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Final Call for ASCLA Preconference Registration!

This is it–it’s the final 48 hours to get signed up for ASCLA preconferences!

We’ll be closing registration for our preconferences on Friday, June 15–that’s tomorrow! If you want to reserve your seat at the learning table, you’ll need to act now. We will not be selling tickets at the door for either of these events.

Our innovative half-day workshops deliver information from experts on the following topics:

  • Marketing the value of your library to your community, and developing a fundraising strategy that engages your entire staff in the financial future of the library. The marketing and development staff from the New Jersey State Library will review how they launched their successful Library Champions campaign to achieve both of these goals.
  • Creating literacy and reading programs for incarcerated adults and youth by cultivating partnerships between public libraries, prisons and jails. Hear from librarians who have developed these sorts of partnerships in their communities, with outstanding results.

More information about each event is below. You do not need to be registered for the Annual Conference in order to join us–simply select “Ticketed Events and Preconferences Only” as your registration type. If you’re already registered for the conference, you can add any of these events to your registration.

REGISTER FOR THESE PRECONFERENCES NOW. If you’re not able to join us in Anaheim, we offer many other ways to engage with ASCLA colleagues from around the world: check out a complete list of our member-driven interest groups to find one or more that suit you, and join today!

A Marriage Made in Heaven: Combining Marketing and Development to Ensure the Future of Your Library

Friday, June 22, 8a.m.-12p.m.
REGISTER NOW.

Develop a fundraising strategy and raise the awareness of the value your library with a library champions campaign! Learn how the New Jersey State Library launched a public awareness campaign designed to attract famous athletes and authors to serve as Library Champions, and with the help of marketing and development teams, leveraged those champions into an effective fundraising vehicle. We’ll cover how to recruit celebrity champions and local heroes; how to raise big money for your library; how to build a donor development strategy; and the essential publications your library must produce to secure funders.
Registration starts at $129 for ASCLA members. REGISTER NOW.

The Nuts & Bolts of Building a Public Library/Jail/Prison Partnership

 

Friday, June 22, 8a.m.-12p.m.
REGISTER NOW.
Hear from speakers who’ve successfully built public library/correctional setting partnerships, and learn how to build these kinds of relationships step-by-step. Public librarians and correctional librarians interested in creating literacy and reading program partnerships for youth in detention centers and adults in jails or prisons will not want to miss this half-day workshop that will cover such difficult issues as collection development, security, and staff interactions.
Registration starts at $129 for ASCLA members. REGISTER NOW.

See you in Anaheim!

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Prison Librarians @ Annual Conference: Interest group meetings moved to Sunday morning

NEW DATE, TIME & LOCATION at ALA Annual Conference!! ASCLA’s two interest groups for prison librarians will now be meeting Sunday, June 24, 8-10a.m. in the Palm East room of the Sheraton Park Hotel.

The Library Services to the Incarcerated and Detained Interest Group and the Library Services for Youth in Custody Interest Group will meet together during this time. This session is an opportunity for open discussion among librarians and staff who serve–or want to serve–adults and youth who are incarcerated or detained. LSYC agenda includes new resources, review and award program, sharing of ideas and resources. LSID agenda includes future leadership and work products, sharing of ideas and resources.  The groups are co-hosting a tour of a local juvenile detention facility on the afternoon of Monday, June 25–learn more here (scroll to the bottom of the page) and register by June 5!

Other prison library-related programs and events in Anaheim:

PRECONFERENCE: The Nuts & Bolts of Building a Public Library/Jail/Prison Partnership
Friday, June 22, 8:00a.m.-12:00p.m.

Hear from speakers who’ve successfully built public library/correctional setting partnerships, and learn how to build these kinds of relationships step-by-step. Public librarians and correctional librarians interested in creating literacy and reading program partnerships for youth in detention centers and adults in jails or prisons will not want to miss this half-day workshop that will cover such difficult issues of collection development, security, and staff interactions.
Registration Rates: ASCLA members, $129; ALA members, $149; non-members, $169; Student and Retired ALA members, $109.
Who should attend: Public librarians and correctional librarians interested on creating literacy and reading program partnerships for youth and adults in jails or prisons.

