Google Maps Tricks

Map Geeks- you will love this!
Google Map Tricks You Need to Try

Books vs Ebooks- Which are better?

Clearly there are many preferences, but what are the hidden benefits of each?

NS Children's Room Photo Shoot December 10th

Demco, the company that provided the new furnishings in the Northside Children's Room, is coming with a professional crew, including photographers and child actors, on Thursday, December 10th. They plan to stage some photos for future advertisement. I'm sorry to miss this event, as I will be with family in Louisiana, but Aaron will watch over the visit on our behalf. Best of all, Demco will share their photos with us for our own promotional materials.

Impact of NS Children's Room

Since I'm an administrator, I delve in statistics a lot. So, I was curious to know whether all the money and effort we put into the NS Children's Room made any difference to the public. If collection use is an indicator, the answer is yes. But even more impactful, I think, has been adding children's staff.

I asked Rob to run reports to tell us if circulation of children's materials increased from the last three weeks in October 2015 (before the official celebration event) compared to the first three weeks in November (the celebration was held on November 7th)
Here's what Rob reports:
            Last 21 days of Oct 2015 = 5534 circs

First 21 days of Nov 2015 = 5846 circs

            
         +5.6%

 Now look what adding children's staff this year did:

First 21 days  November 2015  showed a +13.2%  increase over first 21 days in Nov 2014 stats

I'm grinning. I hope you are, too. 

Children's room complete

Today we received one last piece for the NS children's room. There's a bunny, a hedgehog, and a couple of lady bugs now living in a magical tree. Brandi reports kids rushed up and began to play immediately after installation.  No instructions necessary.

Amazon Brick and Mortar Store

Amazon has opened its first physical book store. Read here how it's arranged- fascinating stuff. Should we adopt anything here?

Fun Facts

In answer to Kenosha News' inquiring minds, Rob discovered these fun facts. Thought you might enjoy them:

Most checked out 2015 

Book: Gone Girl  with 794 circs

DVD: Guardians of the Galaxy with 689 circs

Mag: People with 984 circs 

CD: 1989 (Taylor Swift) with 86 circs

Books have made up 60% of current and historical (2007 to current) circulation

Highest number of current Reserves: San Andreas (Film) with 76 holds

New Cafe Vendor

Victoria's has decided not to renew their lease in 2016, so we went looking for a new vendor to provide beverages and light fare at our Southwest lobby location. Linnea Bakery is very interested and we are working out details now. Thanks to everyone who put the word out. I'm looking forward to Aunt Thora cookies in the SW lobby!

Bloodies for a Cause

Creepy Halloween title, huh? It's actually the name of a fundraiser planned for October 18th in Naperville in support of the Kenosha Public Library Foundation. The daughter of Nadine Herz will be holding a party at her home featuring Bloody Marys for friends and family in an effort to generate donations for the KPLF Herz fund which provides KPL with financial support for children's programs and library materials. You may have noticed we now have "donate" buttons on the library's website under the "Support" tab that steer people toward the different funds associated with the KPL Foundation. We've also created a Support Your Library link on our home page leading to the same selection to increase donation activity. There is a renewed energy on the KPL Foundation Board for fundraising, and this is a great start. If you receive any questions about how to donate to the library, be sure and point people toward our homepage and the Support Your Library link!

SHARE Catalog Migration Information Page

Hello, Everyone
Anne, Rob, Lin and I have been working diligently these past few months to lay the groundwork for our ILS migration. Rob has created an information page called KPL Migration to SHARE for you to refer to anytime you're curious. The KPL Migration to SHARE site provides links to a timeline that lists out the steps in order, including data cleanup, visits to Racine PL to shadow staff, communication strategies, and celebrations when we reach certain milestones. The site also includes a link where you can continue to ask questions about the migration. There is a FAQ that is continually updated where you can see the questions that have already been asked and answered.
While many of you are waiting to participate in the process, there are things you can do along the way to get us ready. The circulation staff are experimenting with more efficient materials handling procedures. The collection services group is rearranging their work space to improve their workflow. Lin, Anne, and LeeAnn from Community Library are attending SHARE advisory council meetings.
I invite everyone to tour the Lakeshores Library System site and play with the SHARE catalog online. While you're on the LLS site, take a look at the libraries in SHARE with whom we will share our catalog next year.
Thanks to everyone who has stepped forward and volunteered to become a trainer. We have a great cross section of staff from circulation services, youth services, and adult services, as well as two Community Library staff members. There is a lot of positive energy for this project and a smart team of professionals to guide all of us on this journey. You're in good hands and the end result will be even better service to our community. So keep those questions coming and check back to the KPL Migration to Share site often for updates.
Barb

Thank You, Lisa and Bob, for Our Beautiful CCB Gardens!

