Children's Book Authors Coming to KPL!

Heather has written some masterful grant applications that are providing the funds to bring authors for virtual visits and copies of books to give away. Please be prepared for public questions about the programs and how to score copies of the books. Here are the details.
Beginning Saturday, April 3, we will be giving away 100 copies of the YA novel "Dear Martin" by Nic Stone. The author will then join us via Zoom on Monday, May 3 at 6:30 PM to present on the meaning of literacy.
Beginning Saturday, April 10, we will be giving away 105 copies of the children's novel "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina. The author will then join us via Zoom on Friday, May 21 at 6:30 PM to talk about her life, novels, and creative process.

More details from Heather:

I will bring copies of "Dear Martin" to the branches this week, and "Merci Suarez Changes Gears" next week. Please do not distribute them until the dates specified on Barb's blog. Book distribution is first come, first served. Please promote and distribute them until they are gone.
Each book will include a flyer that promotes the author visit and includes both the Zoom link and passcode to the virtual event. Be sure to point this out to each person who takes a book. They do not need to sign up for the author visit on the event calendar to receive the Zoom link as long as they have that flyer.
"Dear Martin" is a Young Adult novel, best for ages 14+. "Merci Suarez Changes Gears" is a Juvenile novel, best for ages 8+. We are promoting Nic Stone's visit as "for ages 14+" and Meg Medina's visit as "for all ages."
Adults without children absolutely may pick up a copy of either novel and attend the author visits. Educators and college students in particular might be interested in attending!
If someone wants to attend an author visit, but does not want a copy of the book, register them for the author visit on the online events calendar. I will be sending the Zoom link and passcode to those registrants closer to the date of the event.
These programs are made possible by an LSTA Public and School Library Collaborative grant, funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (who, incidentally, are the same people that are considering us for a National Medal, so double hooray for them!). Bullen Middle School's 6th graders will have a daytime visit with Meg Medina (and have already received copies of her book through school), and some Reuther High School students will have a daytime visit with Nic Stone (and also receive copies of her book through school).
Please let me know if you have any questions, or if any issues arise.

Restoration of Full Hours May 3rd

Nearly everyone on staff has now received at least one dose of COVID vaccine. We estimate that by May 1st everyone on staff who is choosing to be vaccinated will have received their full series. Therefore, starting Monday, May 3rd, barring any new obstacles, we will return to pre-COVID hours at every location. Northside and Southwest will once again be open evening hours. I will continue to update you as we get closer, but in anticipation of no new crises, we will begin to plan for full restoration of all services except in-person indoor programming. Public computer sessions will once again be offered in 4 hour periods. Computers and furniture will remain spaced at least 6 feet apart until we receive alternate guidance from the CDC. Plexiglas barriers will remain in place. We will continue to quarantine returned materials for 24 hours until the CDC recommends otherwise. Capacities at NS and SW will be raised from 25% to 50%. The smaller branches will still determine capacity based on the ability to social distance 6 feet apart. Staff will still be required to wear masks, social distance, and wash hands often while at work. I would also recommend wearing gloves when working the AMH at SW and emptying book drops since you are encountering items that have not been quarantined. 

YFS is planning outdoor story times and other children's activities this summer in our exterior spaces. The Kenosha Fire Department has agreed to allow us to do programming in their green space across from NS. Southwest will try the future Children's Garden space along 38th Ave, Simmons will use the back patio, and Uptown will use the front lawn. Jennifer is planning family movies in the Northside parking lot this summer. I can just feel the joy of people returning to the library to be together. Let's all hope for excellent weather!

UW Madison has invited KPL to be a partner in a new Latinx History Collective project that will strive to tell the story of  people with Latinx heritage in building Wisconsin. He are connecting the project leaders with local Latinx leaders and scholars and may be involved in collecting local oral histories.

UW Extension has asked us to partner on a project that would provide out-of-school mentorship to children at risk in our community. Their grant application is pending- I'll let you know more about the project once funded.

Marcia has secured a grant for $5,000 for Citizen Science programs that will continue the activities of this month's Big Read. It's been clear from the turnout at this month's Big Read programs that Kenosha is very interested in the natural sciences. We are looking forward to the programs Marcia has proposed.

I am meeting with the Mayor and city HR Director this Wednesday to propose that the city join the Government Alliance on Race and Equity. The city's membership would give every employee, include KPL staff, access to training and resources like sample job descriptions, discussion forums, and recruitment tools that would help us leverage more diverse job applicants. Kenosha County recently joined the alliance.

