to show you how to access and read email header information and the importance of blocking and reporting a phishing email to your staff and SWKLS to stop the phish from effecting others. You can view the archived video and other available resources on our wiki by clicking here.
Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Week 4: Software Updates
During my week 4 presentation, I explained that the easiest way to stay safe online is to make a habit of keeping update your software programs updated. If you have the option when installing software, enable automatic updates. If you do not have the option for automatic updates, only go to the software developer’s website to get updates. Do not click the links in an email alerting you to an update. Go straight to the source. Also, do not forget to check your other devices for updates such as your TV’s and game consoles or other “Smart” devices like thermostat, cameras or a fridge or toaster. You can view the archived video and other available resources on our wiki by clicking here.
