2011 Meeting Dates

The roundtable has planned to meet at Emmet O’Neal Library (Mountain Brook) on the following dates for 2011:

January 18th
March 29th
May 17th
July 19th
September 20th
November 15th

Topics to be covered next year will include Best Practices, visits to Vestavia and Clay, Business & Law topics, Customer Service Issues, and Serving Underserved Populations.

Reference Meeting Minutes

Below are the minutes from our most recent meeting. Please let me know if you would like to make any changes or clarifications.
Thanks!

Adult Services Roundtable

July 2010 Meeting

Reference Materials and Topics

In attendance were:

Deni Owens – Hoover

Jared Millett – BPL

Jason Baker – Trussville

Beth Hutchison – Homewood

Katie Moellering – Emmet O’Neal Library

Gina Robertson – Gardendale

John Newman – Avondale

Leslie West – Vestavia

April Wallace – Irondale

Ellen Lawrence – Springville Road

We discussed the trial offer by EBSCO for their Legal Information Reference Center. Jason Baker expressed interest and mentioned that this database might be a possible addition at the county level. The libraries were given a free trial offer for the Center which is still active.

If you would like to take a look at the database or have questions, please contact Katie Moellering (at Emmet O’Neal), as she can contact our EBSCO rep. to find answers.

We discussed various library's experiences with reducing or eliminating orders for print reference materials in the face of database offerings. We also discussed what happens when, during a budget crunch, those online materials are cancelled.

A few libraries mentioned that they are shifting some reference materials into the circulating collection for better visibility.

If you need a place to send reference books a few options were mentioned:

· Better World Books (which donates books to their partner programs around the world – see their website for more info)

· New Clay library may want some materials (although PLEASE call or email first!)

· Some libraries have had success using the APLS listserv to distribute their books to libraries (school and public) across the state.

Leslie West asked if the standards committee should look at its standards in regards to the reference collection if, in fact, many libraries are reducing the size of their reference collections.

Deni Owens mentioned that libraries should beware of a company that publishes books on demand which are nothing more than Wikipedia articles. Deni’s email to me said “The publisher that turns the Wikipedia articles into books is Books LLC. Watch out!”

She also sent a handout from Susan Spafford (Hoover) of her “must-have” reference books and/or materials.

We discussed the use of print and online materials in schools. Sometimes students come to the library stating that they need an online source but “can’t use the internet” and sometimes have difficulty understanding our databases are, in fact, legitimate sources.

Leslie West brought some of her favorite resources to share. Among them were a few books on dental care and eye care. These are favorites of hers because there are very few books available on these subjects and these particular titles, published by Omnigraphics, have a more universal lexile level.

Deni mentioned that Hoover has moved all career info to a career section with job interview/resume writing tips, etc. all in once place.

We discussed those books that frequently “disappear” i.e. G.E.D. books or in some places books on witchcraft. Bessemer used to purchase the GED books at a 40% discount then sell them to their patrons.

Another librarian stressed that we should be steering patrons to Learning Express to take tests based on various subjects.

We talked about Atlases and atlas stands as well as Opposing Viewpoints, antiques and collectibles and when we weed these particular subjects and subject areas.

Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, September 21st at 10:00 a.m. We will meet at Emmet O'Neal Library to discuss Community Outreach and Social Networking.

Next Meeting - July 27th!

The Adult Services Roundtable is gearing up for fall and the new school year - when we meet 

next Tuesday we'll discuss reference collections and materials. Please join us! As always, we will 

discuss ALL formats, programs, materials, etc. So bring any and all ideas you might have about 

your reference collection! We will meet next Tuesday, July 27th, at Emmet O'Neal Library at 

10:00 a.m.

ASRT Meeting on Book Groups

JCLC - ASRT Meeting

May 18, 2010 – Emmet O’Neal Library

10:00 a.m. – 11:30 p.m.

Book Groups!