April 4-10 is National Library Week and Tuesday the 6th is National Library Workers Day. The Kenosha Public Library Foundation would like to honor you by providing lunch that day. Look for some sandwiches, chips, cookies, and drinks in your staff workrooms and some special visitors that day who will drop by to thank you for all you do. April 9th is our day to shine as an IMLS Medal Finalist on social media. The whole country will be talking about us! So take a bow- you deserve it!

We have received an affordable proposal to install leased electric vehicle charging stations at NS and SW. Once that contract is signed, contractors will begin the work by running the electrical lines for the unit installation. Each unit charges two vehicles. One unit will be placed on the east side of the SW building  in the front row of the "staff" parking lot. The other will be placed along the west strip of grass at NS. This project has multiple purposes :
1. To educate the public about the future of transportation. GM has committed to an "all EV future." We'll install educational signage next to the stations so people can read all about it.
2. To position the library as a community leader in sustainability.
3. To facilitate our city's Smart City initiative. There are very few EV charging stations in Kenosha and nothing east of 31.

We've received a warning notice from Kenosha County Joint Services that we will be charged if we continue to have building false alarm calls. These charges are expensive and first responders have better things to do than check on false alarms. It's critical that staff locking buildings after hours take care in doing it correctly and are certain the doors are locked and the buildings are cleared of patrons before locking up. Please pay extra attention to this in the coming months.

I often find myself in conversation about the psychological importance of print reading materials for children vs. screen based reading. "How Children Read Differently From Books vs. Screens" provides a very nice summary of this by age group with clear explanations of the advantages of each.

This week's Bright Spot nomination comes from Karen Rozzoni in YFS.
"Hi. I'd like to nominate Patty Bajabir for a Bright Spot Award this week. I asked her about genealogy for my upcoming Family Tree program on Monday afternoon. She researched this and sent me a very thorough email (Tuesday morning) which listed all sorts of resources for the families. I can't wait to share these with them on Zoom next week. "

Lots of Projects and 2 Bright Spots

Lots and lots of congratulations are flowing in from all over the country. Here are some links to the national, regional, and local news about our status as a Finalist for the IMLS National Medal for Museum and Library Services.

IMLS Announcement that includes the list of all 15 libraries and 15 museums that are finalists.
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction blog
City of Kenosha press release

As we announce our finalist status to the world, we're asking people to share their library stories. Here's one we received that will surely warm your heart.

"It would seem KPL has been my trusted shadow throughout my life. Their outreach and resources were pivotal to a financially struggling single mother trying to provide entertainment and guidance to a young child. And later, beautiful bags full of books and reading enjoyment for a more secure and growing family. All my life they have been at my side. Throughout my career, KPL offered excellent resources, mini classes, and ALWAYS more books. KPL is partially responsible for not only voracious readers in my family, but generations of readers in our community. To walk through the doors of our libraries is a feeling of coming home. KPL is engaged and dedicated to this Kenosha community. They are one of the strongest advocates of doing good in our town. In short, they are the very best mentors this community could ever have."



Other news (We are busy!)

Libraries will receive money through the American Rescue Plan. $200 million will come though IMLS to state government to use for grants to local libraries. Wisconsin expects $3 million to hand out to us. This is in addition to the $27.8 million the City of Kenosha will receive. Here's a fact sheet from ALA about the library aid. DPI is talking with system directors about what libraries are looking for. I am advocating for 2 pools of money, one for grants to make us more resilient, another for grants to help us help our community recover. Strategic Plan teams are preparing possible plans for us to have ready for grant applications.
Broadband is a big concern nationwide. Wisconsin is considering a $50 monthly credit for Internet access in the SNAP program.
Election coming April 6th. We'll be open expanded hours to accommodate at SW.
We're working on the design for a new air conditioning system at Simmons that incorporates geothermal technology. This is a capital project funded through the city.
We're talking with the city's Community Development team about the site map for the children's story garden on the west side of the SW building. This is the next step in getting started. The plan has to be approved by the city's plan commission before we can bid out the hardscaping.
YFS has plans to offer outdoor children's programs at all four locations this summer.
City Legal is working with us to create the framework for Kenosha Community Media to become a unit of the library. We're excited about the expanded programming possibilities such an arrangement would bring.
We are investigating a more robust library app for KPL that would offer more than BookMyne and include events, locations, hours, and so much more.
We've been asked to participate in a UW Madison project to collect Latinx local history.
We've been asked to serve as an anchor institution for UW Extension to serve kids at risk after school.
Do you have a way with both words and technology? Would you be interested in a part time position working with Brandi and Aaron to promote our programs and services? Stay tuned- we'll be recruiting soon.