Speakers:

  • Kathleen Houlihan, youth outreach librarian, Austin Public Library, Second Change Books
  • Amy Cheney, Alameda County Library, Write to Read program Juvenile Hall Literacy

REGISTER NOW.

Writing a Way Out: The Success of Writing Programs in Correctional Settings
Saturday, 8:00-10:00
Writing programs in correctional settings have produced dramatic results for those who experience them. This program will include successful inmate writers, program instructors and correctional librarians who manage or assist in the programs. Speakers: R. Dwayne Betts, Perry Gaidurgis

Touching Literacy:  iPads in the School Library Serving Incarcerated and Detained Youth
Sunday, 1:30-3:30p.m.
Are tablets available to your patrons yet? This program introduces you to three library staffers and their project to bring iPads to school libraries serving detained youth in New York City.  We will examine the practical “how to’s” of technology pilots; the process of collaborating with multiple institutions; and maintenance, marketing, funding and collection development for tablets. This session will appeal to all librarians who have not yet integrated tablets or e-readers into their libraries. Speakers: Jessica Fenster-Sparber, Anja Kennedy, Claudio Leon

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Take a closer look: ASCLA workshops at ALA Annual Conference

Have you spent some time with the preconferences we’re hosting at the upcoming ALA Annual Conference?

ASCLA–the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies–is a division of ALA focused on the future of libraries, and committed to cultivating librarians and libraries that provide universal access for all library users.

Whether you are a public librarian in a small town, an academic librarian on a thriving college campus, a state librarian administering services to a wide variety of libraries, a librarian serving special populations…or anywhere in between, attending one of our preconferences will be an invaluable experience!

Our innovative half-day workshops deliver information from experts on the following topics:

  • Marketing the value of your library to your community, and developing a fundraising strategy that engages your entire staff in the financial future of the library. The marketing and development staff from the New Jersey State Library will review how they launched their successful Library Champions campaign to achieve both of these goals.
  • Delivering library services and books to those who cannot read traditional print books–including library users with disabilities–by using online resources and service delivery models. Learn from the New Jersey State Library how “The Outspoken Library” does exactly this through their Talking Book & Braille Center.
  • Creating literacy and reading programs for incarcerated adults and youth by cultivating partnerships between public libraries, prisons and jails. Hear from librarians who have developed these sorts of partnerships in their communities, with outstanding results.

More information about each event is below. You do not need to be registered for the Annual Conference in order to join us–simply select “Ticketed Events and Preconferences Only” as your registration type. If you’re already registered for the conference, you can add any of these events to your registration.

REGISTER NOW. If you’re not able to join us in Anaheim, we offer many other ways to engage with ASCLA colleagues from around the world: check out a complete list of our member-driven interest groups to find one or more that suit you, and join today!

A Marriage Made in Heaven: Combining Marketing and Development to Ensure the Future of Your Library

REGISTER NOW.
Develop a fundraising strategy and raise the awareness of the value your library with a library champions campaign! Learn how the New Jersey State Library launched a public awareness campaign designed to attract famous athletes and authors to serve as Library Champions, and with the help of marketing and development teams, leveraged those champions into an effective fundraising vehicle. We’ll cover how to recruit celebrity champions and local heroes; how to raise big money for your library; how to build a donor development strategy; and the essential publications your library must produce to secure funders.
Registration starts at $129 for ASCLA members. REGISTER NOW.

The Outspoken Library: A Gateway for Public Libraries to Services for the Visually and Physically Impaired

REGISTER NOW.
Looking for inventive ideas for promoting library services? The New Jersey State Library developed “The Outspoken Library” to promote free online services that are available for print-disabled people. This program allows library customers to access services administered through the State Library’s Talking Book & Braille Center (TBBC), including audio newspapers (TBBC’s Audiovision and NFB’s Newsline) and the Library of Congress’s Braille and Audio Reading Download service. Attend this preconference, and find out how to establish and market these valuable resources.
Registration starts at $129 for ASCLA members. REGISTER NOW.

