2011 ARSL Scholarship Recipient Experience (and why you should attend next year)

I was very lucky to have been selected as the Ken Davenport Scholarship recipient for the ARSL 2011 Conference held in Frisco, Texas. It was wonderful to have the opportunity to be part of something I had never experienced. My experience was eventful, fun, and slightly overwhelming. Not overwhelming in a bad way, but overwhelming in the sense that I walked away with about a million new ideas and stories that I wanted to share.

In addition to working in a smaller library, I am also an Information Technology Rural Librarians Master’s Scholarship (also known as ITRL) Program Recipient at the University of Tennessee. The scholarship is made possible by the Rural Library Professionals as Change Agents in the 21st Century Grant provided by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. I mention that, because there were really two reasons I felt that this conference was important for me to attend. It aligned perfectly with my current education focus and could help me in my current library position as the Information Specialist at the Lumpkin County Library in Dahlonega, Georgia.

The group sessions were everything from inspirational to entertaining. Linda Braun spoke to us about moving forward and being willing to leave things behind as libraries move toward being a community center and less of a book repository. Gene Ambaum and Bill Barnes, otherwise known as the two guys behind the comic strip ‘Unshelved,’ reminded us of the humor that can be found in the daily life of working in a library.

My favorite part of the conference was the variety of breakout sessions offered. This gave each individual the ability to explore different topics that were appealing to them or their library situation. These topics covered everything from grant writing tips, adult programming with no money, library signage, and getting teens in the library. And trust me, that is in no way an extensive list of topics. The breakout sessions were well run and presenters were excited to share whatever lessons they could pass along.

But even if there had been no group sessions and no breakout sessions I still would have walked away with more library knowledge than I showed up with. Having the opportunity to speak and interact with librarians who are in similar library situations as your own is an experience in itself. Bring up one topic, such as computer classes at the library and you immediately get 10 responses from 10 different people. Everyone comes willing to share about how things happen at their library. You learn very quickly that there are multiple ways to do one thing at a library and believe me there are ideas out there that have never crossed your mind.

I hope everyone takes full opportunity of the 2012 Conference – which I believe will be in Raleigh, North Carolina. Please pass the word around about ARSL. It is an amazing organization that works hard for the members and offers so much in the way of learning and growth. If you have never attended an ARSL conference before, please take the opportunity to apply for a scholarship for the 2012 Conference. Come to share or come to learn – you will end up walking away from your experience having done both.

Thank you again to ARSL for the scholarship opportunity and for presenting an awesome conference. Hope to see you next year!

Angela Glowcheski
Lumpkin County Library, Dahlonega, GA
angela.glowcheski@gmail.com

Sep 28, 2011 | Categories: News | Leave A Comment »

ARSL Conference Raises Hopes and Concerns

[Jeff D. Saunders was one of this year's ARSL Conference Scholarship Winners. Thank you Jeff, for the excellent post!]

In my application essay for the Bernard Vavrek Scholarship the big justification I had for attending the ARSL 2011 Conference was sharing knowledge and exchanging ideas relating to our work at the Information Institute on the North Florida Broadband Authority (NFBA) and Florida Rural Broadband Alliance (FRBA) Middle Mile Projects. While NFBA and FRBA are more concerned with bringing better Internet connection speeds to rural Florida, the Institute’s task was a needs assessment of different community anchor institutions, libraries, schools, police departments, etc. and to give recommendations on how NFBA and FRBA could tailor their programs to get said anchor institutions to adopt broadband connections.

Of course, in the process we happen to get a pretty good picture of the state of technology use in rural and small libraries throughout Florida. So I must admit I had an ulterior motive for attending the ARSL conference, to gauge the situation at other rural and small libraries across the country. Through the presentation panels and conversations with some wonderful librarians I came away feeling a lot better about the world as most told me they recieved E-rate, had technology plans, were part of some type of consortium to pool resources for technology, and understood how free access to technology at their library provided a huge value to their community.

What was most concerning was the fact many believed it didn’t matter what value or impact the library had on the community to local administrators or politicians. Some noted the fact that despite the overwhelming support from the community and evidence of the importance of the library, funding got cut anyway. It is something that is downplayed, or not mentioned at all, in library schools today. The fact that despite best efforts and overwhelming empirical evidence libraries, especially rural and small libraries that are the backbone of public libraries in this country, are vulnerable to political ideologies.

