Notable Dates:
Resources:
The Online With Libraries (OWL) program is happy to announce the hire of Kyle Williams as OWL’s new Video Support Technician. Kyle is based in Fairbanks at University of Alaska Video Services but is dedicated to OWL Videoconferencing. He started the week of January 21st and is reaching out to libraries that used their video endpoints in FY 2019. After that, he’ll be working on the remaining endpoints. We are THRILLED to have him working. While any full-time help is great, Kyle is showing himself to be hardworking and well organized.
We resumed limited videoconferencing services awhile back and hope to have full operations restored this month. If your library hasn’t been contacted by Kyle yet and you want to talk about resuming videoconferencing, please contact Daniel Cornwall at Daniel.cornwall@alaska.gov.
For those wondering, Kyle is not the OWL Librarian I we are in the process of recruiting. More on that in a future Friday Bulletin.
The Alaska State Archives recently revamped their Digitized Collections page. This page is a good source of primary materials of interest to students, genealogists and historians. A brief sample of materials and/or their finding aids linked from this page:
As part of the activity surrounding the introduction of the Alaska Reads Act, the Department of Education and Early Development (DEED) has been highlighting how educators are supporting reading. We see staff from libraries, archives and museums as educators We especially see library staff as people who promote reading.
If you or your institution has been actively supporting the reading of K-12 students, we strongly encourage you to let DEED know by tagging @alaskaDEED on social media, using #akreads as a hashtag, or emailing Rochelle.lindley@alaska.gov. For one example of how educators support reading, view the January 31, 2020 DEED Information Exchange.
Every two years, the Alaska State Library conducts a statewide continuing education survey for library staff to share their thoughts and concerns about their ongoing professional development needs. The results of the survey will be used to help us improve our services and assist in developing relevant and meaningful library workshops, online courses and resources. Please take a few minutes to complete the survey, see the following https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/2020ASLCE
The deadline to complete the survey is March 1, 2020.
A great big thank you to everyone that has already completed the survey.
From our friends at the Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI):
Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) has published a new podcast in an effort to support Native language revitalization efforts and to provide another tool for those in the field.
“Roots & Stems” will feature interviews with language educators sharing their experiences in language learning and community. The first episode debuted today and features a poignant interview with language professor Dr. X̱'unei Lance Twitchell, who shares his journey, the hardships and the life-altering rewards of learning a Native language, and his vision for language revitalization. Twitchell was interviewed by SHI’s Katrina Hotch, a language specialist.
SHI launched the program to capture some of the wisdom of educators and traditional scholars who pass through the institute, said SHI President Rosita Worl.
“We videotape and post online lectures given by experts in the field of language revitalization, but we envision the podcast as a way to dive a bit deeper—to interview them about their work and journey in this field and to share that with others,” Worl said.
For more, see SHI releases new language podcast, Roots & Stems.
If your institution is supporting Native language revitalization efforts, we want to hear from you!
The Fairbanks Daily News Miner recently reported on the appearance of Tri-Valley (Healy) School Librarian Martha Tomeo in the graphic novel Plants vs. Zombies: War and Peas. She won a publisher contest, which got her school a complete set of the series and was drawn into “War and Peas.” Ms Tomeo appears alongside real-life librarians from Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Michigan.
The bulk of the article is about the successful sounding Guys Read Gals Read in the Fairbanks area. Thanks for Martha Tomeo and other librarians who help #akreads.
Source: Tri-Valley librarian appears in graphic novel. By Kris Capps. Fairbanks Daily News Miner, 1/28/2020, p. A3.
Because we’re on their mailing list, we recently got an e-mailed newsletter from the Kodiak History Museum/Kodiak Historical Society. It came with the intriguing title – Connecting with the Collections: How Donations Become Part of the Kodiak Historical Collections in 10 steps.
A very abbreviated and paraphrased (any mistakes are ours) version of their list is:
You’ll want to contact the Kodiak History Museum at info@kodiakhistorymuseum.org for the full article. We really appreciate this outreach to donors and would love the share the process of other institutions. If you have something to share, let us know.
