From the Desk of Lucy Pana, CEO
O pening Netspeed 2008, Alberta Advanced Education and Technology Minister Doug Horner talked about how libraries support what Premier Stelmach calls The Next Generation Economy.
As Minister Horner noted, the new economy is a sustainable vision for our future because knowledge is a resource that can never be depleted. To borrow a phrase,"Alberta’s libraries really do have a major role to play in the next economy." Minister Horner’s comments gave me a sense that we are not at the beginning of the end of a process that we started 11years ago, but perhaps at the end of the beginning.
As the recent MLA public library stakeholder consultation sessions highlighted, libraries play an essential role in the lives of Albertans, and TAL is well-positioned to help libraries take advantage of new and emerging technologies.
Netspeed 2008 is the last conference I will attend as CEO of The Alberta Library, as I will officially retire at the end of February 2009. However, the conference really left me thinking more about the future.
I will be doing everything I can do to make the transition as smooth as possible.
I am also excited to welcome Christina Wilson as the new Director of the Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library. Christina was The Alberta Library’s Emerging Technologies Librarian, where she provided leadership and consulting services to the public library community.
I would like to thank Kit Wilson (no relation to Christina) for fulfilling the role as the first Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library Director so ably. Thanks to Kit’s efforts, the LHCADL has already earned national and international recognition as an efficient, effective and innovative service provider for Alberta’s post-secondary educational community.
Alberta’s libraries really do have a major role to play in the next economy. Let’s continue to look ahead and work together to make that a reality.
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New LHCADL Director
Christina Wilson
The Alberta library is pleased to announce that Christina Wilson is the new Director of the Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library (LHCADL), effective November 17, 2008.
Christina was The Alberta Library’s Emerging Technologies Librarian, where she provided leadership and consulting services to the public library community.
Christina gained considerable senior-level experience as the Manager of Technical Services and Support for the Cambridge Libraries and Galleries. As President of the Ontario Public Library Association, she played a key role in developing The One Place to Look, the province’s strategic plan for library services.
Christina completed her Masters of Library and Information Science at the University of Western Ontario, and holds an M.A. in Political Science and a B.A. in History and Politics.
As Director of the Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library, Christina will lead in the planning, implementation, evaluation and administration of the initiative.
The Alberta Library would like to thank Kit Wilson for her outstanding contribution to the creation and development of the project. The first Director of the Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library, Kit (no relation to Christina), is returning to The University of Alberta Libraries.
"Thanks to Kit's efforts, the digital library has already earned
a great reputation," said TAL CEO Lucy Pana, noting the 2008 Canadian
Association of College and University Libraries’ Innovation Achievement
Award. "Her work on the initiative has been outstanding."
Spreading the word on Tell Me More
Auralog’s Tell Me More language learning software is now being delivered by public libraries across the province. And this month we’re spreading the word that the software will help new Canadians learn English and provide literacy support to people in their own communities.
Benefits of Tell Me More include 24/7 access via the Internet, self-paced learning and a range of skill levels from beginner to advanced. A 24/7 online advisor is available to answer questions.
Tell Me More toolkits are in the process of being mailed to each library region for distribution. The toolkits contain promotional material, frequently asked questions and more.
Radio, television and print ads are also scheduled to run on ethnic media outlets from early December to late February (with a break for the holiday retail season).
If you have any questions about the promotional campaign, or have not received material by early December, contact Janis Galloway at The Alberta Library.
The program is funded by Alberta Municipal Affairs’ Public Library Development Initiative and administered by the Alberta Public Library Electronic Network. See our news release here.
Stereotypes shattered in campaign for Alberta’s libraries
Cold sores. Vasectomies. Frostbite. Not the most likely ingredients for
a campaign for Alberta’s libraries. But that’s what ad agency Rethink was
aiming for. Something entirely different.
Tagged with the line Books and beyond, the TV, radio, print and online campaign not only revealed a wealth of exciting resources available at the library, but also linked topics in an amusing way.
The response was immediate. Boards, an online advertising industry publication that takes a daily look at ads from around the world, rated the TV spots number one on October 20th. The ads also popped up on Russian, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian and many other websites.
“Awesome ad,” said Marsha Amanova from South Korea. “It says a lot with very little.”
“I saw the ads in American Libraries Direct,” said Laura Bramble of the Indianapolis-Marion Public Library. “They’re great.”
“Wow, these ads are just what we need right now,” said Carlee Pilikowski, Communications Officer for Marigold Library System.
“Our target was people aged 18-35 who probably haven’t been to the library since high school and don’t think there’s much there for them,” says Rethink partner Katie Ainsworth. “Speaking to them in a fun, modern way was critical to the campaign success.”
The TV spots were directed by Adam and Dave (yes, that’s how they’re known), of Holiday Films.
“We were both attracted to this job because we loved the scripts,” they said. “They were simple and quite dark.”
“We’re very happy with the work that Rethink did on the campaign,” said Alberta Public Library Electronic Network Director Karla Palichuk. “Whether the medium was TV, radio, web or print, each ad told a story, made you smile and drove home the point that libraries are more than books. When we awarded the campaign to the agency in June, we wanted them to help us shatter stereotypes about libraries. They delivered.”
Where does Books and beyond go from here? Stay tuned for next year’s campaign.
More than 390 delegates from Canada’s library community met last month in Edmonton to talk technology and explore its impact on libraries. The conference, hosted annually by The Alberta Library, featured a variety of speakers from Alberta and outside of the province, and interactive sessions focused on the pros and cons of popular technologies and how the library community can take advantage of what’s out there.