The Nuts & Bolts of Building a Public Library/Jail/Prison Partnership

REGISTER NOW.
Hear from speakers who’ve successfully built public library/correctional setting partnerships, and learn how to build these kinds of relationships step-by-step. Public librarians and correctional librarians interested in creating literacy and reading program partnerships for youth in detention centers and adults in jails or prisons will not want to miss this half-day workshop that will cover such difficult issues as collection development, security, and staff interactions.
Registration starts at $129 for ASCLA members. REGISTER NOW.

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ASCLA Interest Groups: New groups for tribal librarians and the future of libraries

Two new ASCLA interest groups are now welcoming members: the Future of Libraries Interest Group and the Tribal Librarians Interest Group!

Descriptions for these new groups, as well as all of ASCLA’s existing interest groups, are below! Click on the group name to be taken to their group page in ALA Connect. You can join the group by logging into ALA Connect, accessing the group page, then clicking “join” on the right side of the page. You do not need to be a member of ASCLA for the first year of your interest group membership, however we encourage you to join this amazing community of members at your earliest convenience!

Learn more about how to start a new interest group here.

New Interest Groups:

ASCLA Future of Libraries Interest Group

This group is open to anyone with an interest in the future of libraries.  Changes in the world around us, different service models, new technologies, determining what our customers value and what our non-customers are finding elsewhere will be examined.  This group will submit an annual recommendation to the ASCLA President for two areas that we think libraries should focus on to increase their value and insure their viability in the future.

ASCLA Tribal Librarians Interest Group

The purpose of this new interest group is to increase knowledge and networking among library leaders with tribal libraries. The goal is to foster new relations and begin lifelong partnerships with community library leaders and Tribal Librarians. This interest group is not just for “Tribal.” Tribal librarians and employees of tribal libraries as well as librarians and library leaders interested in knowing more about tribal libraries are welcome.

Other ASCLA Interest Groups:

ASCLA Library Consultants Interest Group The ASCLA Library Consultant Interest Group supports professional development by providing programs, information exchange and networking opportunities of interest to independent librarians, library consultants, state library and regional library consultants, and anyone who wants to push the boundaries of librarianship.

ASCLA LSSP Universal Access Interest Group Interest group purpose is to promote inclusive library services – sharing information and resources.

ASCLA ICAN Consortium Management Discussion Interest Group This interest group is focused on consortial funding, advocacy, services, etc., plus discussion group on topics of interest to library cooperatives statewide, multi-state, national cooperatives, and multitype library systems.

ASCLA ICAN (InterLibrary Cooperation & Networking) Collaborative Digitization Interest Group Interest group for library cooperatives which are combinations, mergers, or contractual associations of one or more types of libraries (academic, public, special, or school) crossing jurisdictional, institutional, or political boundaries, working together to achieve maximum effective use of funds to provide library and information services to all citizens above and beyond those which can be provided through one institution. Such cooperative organizations or agencies may be designated to serve a community, a metropolitan area, a region within a region, or may serve a statewide or multi-state area.

ASCLA ICAN (InterLibrary Cooperation & Networking) Interlibrary Cooperation Interest Group Provides a forum for discussion of interests in interlibrary cooperation and the statewide development of library service, emphasizing the interdependence of all types of libraries.

ASCLA ICAN (InterLibrary Cooperation & Networking) Physical Delivery Interest Group The focus of this interest group covers the physical delivery of library materials for resource sharing and related issues.

ASCLA Library Services for Youth in Custody (LSSP) The purpose of this Interest Group is to advocate, promote, and improve library services for youth who have been detained in correctional facilities of various kinds.

ASCLA LSSP Bridging Deaf Cultures @ your library Interest Group Primary focus is building support for the nation’s libraries to work with organizations serving the deaf (OSD) in forming a Deaf Cultural Digital Library.

