The Libri Foundation

Are you looking for ways to increase the amount of children's books in your collection? Children can definitely be rough on books causing them to wear down quick. The Libri Foundation, a nationwide non-profit organization will donate children's books to rural public libraries throughout the United States. Check out their site for more information on their BOOKS FOR CHILDREN program.

If your library qualifies to receive free books from this foundation why not start a non-circulating storytime collection. This will help your collection stay in good condition longer, plus you don't have to worry about a book being checked out when you want to use it for a story time!

Adult Reading Programs on a Shoestring Budget

Adult reading programs are a great way of reaching out to a diverse group of patrons. Colleen Knight has put together a guide on how to plan and implement a reading program for adults on a shoestring budget. Take a look at it here.

Adult Programming: Mug 'Ems Books

Recently Kanawha County Public Library (KCPL) had a program called "Get Mugged." This program was for adults and the idea for the program came from a series of books called Mug 'Ems

There are currently four books in the Mug 'Ems series and there are many great, cheap programming ideas in them. When gathering supplies for this program ask staff to donate mugs and/or pick some up at yard sales. Mugs should be easy to get ahold of for free or next to nothing. Bows and ribbons can be purchased for fairly cheap and tags can be made on a printer or handwritten. The cost will come in purchasing the edible ingredients. If you have a good relationship with you community try asking your grocer for a donation or gift card to purchse supplies. I've had luck in the past at KCPL with asking grocery stores for donations.

This time of year would be a great time to do this program. These mugs make perfect gifts and will give your patrons the chance to learn at the program how these are made, then they can check out the books and make more on their own. Food programs are always a success, at least in my experience.

During the program at KCPL all the ingredients were layed out on a table and patrons were to go through the line adding each of the ingredients to a bag, pick out a mug, decorate with ribbons and tag. The process took less than a half hour; a great idea for the busy schedules we all have these days!

Blog: The Gaming Zone

The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County in North Carolina is one of the leading libraries in teen services that I know of. I've had the privilege of visiting their Imagine On Center, which is a library dedicated to children's and teen services. They also offer a blog- The Gaming Zone, which discusses all of their gaming programs held at the library. Video gaming may seem like an expensive program at first, but take into consideration purchasing gaming equipment through grant money, donations or book sale and once you have your core equipment and a couple of games you are ready to start having gaming events at your library. Think of gaming as an investment, whether it's a board game, card game, video game, etc. they can be reused again and again as long as they're well taken care of. I recommend taking a look at The Gaming Zone to get an idea on types of gaming events to hold at your library. Keep in mind that all ages enjoy gaming, so talk to your community and find out what type of gaming they are interested in.

Book Suggestion: Programming for Adults

For those looking for programming ideas for adults try Programming for Adults: A Guide for Small and Medium-Sized Libraries By Raymond Ranier.

Adults are a difficult crowd to work with and this book shares ideas and resources for planning and presenting programs to your adult patrons. If you would like to see a review on this book you can view one here:

Dawson, Jennifer "Programming for Adults: A Guide for Small- and Medium-Sized Libraries." Booklist 102.18 (2006): 86. Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts. EBSCO. Web.

Look for Donations

Every once in a while companies will offer free items, such as games, books, posters, bookmarks, etc. for libraries. ALA partners with Hasboro yearly for National Gaming Day and Hasboro donates board games to libraries that agree to participate in gaming events on this day. The following is another example of a company that offers donations to libraries. Look for offers such as these in library journals and listservs.

Fantasy-Themed Programming
Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasboro, is offering librarians and educators a free program to inspire fantasy-themed programming. "Afternoon Adventures with Dungeons & Dragons" includes the basic board game of Dungeons & Dragons (a role-playing game set in a fantasy world for ages 12 and up), instructions for hosting D&D group sessions in the library, a guide to how the program can encourage library use, reading lists, and more. To find out more go to wizards.com; request the kit by emailing libraries@wizards.com.


Works Cited
"Fantasy-Themed Programming." School Library Journal 51.(2005): 8. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 23 Oct. 2009.

Searching for Grants

Rural libraries looking for ways to obtain money should always consider grants. Grants are a great way to increase rural libraries chances of being selected to receive money for specific needs. The following article is an example of how one rural library was able to buy children's books with grant money they received.

Libri Foundation Helps Rural Libraries

Oregon-based nonprofit organization now accepting applications for children's books.

In an era of shrinking budgets, it shouldn't be surprising that many librarians in rural America don't have enough cash to build their collections. But help is on the way--the nonprofit Libri Foundation is now accepting applications for its 2005 Books for Children program.

Founded in 1990 by former librarian Barbara McKillip, Libri donates new hardcover children's books to small, rural public libraries throughout the country. School libraries that also serve as community libraries and have some extended weekday and summer hours are also eligible. "In some cases, schools have used our grants as leverage to help get funding to keep their doors open longer," McKillip says.

The McDonald County (MO) Library is a grant recipient.

Oregon-based Libri doesn't hand out cash; its grants are in the form of free board and picture books for kids in grade six and under. The foundation matches money raised by a library on a 2-to-1 basis up to $350, so the maximum a library can receive is $1,050 worth of titles, the equivalent of about 70 to 100 books. Libraries get to choose from a well-researched list of 700 titles, including books such as the current Caldecott Honor Book Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! (Hyperion) by Mo Willems and Farm Flu (Albert Whitman, 2001) by Teresa Bateman.

