Contents
U.S. & World News
ALA News
AL Focus
Booklist Online
Anaheim Update
Division News
Round Table News
Awards
Seen Online
Tech Talk
Actions & Answers
Calendar

EPA gives Congress library-reopening timeline
The Environmental Protection Agency submitted March 26 its EPA National Library Network Report to Congress (PDF file) on the state of the EPA National Library Network. The report noted that the four closed libraries will be reopened by September 30, namely Region 5 in Chicago, Region 6 in Dallas, Region 7 in Kansas City, and the EPA Headquarters Repository and the Chemical Library in Washington, D.C. The EPA has said that it will continue to be in contact with affected stakeholders as the library plans are finalized....

Washington librarian helped nab Montana library thief
A Great Falls, Montana, man was arrested March 27 and charged with interstate transportation of stolen goods in relation to the theft in February 2006 of at least 648 maps found on his property that were stolen from some 100 books in the Congressional Serial Set owned by Western Washington University’s Wilson Library in Bellingham. In fact, it was WWU Government Information Librarian Robert Lopresti (right) who jump-started the case against James Brubaker two years earlier by notifying campus police that the library had been robbed and actively pursuing leads....

Library worker’s firing sparks firestorm
The firing of a worker at the Tulare County (Calif.) Library two days after she defied a supervisor by alerting police to a patron viewing what she believed to be child pornography has sparked controversy and the threat of a lawsuit. When Brenda Biesterfeld saw a man viewing pictures of naked boys on a public access computer at the library’s Lindsay branch February 28, she called her supervisor, Library Services Specialist Judi Hill, at the main library. She said Hill told her to give the man, who was deaf, a note telling him to stop immediately, but when Biesterfeld suggested calling the police, Hill told her not to....

Alice on Her Way waylaid in Washington
Alice on Her Way will remain in the library at Icicle River Middle School in Leavenworth, Washington, but with borrowing privileges restricted to students who have parental consent. Parent Dave Winters had objected to Phyllis Reynolds Naylor’s novel, part of the oft-challenged Alice series, due to its depiction of sexuality. Accepting the recommendation of a review committee, the school board unanimously decided March 24 to retain the book, believing that it would be beneficial for older middle school students....

Promote Woman’s Day health initiative
Libraries have until May 11 to promote a new health initiative sponsored by ALA’s Campaign for America’s Libraries and Woman’s Day magazine. The magazine is looking for stories on how readers have used the library to improve a family member’s or their own health. Stories can be submitted here, and up to four of the submissions will be featured in the March 2009 issue....

Step Up to the Plate swings into action
Season three of Step Up to the Plate @ your library officially launched April 1. The program teams up two American classics—baseball and libraries—to promote the importance of information literacy skills and increase awareness of the library as an essential information resource. The Step Up to the Plate trivia game is now available to library patrons on the program’s website....

The OITP Copyright Slider answers your questions
This compact Copyright Slider, created by the Office for Information Technology Policy, provides instant access to copyright laws and guidelines. Simply align the arrows by date of publication to determine a work’s copyright status and term. And the “Permission needed?” box provides a quick answer to this very important question. This is a useful tool for librarians, teachers, artists, students, researchers, attorneys, or anyone who needs clear, concise information on copyright terms and conditions....
District Dispatch, Mar. 27

Julie Andrews @ your library
In case you hadn’t heard, Academy Award-winning actress and author Julie Andrews is the honorary chair for this year’s National Library Week. Isn’t it exciting to have such a cultural icon representing libraries? Andrews lent her image for use in a print PSA that ALA is pitching to national publications. You can catch the PSA in the April issue of O, the Oprah Magazine, as well as recent issues of Entertainment Weekly and the AARP Bulletin....
Visibility @ your library blog, Mar. 26