In attendance were:

Katie Moellering – Emmet O’Neal Library

Mary Donlevy – Emmet O’Neal Library

Jared Millet – BPL

Ellen Lawrence – BPL (SR)

Beth Hutcheson – Homewood

April Wallace – Irondale

Gina Robertson – Gardendale

Theresa Davis – Hoover

Ellen Griffin Shade – BPL (AV)

Bryce Thornton – Hoover

William Darby - Eastwood

Katie Moellering opened the meeting with a reminder that the JCLC Reader's Advisory Roundtable has a blog as well where the moderator (Holley Wesley) has listed all the library book groups in the county she could find. Holley keeps this list current and book group meeting dates, times and topics can be found on the blog. If you run a book group and are not on the list, contact Holley and she can add your group! Here's where you can find the RA blog:

http://raroundtable.blogspot.com/

Katie Moellering told the group about a webinar: RA Webcast opportunity!

WEBCAST NAME: 24/7 Readers' Advisory: Multichannel Delivery of Reading Recommendations
SPONSORED BY: NoveList and Library Journal
EVENT DATE: Tuesday, May 18, 2010 at 2:00 PM EDT – 60 minutes

In the meeting we discussed several book groups and book group procedures. Theresa Davis began the meeting with an explanation of Hoover’s book club kits, how they are managed and circulated and how they are stored. The kits are stored in a file box and labeled with the contents (books, handouts, maps, discussion questions, author interviews, etc). The box itself has a barcode and the entire box can be checked out to patrons or other libraries. The box has a label which details the cost if items are lost (or if the entire kit is lost). The person who checks the kit out is responsible for the kit in case of loss or damage. There is a list inside with a place for a person’s name and contact information so that whoever checks out the kit can keep track of who borrows from it. These kits can be sent through the courier. Each kit has at least eight copies of the particular book – sometimes more depending on the size of the book. The kits checkout for six weeks. The Fiction Department has around eighty Book Club Kits while the Non Fiction Department has around ten. Theresa reported that Hoover’s website lists all the titles which can be found here:

http://www.hooverlibrary.org/book-kits

The Book Club Kits can be reserved up to one year in advance but you must contact Theresa or Andy in Hoover’s Fiction Department to reserve the kit.

Theresa also reported that she uses an email newsletter from Dearreader.com to send out Book Club picks and other information. The library currently runs three book groups (two fiction and one nonfiction). Theresa also reported they choose their books every six months.

Bryce Told us about the nonfiction group at Hoover, which appears to be the only dedicated nonfiction book group. They meet one Thursday a month from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. in the Theatre Conference Room. Bryce said in leading this group he tries to remain unbiased since so many of the books tend to have controversial topics (politics, the economy, etc). If there are no discussion questions Bryce said he writes down ideas as he reads to help generate discussion. The group is well attended and usually gets around ten people per meeting.

Katie Moellering reported that Emmet O’Neal Library currently runs three book groups – The Bookies which is the most traditional book group. They meet once a month at the library on the 2^nd Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. The attendance is usually around 12-15 members each month. The group chooses books once every six months. The library also has a Great Books discussion group which meets once a month on the 2^nd Monday at 6:30 p.m. The group uses the Great Books Discussion series. They have been meeting for a little over a year and have an attendance of around 6-8 members per month. This group moderates itself. The library staff prepares the room with coffee and snacks, makes an introducation and/or announcements, then leaves the group to have their session. The groups uses a discussion guide provided by Great Books to help with discussion. The other evening group is run by Holley Wesley it’s called The Genre Reading Group and they meet the last Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. The group decides on their genres or topics once every six months. Holley creates a ballot of topics and the group chooses their favorites. Previous topics/ genres have included: international detectives, ethnic histories, fiction with an Asian setting; Arthurian fiction and Presidential biographies. Attendance is approx. seven members per meeting. This format lends itself to a smaller group as everyone gets a chance to discuss his or her book in depth. The library has recently worked with the Botanical Gardens to help start a gardening/horticulture related book group which meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at the Botanical Gardens.

Ellen L. at Springville Road (SR) told us that Marilyn runs the SR Book Club. They choose their books one a month for the next month’s meeting. SR’s Book Club meets once a month on the 3^{rd Monday e}vening of the month at 6:30. Marilyn generally brings some titles for the group to choose from for the next month, but sometimes the group decides completely on their own what they would like to read.