How do you know if your library qualifies? The foundation defines rural as at least 30 miles from a city with a population of more than 40,000. County libraries should have a total operating budget of less than $350,000 and serve a population of less than 15,000, and small town libraries must have a budget of less than $150,000 and serve less than 10,000. Libri has awarded grants to libraries in all but two states--Rhode Island and Delaware--and a majority of books go to places such as Iowa, Kansas, Alaska, and Nebraska. Tribal libraries in New Mexico, Arizona, and Montana have also been recipients.

Libri operates on a $250,000 annual budget, 75 percent of which comes from donations. In 2004, the organization spent close to $200,000 on books, with the remaining amount going toward operating costs. McKillip expects to dole out 300 grants in 2005, about the same as last year. To date, the foundation has donated over $2.3 million worth of new children's books to more than 2,000 libraries.

Sherri Contreras, a librarian at the Ukiah (OR) School and Public Library, has received four grants over the years, making it possible to buy about 400 books for her children's collection. "Small libraries are important for rural communities, but they are often shortchanged on funding," McKillip says.

H., S. "Libri Foundation Helps Rural Libraries." School Library Journal 51.3 (2005): 24. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 20 Oct. 2009.

Book Suggestions

If you're looking for some specific books to use for children and teen programming try some of these. All can be viewed through Google Books.



Fundamentals of Children's Services By Michael Sullivan

Public Library Youth Services: A Public Policy Approach by Holly G. Willett

Bare Bones Young Adult Services: Tips for Public Library Generalists by Renée J. Vaillancourt




Excellence in Library Services to Young Adults: The Nation's Top Programs By Mary K. Chelton

Teen Programming Resource

I've found that teens can be a tough group to work with. It's hard figuring out what type of programs they are interested in attending. RoseMary Honnold, author and Editor in Chief of VOYA Magazine, has a great website dedicated to library programming for teens and programs that will fit everyone's budget. Honnold provides programming information on numerous types of programming including summer reading, contests, teen advisory boards, crafts, gaming, etc. Take time to explore this site and I'm sure you'll find something that your library will be able to use.
I'd like hearing which program ideas you would be interested in doing at your own library. For my library I've tried the henna program with great success. For roughly $25 I was able to buy supplies for 12 teens with plenty of extra. I've also used the puzzlemaker to create word searches, crossword puzzles, etc. to have available for teens at any time. Creating puzzles based on authors or book titles is am inexpensive, fun way to promote the library to teens.

Story Time Kits

We all know that finding time and enough staff can both be a daunting task. Given the lack of both, we need to learn how to capitalize on the time that we do have. Story time is a popular program for children that is shared by the majority of libraries. Anyone who has prepared for a story time knows that it takes time to plan the program. I'm suggesting that by creating story time kits libraries will have an easier time planning and presenting a program.

The Plan

If you're part of a library system have each branch put together one themed story time kit. Breaking up the work will not only mean spending less time on the task, but will also result in a variety of kits being made.

If you are not part of a library system, create kits when you can. After a period of time, they will add up.

The Kit

Each kit should contain the contents it would take to present a story time. Themed kits would be a great way to start putting kits together. Kits could contain books, songs, flannel board stories, puppets, puppet shows, craft ideas, etc. stored in a labeled tote would make it easy for staff to locate. All staff would have access to a list of kits to request from.

The Purpose

The purpose of each kit would be to provide the library system with options to choose from for story times and not have to worry about finding time to create a whole new story time. Kits could travel from location to location saving staff time while increasing the story time programming options. If a library system is able to work together to share resources, everyone (staff and patrons) would benefit from it.

Does anyone already create kits for their library? What is your process for creating and sharing them?

Outreach is One Key to Successful Programming

According to Judith and Burt Boyce, "outreach is the only means by which library services can be effectively distributed over rural areas where the population necessary to provide the public financing of quality information service is so dispersed that a single location facility will not be accessible to large portions of the population contributing to the service. Rural areas are served by national information agencies, state information agencies, the libraries of colleges and universities, and by local public libraries-all using outreach methods. " (112)

Works Cited
Boyce, Judith, and Burt Boyce. "Library Outreach Programs in Rural Areas." Library Trends 44.1 (1995): 112-128. Web. 16 Sep 2009. http://www.ideals.uiuc.edu/handle/2142/8010?mode=full.

I agree that outreach is a great programming method for rural libraries. Think of all the possibilities! Visiting schools, festivals/fairs, nursing homes, providing home bound service to those unable to come into the library, etc. Outreach is key to not only providing services outside of the library building, but also acts as a source of spreading the word that the library is actively involved in the community. Getting out into the public to get your library noticed will increase chances of more people coming into the library at zero cost to you. Since many rural libraries are open a limited number of hours, how about doing outreach while the library is closed? This is just one suggestion that may be useful to libraries with limited staff.

Mimi Cirillo of the Burlington County Library in New Jersey shares her thoughts on why serving the rural areas is so important...

Cirillo tells a Cherokee story: When a boy trained a wounded eagle to fish, his cousin asked him why he let the eagle leave uneaten fish on the rocks where forest animals could grab them? Why not bring the fish home to his family? The boy replied, My family knows how to fish. Says Cirillo, There are many, many people who need to learn to fish so they can choose how to live.

Works Cited
"Rural Lives." Library Journal 131 (16 Mar. 2006): 41. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Kanawha County Public Library, Charleston, WV. 11 Sep. 2009 http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=f5h&AN=20053024&site=ehost-live