We like to think we live in a time when access to information and continuing education for all are accepted as basic needs. Of course, all you have to do is turn on Fox News and you can see that is not the case. Libraries find themselves in a constant political battle with those who do not understand the purpose for them or the role they play in the community, one that everyone I talked to either mentioned or had an opinion on. It is also something that is not mentioned in library schools. Professors, at least most, shy away from explicit discussion about politics and the way it affects libraries. While it was normally the first topic of conversation with the librarians I had the pleasure of meeting at ARSL.

In terms of specific things I took away from the conference, the comments of one Director at the “Small but Powerful Guide to Winning Big Support for Your Rural Library,” panel who noted the lack of an IT standards system for libraries. This is something extremely interesting to me as I spent the summer hearing pretty much the exact same thing from library directors in Florida. Why there are no standards for the types of technology in libraries is due to a number of factors. For one it is difficult to say what is best for all libraries given the different contexts, situtations, and communities libraries exist in. Second, the power of who decides what the standard is, or more importantly what vendors’ product will be the standard, is a highly contentious proposition. For example, you can imagine the controversy it would cause if the ALA set the standard OPAC system with one company and not another. However, providing general guidelines on what kind of connection speed a library of a certain size should have or the most advantageous number of computers for a library that serves a certain population size are more general questions that do need answering. These are also questions that will be largely answered through forces far outside of the libary’s control.

Libraries are somewhat caught in a shifting paradigm as they become more centered around technology and a new service role. It is unclear, especially to those like me just entering the field, how things will shake out. But I am certain of one thing after my attendance at ARSL, rural libraries are extremely adaptable, more so than their larger urban counterparts, and will profit most from their dedicated and highly skilled staff. When I tell other MLIS students I am interested in working in rural and small libraries they often give me a quizzical look and immediately ask, “but why?” It is pretty understandable. Most in my generation are more concerned with getting a high paying job in some city somewhere and library students are no exception. However, after attending ARSL I am more than ever enthusiastic about joining the rural and small library community.

Jeff D. Saunders
Research Associate
Information Use Management and Policy Institute
The Florida State University
Master’s Student
School of Library and Information Science
College of Communication and Information
The Florida State University

Sep 28, 2011 | Categories: News | Leave A Comment »

Shoe Shopping with Librarians

[Thank you to Jan Williams, Director of the Russell Public Library, Kansas, for her guest blog post!]

I recently attended the ARSL (Association for Rural and Small Libraries) Conference in Frisco, TX. I was fortunate to attend several very helpful and informative sessions which I know will help me and my staff be the best library we can be.

But the most important thing I learned wasn’t in one of the sessions or talking to one of the presenters. I learned a very important lesson shopping for shoes.

I have very small feet and finding shoes that fit has always been a challenge for me. One of my goals during my off-time was to find a pair of decent shoes to replace the worn-out, uncomfortable ones I was wearing.

The first night of shopping at the mall produced nothing but sore feet while on my quest for shoes. Several of my colleagues offered help but I found nothing within my price range.

The second night, I had only forty-five minutes in which to find the elusive perfect shoe before the mall closed. One of the librarians discovered that one of the department stores was having a big shoe sale so four of my CKLS colleagues got it in their heads that we were going to find shoes no matter what!

One of our system consultants was amazing as she swooped through the aisles honing in on perfect shoes. I’m sure the sales people thought me someone very important to have all these people helping me. I finally found some shoes but I also learned a very important lesson.

Librarians are in the business of helping. Every one of those women that were shopping with me were like bloodhounds on the trail. They were determined to find what they were looking for and weren’t going to give up until they found it. They did that for me and I know that’s what they do for their patrons because that’s the kind of people they are.

Aren’t all of us like that? Isn’t that why we do what we do? The nature of a librarian is to help; not giving up until we squeeze every bit of information out of whatever source we have. It is essential to make our patrons feel important by going above and beyond to find what they need.

That attitude, that drive, and that thirst for knowledge will always be needed and appreciated by our patrons and by our communities. That is what will keep libraries vital and thriving into the twenty-first century and beyond.

Jan Williams
September 2011

Sep 19, 2011 | Categories: News | 1 Comment »