Today at Northside

Northside Children's Room Progress

Creating Happy!

Fun at the Market

What a bubble machine and a group of smiling people in cute tee shirts can do! Thanks to everyone who worked the market on Saturday! We reached a market record of 301 visitors and 15 new library cards. Great PR for the library!

Thanks to our Trainers!

A big thanks to Patty B, Donna I-K and Adela for stepping forward to lead our SHARE training efforts! If you're thinking you'd like to join this terrific team, we're waiting for you to step forward! Trainers can be from any library position and will become experts on SHARE circulation functions, providing support to staff during our transition period. We'd like at least two trainers from each branch, so let's hear from you, SW!

SHARE catalog approved

If you're not a frequent work email user, you might have missed the news that KCLS will join online catalogs with Lakeshores Library System. The KCLS board approved the project on August 31. Since then we have had one staff demonstration of SHARE. If you missed that demo and would like to attend another, please let your supervisor know. If we see enough interest, we'll invite Lakeshores staff for an additional demo. Until then, look for the shared FAQ document updated whenever I receive a question from staff. I email that out every time it's updated.

Kids love our coding camps!

Here's a fun message from a coding camp parent:

Joe has Really enjoyed coding the summer. It is a phenomenal program and 

​we

're so lucky that you are providing this for us! Unfortunately, this week will be his last because we are on vacation next week. Thank you again for everything. What an experience!

Skull Modeling at CPL

This is the most exciting story about a library's makerspace and how it saved a boy's life. The surgeons could have gone to the Museum of Science and Industry- how awesome that they chose the library! Joe has been talking to area organizations about creating a makerspace for Kenosha and the Racine Public Library is moving forward with a shared space downtown for the same.
Hopefully we can create something magical here.

Erate Wireless Project funded

I am delighted to report that our erate application to fund expanded wireless capability at KPL locations has been funded through the federal erate program. The roughly $48,000 project will receive about $38,000 (80%)  in grant support through June 30, 2016. 

Many thanks to Brent, Max and Joe for planning this project and to Lin for writing the tedious application for funding!

Patron Privacy

In September, I will be leading a staff session on the ALA Bill of Rights and the Freedom to Read statement. In preparation for that discussion, I invite you to read this excellent article that talks about patron privacy in a digital age. Comment here if you like, or join me in September.

Looking forward to the discussion!
Barb

Ask me anything!

For those of you actively reading the staff blog, I hope the information I share here is helpful.  If you have a hard time remembering to visit this blog, I've added a signup feature that allows you to subscribe and get new posts right in your email.
There's so much planning and budgeting going on in this office, sometimes it's hard to get to the communications piece and even harder to remember who knows what. We know communication is vitally important. So, I invite you to submit your questions to me anytime and I'll post your question and my answer here on the blog. Chances are, if you're wondering about something, so are ten other people. Your questions will help me make sure that everyone has the information they need.
Ask away----

Flowers at NS

Thanks to everyone for your kind comments regarding the planters at NS. I planted them very full since it's already late in the season. Next year I hope to create educational gardens around all our buildings, like butterfly gardens and edible gardens. Michelle plans to engage the Master Gardener Program at UW Extension to not only help us plan and plant, but provide community education.
I'm afraid that this year we will only be able to maintain what we have. Our fabulous gardener Gail managed to stir up an old back injury her first week on the job. We are grateful for all she accomplished in her short time here!

NS Power Wall Coming to Life

New Children's Books

Children's Graphic Novels

New Adult Fiction

New Adult Nonfiction

Where are we with the RFID project?

Some of you might be wondering when we'll begin tagging the collection and adding self-service equipment. I'm pulling together RFP documents- Request for Proposals- to deliver to the city, who will then post for vendor responses. (It's a capital budget project, meaning the majority of the money comes from the city.)  So far we have quotes from 3 vendors based on simple conversations. That helps us understand whether the project is feasible, and also what our return on investment will be. How much money will we save? Will we be able to move our staff toward program support or tech support or children's services, or other areas of need? How has this helped other libraries keep up with what their patrons are demanding? We have those questions answered and we are sure this is what we want to do.
Now we have to get down to the details and list out our demands on paper, both technical and service demands. The vendors then need to tell us in writing that they can fill all those demands with their products. If they can't meet our demands, they aren't a choice for us. For instance, one of the demands I am listing is that the self check interface offer reading recommendations to patrons based on what they are checking out, and allow the patron to print those recommendations onto their receipt.
It will take a few months to work through this process. Then we will choose the winning vendor, purchase some tags and equipment, and get started.
I'll keep you informed along the way.

