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John Lewis and library advocacy

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Dewey Decibel Podcast

US Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) speaks to attendees at the 2013 ALA Annual Conference and Exhibition in Chicago.

US Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) . In addition to a lifetime of civil rights activism, a long career as an elected representative, and a celebrated stint as an award-winning author, Lewis was a dedicated advocate for libraries and made many appearances at American Library Association (ALA) events over the years....

AL: The Scoop, July 20; New York Times, July 17

Adrian Tomine, self-portrait

With everything from New Yorker covers to New York Times–bestselling graphic novels under his belt, cartoonist and illustrator Adrian Tomine has had a more than successful career. But his newest autobiographical book, The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist (Drawn & Quarterly, July), traces a lifetime of humiliations: disastrous book signings, rude reviews, a meal ruined by diners at an adjacent table viciously dissecting his latest work. We spoke with him about COVID, craving loneliness, and libraries....

American Libraries feature, July 21

Dewey Decibel: Libraries and Sustainability

In 2019, ALA added sustainability as one of the  of librarianship. Libraries across the US are working to reduce their environmental footprint and raise awareness about resilience, climate change, and a sustainable future. In Dewey Decibel talks with librarians who are implementing sustainable practices in both their libraries and their lives....

AL: The Scoop, July 17; ALA News, May 14, 2019

AL Live ad

Board book test sample

As part of the Reopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums (REALM) Project’s Phase 1 research on COVID-19, Battelle studied how long some commonly handled materials—including Braille paper pages, magazines, and board books—would need to be quarantined before safely returning to circulation. After four days of quarantine in a stacked configuration, the virus was not detectable on the Braille pages, glossy book pages, and board book, but the magazine pages showed a trace amount of virus. ....

OCLC WebJunction, July 20

surgical mask

Alex Harrington writes: “As a medical school library, we already have students beginning a new academic year. Between nurse, PA, and MD programs, residents, and the nonstop functioning of a hospital we support, we knew we would be among the early returners—the guinea pigs, if you will. Some upsides: The majority of our user base is already accustomed to wearing surgical masks for long periods of time, so I imagine we’re correcting mask protocol less often than we would have to elsewhere.”...

ACRLog, July 17

Students were asked what school they expected to attend before the pandemic and after. (Source: "COVID-19 Student Survey" from the California Student Aid Commission)

A survey of college-bound students in California has found that four in five have had to change their plans because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project was initiated by the California Student Aid Commission and the California Education Lab at University of California–Davis, funded by the College Futures Foundation. Impacts of the virus were immediate. The survey found that 71% had lost some or all of their income due to COVID-19, 46% had their living arrangements change, and 24% dropped courses during the spring college term....

Campus Technology, July 20

Latest Library Links

US Census Bureau logo

More than 3,000 US Census Bureau staff will begin going into communities with the lowest 2020 Census response rates to encourage and assist people with responding on their own to the 2020 Census. This operation, known as the Mobile Questionnaire Assistance program, is a separate activity from census takers going door to door to count households that have not yet responded. MQA is part of the Census Bureau’s final push to encourage people to complete the 2020 Census before the Nonresponse Followup operation begins nationwide on August 11....

US Census Bureau, July 14

Peters Township (Penn.) Public Library's Harry Potter-themed escape room.

Aliya Chaudhry writes: “On the day the Peters Township Public Library in McMurray, Pennsylvania, was supposed to unveil a superhero-themed escape room, the library had to close its doors due to the coronavirus pandemic. With no physical location to work with, librarian Sydney Krawiec started to devise an alternative: a digital escape room created in Google Forms.”...

The Verge, July 15

StoryWalk Ashland (Photo: Ashland Public Library Facebook page)

With most of its programming canceled due to COVID-19, Ashland (Ohio) Public Library teamed up with Ashland County Park District to add a StoryWalk display to Byers Woods, which debuted July 14. A series of 16 signs on wooden posts tell the story of The Sandcastle That Lola Built by Megan Maynor. The library also plans to install a shorter story when a new quarter-mile paved trail is completed at the Ashland Fire Company Nature Cabin....

Ashland (Ohio) Times-Gazette, July 17

ALA news and press releases

Image from the Anthology of Baysunghur (Berenson Collection) in the Digital Library of the Middle East

On July 15 the Council on Library and Information Resources and Stanford Libraries announced the release of a public, open platform for the , which aims to become one of the world’s largest online archives of Middle Eastern and North African artifacts. The DLME aggregates, through an ongoing program, digital records of published materials, documents, maps, artifacts, audiovisual recordings, and more from the Middle East and North Africa region....

Council on Library and Information Resources, July 15

Stack of books with green spines from Karin Greenberg's bookstagram account

Karin Greenberg writes: “For the past three years, as I’ve incorporated Google Suite, Canvas, Kahoot, and other interactive digital tools into my library practice, I’ve seen firsthand how technology can benefit my school community. During the quarantine, my technological skills helped me communicate with staff and students to provide instruction, book lists, videos, and research information. The most exciting pursuit for me while in lockdown, though, was starting .”...

Knowledge Quest, July 21

origami Yoda

Mihir Patkar writes: “Children need to learn, play, and stay active for well-rounded growth. These free websites for activities, crafts, and arts for kids will ensure they stay occupied while growing their skills and knowledge.”...

Make Use Of, July 18

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