National Library Week turns 50
National Library Week began in 1958 and is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year on April 13–19. In 1968, the Ryukyu Islands issued a stamp (right) to commemorate the 10th anniversary of International Library Week. At that time the Ryukyus were under the semi-autonomous administration of the United States. The “international” aspect refers to the fact that there were both American military libraries and Japanese village libraries on the islands. The theme for International Library Week in 1968 was the same as National Library Week in the states: “Be all you can be—Read.”...
Library History Buff, Apr. 1

National Library Week video: Vending machine
Do you ever put all of your change into a vending machine, and then wish there were options other than Doritos, Fritos, Snickers, and Skittles? To help celebrate National Library Week (April 13–19), we spin a tale with a very happy (v)ending. Fact: Americans spend more than twice as much on salty snacks as they do on public libraries. Starring Chicago improv comic Shad Kunkle....

National Library Week video: Super sized
Nothing is more popular than McDonald’s, right? Don’t be so sure. To help celebrate National Library Week (April 13–19), take a trip through the information drive-through and see what ends up in your take-out bag. Fact: There are more public libraries than McDonald’s in the U.S.—a total of 16,549, including branches. Starring Chicago improv comic Shad Kunkle and shot at . . . well, the location should be obvious....

National Library Week video: Game on
The spirits of Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, and Pitfall live in this dot-gobbling, laser-firing celebration of National Library Week (April 13–19). This week’s fun fact: Americans spend nearly 10 times as much money on home video games ($9.9 billion) as they do on school library materials for their children ($1 billion). Starring Chicago improv comic Shad Kunkle and shot at Morton College Library in Cicero, Illinois....

Orange County Zoo
The Orange County Zoo is located in Irvine Regional Park in the city of Orange, about 20 driving minutes east of the Convention Center. Open seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., the zoo displays animals native to the southwestern United States in eight acres of native plants and majestic oak trees. Animals to see include black bear, mountain lion, North American porcupine, beaver, bald eagle, golden eagle, and ocelot....
Orange County Zoo

Straight talk about airport security
Lori Doyle, customer service manager for the Transportation Security Administration at Louisville (Ky.) International Airport, answers questions about checkpoints, screening, TSA personnel, nail clippers, liquids, suspicious behavior, dealing with impatient passengers, and airport safety: “With our new system, maybe 7–8% of the bags we screen are opened. A lot of the alarms we get are on things we know we’re going to get alarms on: aerosol-type products, peanut butter, things with weird consistencies, or a lot of electronics or metal that the machine can’t read through. The percentage has gone down a good bit. It used to be 13 or 14%. The machine tells us what to do, and we do it.”...
Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal, Jan. 17

Public librarians meet over books in Minneapolis
In Minneapolis for the 12th biennial national conference of the Public Library Association, March 25–29, public librarians from across the country and around the world gathered for a week of discussions, seminars, exhibits, and programs. Many of the activities were all firmly rooted in unabashed reverence for the power of reading and books, as evidenced by the dozens of authors who appeared throughout the conference. No one drew a bigger crowd than opening session keynoter John Wood (above), who dazzled a large portion of the more than 10,000 attendees with his vision of “education for every child on earth.” For more PLA photos, see the American Libraries Flickr site....

Don’t try to strong-arm us—we’re the library!
Tony Ross writes: “This was definitely the line of the PLA conference, and it came from the mouth of Queens (N.Y.) Library Marketing Director James Keller while he was giving his presentation on branding. Walking around the entire room as he spoke without any notes, he talked the audience through the basics of stakeholder identifications, targeted audiences, strategic positioning statements, marketing plans, and maximizing resources.”...
PLA Blog, Mar. 27