Meet Bob

The Bookmobile is transforming into the KPL Discovery Bus and Bob (Books on Board)  is our new Discovery Bus mascot.
Thanks to Ed M and Brandi for two fabulous ideas!

Message from our local Rotarians

One of our Kenosha Rotary clubs is very involved in a program that ships books to the far corners of the world. This morning, a fleet of volunteers came with their pickup trucks to collect the leftovers from our weekend FOL book sale. When Michelle thanked them, here is what Rolly Peckus replied. I thought you might want to know that our discarded books won't be wasted.

Bless your hearts! 

I was thinking over the weekend about the work we're all doing together. I don't know who's getting the greater benefit, you or Rotary Books For the World. For me, it's the folks around the world who have never held a book in their hands. What a wonderful gift you're giving to those who want to learn how to read English. 

Thank you once again and I look forward to the next pickup.

Rolly

More Good News!

KPL has been selected as one of 10 libraries in Wisconsin to participate in the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction's new Play and Read Program. We will be assigned 2-3 trained AmeriCorp volunteers to conduct literacy play groups in our libraries and conduct home visits. Individual children will be monitored for skills improvement over a 10 month period. The program is funded primarily through federal funds. A local match of $5,000 will be solicited from various support organizations.
Congratulations to our amazing Youth Services staff for yet another project award!

News for the week:

• The shelving, benches, playpods, learning walls,  tables, and chairs are ordered for KPL Kids! We're looking at a 6-12 week turnaround for some pieces, but others should arrive sooner. Little by little, the room is coming together. 
• We're changing carpet in the back portion of the new KPL Kids room  while we wait for furniture. That will get ordered this week.
• The power wall shelving should be up early next week along the main entryway at NS.

• SRP is underway for kids, teens, and adults! All the details are here.
• We'll be adding gardening staff in another week. Look out, weeds! Your days are numbered.
• The Simmons 115th Anniversary Celebration has been postponed to September 26 due to an extended construction period.
• The library board meeting scheduled for Monday has been moved to Wednesday at 5:30pm at NS. We wll have a changing of the guard July 1. Len Iaquinta and Gordon Wyllie have both reached term limits and will be replaced with George O'Malley and Dianna Hodges.
• The FOL book sale is tonight through Sunday at SW.
• WGTD will air an interview with about SRP in Kenosha County on Saturday, June 13th at 10:30am
• Virginia Brown, a resident of Bristol, has agreed to join the KCLS board.
• The Outreach Team will meet on June 22 to begin the very important job of writing a KPL Outreach Plan.
• We are re-posting our ad for Customer Experience Manager. 
• Laura Kastelic, Lynda Gerlach, and Linda Smith have all announced their retirements this summer. The combined service to the Kenosha community of these wonderful women is just staggering. They will be sorely missed by us and the patrons they served for so many years. We wish them every happiness in this new phase of their lives.

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Barb

NS Kids Remodel Phase 2

If you haven't seen the bright walls in the KPL Kids area, stop by- it's a real treat for the eyes! The next phase begins on Monday or Tuesday when the KPL Kids logo is hung on the blue area above the windows and at the edge of the purple banner near the front pillar. The new power walls arrive on Monday, as well, and we'll be planning on installing them soon. The power walls are mobile shelving units that will separate the children's area from the main walkway into the building. There will be a 10 foot gap between the walls to allow entry and exit from the kids' area. The front side of the power wall will display all our new adult books, freeing up that cramped aisle along the fiction stacks. The back side of the power wall will face the children's area, and allow lots of display of new books and themes.
Our amazing staff at NS is working to consolidate collections after the children's staff Big Weed efforts, and we hope to take down the leftover shelving units in the middle of the room, as well as reduce the number of picture book bins on the floor. And speaking of the floor, we'll be looking at the possibility of replacing the carpet in the back area of the kids' space- it all depends on whether we can squeeze the money from our funds.
The orange wall where the FOL book sale used to be will soon be filled with four new computer stations for kids. Finally the children at NS will have their own computers for school projects and other activities! That's been high on the wishlist from vocal parents. I've submitted a grant application to WE Energies for an additional iPad cart with 16 iPads for collaborative projects like Computer Coding Camps for Kids in that area. We'll see whether that gets funded.
It will take a while for new furniture to arrive. Our order is behind orders from schools, which will likely bump us back to September. Piece by piece, it will come together!
Thanks to everyone who is contributing to this project's success!
Barb

WE Energies Foundation Grant Submitted

Hot off the press- I just submitted a grant application to WE Energies Foundation for a mobile cart of 16 iPads plus a management desktop for use in the newly remodeled Northside KPL Kids area, and to take on the road to senior centers, day care facilities, and other outreach venues. This will be a great resource for collaborative activities at the new tables as well as in support of our expanded Outreach activities.
Cross your fingers!