ASCLA LSSP (Libraries Serving Special Populations) LSSP Library Services to People with Visual or Physical Disabilities that Prevent Them from Reading Standard Print Interest Group This interest group focuses on assistive technology and accessibility services for people with visual or physical disabilities.

ASCLA LSSP Library Services to the Incarcerated and Detained Supports ALA members who serve patrons of any age who are held in jail, prison, detention or immigration facility.

ASCLA SLA State Library Agencies – Library Development Interest Group An interest group for State Library Agencies staff to network and discussion matters relating to library development services, activities, and needs.

ASCLA SLA (State Library Agencies)/LSTA Coordinators Interest Group For staff responsible for procuring and administering LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act) funds and programs. LSTA is a federally funded state based program generally administered by the state library of each state.

ASCLA SLA (State Library Agencies) Youth Services Consultants Interest Group The group’s purpose is to allow each state’s Youth Services Consultant or staff member responsible for working with youth services to keep abreast of topics of interest to the group and the constituents they serve in their states through listservs, and in-person networking meetings at ALA Midwinter and Annual Conferences.

 

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ASCLA workshops @ ALA Annual Conference: Advance registration ends Sunday, May 13!

We have an outstanding lineup of workshops awaiting you in Anaheim! Hear from experts in the field about how to cultivate marketing and fundraising activities at your library, including creating a library champions campaign; how to bring online services to your library for people unable to read traditional print books and how to effectively promote those services; and step-by-step guidance for building partnerships between public libraries and correctional facilities, including literacy and reading programs for incarcerated adults and youth. These events are open to all interested participants! Conference registration is not required. Read more about each event below, then reserve your seat at the ALA Annual Conference website.

A Marriage Made in Heaven: Combining Marketing and Development to Ensure the Future of Your Library

Friday, June 22, 8:00a.m.-12:00p.m.
REGISTER NOW.

Develop a fundraising strategy and raise the awareness of the value your library with a library champions campaign! Learn how the New Jersey State Library launched a public awareness campaign designed to attract famous athletes and authors to serve as Library Champions, and with the help of marketing and development teams, leveraged those champions into an effective fundraising vehicle. We’ll cover how to recruit celebrity champions and local heroes; how to raise big money for your library; how to build a donor development strategy; and the essential publications your library must produce to secure funders. Registration starts at $109 for ASCLA members–increases to $129 after May 13.

The Outspoken Library: A Gateway for Public Libraries to Services for the Visually and Physically Impaired

Friday, June 22, 1:00-4:00p.m.
REGISTER NOW.

Looking for inventive ideas for promoting library services? The New Jersey State Library developed “The Outspoken Library” to promote free online services that are available for print-disabled people. This program allows library customers to access services administered through the State Library’s Talking Book & Braille Center (TBBC), including audio newspapers (TBBC’s Audiovision and NFB’s Newsline) and the Library of Congress’s Braille and Audio Reading Download service. Attend this preconference, and find out how to establish and market these valuable resources. Registration starts at $109 for ASCLA members–increases to $129 after May 13.

The Nuts & Bolts of Building a Public Library/Jail/Prison Partnership

Friday, June 22, 8:00a.m.-12:00p.m.
REGISTER NOW.

Hear from speakers who’ve successfully built public library/correctional setting partnerships, and learn how to build these kinds of relationships step-by-step. Public librarians and correctional librarians interested in creating literacy and reading program partnerships for youth in detention centers and adults in jails or prisons will not want to miss this half-day workshop that will cover such difficult issues as collection development, security, and staff interactions. Registration starts at $109 for ASCLA members–increases to $129 after May 13.

ALA Annual Conference & Exhibition–Transforming Our Libraries, Ourselves

Find out about the many other ALA Annual Conference & Exhibits highlights as they’re added–speakers, events, networking opportunities, and more. And for general information about the meeting in Anaheim, CA, June 21-26, 2012, visit us at www.alaannual.org. Save money with Early Bird Registration, open until midnight, Sunday, May 13, 2012.

