Surveys!

Your Voice Matters: Take the Solo Library Worker Survey

The Association for Rural & Small Libraries (ARSL) is excited to announce that our national survey focused on professional development is now open! If you work in a public library in a solo or solo-ish capacity, we invite you to take the survey below to share your experiences around accessing professional development and the barriers you may face. Your responses will directly shape recommendations and resources designed to better support library workers like you. The survey will take ~20-30 minutes to complete.

As a thank-you, everyone who submits their responses will be entered into a drawing to win one of three $100 gift cards from Libro.fm, South Carolina Chic, or Bookshop.org.

This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Games-based Library Services

After months of planning and thoughtful collaboration, the Wisconsin State Library Agency and the Washington State Library (in partnership with many others) are proud to officially kick off the first-ever nationwide surveying of Games-based Library Services – a key component of our National Games & Libraries Project (funded by an Institute of Museum and Library Services National Leadership Grant for Libraries).

Our comprehensive survey will result in a thorough and unprecedented “snapshot” of Games-based Library Services [GBLS] being offered nationwide throughout multitype libraries: public & school, academic, special, state libraries & consortia HQs, etc. Please help contribute to this invaluable research by filling out the survey yourselves and/or sharing it with your relevant library colleagues and networks!

Note: We ask that all libraries complete this survey (whether they offer GBLS or not). All contributed data will be useful, so share far and wide!

There are a few important notes we’d like to highlight before folks begin the survey:

• The survey takes about 15 minutes to complete. ⏱️
• To keep our data clean and useful, we ask that only one person per each library, branch, institution, etc. submit a response. If needed, please gather information from colleagues beforehand so your answers reflect your individual institution as a whole. ✅
• Before starting the survey, we’d ask you to have access to your library’s program attendance and Integrated Library System (ILS) collection data at-hand, as we are seeking certain relevant data points related to Games-based Library Services. 📈
• Please use your own discretion to choose responses to our questions that would best represent your location / institution (we understand that different libraries and library institutions throughout the country might use different names / terms state-by-state). 🎯
• Your responses are confidential. The only identifying information we collect is your institution’s ZIP Code, which will be used solely to help us understand geographic distribution and create a national heatmap of GBLS activity. 🔒
• Participation is voluntary and you may skip any question that allows skipping (note that many responses are mandatory). Provided participant contact information (if given) will be used to select gift card raffle winners. 🎉
• This project was made possible in part by generous funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services grant LG‑256639‑OLS‑24. 📚
• The National Games & Libraries Project [NGLP] is being co-sponsored by the ALA GameRT (the American Library Association’s Games & Gaming Round Table) and COSLA (the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies). 🎮

We anticipate the survey remaining open until mid-July. But… why wait!? Complete it ASAP to help us start building an early picture of nationwide Games-based Library Services!

Welcome to Jodi!

Welcome to Jodi Kiffmeyer, our new MORE Database Specialist. Her email is kiffmeyer@ifls.lib.wi.us. She’ll be doing cataloging and quality control of the MORE database for centralized cataloging.

ILS Demos coming up

• June 22, 9a-noon and 1p-3p – MORE ILS Evaluation product demo: Koha, supported by ByWater Solutions. Access the live demo
• July 7, 9a-noon and 1p-3p – MORE ILS Evaluation product demo: BLUEcloud powered by SymphonyWeb from SirsiDynix. Access the live demo
• July 14, 9a-noon and 1p-3p – MORE ILS Evaluation product demo: Polaris from Innovative. Access the live demo

New on the website

• We have a crowd-sourced database of contact information for IFLS-area library directors, and ILL, collections, and YS staff. It’s been converted to Excel and is no longer password-protected. You can find it on the top of the IFLS contacts page. Click the button to open the document. You should be able to edit your library’s information without having to log in. If you have problems, please submit a HelpDesk ticket.
• Wisconsin Trustee Training Week webinar registration is open, and the info is on the IFLS calendar or the WTTW website.

Coming up on the IFLS calendar

Calendar highlight: Collaborating for Community Success Series workshop registration is still open. Highly recommended for library and municipal staff. Please share!