Today we have blue walls!

Staff Kingfish Game

We had so much fun last year that we're doing it again! And the deal is the same- $10 gets you a seat and a dinner buffet at the Kingfish stadium. This year's event is an evening game on Friday, July 10. The food tent begins at 6pm and the game starts at 7.

Bring your family and friends and cheer for the library. All tix are $10. Send your money and your reservation ASAP to Jen Fait at the SW Neighborhood Library.

See you at the game!

Outreach Needs Assessment Report

Thanks to all the staff members who attended the board meeting last night- it was wonderful to have your participation. The Outreach Needs Assessment presentation was quite long, but very powerful. I hope you learned a lot from it, and most of all, I hope you aren't wasting your time blaming anyone or anything for any criticism we received. I'm not. I'm looking forward.
This is a new dawn for the library in many ways. Our foundation couldn't be stronger. That foundation is based on the community's trust that you have built over the years. No matter what happened in the past to ruffle feathers, the most important fact is that every organization interviewed wants very much to work with us. YOU are the reason for that. You have worked hard and your intentions have been good. You are very much loved by your community.
Thanks to every one of you who have worked so hard to provide wonderful outreach services! You are truly appreciated! I hope you feel a renewed passion to continue in this important work and will lend your talents and ideas to an exciting new plan of service that's sure to delight the community!
Barb

How Libraries Can Survive

I had the pleasure of listening to Steve Denning at the Computers in Libraries conference last month. This recent article nicely recaps Steve's presentation. The most compelling bit of advice he gave us was this: if the organizational structure is bureaucratic, we can't be innovative. If you think about it, that's really true. Decisions take too long. We need to be nimble.
Our organizational chart continues to evolve to support the strategic plan goals, which is essential- we have to reallocate resources toward the goals. Now let's think about how we can realign toward a more horizontal chart, with shared responsibilities and more empowerment at every level.

Bookmobile? Words on Wheels? Mobile Library?

Calling all marketing geniuses

We are getting ready to re-wrap the bookmobile and need a new snappy new name to let the public know we are so much more than books.

Portland Public Library calls theirs the "Portable Library."

A library is Texas calls theirs "Words on Wheels" or the WOW bus.

Aaron will design the new graphics for the bus, but I'm turning to all of you to give it the great name it deserves. So start thinking of some catchy names and send them our way. Email Aaron with your best ideas from now until May 15th. The entry we select wins a $50 gift certificate to the business of your choice. Plus you get to see your genius displayed all over town for many years to come.

Have fun!

Barb

President Launches Two EBook Initiatives

I am left wondering how low income students will read these books- do they own devices?
Read the story

Ideas from Washington

No, not from Congress- from informed and clever librarians.
This morning's theme:
Creating a New Nostalgia
It's a simple concept, but for many a little difficult to accept. Those warm and fuzzy feelings  our patrons have for books and quiet spaces is lingering, yet diminishing as generations turn over. The reason this is difficult for us is the nostalgia is associated with particular symbols that may be fading, but we all know our role has always been sustaining community, and we are even better at that now than we have ever been. So how do we create a new nostalgia that speaks to the emotion of the public, creating a refreshed sense that libraries are indispensable?
Share your ideas here and I'll share what I hear the rest of the day.

Continuous Innovation and Transformation

This morning's keynote address is by Steve Denning, who writes books like The Leader's Guide to Storytelling. He's talking about the Creative Economy. Here he is presenting a TED Talk  on leadership.
Steve is talking about how libraries can support a creative economy, so naturally he's talking about makerspaces and shared information creation, but I think the need goes deeper. How many adults do you know that believe in their creative abilities? I think a huge role for the public library is to engage adults in activities the same way we do with children. Let them explore their creative side in a safe place where they can't fail. That's a very different space than most people experience at work or at home. Adults are always trying to please someone and fit in. Then there are the left brained people like myself. I was always very good at math and science, so I assumed I couldn't be creative, too. It was only later in life that I gained the confidence to not place myself in any category- I could be both analytical and creative. And that combination in a world where scientific and computer innovation are so impactful, is just the right mix we need.
I hope all of you believe in your creative abilities. We need all of you to contribute your genius to this extraordinarily important work we do. Add the understanding that failing is okay if your intentions are good. That's the mind of an innovator. That's the foundation of the innovative organization.

