Summer Library Survey Open

Prize Pack Available, Too!

Library directors and youth services staff should have received a bulletin last week regarding a summer reading survey.  State Library Consultant Janee Jackson-Doering sent that bulletin asking for an evaluation of your summer programming.

This survey asks about in-person, online, and passive summer programs, plus feedback on the 2023 "Find Your Voice" theme.  The survey also asks about the resources, training, and support offered by the State Library.

Janee writes: “The main goal of the survey is to gauge the impact of Iowa’s summer summer library programs.  Results from the survey will be shared with the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services, which provides funding to the State Library, enabling us to provide the SRP resources to Iowa public libraries. The feedback will also help us know how to improve or enhance the program for next year and beyond.”

Note: This survey should be completed by the person directly responsible for managing the library's summer reading program. So please forward this bulletin with the survey link to the  appropriate staff member.

By entering your contact information and completing the survey, your library will be entered to win a prize pack of books for children and teens!  Complete the survey at the link below by Friday September 30^thin order to qualify for the drawing—one entry per library.

Thank you in advance for your participation and feedback!

2023 Summer Library Program Survey

State of America's Libraries Report 2023

Free Download From ALA

Each year during National Library Week, the American Library Association (ALA) releases a publication titled The State of America’s Libraries Report.  With each report, ALA editors look back on the year past with stories about library funding, programming, advocacy efforts, and more.  Among other statistics, the look back at 2022 examines an upswing in book challenges in school and public libraries across the country. 

This report found that ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked a record 1,269 book challenges in 2022, the highest number of demands to ban books reported since ALA began compiling data about censorship attempts in 1982.  Despite this upswing in book challenges, the State of America’s Libraries 2023 is encouraging, with stories about how libraries thrived, pivoting to offer new and updated services to their communities, adapting and innovating, proving that there truly is “more to the story.” (ALA website)

ALA Executive Director Tracie D. Hall writes “Libraries have proven themselves to be among the most adaptable of public institutions. Just as they have faced numerous challenges, they have also found themselves needed in new and profound ways by their communities, responding to rising demands … It is our greatest hope that this report inspires all who read it to more clearly understand the power and more deeply mine the potential of America’s libraries.”

From The 2023 Report 

- LSTA—Library Services and Technology Act--received an increase of $13.5 million, which raised the program to $211 million nationwide.
- Libraries loaned cell phones, tablets, wireless hotspots in increasing numbers. And among the newest items to be included in the “Library of Things:”  Summers County Public Library in West Virginia now owns a fleet of lightweight utility wagons for checkout—the equivalent of shopping carts—for people who walk to the library and in the same trip, need to do other errands like grocery shopping
- Read about Reginald Dwayne Bets, founder and executive director of Freedom Reads. This is an organization working to transform access to literature in the prison system and offers “a shining example of the power of accessibility to books and information in prisons and other detention facilities. After serving nine years in prison himself, Bets now works to bring libraries and literary ambassadors into prisons to create communities around books.”
- Read about award-winning librarians who were honored last year for defending all children’s right to read, for providing digital literacy classes, for offering job skills classes, and for meeting hundreds of everyday needs in communities of all sizes

With September being National Library Card Sign-Up Month and with Banned Books Week scheduled for October 1-7, it’s great timing to read The State of America’s Libraries Report 2023.  It’s available at the button below as a free PDF download.  Read more about the nation’s libraries, financial conditions, advocacy efforts, and the Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2022. 

State of America’s Libraries Report 2023

"A Library Card Is Elemental"

Since 1987, National Library Card Sign-Up Month has been promoted in September to mark the beginning of the school year.  That's the month when the American Library Association and U.S. libraries unite in a national effort to ensure every child signs-up for their own library card.

Throughout the school year, public librarians and library staff assist parents by saving hundreds of dollars on educational resources and services for students. Library staff work to remind parents and youth that signing up for a library card is the first step towards academic achievement and lifelong learning.  Not to mention a very cost-effective back-to-school item!     

The 2023 theme is “A Library Card is Elemental.”  Public and school libraries nationwide are urged to participate in Library Card Sign-Up Month and amplify the message that libraries are an imagination place. Find free toolkits from ALA, including posters, bookmarks, social media messages, public service announcements, and more. Here’s a smattering of what’s available on ALA’s website

- Ready-to-air audio public service announcements (PSAs) for radio stations, available with the American Library Association ID or customizable versions

- Graphics in English and Spanish, including yard signs and window clings reading “Library Card Holders Live Here."  ALA’s digital graphics are free to use on your websites and social media accounts.

- A customizable Library Value Calculator

Share your plans to promote Library Card Sign-Up Month 
with colleagues on Library Talk!

All About Library Card Sign-Up Month

Learning Circuit Registration Deadline

Learning Circuit 2023.  September 28.
Various Locations Across the State. 
9:00AM-3:30PM.

Note the deadline to register for this year’s Learning Circuit workshop is tomorrow September 12.  Happening at six locations across the state, the day begins with a “Community Asset Mapping” workshop, featuring two national experts presenting via ZOOM.  A hands-on segment follows in the afternoon.  Click below for the locations and registration.

Learning Circuit Locations & Registration

Building (and Maintaining!) a Book Club at Your Library.  September 12.  1:00-2:30PM

Join a panel of Iowa librarians and State Library staff to discuss the “whats-whys-and hows” of book clubs.  We'll talk about the joys and challenges of book discussion groups, as well as best practices for creating and maintaining a group at your library.

Pop YS Live: TeenTastic TeenTober. 
September 13. 1:00-2:00PM 

In a TeenTastic Pop YS Live with Janee Jackson-Doering, get ready to celebrate teens and teen services by learning about YALSA’s “TeenTober.” Formerly known as Teen Read Week, this nationwide programming initiative during October helps librarians support teens in learning new skills, and fueling their passions in and outside the library all year long.

Library for the Blind: BARD and Being a Demonstration Site.  September 14. 1:00-2:00PM

This webinar will provide Information about the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) service provided by the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS). It will include information on how libraries can become a demonstration site to assist their library patrons in registering for and using BARD.

Register in IALearns

Click Here to view the State Library Of Iowa News : Monday Morning Eye-Opener September 11, 2023