Nonfiction readers’ advisory at PLA
Rick Roche writes: “Barry Trott of the Williamsburg (Va.) Regional Library began the program ‘When the Story is True: Practicing Nonfiction Readers’ Advisory’ by reading comments about the book Arc of Justice by Kevin Boyle (2004). From the use of phrases about well-drawn characters, tense settings, and compelling story, he said that many readers might assume that the book was a novel. It happens instead to be narrative nonfiction, otherwise known as ‘literary journalism’ or ‘creative nonfiction.’” Find a sampling of other online PLA presentations and conference coverage here, and don’t miss the dancing librarians video (0:18)....
PLA Blog, Mar. 28; iLibrarian, Mar. 31

School Library Media Month
Award-winning author Carmen Agra Deedy is the voice behind various public service announcements advocating for school library media centers in schools across the country during School Library Media Month in April. The PSAs range from 10 to 30 seconds and are available in MP3 or broadcast-quality formats. Listeners are invited by Deedy to “Join the circle of knowledge” in their school libraries by celebrating SLMM. Deedy will kick off the month reading her stories at New York City Public School 89 on April 7....

WrestleMania Reading Challenge champions
YALSA and World Wrestling Entertainment congratulate David Silva of Orlando, Florida, and Ajoura Gwinn (right) of Munhall, Pennsylvania, on becoming the 2008 WrestleMania Reading Challenge Champions. Silva beat out four others in the grades 7–8 category by answering questions about Stuck in Neutral by Terry Trueman, while Gwinn bested four competitors in the grades 9–12 category with her knowledge of Ball Don’t Lie by Matt de la Pena. The competition was held March 29 at the Orlando Public Library....

YALSA launches Operation Teen Book Drop
Teen patients in pediatric hospitals across the United States and Canada received 10,000 young adult novels, audiobooks, and graphic novels March 27, as readergirlz (an online book community for teen girls) and YALSA plan to celebrate the second annual Support Teen Literature Day on April 17. This teen literacy program, coined “Operation TBD” (Teen Book Drop), puts free books—altogether valued at more than $175,000—donated by 20 book publishers into the hands of teens in need of solace, entertainment, and a sense of personal accomplishment....

Topping off the new Choice building
Choice magazine, a publishing unit of ACRL, celebrated the groundbreaking of its new office on March 25. The new Liberty Square building, located on Main Street in Middletown, Connecticut, will have retail space on the ground floor, and Choice will occupy the entire third floor. Liberty Square will be a green building, and Choice will continue the theme with green office furniture and energy-efficient lighting....

New ACRL Assessment Immersion program
The ACRL Institute for Information Literacy has added a new track. The Assessment Immersion Track: Assessment in Practice is intended for librarians with leadership roles in information-literacy program development who want to improve their knowledge and practice of both classroom and program assessment. Applications for the track, which will be held December 4–7, are now being accepted. The deadline to apply is June 2....

ALSC heads west for 2008 National Institute
Housing reservations are now available for the 2008 ALSC National Institute, September 18–20, at the Hilton Salt Lake City Center, Utah. Institute registration will open on May 1 with special early bird pricing for ALSC members through June 30. The institute is a two-and-a-half day intensive learning opportunity with a youth services focus and is designed for youth library staff, children’s literature experts, education and library school faculty members, and other interested adults....

AASL President’s Program to discuss IF
The AASL President’s Program at the 2008 ALA Annual Conference will be on the topic of “Intellectual Freedom: A Core Value” and feature author and librarian Susan Patron, 8–10 a.m., June 28. Susan Patron is author of the controversial 2007 Newberry Medal book The Higher Power of Lucky and a retired juvenile materials collection development manager at Los Angeles Public Library....

Julie Walker featured in podcast
AASL Executive Director Julie Walker is featured in the latest podcast from the ALA Public Information Office. Walker discusses issues addressed in ALA’s upcoming State of America’s Libraries Report, which is being released as part of National Library Week (April 13–19), and touches on such topics as School Library Media Month, the role of school libraries and library media specialists, and important legislative initiatives....
Visibility @ your library, Apr. 1

New AASL institute to kick off at Annual Conference
AASL’s newest licensed institute, “Reading and the Secondary School Library Media Specialist,” will premier June 27 as a preconference to the 2008 ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, California. Presented by Pam Berger, the institute is designed to address critical topics in reading for library media specialists serving grades 7 to 12....