Beth from Homewood reported on their book group which meets 2nd Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. They do not meet in the summer. It is currently known as Tasty Reads and food is provided at the meetings. Originally the food was meant to complement the reading for the evening, but this has devolved. Beth said that in the future the makeup and purpose of the book group may change somewhat. The Homewood group decides on titles once every six months or so and Dennis Nichols currently runs the group. Beth reported the group averages around 3-4 staff members and 3-4 members of the public at each meeting.

April told us that Irondale has a new-ish book group that is going well. She said Leslie West (VH) has been her book group mentor as Leslie has many years of successful book group experience under her belt. The Irondale group meets on the 2^nd Monday of the month at 6:30 and they plan their books six months in advance. They have had one year of meetings so far. The group began once April noticed that there was A LOT of interest in her community for a book group. Staff and patrons alike remarked on their desire for a group to meet at the library.

Gardendale has a new-ish book group as well run by Gina Robertson. The group is called The Undead Book Society and meets one Wednesday a month. It’s a little bit different in that it is aimed at women in their 20s and 30s who like to read paranormal fiction, paranormal romance, urban romance and fantasy books as well as young adult books within the same genres. They have an active presence on Facebook which is the group’s sole source of publicity other than word of mouth. The group does not ALWAYS read Undead Books as in the future they will be reading some classics, etc. Additionally, Gina fluctuates the Wednesday each month the group meets based on the number of people who will be able to attend. As the group is still small this flexibility makes for good attendance.

Ellen Lawrence and William Darby reported that they are both working on starting book groups at their respective libraries and may be calling ASRT members in the future if they have questions.

The group discussed several issues involving book groups as well including whether men attend book group meetings, if there are any teen book groups (not currently, although Emmet O’Neal plans to start one in the new school year), how we choose books and how often we choose them.

Jared talked about his opposite of a book group group which is a group for writers who meet at Hoover library once a month. If you are interested in writer’s groups contact Jared Millet!

Jared also commented that a book group men might be interested in would be one on pulp fiction. Gina Robertson commented that she felt like a Western book group would go over very well at Gardendale.

The next ASRT meeting will be July 27^th at Emmet O’Neal Library and the topic is Reference!

LexisNexis Library Express Trial

After yesterday's Library Express demo Dennis McPike, our LexisNexis rep., set up a trial for the county librarians and staff to try out. Here's the information on Library Express in case you were not able to join the webinar:
http://academic.lexisnexis.com/online-services/library-express-overview.aspx


and the link to the trial:

ID: KATIEMOELLERING

Password: 38ZKMV

URL: http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/lnpubliclibraryexpress/?leg=t

The trial is active through the end of the month.

Please try out Library Express - it's got lots of cool features and seems to have great content. I'd like to know what you think after the trial!

Katie Moellering

LexisNexis Library Express

Dennis McPike, our LexisNexis representative, has offered to show us this new LexisNexis product called Library Express. It sounds like it might be somewhat like Reference USA in content and scope, although LexisNexis does appear to have more content. 

Of course, that comes at a price!   

If you follow this link: http://academic.lexisnexis.com/online-services/library-express-overview.aspx 

you will find detailed information about the product.  The next link will take you to the web demo which will be held on Tuesday, April 6th at 10:00 a.m.  

Where: GoToMeeting 

1.  Please join my meeting. https://www1.gotomeeting.com/join/343911609  

2.  Join the conference call: 800-963-3556 #5940452  

Meeting ID: 343-911-609  

GoToMeeting® Online Meetings Made Easy(tm)   

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments, thanks! km  

Katie Moellering Adult Services Librarian Emmet O'Neal Library 205-445-1118 www.eolib.org 

ASRT - Language Learning Edition

This past Tuesday Emmet O'Neal Library hosted representatives from both Gale and Recorded Books. They gave us an overview of their products as well as free trials so we can do some online language learning of our own!
Mike Poynter from Recorded Books spoke first about their resource called BYKI. The free trial information is here:

http://library.transparent.com/skipjacklibrary/flashcards/login

Please also see the attached link:

http://www.recordedbooks.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=rb.bykionline_lib_all