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2013 Programs, Preconferences and Institutes: Proposals due June 1, 2012

The deadline for a call for ASCLA proposals for institutes at the ALA 2013 Midwinter Meeting in Seattle and programs and preconferences at the ALA 2013 Annual Conference in Chicago has been extended to June 1, 2012.

What’s this all about? Midwinter Institutes are ticketed full or half-day workshops held the Friday of the Midwinter Meeting. Annual Preconferences are ticketed full or half-day workshops held the Friday of Annual Conference. Programs are part of the ALA Annual Conference, are included with conference registration, and are held Saturday through Monday of the conference. Check out what ASCLA’s doing at this year’s Annual Conference.

What’s the best way to propose a program? We encourage members with programming ideas to partner with one of our ASCLA interest groups to sponsor the program. Review our list of interest groups and learn how to join a group at the ASCLA website.

More information about the proposal process–including some important notes about overall scheduling changes to both Midwinter and Annual–is in this post in ASCLA’s ALA Connect space. Please check out this post before making your submission.

Learn more about ASCLA, and join this small and mighty group of ALA members who are making a difference for library users from all corners of the world!

We look forward to receiving your proposals!

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Webinar registration ends today! “Programming for Detained and Incarcerated Youth”

Today (Tuesday) is the last day to sign up for Thursday’s ASCLA webinar, “Libraries for Detained and Incarcerated Youth 101: Programming for Detained and Incarcerated Youth”.

The webinar will be held Thursday, April 26, 2012, 12-1:30 p.m. CT. We will be recording the webinar, so if you can’t attend at this specific time, register and we’ll send you a link afterwards to rewatch it.

REGISTER NOW!

ABOUT THIS WEBINAR: Library environments for detained, pending placement, or incarcerated youth are different than the typical public or school library and library professionals serving them often find themselves in situations that are completely different than anything for which they are prepared. As part of a series of webinars focusing on the needs of these youth, this session will look at programming for detained and incarcerated youth. This session will be recorded and will be available to paid registrants to rewatch at their convenience!

Individual registration starts at $40 for ASCLA members.
We do offer group registration rates: $99 for a single login, and $38/person for multiple logins.
More information is at the ASCLA online learning page.

QUESTIONS? Contact the ALA Registration team at registration@ala.org or (800) 545-2433, option 5.

**Interested in library services to incarcerated youth and adults?**
ASCLA welcomes participation in its two interest groups:

ASCLA Library Services for Youth in Custody Interest Group
ASCLA Library Services to the Incarcerated and Detained Interest Group

As a member of these groups, you can engage with peers on a variety of activities and issues related to these areas of library service. Simply log into ALA Connect, access each group using the hyperlinks above, and click “Join” on the right side of the page to get on board!

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Registration for ASCLA’s online course “Improving Library Services for People with Disabilities” closes Thursday, April 19

Registration is open through close-of-business on Thursday, April 19, for “Improving Library Services for People with Disabilities”, an online course offered by the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA) that prepares your library and library staff to provide effective services to all users of the library.

Providing library services to people with disabilities is a role filled by all levels of library staff. From the part-time aide checking out library materials to the library director determining policies, staff skills and attitudes are crucial for a satisfactory library experience. During this course, participants will identify library users with disabilities at their library and the resources and assistive technologies available to assist them; examine changes in attitudes, laws and technologies that have impacted people with disabilities; and will be able to recommend changes in personal and organizational behaviors to improve services for people with disabilities at their library.

This course is truly designed for all library staff, including support staff, general professional staff, age-level or subject specialists, managers and administrators. The course will begin Monday, April 23 and finish on Friday, May 18. Two live online sessions using the FlashChat feature of Moodle, the online course management system, will take place on Thursday, May 3 and Thursday, May 17, from 3-4 pm CENTRAL/Chicago Time. Students complete the remainder of the weekly coursework at their own pace.

Interested participants can register online now, register via fax or mail, or learn more about the course at the ASCLA website. Registration fees start at $130 for ASCLA members. Discounted group registration rates for two or more registrants from the same library, library system or network are available—download the group registration form. Contact ALA’s Membership and Customer Service Team with any questions about registration for this course at registration@ala.org or (800) 545-2433, option 5.

