Daily Archives: March 1, 2016

Clockwise from left: AFU Director Anders Liljegren and librarian Ingrid Collberg; one of several alien models in the AFU archive; the AFU library walls, decorated with UFO book covers; UFO modeled after photos taken by US contactee George Adamski in the 1950s; The Supernatural Magazine, published in Dublin in 1809. (Photos: Clas Svahn)

Bookend: The Real X-Files

March 1, 2016

Director and archivist Anders Liljegren, who created AFU’s specialized subject classification scheme, works with Collberg and more than 20 volunteers. “Since 1973, AFU has grown from a single bookshelf to a facility used by researchers from many countries,” Liljegren says. “Ingrid’s background in working with French materials is particularly valuable.” AFU also houses 50,000 issues … Continue reading Bookend: The Real X-Files


ALA President Sari Feldman stopped by the photo booth in the ALA Lounge at Midwinter to show her support of the Libraries Transform campaign. Photo: Cognotes

Libraries Transform

March 1, 2016

The notion of telling and retelling the library story is at the heart of Libraries Transform, the American Library Association’s (ALA) new public awareness campaign. Libraries Transform is meant to give voice to the library profession, providing one clear, energizing message that showcases the transformative nature of libraries, elevating the critical role that libraries of … Continue reading Libraries Transform


Libraries Transform

Libraries Transform in a Community College

March 1, 2016

In fact, as higher education changes, as administrators redesign the educational process, as faculty refocus pedagogy, as educational vendors repurpose content, and as students and community users change how and when they learn, the community college library finds itself identifying and marketing what it already has to meet needs as well as what it redesigned … Continue reading Libraries Transform in a Community College



Librarian Carrie Rogers-Whitehead (pictured) created Salt Lake County (Utah) Library’s sensory storytimes with special activities to engage kids on the autism spectrum.

Storytime for the Spectrum

March 1, 2016

“She began crying and got very upset. She said, ‘I’m so sorry. They have autism. We don’t go to the library very much because I don’t feel welcome,’” says Rogers-Whitehead. And that was the beginning of the Salt Lake County (Utah) Library’s sensory storytime—a special program for children on the autism spectrum. Rather than exclude … Continue reading Storytime for the Spectrum



Explore Chicago Collections

All Together Now

March 1, 2016

Explore Chicago Collections is a consortium of 21 institutions located throughout the Chicago area that have pooled resources to offer a richer perspective of the city’s history. “We have all of these incredible archives and libraries here in Chicago,” says Scott Walter, university librarian at DePaul University and member of Explore Chicago Collections’ executive committee. … Continue reading All Together Now


Meredith Farkas

A Learning Organization

March 1, 2016

There is no one working in a library who wouldn’t benefit from continuous learning. At some institutions, only those in professional positions are granted time and money for professional development. This not only creates an uncomfortable divide between colleagues, it also suggests that only professionals really need to learn on the job. This couldn’t be … Continue reading A Learning Organization


Emerging Leaders Class of 2016

Emerging Leaders 2016

March 1, 2016

Initiated in 1997 as a one-year program under former ALA President Mary R. Somerville and revived in 2006 under former ALA President Leslie Burger, Emerging Leaders recognizes the best and brightest new leaders in our industry. It’s open to librarians under 35 years of age or those new to the library profession of any age … Continue reading Emerging Leaders 2016


New Routes to Library Success

New Routes to Library Success

March 1, 2016

I’m director of Curtis Memorial Library in Brunswick, Maine. As the result of being a worrywart and wanting to make sure that the library makes a successful transition to a technology-driven, digitally dominated future, I spend a great deal of time identifying and evaluating new library programs, processes, and management methods. After years of struggling … Continue reading New Routes to Library Success


Karen Muller

Understanding Acquisitions

March 1, 2016

The textbook treatment, The Complete Guide to Acquisitions Management, 2nd edition, by Frances C. Wilkinson, Linda K. Lewis, and Rebecca L. Lubas, covers the essentials of the purchasing process for monographs, serials, and digital items as well as out-of-print and antiquarian materials. Several chapters focus on industry partners in the acquisitions process: the publishers and … Continue reading Understanding Acquisitions


Trend thinking in libraries

Trend Thinking in Libraries

March 1, 2016

These changes, as subtle or significant as they may be, represent libraries’ continuing alignment with new trends and user needs. Whether it’s emerging adulthood, the unplugged and maker movements, or the growing influence of fast casual restaurants, libraries are taking advantage of trends in the larger environment and putting them to work in their spaces, … Continue reading Trend Thinking in Libraries