Username: emmet1 Password: test1 Start Date: 03/12/10 End Date: 03/26/10

Username: emmet2 Password: test2 Start Date: 03/12/10 End Date: 03/26/10

Username: emmet3 Password: test3 Start Date: 03/12/10 End Date: 03/26/10

Username: emmet4 Password: test4 Start Date: 03/12/10 End Date: 03/26/10

***Please keep in mind these trial IDs are shared, so you will see other people's work as well as your own - this is JUST meant to give us an idea of BYKI and its resources***

Mike also sent me additional passwords. These have an extended date for the trial (the 31st of March) and can be found here:

Dear Library,

Thank you for your interest in byki Online Library Edition, our new web-based language subscription service. Below are the usernames and passwords you requested which will allow you to use the service on a trial basis. The service is accessible through the following URL:

http://library.transparent.com/skipjacklibrary/flashcards/login

Please also see the attached link:

http://www.recordedbooks.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=rb.bykionline_lib_all

Username: jeffersonco1 Password: test1 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco2 Password: test2 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco3 Password: test3 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco4 Password: test4 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco5 Password: test5 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco6 Password: test6 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco7 Password: test7 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

Username: jeffersonco8 Password: test8 Start Date: 03/17/10 End Date: 03/31/10

After Mr. Poynter we heard from Kathy Tran of Gale about their language learning resource called Powerspeak. A few weeks ago she sent out a link to a free trial which I posted in a previous blog post, but here it is again for convenience sake! This link includes the ESL version of Powerspeak:

http://access.gale.com/k12trial/go/?key=19442_JEFFCO-OP

At our meeting I also reminded our members about other online language learning resources, in particular those that we have on our JCLC Databases: BBC Languages and LiveMocha. We talked about Rosetta Stone and Aurolog which we have also used. I would also remind you about Mango Languages which is another for fee resource that we could try out if there is interest.

Also, Recorded Books does offer their language learning resource in USB format. So far a few JCLC libraries have tried them out.

We briefly discussed the chats offered at Hoover which have been popular. They are led by a moderator and all chats are conducted in the given language. For instance, on Italian night patrons drop by the library for a chat in Italian. These have been so popular there have been requests for multiple languages several times a month.

We discussed libraries that have resources in foreign languages. Both Birmingham Public (Central) and Hoover have resources in Spanish. BPL also has resources in Chinese and Russian.

If you have any thoughts on language learning and resources, please leave them in the comments!

In attendance at the meeting were:

Katie Moellering Emmet O'Neal Library

Mary Donlevy Emmet O'Neal Library

Nancy Klasterka - Hoover

April Wallace - Irondale

Caleb West - Central (BPL)

Jiemin Fan - Central (BPL)

Alice Singleton - Hoover

Dianne Clark - Bessemer

Ruth McCarroll - Bessemer

Jason Baker - Trussville

Leslie West - Vestavia Hills

Ellen Lawrence - BPL Springville Road

Shanae King - Hoover

Mondretta Williams - Leeds

Recorded Books Webinar

This post is intended to be informational only and is in no way and endorsement of the product. I just wanted to let everyone know about this webinar - see below!

Also, just to let you know, Mike Poynter from Recorded Books will be at the ASRT meeting on March 16th to do a 45 minute presentation on BYKI. We will discuss other language learning AND foreign language resources at that meeting as well.

-Katie Moellering

Recorded Books is pleased to announce the launch of our new online language learning system – Byki Online Library Edition. Byki (Before You Know It) Online is the most feature rich, effective and easy to use online language learning system available to public libraries today. Using the same core learning technology used by the US government, Byki Online will deliver results fast and bring users back to continue their learning time and time again.

Features of Byki Online:

• 80+ language options and ESL
• Remote patron access
• Easy, highly effective learning method
• Pronunciation analysis
• Multiple learning activities
• Individual progress tracking and library administrative portal

In this short, 45 minute webinar we will explain how the system works, demonstrate the program live and answer your questions! Space is limited so sign up today.