“Improving Library Services for People with Disabilities” is taught by Kate Todd, who has worked as a children’s librarian for The New York Public Library and as emerging technologies librarian for Manhattanville College. At Manhattanville College, she taught “Technology for Special Education” in the graduate school of education. She has also taught several online courses for the Association of Library Services to Children (ALSC), including “Children with Disabilities in the Library”—this new ASCLA course is the general staff counterpart to that course.

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ASCLA award for innovative universal access project shared by ‘Books for Dessert’ program and ‘Digital Access Project’

Read the official ALA press release.

This year’s ASCLA/KLAS/NOD Award, an annual honor presented by the Association for Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA), will be presented to two organizations that produced noteworthy services and programming for library users with disabilities: the Port Washington (N.Y.) Public Library for its “Books for Dessert” Program, and the Perkins Braille & Talking Book Library and the Boston Public Library Digital Access Project.

The award is supported by ASCLA, home to accessibility issues and advocacy within ALA, Keystone Library Automation Systems (KLAS) and the National Organization for Disabilities (NOD), with the $1000 prize donated by KLAS. The award recognizes an institution for an innovative and well-organized project that successfully developed or expanded services for people with disabilities and has made its total services more accessible through changing physical and/or attitudinal barriers. Faced with an overwhelming number of outstanding award applications for 2012, the committee chose two recipients for this year’s honor. Each winner will receive a citation and split the award money, receiving $500 each.

The Port Washington Public Library’s “Books for Dessert” program makes the riches of the public library accessible to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities by sharing the joy of reading in a relaxed, social and supportive environment. Launched as a pilot program in 2003 with initial funding support from New York State, “Books for Dessert” has expanded from one group with eight participants to three groups, two evening and one morning, with about 50 participants. Program participants range in age from their early-20s to mid-60s. The club gathers once a week between September and June to read aloud from books like “The Pearl” and “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” learn vocabulary and enjoy refreshments and good conversation. At the completion of the book, a video of the same title may be shown. The group compares the book and the video, stimulating discussion and reinforcing comprehension of the material. In addition to these educational benefits, library usage has increased among registered Book Club members, as well as their friends, housemates and the agency staff driving club members to the meetings.

The “Books for Dessert” program receives support from community partners, including Community Mainstreaming Associates, Inc. and the Association for the Help of Retarded Children (AHRC), an advisory board of parents, library staff, experts in the field and certified special education teachers to bring a reading and discussion experience to adults with ID/DD. High school students also support the teachers during each session by answering questions and helping participants follow along in the book while someone else is reading. The Advisory Board has created a manual that will allow other libraries to replicate this program—more information is available by accessing “Books for Dessert” at www.pwpl.org.

“The Port Washington Public Library’s ‘Books for Dessert’ program has championed the idea that literacy for individuals over the age of 21 with intellectual and developmental disabilities is important and achievable,” said ASCLA President Norma Blake. “’Books for Dessert’ is an outstanding example of local public library innovation and ingenuity, and the library is to be commended not only for developing this highly successful program, but also for developing a program guide to help other public libraries across the nation to replicate the program in their local communities.”

The “Digital Access Project” is a collaborative activity of the Perkins Braille & Talking Book Library (BTBL) and the Boston Public Library, with additional involvement from the Internet Archive of San Francisco. Through this joint initiative, patrons of the BTBL who are unable to read traditional printed text can quickly access print books available in the huge collection of the Boston Public Library within 24 hours. Access is made possible by the digital scanning of the print text in the scanning lab of the Internet Archive at the Boston Public Library, where a six-person staff uses semi-automated equipment to scan the requested book, page by page.