ASCLA President’s Program on the Universal Library
Attendees will learn about the concept of the universal library and how to incorporate universal design into their user services during the ASCLA President’s Program at ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, June 29. A panel of subject-matter experts will discuss strategies for designing and maintaining physical and virtual collections, in a building that everyone can access, with a staff that is diverse and reflective of all of the citizens....

Everett Kline to speak at AASL Fall Forum
Everett Kline, assistant superintendent for instruction and learning for the South Orange–Maplewood (N.J.) School District, will be the endnote speaker at the AASL Fall Forum in Oak Brook, Illinois, October 15–17. He will speak on “Our Beliefs, Our Practice: Ensuring That They Match.” Over the last 10 years, Kline has been a consultant for public and private schools, school districts, colleges and universities, and state departments of education in more than 45 states and seven foreign countries....

LITA acquisitions editor named
LITA has appointed Robert H. McDonald to the position of LITA acquisitions editor. McDonald is Chronopolis project manager for the San Diego Supercomputer Center at the University of California, San Diego, and began his two-year term in March. The acquisitions editor is charged with developing topics for LITA guides and monographs....

LITA web manager named
LITA has appointed Jean Rainwater to the position of LITA web manager. Following an application process that culminated in interviews at ALA Midwinter, the board approved Rainwater, co-leader of Integrated Technology Services at Brown University Libraries in Providence. She began her two-year term in March....

International collaboration and resource sharing
The International Relations Round Table will host a preconference in Anaheim, California, June 27, that will focus on resource sharing for international libraries. HINARI, OARE, and AGORA are sister programs set up to assist developing countries in gaining access to current scientific information, and three of the speakers will explain how these programs help provide access to current scientific journals for developing countries. A fourth speaker will discuss eIFL, Electronic Information for Libraries....
IRRT Blog, Apr. 1

Tim Jewell wins Coutts Award
Tim Jewell, director of information resources, collections, and scholarly communication at the University of Washington, is the winner of the first annual Coutts Award for Innovation in Electronic Resources Management. The award, administered by the ALCTS Collection Management and Development Section, recognizes innovative contributions to electronic collections management and development practice. The recipient receives a $2,000 award donated by Coutts Information Services....

Harriet Henderson receives Sullivan Award
Harriet Henderson, director of the Richmond (Va.) Public Library, has been selected to receive the 2008 ALA Peggy Sullivan Award for Public Library Administrators Supporting Services to Children. Henderson’s focus on early childhood literacy and the role of the public library in promoting early education has been a hallmark of her career. The award is donated by and honors Peggy Sullivan, 1980–1981 ALA president and former ALA executive director....

Barbara Ford wins Humphry Award
Barbara J. Ford is this year’s recipient of the International Relations Committee’s John Ames Humphry/OCLC/Forest Press Award. OCLC/Forest Press donated the cash award of $1,000, given to an individual for a significant contribution to international librarianship. Ford, director of the Mortenson Center for International Library Programs and a professor at the library of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, received the award for her extensive publications and significant contributions to ALA and IFLA....

Margaret Stieg Dalton wins Mudge Award
Margaret Stieg Dalton, associate professor in the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, School of Library and Information Studies, has received the 2008 Isadore Gilbert Mudge–Gale Cengage Learning Award presented by RUSA. The award of $5,000 and a citation, donated by Gale Cengage Learning, recognizes distinguished contributions to reference librarianship....

Ka-Neng Au receives Dun & Bradstreet Award
Ka-Neng Au, business librarian at the Rutgers University John Cotton Dana Library, is the 2008 recipient of the Dun & Bradstreet Award for Outstanding Service to Minority Business Communities. The award, presented by the RUSA Business Reference and Services Section, is given to a librarian or library that has created an innovative service for a minority business community....