Register for a session now
by clicking a date below:
Wed, Feb 3, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EST
Wed, Feb 10, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EST
Wed, Feb 17, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EST
Wed, Feb 24, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EST
Wed, Mar 3, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EST
Wed, Mar 10, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EST
Wed, Mar 17, 2010 2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EDT

Once registered you will receive an email confirming your registration with information you need to join the Webinar.

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows^® 2000, XP Home,
XP Pro, 2003 Server, Vista

Macintosh^®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS^® X 10.4 (Tiger^®) or newer

Adult Programming Presentation Details Below!

The information below is intended to be a springboard for brainstorming. I have listed topics and possible program ideas based on my own past experience and from other libraries in the Jefferson County Library Cooperative. Links have been added where possible.
Enjoy!

Katie Moellering
Emmet O'Neal Library
Mountain Brook, AL



Adult Programming: Basics & Beyond

Basics:
• Book Groups
o General (all read same book)
o Genre (choose one genre or topic and discuss different titles)
o Specific (Great Books, Classics, Prize Winners, Mysteries, etc)
o Specific Subject (mysteries, gardening, sci-fi, etc)
o Scholars’ Series (with or without travel and/or stipend)


• Author Events & Signings
o Southern Voices
o Alabama Bound
o Murder In the Magic City
o Local Authors
o Fundraisers (BIG name authors!)


• Summer Reading for Adults
o Register @ children’s signup day
o Register @ adult desk throughout the summer
o Prizes weekly
o One large prize
o Fun programs and/or activities throughout the summer

• Big Read!


Beyond:
• Business
o Resume Writing Workshops
 Including job skills, interview skills, cover letters, etc.
o Collaboration with Chamber of Commerce
 How to open a business in your city
 Continuing Ed. Programs for business owners
o Database Training on Business Databases
o Finance/Bookkeeping for a small business


• Humanties (Art, Literature, Languages)
o Brown Bag
o Bad Art Night
o Trivia Night (trivia teams compete for prizes or money)
o Art Openings
o Adult Spelling Bee!
o Language Roundtable/Exhange
o Pop culture – vampires!
o Film Festivals
 Horror Movie Marathon
 Christmas Movie Double Feature
 Food Movement Films
 Romance Film Festival
 Jane Austen Film Festival
o Writing/Writer’s Groups
o Poetry Slam/Open Mic Night
o Book Preview Programs
o Paperback book swap and book-talk
o Crafts
 How to programs on knitting, crochet, sewing basics, cardmaking, scrapbooking, jewelry making, home décor, etc.
 Altered Book Workshop (to make journals/scrapbooks/photo albums/calendar/planner etc.)
o Genealogy program
 How to use online services
 Local holdings
 How to get started
 Advanced topics


Science:
• Gardening
o Master Gardener’s Program
o Organic Gardening
o Cooperative Extension Agents (Sallie Lee)
• Stargazing with local astronomy professor or expert
• Weather
• Birding (Audobon Society Speaker / Neighborhood Bird Watch)
• Conservation & Ecology
o Building Green/Remodeling Green


Personal & Home Economics:
• Personal Finance
o Budgeting
o Paying off debt
o Saving
o Investing
o Buying a home or rental property
o Timeshares (see travel planning)
• Home Economics
o Home Organization
o Chicken Keeping 
o Scheduling tips & resources
o Biggest Loser
o Yoga
o Travel Planning (Foreign Travel, Local Destinations, DisneyWorld!)
o Afternoon Tea (could be Literature based)
o On Becoming A Vegetarian
o Eating/Cooking/Buying Local and/or Organic
o Using your camera (digital or traditional) and online storage of photos
• Cooking
o Cookie Swap
o Pizza Tasting (blind tasting with award)
o International Food Day
o Slow Food Movement

Publicity:
• Eventkeeper
• The Birmingham News
• Over the Mountain Journal
• Black & White
• Birmingham Weekly
• Portico
• Thicket
• Alabama Home & Garden
• Alabama Gardener
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Blog
• Activeculture
• Posters
• Flyers
• Calendar
• Local Businesses
• Email
• Bibliographies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Resources:

Alabama Humanities Foundation

Adult Services Roundtable Blog

Library Success Stories/Best Practices for Adult Programming

American Library Association’s Public Programs Office (with grant opportunities)

The Programming Librarian

Adult Reading Incentive Programs On A Shoestring Budget

Adult Services Programming

Hi All!