Strategic Metrics: Integrating Data Collection & Measurement into Day-to-Day Decision Making

Hello, Everyone
I'm in Washington at the Computers in Libraries conference and today I attended two sessions. The first was 

Strategic Metrics: Integrating Data Collection & Measurement into Day-to-Day Decision Making

If you hang around me much, you hear me talk about data driven decisions. What that means, of course, is that collecting statistics and patron feedback can tell us things we might not recognize through observation. This workshop was taught by 2 librarians who make it their work to conduct impact studies and return on investment analyses for libraries like Toronto, the 4th largest library system in North America. Naturally they had a lot of advice to give about collecting more data than circulation numbers and attendance. The session really morphed into what all the participants were really concerned about- how to evaluate whether what we do really makes an impact on our community. 

Basically, it's all tied back to the strategic plan. Luckily, we have a very good one that's tied to what our community wants the library to do to develop and sustain community. We've created a work plan of activities that are designed in hopes that they will satisfy the goals identified by the community. What we should have done at that point was create a program statement for all the activities that identifies why the activity was chosen and what the expected impact will be. That makes it clear how we will evaluate success right from the beginning, whether that's by collecting data such as improved reading proficiency levels or getting the job the patron wanted. And so we know what we need to track while we do the activities.

So, that's one of the tips and tricks I picked up today, along with some sources of research that will help us understand how to better design programs and consider how to measure impact.

Here's a really cool research discovery that will make you feel good and is a great example of measuring outcomes, or stories about how lives are changed by the work we do:

Reading fiction makes children more empathetic human beings because they practice relating to characters who go through some sort of trial in the book that they might not experience in their own lives.

That's a nice fact to keep in your pocket if a patron ever suggests that children should learn math and science and facts and figures and forget about stories!

Northside Children's Room

We have the paint colors picked out for the Northside Children's Room! Thanks to the artful team of Dina, Linda, Shawn, Laura, and Jen for proposing the main colors and to our stellar Communications Assistant  Aaron for developing the final concept. We're hoping to get started before the end of May.

The KPL Kids logo will become the new brand for all our children's spaces and events. That logo will be printed on a decal that can be applied at all four locations. Can you feel the energy?

More news for the week

Hello, Everybody
There's so much good news to share-

• The Bookmobile has fresh carpet! Stop by if you have a chance and see the new look.
• The iPads for the children's lighthouse at SW are ready to install- they should be up and ready to go soon.
• We are adding a hot spot to the Bookmobile for customers to use wireless Internet during bookmobile stops. There is a lot of potential for mobile Internet cafes at the Harbor Market or at other community gatherings.
• The Big Weed is on temporary hold at SW due to completely filled storage spaces. Staff will be focusing on the Northside collection for a while.
• Thanks to everyone for completing their Core Competencies worksheet. The #1 desired training was for electronic devices like ebook readers and associated downloading techniques. Michelle will be working to pull together training opportunities for every gap identified. See you there!
• An intern from UW Parkside is wrapping up an Outreach Needs Assessment for KPL. He will present his findings to the library board at their May 12th meeting. 
• We are adding LCD screens to the lobbies of NS and SW to deliver our news and events notices electronically. Just a few more logistics to figure out and they will be up and running.
• CNS will be installing a projector in the ceiling of the SW activities room, then adding sound for presentations. No more wheeling out the projector cart!
• The Library Foundation is planning a celebration of the Simmons 115th anniversary on July 18th. If you would like to participate in planning or at the event, please let me know.
• Chuck and I are meeting with Public Works and Carlson Racine Roofing mid April to finalize construction plans. The roof work should begin shortly after. During construction, street parking rules will be modified to accommodate staff parking needs and longer customer visits.
• National Library Week is April 12-18. National Library Workers Day is April 14th and we have a few surprises in store, so prepare to be thanked, admired, and generally appreciated.

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

Barb

Linda Potter in the News!

Thank you, Linda, for the great work you do!
http://www.kenoshanews.com/e-paper/kenoshanews/482025473.htm

KPL Foundation Funds NS Children's Room Remodel

Over the past few months, the User Experience Team and Youth Services staff have contributed their ideas to a plan to completely redesign the Northside Library's children space. We started with the question, "What do we want to do here?" We agreed on three different levels of activity: Collaborative, classroom, and discovery.
Here is the floor layout.

