Southeastern Library Services has completed PLOW training and our new website is up and running! While there's still a few "tweaks" that need to be made we welcome you to stop by and check it out. There you'll be able to not only see a finished PLOW website in action, but also access many new helpful features and documents. The web address is:

www.sls.lib.ia.us

Kids First Conference

Congratulations to Emily Rohlfs of Keokuk Public Library, Gabbriella Stevens of Ft. Madison Public Library and Deborah Stanton of Kalona Public Library for winning Southeastern Library Services' Kids First conference scholarships! The scholarships will send them to the Kids First conference, in Ames, Iowa April 24th-April 27th for free!

Go to http://www.statelibraryofiowa.org/ld/youth-services/kidsfirst/kidsfirst2007 for more information on speakers and registration.

Interested in receiving a scholarship? Keep your eyes peeled for more to come...

For Your Information...


-If you are a PLOW library you should have recently received, or soon will receive, your training location and date. That information can also be found here at SLS.

-For those of you attending the Summer Reading Program session on March 7th in Fairfield, Iowa from 9-noon we encourage you to stay around for our Youth Services Roundtable from 1-3pm. This is a great opportunity for you to meet other YS librarians in the area as well as exchange ideas, information, and maybe let off some steam!

-Sally Reed, executive director of Friends of Libraries USA, will be in North Liberty at the Gerdin Conference Center on April 14th, 2007 from 10am-3pm to share successful strategies for mobilizing Friends, Trustees and supporters on behalf of your library. There you will learn how to unite those voices to influence decision makers at the local and state levels. You'll receive 5 CE credits and the cost is $25.00 per person, $20 for an Iowa Library Trustee or Friends Assosiation member and includes handouts, a catered lunch and snacks. Ask about group rates!

Go to http://www.statelibraryofiowa.org/cgi-bin/cecat/ to register for these events or check out new ones in your area.

TEEN TECH WEEK

The Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) is introducing Teen Tech Week next month from March 4th through March 10th. What better way for your library to celebrate than holding your very own MySpace/blog beginner night or game night? Southeastern provides a brand new Ps2 and 3 games (your choice) for only $5 a night plus the cost of shipping. You can choose from favorites like Guitar Hero, Dance Dance Revolution, Nascar, and many more! All come with accessories like dance pad, guitar, steering wheel, etc. and best of all they not only promote fun, but exercise!

For more information or to reserve check out our website or call Amanda at (800) 397-0029. Be sure to ask about how you can save on shipping or rent an additional system for your night!

Did you know that Wednesday, February 28th is 'Lobby From Home Day'? Information on the Legislative Agenda can be found at:
http://www.iowalibraryassociation.org/associations/2221/files/2007%20legislative%20agenda.pdf ...and how to participate can be found at http://www.iowalibraryassociation.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=13.
Needing support is the ILA push to restore LSA and State Library to FY01 levels and increase Enrich Iowa funding.

Do you have a Borders or Waldenbooks store near you? If you do, be sure to save your shopping for between March 22nd - 27th for the Educator Savings Weekend. You’ll receive 25% off the list price of books, CDs, DVDs and more. Borders stores are even hosting a reception on Friday, March 23rd between 4:00 pm and 8:00 pm. Librarians are included in the definition of “educator” and all you have to do is bring in “proof of educator status”. (Katie has used her paycheck stub or a nametag in the past for this.) Visit the Borders website or call your local store for more details and fine print.

For those looking for more information on technology issues, TechNotes, sponsored by the Public Library Association , is a great place to start. Issues covered range from public computer time and print management to software for children to web services. Topics are constantly being added to, updated or deleted so be sure to check back often!

Meet Our New Consultant...

Katie Dunneback has a long history with librarianship as family members have been librarians for over seventy years. She received her M.S. in Library and Information Science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2003. Katie has spent the last three years full-time at the Westchester (IL) Public Library as a Reference Librarian, where she provided reference and readers’ advisory services, managed non-system interlibrary loan functions, parts of the collection, and taught the public computer classes in addition to numerous other duties. She also worked part-time at the Tinley Park Public Library as an Adult Services/Reference Librarian, providing reference desk coverage on weekends. Katie’s strengths include adult services and technology, with a particular interest in adult readers’ advisory services.

While job hunting, Katie got involved with the New Members Round Table of the American Library Association, and she is currently their Member Services Director. Katie was recently appointed to the newly formed Reading List Council which is a committee of the Reference and User Services Association’s Collection Development and Evaluation Section dedicated to acknowledging the best of genre fiction. She will be serving on the council until the 2009 ALA Midwinter Conference.

Katie has also contributed to professional literature with an article on developing professional portfolios available on LISCareer.com, an article on Adult Service Librarianship to be published in the upcoming book, A Day in the Life, edited by Priscilla K. Shontz and Richard A. Murray, and is working on part of a book chapter on serving the romance and other genre readers in the library. She also owns The Young Librarian website and blog.

Katie is more than happy to answer any questions you may have and is looking forward to working with everyone in the Southeaster Library Services service area.