Monday, September 9, 2013

September 2013

 



Friends, Guilds, Associations & Partnership Contact:  Carol Van Baalen

Friends Day in October
Join us at the KCLS Service Center on Saturday, October 26th from 8:30am-1pm for Friends Day, our annual celebration of the Association, Friend and Guild members who give so much to the King County Library System.  The day starts with a get acquainted coffee and some introductory remarks. Attend seminars on holiday cooking, healthy food, and cookbooks and food memoir. Join us for brunch provided by the KCLS Foundation and celebrate the Foundation Awards for Lifetime Achievement and Friend of the Year. The morning will end with historian Tames Alan presentation, Dining at Downton, a Trial by Fork and prizes.
Bring nonperishable food to share with local food banks and come in vintage costume if you like! There is a place for everyone with Friends Around the Table. RSVP at http://www.kcls.org/friendsday.

Local News

Books for Sale!
This is Used Book Sale month at the Kent and Des Moines Libraries.  Thousands of donated books, paperback and hardcover, will be offered for sale at the annual used book sales.  All proceeds go to support library programs at the local branch.  Don’t miss these opportunities to find some good reading for the winter months, and support your local library at the same time.




Friends of the Des Moines Library Annual Used Book Sale:
Friday, September 13 and Saturday, September 14                          10am-5pm

Friends of the Kent Library Annual Used Book Sale:
Friday, September 20 and Saturday, September 21                          10am-5pm
Sunday, September 22                                                                                  1-3pm

Upcoming Meetings:
Des Moines-Woodmont Library Advisory Board                                Thursday, September 26, Des Moines Library


Kids Day at the Market
Saturday, September 14, from 10am-2pm, library staff and Friends of the Library will have a booth at the Des Moines Farmers Market.  They will have crafts and giveaways for the kids, as well as information about library cards and events.  The Farmers Market is located at the north end of the Des Moines Marina.  Check it out if you are in the area!



Director’s Report
The KCLS Foundation made a strategic donation that has helped KCLS greatly enhance the “Let’s Read” program. As mentioned in previous reports, KCLS is partnering with several cities and school districts to send library staff to summer nutrition sites at schools, housing complexes and community centers in south King County. Occasionally, staff is able to take Library2Go vehicles. However, since many kids don’t have their library cards and the technology (at present) makes it difficult to connect to our circulation system, the kids can’t checkout library materials. The money donated by the Foundation provides books for a wide range of age groups that staff will give away at the end of the “Let’s Read” summer programs. For many kids, these books are the first they’ve ever owned and have helped connect them to reading and the library.
The opening celebration of the Federal Way 320th Library is scheduled for Saturday, September 28 at 9:30am. The Library is very different from other KCLS libraries. High windows on the southeast side of the Library step down to a band of windows along the bottom perimeter of the building. The building is clad in metal that will eventually develop a weathered, steel patina. The Library is the first in the system to utilize new shelving that incorporates touch screen access to eBooks and face out display of print books. The Children’s collection will also be part of a pilot that organizes fiction and non-fiction books around various child friendly themes rather than to titles by author or the Dewey Decimal system. 
               
Circulation for the month of July increased 1% over last year. Holds placed have been rising System-wide over the last few months and were only down 1% compared to 2012. Circulation of Choice Reads will likely be about 3% of KCLS’ overall circulation this year. Choice Reads is KCLS’ collection of current paperback books that are located near the entrances of all community libraries. The collections are initially assigned to specific libraries and cannot be reserved. Over the past year, Choice Reads circulation has declined. Collections Management Services staff is constructing various models for Choice Reads collections that will allow community library staff to have some choice in the type of materials selected for these popular collections.


Teen literature continues to be a growing section of KCLS’ collection. Last year, the Pew Foundation reported that young people in America, and especially teens, are reading more. Earlier this year, Publishers Weekly reported on the rapid growth in publishing of young adult literature. Approximately 12% of KCLS’ collection budget is allocated to teen books, which has an annual  turnover of 4.5 per item compared to 3.77 for adult fiction.


The KCLS Foundation is pleased to announce the award of seven scholarships to future librarians. The scholarships provide financial support to KCLS staff members who are expanding their knowledge, skills, and horizons as they pursue their Masters of Library and Information Science degrees.  
    
The Foundation’s Scholarship Committee – Kathy Brown, Ann Ewel, Merrill Chertok and Jeanne Thorsen (all have library degrees) – interviewed the applicants in July.
   
Congratulations to these outstanding scholarship recipients:
·         Katie Burke, Public Services Assistant
University of Washington
·         Kimberly Kramer, Page
University of Washington
·         Racheal Ward, Library Assistant
Emporia State University
·         Dilrukshi Weerasekara, Library Assistant
University of South Florida
·         Debra Wilson, Page Fellow
Wayne State University
·         Hope Yeats, Library Assistant
University of Washington
·         Li Zhou, Page
University of Washington

The KCLS Foundation first awarded scholarships in 2002 and since then has awarded 64 scholarships totaling $104,950.