Bogle-Pratt Travel Fund winner announced
Rose Dotten, director of the School Librarianship Department in the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto, is the 2008 recipient of the International Relations Committee’s Bogle-Pratt International Library Travel Fund. The Bogle Memorial Fund and the Pratt Institute School of Information and Library Science will provide a $1,000 cash award for Dotten to attend her first international conference in Berlin, Germany....

Antioch Public Library selected for ASCLA award
The Antioch (Calif.) Public Library, a community library of the Contra Costa County Library, is the 2008 recipient of the ASCLA/KLAS/NOD Award. Donated by Keystone Systems, Inc., the $1,000 award and certificate is given to a library organization that has provided services for people with disabilities. The library was chosen for the award for its successful outreach to adults with developmental disabilities....

James Madison University receives RUSA award
The James Madison University libraries in Harrisonburg, Virginia, received the 2008 Gale Cengage Learning Award for Excellence in Reference and Adult Services for its Research Databases and Resources website. The $3,000 award, administered by RUSA, recognizes a library or library system for developing an imaginative and unique library resource to meet patron reference needs....

AIA/ALA Library Buildings Award seeks jurors
The LAMA Building and Equipment Section is seeking nominations and applications for jurors for the 2009 Library Buildings Award competition. Jointly sponsored by ALA and the American Institute of Architects, the prestigious biennial awards recognize distinguished accomplishments in library architecture by American architects. Prospective jurors may obtain application forms from the LAMA website (PDF file)....

Soul of a People outreach grants
ALA, in partnership with Spark Media, an award-winning Washington, D.C.–based production and outreach company, will present an innovative library outreach program to enhance the nationwide impact of the documentary film, Soul of a People: Voices from the Writers’ Project. The film will acquaint public, academic, and special library audiences with the  story of the largest cultural experiment in U.S. history—the Federal Writers’ Project—told against the backdrop of the Depression and 1930s America. The National Endowment for the Humanities will offer grants of $2,500 to 30 libraries to present programming on the topic....

RUSA offers funding for reference research
RUSA is offering a one-time award of $2,000 for a research project in the area of reference and user services. The application process is open to anyone conducting research in reference. Applications are due May 1. A project will be selected by the RUSA Reference Services Section’s Research and Statistics Committee and announced at ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim....

Student’s library-funding project wins science scholarship
Eighteen-year-old Xiaomeng Zeng, a senior at Iowa City’s West High School, won seventh place (a $20,000 scholarship) in the national Intel Science Talent Search competition for her study on whether public library funding from government sources adversely affects funding from private sources, or vice versa. Using Iowa public library statistics and U.S. census datasets, Zeng concluded that funds from private and public sources are relational—as one increases, so does the other—an effect called “crowding in.”...
Society for Science and the Public, Mar. 11

Deal could open Victoria libraries next week
The Greater Victoria (B.C.) Public Library and its locked-out workers have reached a deal that could see libraries reopen early next week. CUPE Local 410 and the board of the Greater Victoria Labour Relations Association signed a memorandum of agreement March 31 that gives 250 employees pay equity in line with other municipal wages in the region. The union voted 85% in favor in a ratification vote....
Victoria (B.C.) Times Colonist, Apr. 1

Bush library searches for website name
While President Bush’s advisers were taking offers on an ideal spot for his library and museum, they probably should have paid more attention to the virtual real-estate market. At one time, the Bush Library Foundation owned the easiest website to remember, www.georgewbushlibrary.com. But whether on purpose or because of an oversight—foundation spokesman Taylor Griffin wasn’t sure—it lost that domain name last year. Illuminati Karate, a web company in Raleigh, North Carolina, picked it up for less than $10....
Dallas Morning News, Mar. 31

