WebJunction

Rural Library Sustainability Update - April 2007

We are pleased to announce that you are one of the 4800+ library staffers who receive WebJunction's Rural Update! Many of you are trainers, coordinators or participants of the Rural Library Sustainability workshops, and many more have joined this growing community of practice of library advocates committed to sustaining the great work of rural and small libraries! Thank you for all you do!!

In Focus Webinar: TechAtlas for the Rural Library

Each month the Rural Library Sustainability Project is presenting an hour-long webinar related to the work of sustaining Rural and Small libraries. Join us next on April 24, 10:00 AM PDT/1:00 PM EDT, when we discuss TechAtlas for the Rural Library. Technology is constantly changing. Planning ahead can feel impossible when it’s hard to catch-up with what is happening today. Luckily, tools exist that can help you stay on top of your library’s technology, present and future. In this webinar, we will talk about TechAtlas, a free, online technology planning tool for libraries. Hear how rural libraries around the country are using it. Learn how-to get started in your library. Make 2007 the year you take control of your library’s technology! Moderated by Brenda Hough, Technology Coordinator, Northeast Kansas Library System (NEKLS), with special guest Kendra Morgan, WebJunction's TechAtlas Outreach Specialist. Beginning in April, we will be using WebJunction's new web conferencing tool, Live Space for our webinars. We've updated the information on joining the webinars and will continue to post webinar archives and quick links at Rural In Focus.

Hot Topic Review: The Social Library

There have been so many interesting discussions and presentations related to Social Software and what many are calling Library 2.0, that we've decided to highlight some links for you this month. February's Rural In Focus webinar, Social Software and the Rural Library provided many quick links and inspired lots of great discussion about new social software tools including Instant Messaging, Flickr, YouTube and MySpace! Libraries for the Future presented a webinar recently on the topic and has passed on lots of great resources and answered questions about the topic on their blog Second Circ: Library Marketing 2.0. It was shared during the this session that Bill Drew has started up a new network for librarians and others interested in Library 2.0 at http://library20.ning.com/.  And then, some of you may have heard about the exciting Learning 2.0 training that's been going on at the Charlotte & Mecklenburg County public library in North Carolina. Check out this article about Helene Blowers in Wired...she's the brains behind this great project that has helped staff around the world get up to speed on all the new web technologies our patrons are using AND have fun while doing so!

Course Highlights

Take a look at all the great learning opportunities in our Courses area, including WebJunction's Course Catalog and the E-Learning Clearinghouse. Each month we like to highlight a few of these great learning opportunities relevant to your work in rural and small libraries including the Course of the Month which is made available for the low price of $10! (WebJunction Community Partners may enroll in this course and all others in the course catalog at no cost, thanks to their state libraries). April's Course of the Month is Management Skills Introduction and coming in May, we'll feature Networking for End Users. And remember, any course you purchase through WebJunction will be made available to you for one full year. And because online learning is new to many of us, we're offering the new How to Learn Online Course! This free one hour session is designed to introduce you to the features of the electronic classroom and to build your confidence as a successful e-student. April's session is full, but it will be offered monthly through WebJunction's Live Space.

Snapshots and Snippets

We are creating a slideshow on the Rural Library Sustainability Project and would love your input. Please send us any pictures of your library, your action plan outcomes or implementation, quotes on what the project has meant to you, and the like. We will credit all photos/quotes with the library name, city and state. Please send all submissions to rural@webjunction.org.

Message Board Highlights

If you're new to WebJunction, be sure to check out Getting Around WebJunction Rural, with instructions on posting to the discussion boards.

South Dakota In Action!

It's time to highlight the great action planning from the workshop participants in the great state of South Dakota! Everyone is always free to view the state specific discussion areas and glean from the great ideas that are being generated, and so this month be sure to check out South Dakota's Action Plans. Kudos to all of the great work you're all doing for Rural and Small Libraries!