Her nomination praised her stellar work with students, as follows:

“This wonderful teacher and leader not only makes the school a better place by her establishment and maintenance of a warm, comfortable, communal area in which all are equally welcome, but she strives to make the world a better place by consistently role modeling for colleagues and generations of students, the virtues of non-judgmental behavior, tolerance, and responsibility. There are several classes of deaf and hard of hearing students at Conant, from pre-school through fourth grade. Carolyn makes certain that they have equal access to all her services and has made some changes to the library collections to accommodate them, and to encourage hearing students to learn to communicate with them, just as she has always done for those children who are limited English speaking.

“Carolyn has a very strong commitment to community service. She teaches evening classes for women at local community centers (at no charge) and coordinates other classes as well. She works with a local homeless shelter. Whenever appropriate, she offers the opportunities to participate in service to others to students, their families, and school staff. At major holiday times, they are reminded of those less fortunate, and they are aware of their responsibility to accept and help others.

“Early this year, Carolyn led a group of volunteers in organizing, planning, funding, and preparing a hot meal and ensuring a place to sleep for the night for many homeless families.  First graders designed napkins and place cards, second graders designed the place mats, and in one way or another, all classes contributed. Not only did they provide a full dinner at the church that agreed to house the families, but they also had enough food to package lunches for them for the following day. This was a relevant, first-hand learning experience for the adults and the children who contributed, reinforced by reading the summary of grateful and moving remarks on the evaluation sheets shared with the group by the sheltering organization. This was far more effective teaching than any story that could be read to kids! ”

It is wonderful to see one of our own Michigan librarians honored by this prestigious award.  Previous winners from Michigan include Gigi Lincoln and Margaret Wolfe.

Subject: FREE workshop at WCC: Library collaboration with business service organization

Workshop: From Library to Biz Resource Center
Date: Friday, November 13, 2009
Time: 9:00am – 12:00pm
Location: Washtenaw Community College
Great Lakes Building Rm. 106
4800 E. Huron River Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48105

Click here for driving directions

Cost: FREE!
CEU: 0.3 (Please include your full name, name of institution and last four digits of your SS# when making your reservation to receive CEU credits)

Description and Agenda:

Washtenaw Community College Bailey Library has partnered with MI-SBTDC, a business service organization serving new and existing small businesses in Michigan. Participants will be introduced to how WCC develops and provides resources and services to this community of patrons. If you are interested in learning how to strengthen the connection to the small business community in your area please attend this informative workshop.

Agenda:

9:00 am – 9:15 am               Welcome and introduction

9:15 am – 9:30 am               Beginning of WCC Biz Resource Center

9:30 am – 10:00 am             WCC Biz Resource Center resources

10:00 am – 10:15 am          Individual consultations with entrepreneurs

10:15 am – 10:30 am          Break

10:30 am – 11:30 am          Market research workshops

11:30 am – 11:45 am          Q & A

11:45 am – 12:00 pm          Evaluations

Library tour available after the workshop

Reserve your spot by Friday, October 30th. Contact Bethany Kennedy to reserve your spot, please indicate if you are receiving CEU credits for this workshop:

Bethany Kennedy, MLIS
Director, Access Services
Washtenaw Community College
Bailey Library, GM 111
4800 East Huron River Dr.
Ann Arbor, MI 48105-4800
ph: 734.477.8723
fax:734.677.2220
email: bakennedy@wccnet.edu

Join the Michigan Library Association and supporters on the steps of the State Capitol, September 10 at 10 a.m. For details, see MLA’s Rally for at the Capitol web page.

Lankes’ keynote is “The Times They Are A’Changin’ – the Logic of Participatory Librarianship,” a discussion of how library service should match how people build knowledge.  He also discusses the obligation and power of libraries participating in their communities and society as a whole. The keynote will be followed by a panel of local librarians reacting to Dr. Lankes’ presentation.

After lunch, we will reconvene for the MLC Annual Meeting, which will include an update on the merger between MLC and INCOLSA, followed by the Director’s Annual Report and business meeting.

AGENDA
9:00 a.m. Registration

9:30 a.m. – 12:00 Noon
Welcome – Randy Dykhuis, MLC Executive Director
Keynote – R. David Lankes, “The Times They Are A’Changin’ – the Logic of Participatory Librarianship”
“Reactor” Panel – Colleen Hyslop, MSU Libraries; Larry Neal, Clinton-Macomb Public Library; Anne Heidemann, Canton Public Library

12:00 Noon – 1:00 p.m. Lunch

1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Annual Meeting
Merger Update – MLC and INCOLSA Board members
Director’s Annual Report – Randy Dykhuis
MLC Business Meeting

At four minutes, it might be a bit long to hold the attention of casual Internet-surfers (anything over two minutes and you lose them), but perfect for a captive audience at a library program or school visit.   It is a fun concept – maybe someone in Michigan could produce a shorter version for a lightning tour of MeL databases? Any takers?

“The smart: I recently decided it was time to register LISjobs.com as a business, so filed a DBA with my local county. The other day, I received a letter from my local library (actually, not my library, since I’m in an unincorporated area and out of district, but I’m guessing they go by ZIP code…) which welcomed me to the area, listed the business-related services the library provides, invited me to come introduce myself to their adult services department, and enclosed a brochure on “improving your bottom line.” Now that’s a good marketing idea.”

Sounds like a good marketing idea – I’m interested to hear what Michigan libraries are doing to promote their services to their local business communities. Are any of you including the MeL business databases in your outreach activities?

She gave many examples of the things libraries are doing to help people connect with each other. Many of those activities revolve around the use of technology and the web. Libraries are exploring and innovating through the use of Flickr, MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter. My favorite line in her talk, though, came when she was describing her epiphany about libraries and the their efforts to foster people-connections. As she was describing some of the things she’s seen and discovered, she almost had to force out the words that technology is only a means and that there are many other ways to connect people. After she sort of stumbled over the words, she looked up and said, “There, I’ve said it. It’s not about the technology. It’s about connecting people.” It was a cute moment. And a sentiment that many of us share.

Facebook and Flickr are wonderful tools. They’re a lot of fun and it’s easy to while away a couple of hours on the sites. But the type of community found there pales in comparison to the real thing. Reading and commenting on sites about Darfur may help me gather information and make a start at connecting with people. But it’s not until I go to a rally at the state capitol and hear in-person about the tragedy ongoing in the Sudan that I really connect emotionally.

It’s not an either/or proposition. Libraries need both: We need to be on Facebook. We need to share our photos on Flickr. But we also need children’s story-times. We need programs on personal finance, gardening, and henna painting. And, yes, we need book groups. All of these – from Facebook to henna painting to book groups – foster community and they connect people with each. Chrystie is right: We’re not just about content. We need to help people find connections to other like-minded folks.