Don’t go half-naked in Redding
Redding, California, may bar the shirtless and shoeless from the Shasta Public Library while tripling the no-smoking zone outside the building’s entrance. Only a few half-naked people have entered the library since it opened a little over a year ago, but these patrons “pose health and safety concerns and detract from the overall environment at the library,” a city council report said. The council was scheduled to debate a new ordinance April 1, as well as one outlawing smoking within 60 feet of the library entrance....
Redding (Calif.) Record Searchlight, Mar. 30

Adopt a rare book at Princeton
Guests at the Book Adoption Party held March 30 enjoyed wine and hors d’oeuvres, making sure not to spill their refreshments on the books, maps, manuscripts, and coins on display. The event, at which guests could adopt a variety of rare items from Princeton University’s Department of Rare Books and Special Collections for prices ranging from $100 to $1,650, was designed to raise funds to restore material in poor condition. Harold Shapiro, university president emeritus, was the first to adopt, choosing a rare edition of the children’s book Orlando, the Marmalade Cat....
Daily Princetonian, Mar. 31

Grand Island library burned books in 1905
In 1905, the public library board in Grand Island, Nebraska, ordered a number of the books in its collection, including Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, burned. The reason: scarlet fever. The burned books are detailed by date, title, and library patron in a log book included in the library’s “local library history collection.” It’s an eclectic collection of literature, research material, history books, textbooks, and local and state history books never before displayed publicly....
Grand Island (Nebr.) Independent, Mar. 30

Winthrop’s champion of reading
As dean of library services at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina, Mark Herring fears what lies ahead for books and literacy in the digital age. He points to a decline in reading and a drop in literacy and sees trouble—not just for libraries and publishers, but for the country’s collective wisdom. He sees college students who are “print allergic”—they don’t want to read. They might read on the Web—but that “snatch and grab mentality” isn’t conducive to reading deeply....
Charlotte (N.C.) Observer, Mar. 30

Noontime web video revitalizes lunches
In cubicles across the country, lunchtime has become the new prime time, as workers click aside their spreadsheets to watch videos on YouTube, news highlights on CNN.com, or other web offerings. The trend—part of a broader phenomenon known as video snacking—is turning into a growth business for news and media companies, which are feeding the lunch crowd more fresh content. Better still, marketers have found that consumers are 30% more likely to make a purchase after viewing an advertisement at lunchtime than at other times of the day....
New York Times, Jan. 5

Coming soon, to a flat surface near you
Pint-size digital projectors are in the works. These devices, when plugged into cellphones and portable media players, will let consumers beam video content from their hand-held devices to the closest smooth surface—entertaining themselves, annoying their neighbors, and possibly contributing to a new warning sign: “No Projectors in This Area.” The microprojectors, still in prototype, use light-emitting diodes, lasers, or a combination of the two to cast a display of up to 60 inches in darkened spaces and 7–20 inches when there is ambient light....
New York Times, Mar. 30

Tune in at the library
Jenny Levine writes: “Watching TV shows in real-time on an actual television set may be down, but my sense is that it has shifted to other media and become a niche market. Viewing habits are changing, and the current debate about bandwidth issues and filtering of social-networking sites is just a prelude to the coming controversy about watching longer-form video on library computers. Expect to see this soon, as more and more people start using our computers to watch whole shows, movies (Hulu offers several free ones), and live events.”...
The Shifted Librarian, Mar. 28

Woopra tracks your blog visitors in real time
Want to talk to the people visiting your blog in real time via a chat request? That’s just one of the features of new stats/analytics startup Woopra. Think Google Analytics or Nuconomy, but in real time. The product includes real time statistics (“tiny details on every single visit and/or visitor, where they came from, what pages they visited, what keywords they used”), and chatting with users on the site at any time (and tagging them for future identification). Cali Lewis interviewed the founder at Wordcamp Dallas....
TechCrunch, Mar. 30

