Posts filed under 'News'
Today, MLA launched its new advocacy website, Michigan Libraries for the Future.
MLA President, Larry Neal, writes:
“Today as part of MLA’s Leadership Orientation we have officially launched our new advocacy website. It will serve as an easy way for library advocates to send their message to Lansing. By clicking on the “Write Your Legislator” button they can send a customized e-mail message to their legislators. I hope I can count on every library in Michigan to link to the website so people will act on our request. You will also be able to ‘Tell A Friend’ and forward the alerts to build a strong grassroots network with friends, trustees and library patrons.
“For those of you who serve on boards or know of boards that would be willing to support our position, there is a full resolution on the Press Kit page that you can use and tailor to your needs. I challenge any of you to read it without getting upset about the fact that we have to spend any of our time doing this in the first place.
“Next steps will include providing a downloadable bookmark, targeted points of view, and sample letters to the editor. I will send out further messages as these tools become available shortly. Also, be sure to join the 200 and growing fans of MLA’s Facebook page and sign up for tweets from our new Twitter service (links on new website)!
“Further, plans are coming together for our rally on the steps of the State Capital on Thursday, September 10. The time is 10 a.m. Attire is anything RED (thanks for the idea Bryon Sitler). Also, please contact me if you are able to bring your bookmobile. I keep hearing about how passionate people are about our profession and what we do. I hope to see lots of you and members of your community there. We will not let Lansing “shush” us. We will be heard.
“And last, but not least, as our list of supporters grows, I would like to thank the Michigan Library Consortium for its support, partnership and commitment to this major campaign to protect the Library of Michigan and MeL/MeLCat.”
August 14th, 2009
The following message is distributed on behalf of the Michigan Genealogical Council. Please feel free to share.
Fellow Michigan genealogists and library supporters -
Now is the time for Michiganians to come to the aid of our state’s
history and learning.
Your Michigan Genealogical Council is planning a public assembly in
Lansing to show our legislators and fellow citizens that we care about
our state’s past.
On Wednesday the 5th of August, let’s assemble at the State Capitol, on
the lawn. We have reserved the North and South lawns, and the steps.
Time, 9:45 a.m. The State Senate goes into session at 10 a.m., the only
time in the next few weeks we can be certain our legislators will be
assembled at Lansing.
At 10:30 a.m., we will process/march over to the Michigan Historical
Center and form our *Hands Around the Library* — in hopes of good media
coverage! Since the perimeter of the building is a round 1800 feet, it
is obvious we can use as many genealogists or friends of
libraries/history of all types as possible. Please definitely let your
local Society know you are coming for sure, since you can see that we
need coverage – flags and ribbons can be held between people as well as
hands and arms.
We’ll stay around the building probably 20 minutes starting at 11:00
a.m. — then off to lunch, research, or museum viewing!
Thanks for your support of Michigan’s past … and our future. Please let
us know how many from your Society will be able to participate — and
questions to Sue Irvine sjirv@yahoo.com <mailto:sjirv@yahoo.com>.
Your Michigan Genealogical Council
July 23rd, 2009
As OCLC and the Michigan Library Consortium (MLC) continue to work in partnership on behalf of OCLC member libraries, we would like to inform you about some important changes with regard to how your library will now access support for OCLC products and services. Please be sure to share this news with staff members in your organization who use OCLC services.
OCLC customer support. MLC/OCLC members will now contact OCLC Customer Support for all questions related to support for OCLC products and services. To contact OCLC Customer Support, please email support@oclc.org or call 1-800-848-5800.
OCLC Service Hours. OCLC support professionals are available 14 hours a day, Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. – 9 p.m. Eastern Time, to assist you with your needs. They will provide answers about OCLC products and services, to help your library maximize the value of your OCLC membership.
OCLC billing. MLC will offer billing assistance to your library for OCLC products and services. To contact MLC for billing assistance, call Janet LaCross at 1-800-530-9019 extension 116, or email lacrossj@mlcnet.org.
OCLC sales. To order OCLC Cataloging subscriptions and other OCLC products and services, see OCLC’s Orders web page, To request a quote or other sales information, contact OCLC at us@oclc.org.
OCLC news. MLC is teaming up with INCOLSA and OCLC to keep you informed about the latest OCLC news. With the introduction of OCLC’s new service model, INCOLSA will provide information about new and enhanced OCLC products and services via regular updates on the MLC website, the Communique blog, and mlcinfo mailing list.
For further information, see MLC’s OCLC Services web page.
June 17th, 2009
Michigan Evergreen Training and Support Librarian
The Michigan Library Consortium (MLC) is looking for a tech-savvy, problem-solving, adventurous librarian to join our Michigan Evergreen team. Michigan Evergreen is an open-source shared ILS project, with ten libraries in the shared system and more to be added in 2009-2010. This position is responsible for training and support of participating libraries on all ILS functionality (OPAC, circ, cataloging, etc.). For consideration, please submit a completed application form and your resume with salary requirements to MLC, Human Resources, 1407 Rensen Street, Suite 1, Lansing, MI 48910-3657. Position is open until filled, with applications received before July 17 given first consideration. Excellent benefits. For links to the complete position description/qualifications and to MLC’s application form, go to: http://mlcnet.org/cms/sitem.cfm/news__announcements/mejob_posting/
June 10th, 2009
Check out the new website for the Friends of Michigan Libraries. They’ve got a great new design!