The file is subsequently converted into a copyright-protected DAISY (Digital Audio Information System) file that can only be accessed by eligible users of the NLSBPH (National Library Service for the Blind & Physically Handicapped) program network using a special digital key and authorized compatible digital players like the Victor Stream, the BookSense and the Bookport Plus. Within hours, the Internet Archive sends a Web link to Boston Public Library and it is forwarded back to Perkins indicating where the protected DAISY version of the book can be downloaded. Perkins staff download the book files from the provided link, and the Library then forwards the .zip file to the patron. The patron can then listen to it on their adaptive technology utilizing text-to-speech synthetic voice technology. In most cases, this process of converting a print book to an accessible DAISY file moves so efficiently that patrons receive access to the requested book within 24 hours.

“Using existing resources, the Perkins Braille & Talking Book Library and the Boston Public Library, along with the Internet Archive, are successfully demonstrating both the power of collaboration and the power of technology in making print library collections accessible to people with disabilities,” said Tom Blake, digital projects manager at the Boston Public Library.

“The technology used in this innovative project not only removes barriers to print access for patrons with disabilities, it delivers the final accessible product with great speed! This type of information integration is pivotal to our fast-paced society where ready access to information is vital for success in a 21st century world,” states Kim Charlson, director of the Perkins Braille & Talking Book Library.

This year’s awards will be presented at the ASCLA/COSLA Networking Party and Awards Reception, which will be held 5:30-7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 23, 2012 at one of the ALA Annual Conference hotels in Anaheim, Calif. All conference attendees are invited to this event, which will celebrate this year’s ASCLA award winners and also feature peer-to-peer networking activities. More information will be available at www.ala.org/asclain late spring.

 

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Carole Rose wins ASCLA Campbell Award for notable contributions to library services for the blind and physically handicapped

Read the official ALA press release here.

Carole Rose, who recently retired as a librarian at the Indiana Talking Book and Braille Library, is the 2012 winner of the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies’ (ASCLA) 2012 Francis Joseph Campbell Award.

The award, which includes a citation and a medal, is presented to a person or institution that has made an outstanding contribution to the advancement of library service for blind and physically handicapped people. ASCLA, Keystone Automated Systems (KLAS) and the Southern Conference of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped co-sponsor this award.

Rose was selected for her significant contributions over 46 years to the advancement of library service for blind and physically handicapped people throughout the state of Indiana, and also for her outstanding advocacy on behalf of the Indiana low vision community. The award also recognizes Rose’s dedicated leadership in creating Indiana Talking Book & Braille Library programs that embraced change and positively touched the lives of generations of Hoosiers with vision loss.

Rose also played a crucial role as editor (1978-2011) of both Indiana Insights, the Indiana Talking Book & Braille Library newsletter; and IN Touch, a newsletter dedicated to teachers and parents of students with disabilities. These publications have become the most valuable medium of communication for the Indiana Talking Book & Braille Library and were crucial to promoting and advocating the new digital player from the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLSBPH). The copious articles she has written for both in-house and other state and national low-vision communiqué have contributed to Indiana’s success in  moving over 80 percent of its Talking Books patrons from the old cassette player to the new digital player.

“Carole embodies many of the qualities and characteristics recognized by the ASCLA Francis Joseph Campbell Award,” said Norma Blake, ASCLA president. Her “contributions to the advancement of library service for blind and physically handicapped people” are unparalleled in Indiana history, according to her State Library colleagues.

Rose served as a librarian at the Indiana Talking Book and Braille Library from 1965 until her retirement in 2011. Since 1972, she coordinated the library’s summer reading program. She also served as coordinator for the Indiana Vision Expo, the largest low-vision tradeshow in the Midwest, from 2006-2011. She was a grant writer for two successful grants: $950,000 from the Ruth Lilly Philanthropic Foundation to support the recording of books and magazine articles with Indiana connections; and a $2,000 Choose Children grant from Alpha Xi Delta Foundation to expand the large print and Braille book collections.

Rose will receive her award at the ASCLA/COSLA Networking Party and Awards Reception, which will be held 5:30-7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 23, 2012 at one of the ALA Annual Conference hotels in Anaheim, Calif. All conference attendees are invited to this event, which will celebrate this year’s ASCLA award winners and also feature peer-to-peer networking activities. More information will be available at www.ala.org/ascla in late spring.