From Our Corner

Washington State Library and Early Learning

Image The Washington State Library is a member of the Early Learning Public Library Partnership (ELPLP). The members of ELPLP include libraries of all sizes, income levels, and geographic regions throughout the state of Washington, and represent the extremely diverse population of the state. The member libraries of ELPLP contribute an agreed-upon percentage of their operating budgets to contract with the Foundation for Early Learning. The… Read more

2011 Letters About Literature

From the desk of Mary Paynton Schaff Over 3300 letters from Washington state were submitted for this year’s Letters About Literature contest, and the Washington State Library is proud to announce the 173 Semi-Finalists, 14 Honorable Mentions, and 3 Champions for 2011! A list of all those who are honored is on our website. Continuing on to the national contest in Washington DC are the Washington… Read more

Clippings for the week of March 11, 2011

WA State Library News The 8th graders at Odessa Junior High recently completed two projects on the American Revolution for their history and English classes. This project was made possible by a Supporting Student Success grant that is supported with Library Services and Technology Act funding provided by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Washington State Library. (Odessa Record, 2.10.11) Can you imagine life without commodities? Pioneer Jim Crook did just that… Read more

Library Legislation Tracker – March 18, 2011

Courtesy of the Legislative Planning Committee, Washington Library Association Library Related Legislation. The Washington Library Association (WLA) tracks state legislative activity that will potentially affect Washington Libraries. Their tracker is posted to the WLA web site and we will also post it weekly on this blog. For information on the legislative process or becoming involved, see the WLA site referenced above. Click below to view the… Read more

Goodbye, women's exhibit

Image After being featured for more than a year in the front lobby of our executive office at the state Capitol, the exhibit… Read more

More red ink: WA revenue forecast drops $778m

Image Washington's glacial economic recovery is still bleeding red ink. The state Revenue Forecast Council has just cut more than $778 million from the estimate of expected tax revenue, driving… Read more

The day John L. O’Brien was honored

Image For many newcomers to the Legislature and the Capitol Campus, the John L. O’Brien Building (or JLOB, as it’s known in "acronymese") is simply the name of the building where most of the state representatives’ offices are located, as well… Read more

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Image

May your blessings outnumber The shamrocks that grow, And may trouble avoid you Wherever you go. ~Irish Blessing

WSL Updates for March 17, 2011

Volume 7, March 17, 2011 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) CONNECTING GRANT CYCLE NOW OPEN

2) ASSIST IN SELECTING DATABASE PRODUCTS FOR WA LIBRARIES

3) SEQUIM GAZETTE MICROFILM AVAILABLE

4) APRIL IS THE MONTH OF THE MILITARY CHILD

5) COMMUNITY CONNECT GRANTS WEBINAR

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

… Read more

March is National Umbrella Month

Despite Washington's notoriously long (okay, endless) rainy season, Washingtonians tend to be ambivalent about the use of umbrellas. The following is a typical conversation in a Washington workplace... Jill: "Ack, it's pouring! It wasn't pouring two minutes ago when I was packing up for lunch." Jane: "Give it two minutes, and it'll stop." Jill: "What do you think? Should I bring my umbrella?" Jane: "No." Jill: "But I don't want to ruin my suit." Jane: "Fine, then take an… Read more

National Prison Library Directory

Prison librarians have long fostered a spirit of collaboration in their field of librarianship. Information is shared and questions are asked by any with an interest in prison libraries. To further this along, Libraries Serving Special Populations Section (LSSPS) of the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA… Read more

Clippings for the week of March 4, 2011

Library News The public is invited to join the fifth-birthday celebration of the Benton City library building, a part of the Mid-Columbia Library System, from 10-2pm, Saturday, February 19. A non-perishable food item is asked as donation to the Benton City Food Bank as a memorial to Bill Brazelton, a staunch library supporter who recently passed away. (Benton City Bulletin, 2.2011) The Edmonds Carnegie Library, a part of Sno-Isle Libraries, will be celebrating its 100th anniversary with a… Read more

Avoid scams if you want to help Japan tsunami victims

Image With last night’s news that a 23-foot tsunami caused by Japan’s largest recorded earthquake struck the east coast of Japan, many people will want to help… Read more

Library Legislation Tracker – March 11, 2011

Image Courtesy Legislative Planning Committee, Washington Library Association Library Related Legislation. The Washington Library Association(WLA) tracks state legislative activity that… Read more

WSL Updates for March 10, 2011

Volume 7, March 10, 2011 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) DOWNLOADABLE AUDIOBOOKS RENEWAL & RECRUITMENT

2) MANAGING REFERENCE SERVICE IN A SMALL LIBRARY

3) CELEBRATE PRESERVATION WEEK 2011

4) SPRING AHEAD TO PREPARE FOR DISASTERS

5) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1) DOWNLOADABLE… Read more

Library Legislation Tracker – March 09, 2011

Image Courtesy Legislative Planning Committee, Washington Library Association Library Related Legislation. The Washington Library Association(WLA) tracks state legislative activity that will… Read more

Reeling In the Years at the State Library

From the desk of Sean Lanksbury. PNW & Special Collections Librarian Image Image

Here at the State Library our… Read more

Spring has sprung at the Capitol

Image

Patrick McDonald captured a glimpse of spring at the State Capitol today.

We invite you to e-mail your photos and stories to us as part of an ongoing feature called “From Your Corner of Washington” – we want to gather images… Read more

Clippings for the week of February 25, 2011

Library News The East Side Library was on the list of Spokane Public Library branches threatened to close last year, partly because it has one of the lower usage rates in the city. One reason for the low attendance could be the 2,296 blocked library cards issued from that branch. A card is blocked if there is more than a $10 fine on it. The East Side Library is owed $27,568 in outstanding fines from library cardholders. (Spokesman Review [Spokane], 2.3.11)… Read more

Library Legislation Tracker – March 04, 2011

Image Courtesy Legislative Planning Committee, Washington Library Association Library Related Legislation. The Washington Library Association(WLA) tracks state legislative activity that will… Read more