The January 2020 issue of the Gustavus Public Library Newsletter tapped into the power of the “taking stock and resolving” so many of us do at the beginning of a new year. Here’s how they invited people to channel that energy at the library:
It’s the start of a new year; a time to reflect back on where we’ve been, and look ahead toward what’s to come. How can the library help you achieve your goals in the coming year? Want to learn about boat build-ing? Take your driver’s test? Start an online class? Read a book every month? Learn a new language? Tell us what you need to succeed! We would love to help you get the resources you need, show you how to access information, or work with you to start something new and awesome for the community at the library.
Do you have an example of how your institution is trying to use a holiday or societal trend to draw people into your doors? Send it our way!
The Cordova Times recently reported on the third annual Ilanka Cultural Center Membership Drive Dinner which featured and honored Alaska Native artists. According to the article:
The event began at the Cordova Center, where attendees dined on a variety of traditional Native cuisine including staples such as frybread and baked salmon. Afterward, attendees adjourned to the North Star Theatre, where they viewed a performance by the Cordova Ikumat Dancers. This was followed by a series of documentary short films and presentations on artists Sean O’Brien, Diana Reidel, Sylvia Lange, Gloria Cunningham and Mike Webber.
Source: Banquet honors Native artists. By Zachary Snowdon Smith. Cordova Times (web), 1/25/2020.
The Government Publishing Office is sponsoring a webinar on resources that may help you help patrons with health conditions and/or common disabilities:
Webinar: Traveling with a Disability / Health Condition
Register to attend the live training webinar, "Traveling with a Disability / Health Condition."
When: Wednesday, 2/26/2020, 10-11am Alaska (2-3pm Eastern)
Speaker: Dina Abramson, Disability Information & Referral Coordinator, Texas Talking Book Program / Texas State Library and Archives Commission
Learning outcomes: This webinar will provide mainly government information regarding national and international travel, including accessible travel by airplane, bus, and train. The webinar will also cover accessibility information for places such as national parks and museums.
From our friends at the 9th Circuit:
Did you know high school students from Alaska won first place for the Ninth Circuit Civics Contest in 2017 and 2019? The Ninth Circuit encompasses the federal jurisdiction of Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands. It is a huge swath of the country and Alaska has been taking home civics contest prizes regularly. It is a tremendous feather in a high school student’s cap but difficult to spread the word past Anchorage.
Please help share information around Alaska that this is a neat opportunity for high school students. The deadline for submissions is March 25, 2020. In the last few years, the contest rules have allowed for either written or video submissions.
More information can be found: https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/civicscontest/.
Students with questions can email me at anna_russell@lb9.uscourts.gov
From our friends at Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition:
Washington, D.C. (January 31, 2020) - Today the Schools, Health & Libraries Broadband (SHLB) Coalition released its 2020 Policy Roadmap, (just 3 pages long) outlining the path forward for community anchor institution (CAI) broadband. Schools, libraries, healthcare providers, and other CAIs rely on high-quality broadband to provide essential services to their communities. It is imperative that policymakers, industry, and anchor institutions collaborate to connect all CAIs to affordable, gigabit broadband – a key step in closing the digital divide.
The SHLB Coalition will pursue the following policy priorities in 2020:
A recent blog post from Screenagers highlights a development that has been reported elsewhere: Instagram is testing hiding likes on posts in the United States and several other countries. According to the Screenagers blog, affected accounts will get this message:
Testing a Change to How You See Likes
We want followers to focus on what you share, not how many likes your posts get. During this test, only you will be able to see the total number of likes on your posts.
When someone in this tests group looks at their Instagram feed, they will only be able to tell that likes were given to their friends’ posts but not the number. It’s hoped that removing public views of likes will lower stress levels by removing incentive to try and game what will get the most likes.
For more, read Instagram is hiding likes. Screenagers blog, 1/7/2020.
This feature is still in the testing phase. If it’s shown up in your personal or institutional Instagram feed, we’d like to hear what you thought about the change.
Below are annual events and observances that happen in March that we believe are of likely interest to Alaskans in general or to staff in libraries, archives and museums:
Month long observances
Week long observances
Specific day observances
Conferences
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