91 utilities to supercharge Windows
PC Magazine’s 2008 collection of utility software is all about tweaking, manipulating, and dominating the looks and functionality of Windows XP and Vista. These 91 tools provide all the help you need to control Windows. After the top five utilities, the products are arranged by file organization, appearance, compression and encryption, file transfer, disk utilities, backup, system monitors, tweakers, displays, remote access, start-up/shutdown, installers, recovery and shredders, virtual PCS, search, browser boosters, and widgets....
PC Magazine, Mar. 7

50 questions to evaluate the quality of your website
Carsten Cumbrowski writes: “Here is a list of questions that you should ask about your own website. If the answer to every question that follows can be answered with yes, you can consider your site the top of the crop, because most have flaws for a number of different reasons, mostly related to the limitation of resources.”...
Search Engine Journal, Feb. 20

Slidecasting vs. screencasting
Polly Farrington demonstrates the uses and advantages of slidecasting over screencasting in this effective slidecast (9:19). Basically, slidecasting is a screen capture presentation with an MP3 voice narration synchronized with the slides. Farrington discusses the software you need and walks you through the steps....
Pafa.net, Mar. 22

Study group recommends copyright law changes
After nearly three years of intensive work, the independent Section 108 Study Group has issued its report and recommendations (PDF file) on exceptions to copyright law to address how libraries, archives, and museums deal with copyrighted materials in fulfilling their missions in the digital environment. The Library of Congress convened the group under the auspices of the U.S. Copyright Office and the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program. The report will serve as the basis on which legislation may be drafted and recommended to Congress....
Library of Congress, Mar. 31

Spread the word with DTV transition wallpaper
With a little help from ALA, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration has created this Digital Television Transition wallpaper that can be used on public internet terminals. Help spread the word about the coming transition by simply saving the image to your public computers and making it the wallpaper or background. Then everyone who uses the computers will be reminded that on February 17, 2009, all broadcast television will go digital....
District Dispatch, Mar. 28

Book groups urge Congress to pass NSL reform
Organizations representing booksellers, librarians, publishers, and writers released an open letter April 1 calling on Congress to pass legislation that will restore the safeguards for reader privacy that were eliminated by the USA Patriot Act. In the letter (PDF file), ALA, the American Booksellers Association, the Association of American Publishers, and PEN American Center urged approval of the National Security Letters Reform Act (S. 2088 and H.R. 3189)....
District Dispatch, Apr. 1

NIH seeks comments on public access policy
The National Institutes of Health is asking for public comments on its planned implementation of a new policy, signed into law at the end of 2007, that would require its grantees to publish the results of their studies in the National Library of Medicine’s PubMed Central database within 12 months of publication. The NIH will take public comments about the policy through May 31, and it plans to publish results and analysis from the comment period on September 30. Interested libraries and others can leave their comments on the NIH website....
National Institutes of Health, Mar. 29

ALA, ARL request appropriations for National Agricultural Library
On March 20, ALA and the Association of Research Libraries sent a letter (PDF file) to the Honorable Rosa DeLauro, chairwoman of the U.S. House of Representatives’ Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development, and Related Agencies—a part of the Committee on Appropriations— requesting necessary appropriations for the National Agricultural Library....
District Dispatch, Apr. 1

Final report from NCLIS (PDF file)
The final report of the U.S. National Commission on Library and Information Services, Meeting the Information Needs of the American People, was released in late March. Commission Chair C. Beth Fitzsimmons writes in the introduction: “the report needed to serve two functions: (1) to document the history and accomplishments of the Commission, and (2) to remind the public and those who take up this mantle that the work of the Commission is not done. A compelling future agenda for information policy research and development is also presented.”...
National Commission on Library and Information Services, March