We have 2 Bright Spot nominations this week

From Stephanie:
"I'd like to nominate Michaela Beltran as a bright spot for last week. We had a patron call that was having issues with her hold disappearing. However, when we went into workflows to look at her account, she didn't exist! Unfortunately, the patron had to leave for class, so we told her we'd call her back with an update. We searched every which way to find her, but it was becoming a mystery so I sent her an email asking for more information. Michaela loves a good mystery, so she took a crack at it and saw that the patron had a Virginia area code, so she Googled "Northside Library in Virginia" and saw that they had one. She contacted the patron and sure enough- the patron had called the wrong number! Michaela talked her through how to access her account on their website and the mystery was solved. The patron was so impressed she sent me an email reply with the following message."
"Hi Stephanie,
Thank you so much for all the time you put in to help! I am so sorry to cause all of this just with a wrong number! I apologize for making you go through all this and am very impressed by your exceptional customer service quality. Thanks and sorry again!"

From Barb:
Brandi is always great at her job, but she's has been a true champion crafting press releases and Facebook posts that reflect our joy over being named a Finalist for the IMLS National Medal. Thanks for all the energy and enthusiasm you convey to the public every day, Brandi! You make us shine!

News for the Week

As if 2020 wasn't cruel enough, our staff has suffered a number of losses of loved ones in the first few  months of this year. Our hearts go out to you all. 

Food for Fines week continues through Saturday. Grace Welcome Center and Safe Harbor will come get what we've collected next week.

Ever wonder why we chose "Keeping You Curious" as a major focus? Here's a great article on just how important curiosity is to your mental and physical well being.

From Alejandria:
"I just wanted to give a heads up that KPL's Teen Advisory Board starts meeting this month! We will meet virtually, once a month, on the last Thursday of the month. Registration is different from our normal registration-based programs, interested teens will need to fill out the online form (which can be found under the 'Volunteering' box on the Teen page of the website) and then will be emailed the Zoom link each month for our monthly meetings. They only need to register one time and they will be sent the Zoom link each month. If they or their adults have more questions, please direct them to Susannah G. and myself. 

If you have teens expressing interest in volunteering at the library, please let them know that our Teen Volunteer Program is currently not active due to COVID-19, BUT they can earn volunteer hours by participating in the Teen Advisory Board. This is a great way for teens to give direct feedback on the things that are important to them so we can better serve them and create programs/services that better speak to their needs."

I'll be out tomorrow. Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!

Barb

News for the week and a shout out to Jason Holmes

The NEA Big Read got off to a terrific start this week and there are so many people to thank! To Jennifer for her leadership, to everyone who is hosting online or in person programs, to staff who do the publicity, the graphics, pass out the books, talk up the programs to everyone they meet, make sure the technology works, all of you are so appreciated! Look what the talented staff at Simmons and Northside did to announce the NEA Big Read celebration. 

Food for Fines officially starts this coming week. We're collecting nonperishables and toiletries for Grace Welcome Center and pet food and supplies for Safe Harbor Humane Society at all branches.

Here's a  great article about why Zoom meetings are so tiring and how we can improve them- all easily doable. 

Thanks to everyone who attended Wednesday morning's COVID-19 vaccination presentation by Nick Eschmann from KFD. A number of you have told me that it was really helpful. For those of you who could not make the live presentation, we've recorded it for you. Watch here.

Please take extra care when clearing out the buildings at the end of the day. We were lucky this week that the young lady trapped inside Northside after hours kept her wits about her and was carrying a cell phone so she could call her mother. The mother was very gracious about it. Still, pretty embarrassing. So use the phones to make the announcement just in case you miss someone on your rounds. And check restrooms twice. Sometimes people are in their own world, and if they're wearing headphones, they aren't going to hear you.

This week's Bright Spot nomination comes from Karen Rozzoni, seconded by Shawn Wolf:

I would like to nominate Jason Holmes for a Bright Spot  Award. I needed something from Menard's that just came up today. He not only went to Menard's this morning to purchase the items, but when I realized I told him the wrong items, he went back to return the first ones and purchased the ones I really needed. He went above and beyond!

Last week, he also went above and beyond. He was emailed about purchasing sunflower seeds when he had time to get to Menard's. He went that very day and picked them up. 

Last week Shawn had a question about our shelves in the YFS workroom. He had this request finished in record time. Jason really went  ABOVE and BEYOND for this shelving project. 

We can't thank him enough!!