At the entrance we will build a modular power wall for new adult books facing the circ desk and a power wall for children's books on the opposite side facing the  new collaborative space. You will see tables and chairs meant to support team activities like homework, robotics activities, and other group projects for school age children. The children's nonfiction collection will be brought across the aisle to form a boundary wall for the space and a wider aisle for preschool parents to bypass the school age collaborative space and park strollers outside the glass wall of the discovery area.
The discovery area is designed for fiction readers and smaller children. There will be oversize chairs for parents and children reading together. There will be interactive wall mounted activities at toddler height. Fiction will be housed along the curved shelving in the middle of the room, with soft play pods and benches scattered between the shelving for children to cuddle up with a book. The seating along the window provides a natural space for parenting classes. And picture books will remain in the face front bins, painted in bright colors.
Finally, the children's story time room will get new flooring- washable flooring to encourage messy activities and a sink to allow cleanup.
This project represents a collaboration between public and private funding. $20,000 will come from the library's budget, $2,500 from a private donation, and $78,908 from the Kenosha Public Library Foundation. Our Foundation collects private donations and funds projects on our behalf throughout the year. Past projects include the Hannah Stocker room at Simmons, support for the Big Read, and funds for the children's book collection.
The first phase of our project will be painting all the walls within the new space. We are aiming to do that during the weeks when story time is not in session, starting May 18th. A team of artistic staff members will be convening to choose paint, fabric, and vinyl colors. Our new communications assistant will pull together a plan to keep the public informed and generate excitement for a grand opening around Labor Day.
We will work toward keeping children's materials always available to our guests during the project.
And finally, if you know any of these Foundation Board members, please thank them personally for their generosity. The children of Kenosha are going to be very happy with their new space!
Don Cress
Gina Madrigrano- Friebus
Pat Demos
Patty Mahoney
Louise Mattioli
Rosana Molinaro
Len Iaquinta (also on our Library Board)
Bill Althaus
Carol Heide
Jens Emerson
Tip McGuire

Kudos from Peter Barca

Praise is pouring in for the LSTA funded Computer Coding Camps for Kids! Here is a letter from our state representative Peter Barca.

Community Praise

Our reference staff recently received this message via email. I'm sure this person speaks for many people in our community. Always remember that what you do every day makes a huge difference in people's lives!

I cannot say how much I appreciate the Kenosha
librarians!  Once again they came up TRUMPS when a DVD went missing.
When I called for help my friendly librarian knew who I was PERSONALLY
and then when the DVD was found Sandy from Uptown called to let us know.
I so appreciate the "new" kids site at North and am so thankful for
Uptown and Simmons' patience with my small children.  They both often
want to go to "our library" (Uptown) just to be with librarians they
know and who welcome them.  Thank you for providing such a great
community building and educationally enhancing service for our city!
Ps.  I did not mention South and the amazing work they do pulling all my
reservations to cart them off to Uptown for me!!  Can I say THANK
YOU!!!!


Kind Regards,
A Patron

News this week

Hello, Everyone
Here's an update on projects:
1. We are interviewing candidates for Head of Collection Services this week and next. We hope to make our selection by the end of next week.
2. The library with be at the Kenosha Expo on Saturday, March 7th. If you would like to represent us, please let Michelle know.
3. We are hiring for a part time Communications Assistant. If you know someone with both writing skills and graphic design skills, please let them know of this opportunity.
4. The Wild Rumpus is scheduled for March 15th from 12-3 at NS. We will hand out our new Kids Cards and unveil the artwork behind it. There will be many fun activities for kids and our staff is coming in costume! Please help get the word out. Our goal is to pass out 100 cards at the Rumpus.
5. The children's lighthouse at SW will soon have new iPads where the old computers used to be, thanks to the generosity of the Friends of the Library.
6. The Readers Advisory Team (Shannon, JeTaun and Cathy Polovina) has put together an exciting plan. Look for more communication soon on enhanced services and website functionality.
7. Demco designers continue to work up a plan for a NS children's room makeover. We are anxious to see what they have dreamed up for us!
8. We are talking with UW Extension about bringing robotics programs for youth to the library. This would be a great partnership and would tie in nicely with Computer Coding Camps for Kids. That grant project is still being considered by our state library. We should hear soon.
9. KPL is going to the spelling bee and we are determined to shine! If you'd like to come out and cheer us on, enjoy a lovely buffet dinner, and mingle with a lot of fun people, we have a table for 8 reserved and will be selecting the lucky 8 from anyone who responds to Brandi expressing their interest.
10. Don't forget to work on your core competencies self-evaluation. Michelle has set a deadline of March 31 to get them all done and back to her.

Enjoy your weekend, everyone, and stay warm!
Barb

New KPL Kids Cards have arrived!

Our logo for your email signature

please use the small size of this logo in your email signature

New City Logos

Please use the small size when using this logo in your email signature. You may use the color or black and white- please line them up with our logo first, a space, then this logo, both small size.