Shakespeare quartos to go digital
The Shakespeare Quartos Archive, a freely-accessible, high-resolution digital collection of the 75 pre-1641 quarto editions of Shakespeare’s plays, is one of five transatlantic collaborations awarded the first JISC/NEH Transatlantic Digitization Collaboration Grants. The announcement was made by National Endowment for the Humanities Chairman Bruce Cole during an event at the Folger Shakespeare Library March 25. The Archive will make these earliest quartos freely accessible for in-depth study to Shakespeare students across the globe....
Folger Shakespeare Library, Mar. 26

Privacy of student library records
Christopher Harris writes: “A parent walks into the library and asks to review her/his child’s school library records. Do you share them? Quick: What is the answer? The parent is waiting (and growing irate!). State laws and school policies vary, but probably the safe answer is: ‘If you wish to review your child’s library records, please submit a written request for access through the school office.’ With student privacy involved, it is probably best to pause and have the request come through official channels.”...
Infomancy, Mar. 28

School Libraries Work! edition 3
For the last four years Scholastic has been updating and publishing School Libraries Work!, the research that proves the school library positively affects student achievement. Since 2004 more than 200,000 copies have been distributed. The downloadable 24-page document (PDF file) contains the results of research from 19 states and one Canadian province and provides the backbone for your arguments in support of additional resources that will make a difference for your students....
The FISH Bits, Mar. 28

How to identify substantive news articles
Research Minutes is a series for undergraduate students at Cornell University covering library research topics. This segment (1:58) discusses how to recognize and find substantive news articles—news about politics, economics, the sciences, the arts, and other topics of current interest. The script was written by Michael Engle. Another Research Minute covers identifying scholarly journal articles....
YouTube, Feb. 28

New York City’s coolest culinary librarian
The IgoUgo Travel Blog has an interview with New York Public Library Social Sciences Bibliographer Rebecca Federman, who works with the library’s culinary collection, both the cookbooks and the historic restaurant menu collection: “One of my favorite menus is an Air India breakfast menu that was Jacqueline Kennedy’s when she flew from Rome to Delhi. It’s beautiful. There is another simple bill of fare menu from 1899 with a banana on it that I also love: It’s very Andy Warhol/Velvet Underground.” Federman has her own blog, Cooked Books....
IgoUgo Travel Blog, Mar. 31

10 questions every blogger should ask before posting
Damien Van Vroenhoven writes: “Here are some important questions for bloggers to ask themselves so they can make an honest, constructive, and critical appraisal of their work before posting it up for the world to see. Asking these simple questions could mean the difference between a hastily written blog article that remains obscure and a well-written, influential, and accessible blog that courts a loyal audience with ease.”...
Copyblogger, Mar. 12

Library filters: Our Library, Our Choice
The Lewis and Clark Library System in Edwardsville, Illinois, has created this video (5:11) that makes the case for keeping the choice to use internet filters in the hands of librarians and the communities they serve. It features six LCLS librarians, who talk about CIPA, whether filters work, privacy issues, and public education....
YouTube, Mar. 24

One library’s NLW video contest
Hastings (Nebr.) College’s Perkins Library is celebrating National Library Week 2008 (April 13–19) by hosting a YouTube contest. This video announcement invites students, staff, and faculty to submit 1-3 minute videos illustrating how they use the library. The video was created by Hastings College Senior Kelsey Knehans and features “Library Song,” used with permission of Michael Mark and Tom Chapin....
Hastings College, Perkins Library

ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, California, June 26–July 2. Will this be your first time at an ALA conference? Find out more about ALA structure, how to get involved, and where to get yourself oriented.

James Frey, author of the memoirs A Million Little Pieces and My Friend Leonard, will engage in a conversation with American Libraries Editor-in-Chief Leonard Kniffel as part of the Auditorium Speaker Series, Sunday, June 29, 1:30–2:30 p.m.

To enhance your 2008 El día de los niños/El día de los libros celebration, First Book is offering a special collection of Spanish and bilingual books. Find out how to register your Día program to access these resources for free or for a reduced price.

Learn how to celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month (April), led by the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.