David Chalk, Netspeed 2008 keynote speaker
Kicking off this year’s event was keynote speaker David Chalk, Entrepreneur and Technology Forecaster. Chalk overcame a severe learning disability to become an expert in the digital world. Lacking the cognitive functions of his left brain, Chalk was told as a child he would never learn. When computers began to enter the mainstream market, he knew technology would be a powerful learning tool that would help unlock his potential.
In his presentation, Chalk provided a preview of what the technology world will look like in the next 10 years, and as you’d expect there are no limits. The leaders in every industry, from computers to consumer electronics, from telecommunications to the entertainment industry, are scrambling to control the digital world.
Chalk explained that in the battle of content versus device, large companies including Google and Sony realize that content is key. For libraries this is good news, as they are archives of an immense amount of content. No longer is the iPod, Blackberry or laptop what’s important. “It’s about the content these devices deliver to us,” said Chalk.
David Chalk reminded us that no matter how difficult it may be at times for libraries to keep up with advancing technology, we still hold the content, and that’s priceless.
The Alberta Library would like to extend thanks to all of its vendors and sponsors who supported the conference this year.
To view the sponsors
and the other Netspeed 2008 keynote speakers and presentations visit
the Netspeed
site.
TAL Profile
Susan Brayford
What is your involvement with The Alberta Library?
I am currently one of the TAL Directors. I was one of a group of librarians on the Knowledge Network Steering Committee from 1999 to 2003 that was instrumental in developing the groundwork for the first consortium of databases licensed for Alberta libraries. Also, SAIT was one of the host sites for the Lois Hole Campus Alberta Digital Library celebration.
What drew you to your profession?
I had been teaching adults for six years in a college. I wanted a "Students aren’t as interested in receiving their information in print form."job that had more daily variety. I had worked in a library before as the children’s specialist and knew a librarian’s work had the variety I was looking for.
Who had the most influence over you career?
My aunt was the Deputy Director and Acting Director of the Calgary Public Library. My uncle worked as a librarian at the University of Calgary for 18 years and received the annual Outstanding Teaching Award from the students’ association.
What major changes have you noticed during your time with The Alberta Library?
Students aren’t as interested in receiving their information in print form. Our students at SAIT are keen on the 69,000 e-books available because there is the access from off-campus.
Why do you think libraries are important?
People can visit a library and use the services on-site without spending any money. It is a haven for someone who does not have the money or status to obtain information or books through other means.
What has been the most rewarding part of working with TAL? What have you enjoyed the most?
I have enjoyed working with my colleagues from the variety of Alberta
libraries and hearing their success stories.
Library Q & A – Medicine Hat Public Library
What is your biggest current challenge?
Through receipt of some term funding we have been able to increase hours for our Youth Services Coordinator and Homebound and Seniors Services Coordinator. Of course, that is not where the challenge lies -- it’s been wonderful to extend our services to those client groups particularly in the area of outreach! The challenge, however, is in finding ongoing funding for these positions to ensure that we can continue to provide this high level of service to the Medicine Hat community."The library staff are certainly our greatest asset and create the welcoming and open atmosphere that we pride ourselves on in this library."
What area is changing the fastest in your library?
As with most libraries, technology is changing the fastest, and how it is altering what we do and how we do it. This can be highlighted with two products we have started making use of this year: self-check units now are managing a portion of our check-outs, allowing us to increase staff time spent on assisting people in finding information and accessing the collections; PC Reservation has meant that we can finally get rid of the binder used for manually signing people up for the public internet computers (and stop having to ask people to get off the computers when their time is up) – library staff at the reference desk can now focus more of their attention on helping people find the information they need, what a great improvement!
What idea are you most proud of over the last five years?
There are a number of initiatives which we are proud of. In partnership with the City of Medicine Hat the library became a demo site for solar power and has continued to work with the City in providing information to the Hatters on alternative energy. We have, finally, worked our budget so that we have a full-time technical position. Working with the Medicine Hat College on the One Book One Community project which has become a staple literary weekend in Medicine Hat. Our ongoing positive relationship with CUPE, including three collective agreement negotiations using mutual gains bargaining. The creation of a beautiful garden on the north side of the building for the enjoyment of library patrons and the general public. And our recent renovations to open up the front area of the library and highlighting service points.
Where do you see the most opportunity for innovation over the next decade?
Again, I am leaning toward the technology side of things. We have already seen some great steps forward in our library in this area: self-checkouts, PC Reservation, Wiis, digital information/advertising screens. We are looking forward to providing wireless access in 2009 as well as video conferencing (funded through the RISE project – a three-year program coordinated by the three southern regional library systems and funded through the Alberta Rural Development Fund and APLEN).
I am also excited about our move in the direction of increased outreach activities and partnerships.
How does your library stay in touch with your clients/library users?
The best way for us to stay in touch with our library users is through our staff. The library staff are certainly our greatest asset and create the welcoming and open atmosphere that we pride ourselves on in this library. In addition to that ongoing communication between the staff and the library users, we have a bi-weekly column in the Medicine Hat News, keep our library website up-to-date with information about the library and its programs, publish a programs booklet every two months, and partner with Shortgrass in participating in the spring trade show.
How do you stay in touch with political leaders in your community?
We meet at least annually with our provincial MLAs. In 2008, we partnered
with the Medicine Hat Chamber of Commerce to host a provincial and
a federal election forum at the library – a great opportunity to highlight
the public library’s role in providing the information needed for good
decision-making. The Library Board makes an annual presentation of
the Library’s annual report to the City’s Public Services Committee
and distributes the annual report to all aldermen, MLAs, and the MP
for Medicine Hat.