We met recently to discuss adult programming in the various Jefferson County Libraries. Below are the results of our meeting:

Adult Services Roundtable Meeting

January 19, 2010

Topic: Adult Programming

In attendance:

Katie Moellering Emmet O’Neal Library

Patricia Guarino Hoover

Susan Spafford Hoover

Dianne Clark Bessemer

Leslie West Vestavia Hills

April Wallace Irondale

Shanae King Hoover

Robin Cherry Hoover

Bryce Thornton Hoover

Ellen Lawrence Springville Road

Leigh Wilson North Birmingham

The meeting began with a discussion of a proposal offered from Lexis Nexis representative Dennis McPike regarding Lexis Nexis Library Express. In an email from Mr. McPike to Pat Ryan, Mr. McPike states that he believes the new Library Express database will be able to expand JCLC’s current content in the news and business areas while adding a complete online law library. Mr. McPike stated in the email that the budget situation would be taken into account when negotiating pricing. He also sent a list of bullet points illustrating the coverage of these databases (see attached). The Library Express database is in Beta form and will not be ready for use until March 2010. Katie Moellering stated that she would email Mr. McPike to request a demonstration and trial period. The Adult Services Roundtable requested that the meeting be separate from the normal meeting time since other demos have been scheduled for the March meeting on foreign language resources.

Additionally, in an email to Katie Moellering, Pat Ryan mentioned that the Library Express database has the possibility to replace current contracts for NewsBank and Reference USA. Both have a contract ending this summer (June and August of 2010). Pat has asked the Adult Services Roundtable to look at the databases and discern whether it will save us money to replace with Library Express, or if we could expand our coverage, or both. Representatives from Hoover and other libraries expressed concern that we look at the database carefully to ensure that it does indeed compare and that we would not be losing valuable resources. Bryce from Hoover expressed that their library uses Reference USA extensively for patrons needing assistance with job searches and other business information. Most roundtable members agreed that NewsBank offers what we need for The Birmingham News and that we cannot lose that resource, but a resource which offers The Birmingham News AND expanding newspaper coverage would be welcome. Most libraries agreed that without NewsBank there would be no access to The Birmingham News as most libraries have stopped purchasing access to the microform collection from The Birmingham News.

After the discussion on Lexis Nexis Library Express, Katie Moellering reminded roundtable members that the next meeting will be on March 16^th at 10:00 am, this time on foreign language resources. Mike Poynter of Recorded Books will be on hand to demonstrate a new online language learning resource called BYKI.

The roundtable members moved on to a general discussion of adult programming. We discussed general programming as well as ideas for summer reading programs for adults. Hoover brought samples of some of their flyers and information regarding their regularly scheduled adult programs. The consensus was that adult summer reading at area libraries mirrors that of children’s in that the adults generally keep track of what they read, are entered into drawings for prizes, and enjoy special summer programming events.

Robin from Hoover mentioned that the summer months mean trivia time for Hoove r library staff. Patrons attempt to stump the staff by asking them trivia questions from boxes located at the Hoover desks. If patrons are able to stump the staff they are entered into a drawing for a prize. Patrons love this particular game!

Some programs that have been big hits at Hoover, Mountain Brook, Vestavia and the Birmingham Libraries include:

Miss Rosemarie from Rosemarie’s Tea Room is a popular choice for area libraries. She does charge for her speaking engagement, so please check with her first for pricing. Her programs at both Hoover and Mt Brook sold out and had wait lists. She does a talk on tea and tea traditions and makes excellent scones! She can be found online at http://www.mrsteas.com or call her at 205.980.8335. In addition, her email is rosemarie@mrsteas.com

Hoover reported that another favorite program was chefs from Jeff State and Culinard. Also, Debbie Maugans, author of Small Batch Baking was a big hit – she has a column in the Birmingham News as well as a blog. She can be found at http://www.smallbatchbaking,com

Jim Pate gave a well attended program on Scrabble – how to play, strategies, rules, etc. at Hoover which went over very well.