Business Plan Meetings Survey

How did we do? Did we thrill you? Bore you? Did you leave with more information or more confusion?
Help us become a culture of continuous improvement.
Please take this brief survey and let us know how we did.
Thanks for your help.

Fiscal Budget Requests More Money for Libraries

Read all about it here.

What is RFID and Why Do We Care?

I'm so happy that so many of you have signed up to ride to Chicago and view the products of three different RFID vendors. Many of you have seen RFID in action at other libraries, but many of you haven't, so I thought I'd give you a quick guide to what it is and why we care.
First, let's start with why we care.
KPL staff joined with the community to develop a very ambitious strategic plan the year before I arrived. My job now is to lead the projects to put that plan into place. That includes figuring out how to squeeze the resources we have to provide the results we promised the community. It's no secret that KPL could use a lot more financial support. Funding barely increases from year to year and in some past years, it's even decreased. So how do we accomplish an ambitious plan while still providing core services? By working smarter.
Working smarter means getting more efficient. It also means investing in technology to do what we're currently doing by hand and reinvesting our staff resources toward the new work defined in the plan. That work includes

• Children's services and programming, like Computer Coding Camps for Kids and other STEM activities.
• Adult public programs like Big Read and community discussion events.
• Grant writing and fundraising to diversify our income and help us become more resilient to the ebb and flow of city funding.
• Digital literacy (computer classes and technology instruction) to help people get jobs, earn their GED, improve their school performance, and navigate the modern world.
• Outreach to schools, senior living communities, the disabled, and English language learners.
• Staff training so we are all ready to deliver the right answer every time.
• Partnership development with other organizations in our community.
• Merchandising our collections to make them more appealing, more visible, and get them into the hands of our customers.

Sound impossible? Not if we work together.
Here's a surprising fact: 50% of our staff work in some kind of task related to circulation. That 50% costs $1.7 million annually. Most of that work can be automated using RFID technology. Can you imagine what we could do with even $1 million dollars of the money we've invested in doing circulation tasks by hand?
Now here's another surprising fact: Libraries who convert to RFID NEVER do so to cut staff. Just like the KPL plan, they do so to ADD services that the public wants, like more children's staff, people on the floor to help with computers and digital devices, to teach, to recommend a book in the stacks, to arrange the shelves to entice people to pick up a book, to arrange an interesting program. And they keep the best parts about circulation- the relationships. Yes, those of you who check things out for people every day build wonderful relationships with our community, relationships no machine could ever build. That's why we want you interacting with the public more. By automating the check in and sorting process, you will have more time to spend in activities that meet the public. We're not replacing you. We're freeing you to do what you do best! And with more collection activity, we'll need even more staff hours to shelve returned materials.

So what is this RFID thing, anyway? Here's a short YouTube video to explain the science. Each item in our collection will need a new RFID tag, programmed to identify the item. This is in addition to the barcode. The tags allow patrons to check things out themselves at "self check" machines, up to five things at once. They also allow for returned items to be checked in immediately. So parents who check out 50 picture books at a time will instantly be able to check out 50 more after returning the books through the new book drops- their items will be checked in by the time they approach the self checks with their new selections and any fines will be calculated in advance. On the other side of the book drop we will install AMH (automated materials handling) equipment that sorts the items into bins according to our specifications. For instance, we can set the equipment to sort all children's books into one bin and all adult books into another. Sorting systems can be as small as three bins or as large as several hundred. It depends on how many item types and how many locations you have. So Brooklyn Public Library may sort 100 ways. We will start with 5 bins at Northside and 7 bins at SW. Uptown and Simmons will continue to handle returned items as they do now.
RFID tagging will begin early summer 2015. Self check machines will be installed mid-year, as well. From now till then, we have a lot of work to do. First, we have to make sure that everything we tag is worth keeping. That's why we're removing so many old and unused items from the collection. Tagging is labor-intensive and expensive. I don't expect to gain a lot of staff hours for other activities by installing self-checks. For one thing, tagging our collection will take a lot of staff hours and there will be catch-up work to make sure we haven't missed anything. Also, much of our community will still want help checking out for the first few months, so we will need to keep our desks staffed to provide the extra support. Bottom line is, we'll be plenty busy in 2015 with the whole transition.

AMH is scheduled for 2016. That's when we will start to see the opportunity to reassign staff.
I hope the list of new activities captures your imagination. I hope you see a place for your talents and interests in this list. You are all valued and are a vital part of our success.
Enjoy your time in Chicago!

Thanks from Lisa Rivers

Hi Barb!