June 8th, 2009
Have you registered yet? The theme of MLC’s Preservation Conference, “Who Are You Going to Call? Library-Vendor Partnerships in Preservation Projects,” is libraries working with preservation/conservation vendors on physical preservation projects.
On June 5, the second day of MLC’s two-day Preservation Conference, Jennie Thomas, Archivist and Special Collections Librarian, will discuss her library’s vendor collaboration to assess preservation at Albion College. Through a Preservation Assistance Grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities, the assessment was completed by the Northeast Document Conservation Center in March of 2009. Jennie will discuss writing the NEH grant, the NEDCC assessment process, the recommendations that were made in the final report, and the impact on the College’s planning process for library renovation.
Also on June 5, Ann Olszewski, Archivist and Special Collections Librarian, will address “Extending the Preservation Team at the Cleveland Public Library.” Preserving rare books and unique sound recordings in the Cleveland Public Library collection has required finding specialized vendors and conservators to treat these collections. Ann will talk about working with a range of vendors, including the Northeast Document Conservation Center for rare books and photographs, the HF Group Indiana conservation department for special boxes, facsimiles, and digicover bindings for non-Roman language books, the Intermuseum Conservation Association for art and works on paper, OCLC Preservation service center for microfilm, and Safe Sound Archive for audio to digital conversion.
For detailed information on other speakers at the two-day Preservation Conference, and to register online, please see MLC’s Workshop Registration page: https://members.mlcnet.org/workshops/viewcourse.html?id=197
For further information and for assistance with registration, please contact Heather Thomas (thomash@mlcnet.org or 800-530-9019 x133).
May 11th, 2009
The theme of MLC’s Preservation Conference, “Who Are You Going to Call? Library-Vendor Partnerships in Preservation Projects,” is libraries working with preservation/conservation vendors on physical preservation projects.
Shannon Zachary, University of Michigan Library, will address “Mass Deacidification from Inside Out” at MLC’s Preservation Conference on June 4-5 2009 at the Kellogg Center in East Lansing, Michigan. Mass deacidification is precisely the sort of preservation treatment – with high demands for technology, equipment, space, and experienced staff – that makes sense for almost any library to outsource rather than attempt in-house. The University of Michigan Library has been engaged in an outsourced mass deacidification program since 1998. This talk will discuss what mass deacidification is, making decisions about what to deacidify and why, as well as work flow, risks, costs, and benefits.
Jennifer Hain Teper, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will present “Mold Remediation in the University of Illinois’ Rare Book & Manuscript Library – Our successes and compromises.” In late September of 2007, Conservation identified mold in the storage vault of the Rare Book and Manuscript Library (RBML) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Over the course of 8 months, the staff of the RBML, Preservation & Conservation, Library administration, and Facilities & Services worked closely to plan for and implement a remediation plan. Blackmon-Mooring-Steamatic Catastrophe (BMS CAT) was contracted to complete the cleaning of the collection materials, storage areas, and HVAC systems in a ten-week period. With the outsourced cleaning of collection materials and spaces complete since May of 2008, we have since evaluated what worked well, what compromises were made, and what we would have done differently to achieve the best result.
For detailed information on the two-day Preservation Conference, and to register online, see MLC’s Workshop Registration page: https://members.mlcnet.org/workshops/viewcourse.html?id=197
May 8th, 2009
James Craven of the University of Michigan, our featured dinner speaker at the MLC Preservation conference on June 4, will entertain conference attendees with stories of three unique projects: the restoration of the Book of Martyrs, 1563, the conservation of a 1664 map of Brazil, and the unfolding and conservation of a 1447 parchment belonging to the Special Collections Library, a transfer of property by King Charles of France.
For detailed information on the two-day Preservation Conference, and to register online, see MLC’s Workshop Registration page: https://members.mlcnet.org/workshops/viewcourse.html?id=197
Please contact Heather Thomas at MLC (800-530-9019 x133) with questions or for assistance with registration.
April 24th, 2009
Please use this FAX number to reach MLC: 517-492-3808 Due to circumstances out of our control our main fax number is out of order. Service should be restored to our regular number by May 8th. Additionally, the new number will remain in service permanently.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
April 23rd, 2009
Our luncheon speaker at MLC’s Preservation Conference on June 5 will be Nancy Kraft of the University of Iowa. Nancy’s talk, “Disaster Response and Recovery: A Tale of Two Rivers,” will be the closing presentation at our two-day conference.
The Cedar River runs through Cedar Rapids, Iowa. In early June 2008, the river came up fast and ugly, going way beyond the 500 year flood plain, more than 12 feet over the projected flood level, exceeding all past records. On the plus side, the water receded rapidly allowing disaster response efforts to begin within a few days after the event. The Iowa River runs through The University of Iowa. The Iowa River rose slowly, allowing staff time to prepare. It, too, exceeded all previous records but did not get as high as projected. The Iowa River went down slowly. Nancy E Kraft, Preservation Librarian, from the University of Iowa Libraries will discuss how staff coped with the flooding to salvage library and museum resources.
For more information on the Preservation Conference and to register online, go to MLC’s Workshop Registration page: https://members.mlcnet.org/workshops/viewcourse.html?id=197
April 21st, 2009
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