Carol Van Baalen
Librarian Services Manager
Des Moines - Kent - Woodmont Libraries

August 2013




Friends, Guilds, Associations & Partnership Contact: Carol Van Baalen  

Save the Date!
2013 Friends Day
Saturday, October 26, 8:30am-1pm
KCLS Service Center
960 Newport Way NW
Issaquah, WA 98027
Start at 8:30am with check-in, coffee, pastries and time to network with fellow Friends, Guild and Association members. Help celebrate the 2013 KCLS Foundation award winners.
Enjoy good food and workshops on cooking. Look at some templates created for your group.
Pick up a cookbook.
End the morning with Tames Alan’s presentation Dining at Downton: a Trial by Fork. Maybe win a prize before you go!
We look forward to seeing you there! RSVP online at kcls.org/friendsday

Local News


Des Moines Library Advisory Board president, Tony Wilson, reports to the Des Moines City Council at their meeting on July 25th.







Friends Meetings in August

Thursday, August 8, 12noon       Friends of the Kent Library
Thursday, August 8, 6:30pm       Friends of the Woodmont Library
Wednesday, August 14, 7pm       Friends of the Des Moines Library

Friends meetings are held at their respective libraries in the library meeting room.  New members are always welcome!

Friends at the Market

Look for the Friends at the Des Moines Farmers Market in August!  The Woodmont Friends will be there on Saturday, August 10, and the Des Moines Friends on Saturday, August 17.  They will have information about the Friends and the library, as well as books to sell.  The market is held from 10am-2pm at the north end of the Des Moines Marina.




Annual Book Sales Coming in September
Save the Dates!



Friends of the Des Moines Library               
Friday, September 13, 10am-5pm
Saturday, September 14, 10am-5pm
                                                         
Friends of the Kent Library               
Friday, September 20, 10am-5pm
Saturday, September 21, 10am-5pm
Sunday, September 22, 1-3pm

Both sales offer a book lover’s paradise--thousands of books at bargain prices!  All proceeds support library programs.




Director’s Report – July 2013


GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
After a contentious process that required reconvening twice, the State legislature concluded its current session with passage of a budget that includes something good for libraries. Through a partnership with Microsoft, the Washington State Library will receive funding to offer Washington residents access to Microsoft IT Academy (ITA) courses, without charge, through their local public libraries. The Washington Microsoft ITA will provide a wide range of Microsoft online courses, many of which can prepare individuals who are seeking employment in high tech positions. Microsoft ITA is currently available through school districts in the state but Washington is only the second state in the country to offer ITA courses through its public libraries.
OPERATIONS
The Washington Health Benefit Exchange selected Public Health Seattle-King County (PHSKC) as a lead assistance provider to ensure that all King County residents enroll in qualified health insurance plans established under the Affordable Care Act. Similar to tax assistance programs that have been offered successfully over the years, representatives from PHSKC will provide one-on-one assistance in twenty-nine KCLS libraries during open enrollment from October 1, 2013 through March 31, 2014

The KCLS READometer launched this month and is proving popular already. In the first two weeks, the app was downloaded by more than 500 users from 16 different countries, with a cumulative total of 20 days of reading recorded. The app is currently featured in a full-page ad in the August issue of Seattle Magazine.

The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation has awarded the KCLS Foundation a $100,000 Let’s Read: Connecting with Children in Their Communities grant. Based on its collaboration with the Community Center for Education Results (CCER) to improve academic achievement of students in south King County, the grant will allow KCLS to extend its participation in the Let’s Read! program to north King County in 2014. So far this summer, KCLS has visited over 50 Let’s Read! lunch sites connecting with children and families who are not currently visiting south end libraries.
The KCLS Foundation is pleased to announce that award-winning author Amy Tan will keynote the 2014 Literary Lions Gala on March 22 at the Bellevue Hyatt. Ms. Tan’s novels include The Joy Luck Club, The Kitchen God’s Wife, The Hundred Secret Senses, The Bonesetter’s Daughter and Saving Fish from Drowning, all award-winning, New York Times bestsellers. Her new book, The Valley of Amazement, will be published in fall 2013. Ms. Tan has also authored a memoir, two children’s books, numerous articles for magazines and a short story published in eBook format. KCLS Foundation
KCLS Foundation Executive Director Jeanne Thorsen has announced that she will retire in the fall. Starting as a page for the Spokane Public Library, Jeanne has worked in libraries since she was 16. In 1983, she joined KCLS as Public Information Coordinator until her move to the Foundation as Executive Director in 1999. Jeanne has been extremely successful in all her roles. She worked on the 1988 bond issue that funded construction of most of the libraries in the System and was the driving force behind many of the cities that annexed to KCLS in the 1990s. During her tenure, the Foundation has raised millions of dollars in support of KCLS, including construction of the Library Connection @ Southcenter and the addition of a Community Mosaic space at the soon-to-be constructed Tukwila Library. Through it all, she has cultivated a relationship between KCLS and the KCLS Foundation that is unique among library foundations for the positive connections she established with library constituents at all levels of the organization. Jeanne will be missed by all of us at KCLS.





Upcoming Meeting Dates

Planning Committee Meeting, Thursday, August 15th, noon – Burien Library
Finance Committee Meeting - Tuesday, August 27th, 4pm - Service Center
Board of Trustees Meeting - Tuesday, August 27th, 5pm –
Service Center