I just got finished reading a personal e-mail I got from Donna Holmen tonight telling me that she had shared with you her thoughts about the Frozen Party, and that you were going to post something about it.  

I just wanted to share my thoughts about the event as well, because in my opinion it was one of most memorable library programs I have ever had the pleasure to be a part of.  This truly was a collaborative effort on every level, and in my wildest dreams having been involved with popular programs like the Polar Express, American Girl, Sponge Bob, Star Wars, Thomas the Tank Engine, and the Big Read, never ever did I ever think that we would get the response that we did for the Frozen Party and sing-a-long. 

The collaboration started at our Youth Services staff meeting over 6 months ago, and not only was everyone in Youth Services excited, but Jill Miatech from adult services decided to work with us and said, let's do a sing-a-long too! Then we got Culver's to donate custard for the event which was served after the sing along, and a friend of mine from Barnes and Noble to share some of her games she had at her Frozen Party, not to mention our Youth Services volunteers Cassandra, and Vanessa who cut crowns, antlers, and put together other items for the crafts we had.  There was Corey the all day volunteer,  who told his mom I hope " I hope I'm not going to be bored today". Let me tell you he was not at all bored that day, and was put to work from the minute he got there. He did everything that was asked of him from putting signs up, to setting up and moving  tables, to clean up. He was fantastic!

Donna Holmen also asked her daughter Ariel to come with her to work at the last minute, because I had called her before her shift to tell her we were running out of toilet paper rolls,and I knew she had some stashed away at her house that we could use for our Olaf snowman craft. Ariel also helped with clean up, and directed patrons in the lobby for the sing-along event. Her help was also very much appreciated, and invaluable.  Not  to mention Pam Penza, who just came in to see and sing at the sing-a-long, who then ended up stamping hands of patrons, when we found out we were going to exceed room capacity, and so we came up with a plan to add another sing- a-long session at the last minute so that we did not turn patrons away. Oh, and did I mention she also was cutting, and replenishing craft materials as well?   

In the end it was a successful day on every level, even with the few glitches that came our way.  It wouldn't have been as successful without all their help, so THANKS EVERYONE!   They say the difference between success and failure is a great team. Working alongside Donna, Jill, along with the help of our volunteers,and donations from members in our community, I do believe that we created a fun and memorable experience for our patrons.  

Lisa Rivers

Thanks from Donna Holmen

Hi Barb,

I just wanted to let you know that my co-worker, Lisa Rivers, put on a wonderful Frozen program last Saturday.  I have been with KPL more than 9 years, and that was the most highly attended library event that I have ever seen.  We had more than 500 people come to our Frozen party.  People were parking a block away as the parking lots were full.

We were absolutely swamped, pushing out crafts, answering questions, finding books, etc. Poor Pam Penza made the mistake of stopping by to pick up something and we grabbed her and put her to work for an hour or two also! I called my home and had my 16 year old daughter come in and cut out more crafts for us. We had another volunteer, an 8th grader, Cory, who was so helpful too.  Both teens stayed all the way through to the end to help clean up,vacuum and get things back in order.

There were so many smiles and happy families.  Lots of people wanted to know when we were going to do it again.  People kept telling us thank you, and that it was so nice.  

Tom from Culver's was very gracious.  We had to split the Frozen Sing-A-Long into two sessions as there were too many people for the fire code.  Even then, we had to turn people away.  Tom offered the people that we had to turn away some cups of custard, and he kept the smiles going.  I know he called to his store and had them bring more custard as we had so many more people than we expected. They gave away a lot of custard that day!  

As the event was winding down, Lisa came around to Circulation and Adult Reference and offered every employee some custard too.  We were all tired, but it was a good tired! It took all of the hard work of the staff at Southwest library to make this event a success!

Lisa had the crafts, photo booths, games and the flow of the crowd so thought out ahead of time.  I know that Jill Miatech was part of planning and setting up the Sing-A-Long too. It was a busy day for employees but great day for our patrons who visited Southwest Library.  I know how much work Lisa put into this program to make it such a success.

I am wondering if there is someway we could acknowledge Tom and Culver's for their time and donations to the program?  Perhaps in a newsletter or on the website?  Culver's is wonderful at supporting our Youth Services summer reading programs too.  If so, Lisa Rivers would have his contact information.

Sincerely,

Donna Holmen

WWWC15

How wonderful to see so many of you participating in this week's WWWC15 webinars! I think the quality of the programs is outstanding and I can't wait to hear the ideas you've collected already. If you were inspired by anything you heard from the presenters today, or if anything inspires you tomorrow, please add a comment to this post to share with all staff. Let's get the conversation started!