Raise Funds for Your Library with Vermont Public Libraries Calendars!

Raise awareness and cash at the same time with our beautiful VLA 2012 Vermont Public Libraries Calendar! The time to advertise is now! Production is underway… the calendar is going to be great!

The VLA 2012 Calendar:
Sings libraries’ praise.
Will help you fundraise.
Has gorgeous photo displays.
Keeps track of your days.
Even follows the moon’s phase!
…It’s a calendar that works in so many ways!

Links for two pdfs are below – an info/order form for librarians, and a flyer/order form to print out and post for your patrons, friends, relatives, whomever…

Fill in the top circle of the advertising flyer with your selling price, we recommend $15-$20. Remember that roughly $8.50 will go towards production and shipping costs and your library pockets the rest. At the bottom of that flyer, write who the checks should be made out and given to (your library or your Friends group).

We recommend ordering a small stock for the library to sell after the order deadline. Chances are you’ll get lots of additional interest after you can show a sample copy, especially in November and December. When you’ve got all the forms and checks you think you’ll get, fill out the order form for libraries. To reserve your calendars, place your order by September 15. Calendars will be shipped at the end of October.

Questions? Write us at mkdesign@gmavt.net or marti@williston.lib.vt.us .

Sincerely,
The Calendar Team

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Green Mountain Book Award Winner

We have a winner! The 2011 winner of the Green Mountain Book Award is Graceling by Kristin Cashore.  Thank you to all of you who promoted this program and encouraged your students to vote.

The committee is always eager to get suggestions for the next year’s list from you and from your students. Use this easy online form to recommend the books. The books must be of interest to kids in grades 9-12, currently available in paperback, and first published in 2007-2011. Thanks for your suggestions!\

Grace Worcester Greene
Youth Services Consultant
Vermont Department of Libraries
Tel.: 802-828-6954
Email: grace.greene@state.vt.us

Openings on DCF and GMBA Committees

Are you an avid reader who loves to bring kids and books together? If so, you may want to apply for one of our book award committee openings. The Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award is  for  students in grade 4-8, and the Green Mountain Book Award is for students in grades 9-12. There is one opening on each committee. To apply for either, please send to me electronically:

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New DCF and GMBA Lists and Voting Information

Hello, all: I am pleased to announce that we now have lists for both the Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award (grades 4-8) and the Green Mountain Book Award (grades 9-12)for 2011-2012.

The DCF list is here: http://libraries.vermont.gov/libraries/cbec/dcf

And the GMBA list is here: http://libraries.vermont.gov/sites/libraries/files/gmba/gmbamasterlist11-12.pdf

Voting on the 2010-2011 lists:

To vote for the DCF winner, please use the online form at www.dcfaward.org. Deadline is April 15.

To vote for the GMBA winner, please use the forms here: http://libraries.vermont.gov/libraries/gmba Votes are due on Friday, May 6.

Happy reading!

Center for Cartoon Studies Scholarship

Librarians: Alert your budding cartoonists!

For the third year in a row, the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction has donated a full scholarship to the Department of Libraries so a Vermont teen can attend their one week workshop, “Make Comics,” in the summer. This full scholarship, worth $850, includes the workshop, supplies, light breakfast, full lunch and evening student activities. Lodging is not included, but there is a very inexpensive hostel option at the nearby Hotel Coolidge. Any Vermont student age 16 – 19 (must be 16 years old by June 1, 2011) is eligible. The workshop will take place in White River Junction, VT July 18-22, 2011.

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Better World Book Offering Grants for Libraries

$75,000 in Funding Available for Library Literacy Programming
Better World Books is excited to introduce the LEAP Grants (Literacy and Education in Action Program) for Libraries. Applicants will propose a compelling literacy project in their community. It is understood that the needs and opportunities of the communities that libraries serve vary widely and are eager to review a variety of applications.

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The Amelia Bloomer Project

Joy Worland, the director of the Joslin Memorial Library in Waitsfield, highly recommends The Amelia Bloomer Project, a project of the Feminist Task Force of the Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library Association. Founded in 2002, its mission is to select and recommend quality feminist books for ages birth to eighteen. The committee of seven public, school and academic librarians from all over the country recently met at the ALA Midwinter Conference to create this year’s list.

Joy has been following this project since she first heard of it when working on her MLS, so  was thrilled to get to participate this year, spending hours with smart, opinionated, passionate committee members evaluating over 100 books to create this year’s list of 68 books.

The list is a diverse compilation including a picture book about a girl sherpa, a graphic novel about a girl fencer with the potential to save the world, a zine of advice for teen girls, and many more works of fiction and non-fiction exploring and celebrating the stories of resilient and inspiring girls and women.

For more about the project and the complete 2011 list, go to http://ameliabloomer.wordpress.com/

Check Out the Vermont Library Substitute Pool

In our rural state, many libraries are staffed by a single staff person, or by a very small staff. This can make it a challenge to accomplish large projects within a short time period, have an extended vacation, or take advantage of a professional development opportunity. Also, those librarians who work part-time sometimes would like to expand their experience, network and income with additional work within their profession.

The Vermont Library Association (VLA), Green Mountain Library Consortium (GMLC) and Vermont Consortium of Academic Libraries (VCAL) are excited to introduce the Vermont Library Substitute Pool!

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Teen Video Challenge

Hello, all you creative librarians: The Collaborative Summer Library Program and the Vermont Department of Libraries are co-sponsoring a teen video challenge to make a Public Service Announcement promoting reading, libraries and the 2011 summer program, “You are Here,” a theme designed to promote awareness of other cultures and places as well as individual differences. Please let your teens know about this opportunity. States all over the country will be participating in this CSLP challenge, and there will be a winning video for each state. That video will be used as one of the official teen PSAs for next summer. The creator of the video will win $250 from CSLP, and the public library with which he/she is affiliated, will get $100.

The entry form, rules, downloadable brochures and other information are all available here: http://libraries.vermont.gov/libraries/srp/childrenteen/teenvideocontest

The teens can work by themselves or as part of a library program. This is a great opportunity to showcase some Vermont talent!

Deadline for completing the video and getting the forms to me is: March 4, 2011

Volunteers Needed for NELA Conference in Burlington 2011

The New England Library Association is holding its annual conference in Burlington in October 2011. The NELA conference committee is busy making preparations and need help from some Vermonters to assistant in designing programs and making connections with Vermont’s resources.

NELA is in need of about four Vermonters to join the conference committee for program planning. Any previous experience with conferences would be helpful, but not necessary. In particular they are looking for assistance with local contacts, help in learning about Vermont resources and advertising the conference to Vermont library workers. There will be a minimum of travel, the majority of the work will be done by email, etc. The expected dates and locations of meetings are as follows; January 14 in Leominster Massachusetts area, February 24 virtual on web, April 1 in Burlington Vermont and June 6 in Wilton New Hampshire.

For more information and to volunteer please contact Mary Ann List– NELA Conference Chair at malist@cityofportsmouth.com , 603-766-1710 or Mary Ann Rupert –NELA Conference Manager at marupert@pobox.com, 603-654-3533.