Kevin Merriman | American Libraries Magazine

Kevin Merriman started as director of global collections at the Center for Research Libraries in Chicago in January.

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“It’s one of the realities of the profession. On any given day, we wear all kinds of hats. We often move from one role to the next without even thinking about it. Wearing different hats is one of the reasons that many of us love library work. Every day brings something different, new challenges, and opportunities to make a difference in our communities. Finding balance isn’t only about discovering the work that brings you joy. It’s also about recognizing that you don’t have to carry everything by yourself.”

Compassionate Librarian, Aug. 7
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Courtney Pentland writes: “Every school in the country should be equipped with a specially trained, built-in literacy partner. If you do not have the benefit of a certified school librarian, the following information may inspire you to advocate on behalf of your school community to include this indispensable educator as part of your teaching faculty. If you are lucky enough to have a school librarian just down the hall from you, then these ideas may help them help you support the literacy goals for your learners.”

Knowledge Quest, Aug. 11
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M Roberts writes: “August 4 marked one year in my role at Vanderbilt. The time has flown by! One of my goals for the summer was to reflect on my first year as a librarian and to plan for the second year based on what I’d learned. Although I haven’t had as much time for that reflection as I’d hoped, for my final post as a First-Year Academic Librarian blogger, I wanted to share a few lessons learned that I’m planning to build on during the upcoming year.”

ACRLog, Aug. 10
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Lauren Quinlan writes: “Between 1893 and 1919, Andrew Carnegie gave away $60 million of his fortune to fund 1,689 public libraries across the country. These ‘Carnegie libraries’ became cultural centers in towns big and small and were instrumental in constructing the blueprint of small-town America as we know it today. These towns were often so proud of these monuments of culture that they distributed postcards celebrating the new library. Many of these postcards, along with thousands of other postcards of libraries around the world, are housed at the ALA Archives.”

ALA150, Aug. 11
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Jeff Lang writes: “For too many of us, conversations about accessibility in scholarly communication begin and end with alt text. While text descriptions are an important accommodation, they represent just one element of a much broader challenge: ensuring that research can be understood by the widest possible audience. The goal is not simply to make content available, but to communicate ideas effectively across different abilities, contexts, and modes of engagement. This is the foundation of open science and a core tenet of universities, funders, scholarly societies and many others.”

Katina, Aug. 4
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Austyn Szempruch writes: “With Florida’s homestead exemption amendment appearing poised to be voted into law in November, the Hernando County Board of County Commissioners are looking to be proactive in making the cuts necessary for staying under budget. The tentative 2027 budget was set to shutter West Hernando Library to save upwards of $500,000. Due in large part to more than a thousand emails, and the fervent opposition of more than 30 residents at the county’s special budget meeting August 6, the board unanimously voted 4–0 for a budget that included keeping the popular local library.”

Hernando (Fla.) Sun, Aug. 7
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Lauren Busser writes: “Designing a new website is about more than just aesthetics. It’s also a time to consider what is and isn’t currently working for your audience. Analytics can help you make some suggestions, but engaging your audience in the design process can help uncover aspects of your website that you’ve never considered. Over the last two years, I have been engaging the community at Fairfield (Conn.) University to aid in redesigning the DiMenna-Nyselius Library website. These are a few exercises we conducted that got us talking about ways to make meaningful change.”

Choice 360 LibTech Insights, Aug. 10

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