Bryce from Hoover discussed their extremely popular programs on business issues. He also reminded us that it looks great for the city library to offer programs on business issues b/c they are encouraging people to open their own businesses in the city.

In May, Ruth Cook and Tina Holt will conduct an afternoon-long program at Hoover to cover resume writing, interviewing skills, and fundamentals of job search. Tina Holt is a local HR specialist and owner of Birminghammom.com. She designs all kinds of programs based on her HR background. Ruth Beaumont Cook is also a local author – we have many of her books in the JCLC catalog.

Hoover has also worked with the Small Business Development Center @ UAB to provide a program on how to start a business in Hoover.

Hoover provided a copy of their publicity checklist as well as several flyers for programs. These will be available on the blog.

Katie Moellering mentioned that she will be showing Food, Inc. at Emmet O’Neal in March and offering a roundtable discussion afterwards. She has contacted various people in the local food industry about leading or facilitating this discussion. In addition, she discussed the big hit that was the “Live Local” summer reading program for Emmet O’Neal Library – audiences came out for a “Eat Local” program with guest speakers Edwin Marty (Jones Valley Urban Farm), The McEwen family (makers of stone ground grits and permanent booth holders at the Pepper Place market) and a representative from Grow Alabama. Hoover did a similar program called Eating Alabama and Leslie West from Vestavia expressed that she was interested in leading a similar program at her library.

Dolores Hydock was another presenter who we all know and love, and who ALWAYS brings a crowd! Dolores, for those not familiar with her work, is an award-winning actress and storyteller, and audiences LOVE her! She can be found at http://www.storypower.org

Hoover has a new series (almost a year old now) of concerts in their newly constructed Plaza. Shanae King from Hoover is responsible for making contacts for the storytellers, musicians, artists and artisans who participate in these programs. Both Shanae and Ellen Lawrence agreed that an upcoming act, Sam Banana and the Bunch are GREAT!

Another program the staff at Hoover have created recently is a joint project with the Birmingham International Center. A volunteer facilitator comes to the library once a month to lead a group in foreign language practice. In some cases, people who are natives in the tongue, or at least very fluent, join the group to be able to speak their language. Some past participants have been former and current military wishing to keep practicing a language learned while over-seas. Past languages have included Hindi, French, Italian, Spanish, Greek, and German. Patricia Guarino noted the possibility that Hoover will provide two languages each month, rather than one because of the positive response they have received to this program. Shanae King from Hoover also noted that the Birmingham International Center has many contacts in the foreign language communities of Birmingham and they were very easy to work with. The website is www.birminghaminternationalcenter.org

Leslie West talked about her desire to look into training for CEU credits in the hopes that by providing for fee training programs for adults in professional positions, she might also be able to provide a for free program for interested patrons.

Katie Moellering brought up the fact that we all have to plan so far in advance (usually 4-6 months) that it is difficult to be spontaneous about programming.

The Big Read was discussed and area libraries shared their plans for kickoffs and programs. Leslie West reminded everyone that she put together a candy list of candies that would have been available around the time Tom Sawyer is set.

Leigh Wilson reminded everyone about “BPL @ Night” which is a new program funded by Alabama Power and the Alabama Humanities Foundation. According to Leigh the stipulation in the grant is that local arts and musical groups should be funded and supported through this programming. The biggest hit so far has been Mad Skillz Dance Company who filled the N. Birmingham auditorium to capacity!

Leslie West mentioned that there are still many survivors of the Holocaust in the Birmingham area and that she has had a survivor speak to a large and appreciative audience at Vestavia. The Birmingham area has a Holocaust Education Committee which can be found here: http://www.bhamholocausteducation.org – they provide information about their speaker’s bureau online. Also, Holocaust Remembrance Day is April 11^th.

The next meeting of the Adult Services Roundtable will be on Tuesday, March 16^th at 10:00 a.m. at Emmet O’Neal Library in Mountain Brook.

The topic will be foreign language materials and resources, as well as programming.