Kirtland is working with Equinox Software, Inc., to install and implement Evergreen on the library’s local servers.  Michigan Evergreen staff Evette Atkin and Megan Dudek will train the Kirtland library staff on Evergreen OPAC, Circulation, Cataloging, and Admin modules in December 2009.

If your library is interested in migrating to Evergreen, please feel free to contact Michigan Evergreen staff – Ruth Dukelow, Evette Atkin, or Megan Dudek – for information on joining Michigan Evergreen’s shared catalog or for training options for locally-hosted installations.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

12:30-12:45pm Michigan Evergreen OPAC

1:30-1:45pm Michigan Evergreen Circulation

2:30-2:45pm Michigan Evergreen Cataloging

3:30-3:45pm Michigan Evergreen Admin Module

Thursday, November 5, 2009

10:00-10:15am Michigan Evergreen OPAC

11:00-11:15am Michigan Evergreen Circulation

12:00-12:15pm Michigan Evergreen Cataloging

1:00-1:15pm Michigan Evergreen Admin

2:00-2:15pm Michigan Evergreen Circulation

3:00-3:15pm Michigan Evergreen Cataloging

It was at the 2007 MLA Conference that MLC launched the Michigan Evergreen pilot program.  Two years later, the pilot project is successfully completed, and ten libraries are up and running on the shared Michigan Evergreen system.  We’re now looking for new libraries to join Michigan Evergreen.  If you have questions about Michigan Evergreen, please feel free to stop by the booth or contact us directly at 800-530-9019 or via email:

Ruth Dukelow, dukelow@mlcnet.org

Evette Atkin, atkine@mlcnet.org

Megan Dudek, dudekm@mlcnet.org

Megan comes to MLC from the East Lansing Public Library where she worked for six years in circulation and interlibrary loan, including experience in ILS migration.  Megan received her library degree from Wayne State University and her undergraduate degree in Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities from Michigan State University.

Welcome Megan!

Booth demos are scheduled for:
Wednesday, 2pm-5pm
Thursday, 7:30am-12noon

Also, MLC and GRPL Evergreen staff will present a program at MLA on Thursday, 1:30pm-2:45pm, in Room Prairies V.

If you’re interested in learning about the Michigan Evergreen project, please stop by the booth or come to our program!

“Congratulations to the staff at Branch District Library for taking the plunge and becoming the first public library in Michigan to migrate to Evergreen,” said Randy Dykhuis, MLC Executive Director. “We at MLC are very pleased to be involved in the project.” MLC staff Evette Atkin, Ruth Dukelow, and Elaine Ross worked with the Grand Rapids Public Library and with Equinox Software, Inc., to convert and migrate Branch District Library’s records to the new Michigan Evergreen shared catalog.

“W00T! Nothing exploded!” said Evette Atkin, Systems Librarian for the Michigan Evergreen project. “With the amazing staff at Branch District Library, Equinox, and Grand Rapids Public Library, the migration was a success, and every minor speed bump will aid us making each migration smoother.  Thank you so much to Branch District Library for being our first library to go live!”

John Rucker, the point person for the Michigan Evergreen migration at Branch District Library, said, “The level of service and responsiveness we have received from both Equinox and the staff at Michigan Library Consortium has far exceeded our expectations based on past experience with other vendors. There were a number little glitches to work out in the first couple of days and these were promptly resolved, sometimes in just minutes. We already knew that we and our patrons would be getting a superior library system, but it’s a pleasant surprise, indeed, to have this high level of customer service.”

In addition to migrations, MLC staff are responsible for providing training and support to the Michigan Evergreen libraries. “Training in Evergreen is proving to be a challenging experience, but I am pleased with its overall stability,” said Elaine Ross. “Trainees seem to learn very quickly and easily.”

After the pilot libraries have migrated this fall, the Michigan Evergreen project will be opened to other libraries who wish to join the shared catalog. To schedule a demo of Michigan Evergreen at your library, please contact 800-530-9019 Evette Atkin (ext. 152), Elaine Ross (ext. 153), or Ruth Dukelow (ext. 121). For ongoing information on the Michigan Evergreen project, see the Michigan Evergreen blog and the Michigan Libraries Wiki page.

This is an exciting step for us, because we’re now ready to start the real work of converting the pilot libraries’ data for migration to the Evergreen shared system (soon-to-be-installed on servers at Grand Rapids Public Library). Our MLC team has trips lined up in April and May to visit each pilot library to begin mapping out timelines. We hope to have the pilot libraries up on the system by mid-summer.

Elaine brings a wealth of experience to her new position at MLC. Before joining us at MLC, she worked for Gale/Cengage (previously IAC) for 13 years as a Customer Systems Support Engineer, Manager of RFP/Bids Administration, and Senior MARC Record Specialist. Prior to that she designed and built CAVALIR Online, a statewide union catalog for the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Elaine’s experience also includes training and support for VTLS, Inc., onsite in the U.S. and Europe and remotely for countries in the Middle East and the Pacific Rim, faculty teaching positions at universities in North Carolina and Virginia, and seven years at Richmond Public Library in Virginia.

In her new position as ILS Training & Support Librarian, Elaine will join Evette Atkin on the Michigan Evergreen Team. Elaine and Evette will work with Grand Rapids Public Library to migrate the pilot libraries to Evergreen, an open-source integrated library system. After the initial pilot project is completed, Michigan Evergreen will be opened up to other libraries who wish to join the shared catalog.

For information on the Michigan Evergreen project, please feel free to contact Evette Atkin, Elaine Ross, or Ruth Dukelow at MLC. See also the Michigan Evergreen blog.

The seminar will be held at MLC’s virtual building in Second Life. For SL coordinates and other information, please contact Evette Atkin, atkine@mlcnet.org or 800-530-9019 x152.