Deerfield Public Library Wins the 2018 ILA RA Service Award [Sponsored by ARRT]

Back in March of 2017 I had this Call to Action post asking you to nominate a colleague for an award. Since last year I have made it my personal goal to nominate someone for an award at least once a year. My nominees have not won yet, but I am going to continue to submit nominations because promoting and encouraging colleagues is important. Again read why here.

One of the awards I am associated with is the Illinois Library Association’s Readers' Advisory Service Award which is sponsored by ARRT. Click here for the details and criteria for the award, but here is the summary:

This award recognizes excellence in the planning, development, and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens and has been created in accordance with the mission statement of the Adult Reading Round Table: “to promote readers’ advisory skills and reading for pleasure through libraries.” Readers’ advisory is the ability to connect readers with materials that will satisfy their desire for something to read for pleasure

The ARRT Chair appoints a subcommittee to go through the qualified nominations, assess them in response to the award criteria, and make a recommendation, each year. This year, I had the honor of serving on that subcommittee. We had 5 qualified nominations and all were very exciting and inspiring. In fact, that might have been the best part of the process, seeing how much wonderful RA Service is happening all around the state.

In the end we picked the Adult Services Department from the Deerfield Public Library as our winners. From the official press release:

The Adult Services Department of the Deerfield Public Library is the recipient of the 2018 Illinois Library Association Readers’ Advisory Service Award. The award,presented and sponsored by the Adult Reading Round Table, recognizes excellence in the planning, development and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens. 

Deerfield’s Adult Services Department was selected for their innovative, impactful Read Without Boundaries program. This year-long program was launched in January 2018 to challenge patrons to read outside their comfort zone, with the goal of strengthening the community, broadening understanding of others, and providing insight into different cultures, opinions, and perspectives. Each month of the program features a selected theme meant to challenge patrons to read one title that promotes empathy or understanding. Readers receive prizes for individual challenges and completing the overall program. The program is an adult program, but adults of all abilities are encouraged to participate, regardless of reading level. 

Claire Steiner, Head of Adult Services cites positive feedback from participants, stating:“Many participants expressed that they would never have read a book like the one theychose had it not been for the challenge. The program has provided the Deerfield community with a multitude of opportunities to grow as readers and thinkers.”The impact of the monthly challenges was documented through patron responses: 

January Challenge: Read a Book Written by an Immigrant or with an Immigration Story

•   “Made me think more about the current refugee crisis and the enormous challengesfacing those forced to flee their homes.”
•   “It reminded me that immigration is more complex than just "wanting a better life" andthat it's easier to understand anyone when you know more about them. I've had this book on my "to-read" list since 2015 and I'm glad the reading challenge brought it to the top.”
  
  February Challenge: Read a book with a theme of love, kindness, empathy or compassion.

•   “Everyone has a need to have someone notice their existence.”
•   “This is essentially the kind of life I want to lead, making a positive contribution to the
  world.”
•   “Everyone has a story and is struggling with demons we know nothing about. We should
  not judge others before we really know them.”
  
  More information about the Read Without Boundaries program can be found at http://deerfieldlibrary.org/read-without-boundaries/.

Congrats to Deerfield Public Library. They should be very proud of their program with or without this award. At ARRT we were impressed with the comprehensive and innovative nature of the program, but also its ease of replicability for other libraries regardless of their size or location. Like we have done with past winners, we are hoping to have Deerfield representatives present on their program in more detail at a 2019 ARRT program.

I am so proud of this award, now in its 4th year. It is one of the best things ARRT does. As Illinois’s largest RA training and networking group, ARRT pays it forward every year by acknowledging and recognizing our peers. You should to. Find a way to promote RA Service where you live. Sure not everyone is part of an organization like ARRT and cannot sponsor an award, but you can nominate someone for something-- an award- national, regional or local.

When you advocate for your colleagues you promote the work that all of of us do every single day.

Congratulations to all of the ILA Award Winners. They are a distinguished bunch. Take a look for yourself. I can’t wait to be there to honor everyone at the awards luncheon on October 9th.

IL Readers- Nominate Yourself for the ILA Readers' Advisory Service Award

Sorry to be so locally specific today, but it is important. The deadline is fast approaching here in IL to nominate someone for an ILA Award or Scholarship. Nominations will be accepted up to 5/15. So you have 2 weeks to get on this people.

As part of the Adult Reading Round Table, I would like to specifically draw your attention to our award for RA Service.

Click here or see below for the details but quickly let me tell you, I have been on the award subcommittee before [I asked off this year so new people could have a say] and I will tell you that self nominations are often stronger than having someone else nominate you. Why? Because you know first hand why you are awesome and can tell us better than someone else can.

Please consider nominating yourself for the award. We have a few nominations in already but we'd love more. Also, here is an insider's tip-- read the criteria. Okay, that's not actually insider, but it is something a lot of people don't do well.

We really like specific programs or services [as noted in the criteria], not just that you are generally awesome at RA.

Also can your program or service be replicated by others? The point of this award is so we can highlight and share a great idea with other libraries so more libraries can be awesome for their patrons too. 

And finally, follow the links to read the press releases about previous winners. It will give you a broad sense of what we are looking for. As you will see not everyone who wins uses technology or does something that no one has ever done before. 

Maybe our next winner will be you!

And for those of you outside of IL who are still reading this post, why don't you go find an award to nominate yourselves for too. And if there isn't a good one for RA Service [like was the case here in IL], figure out a way to start one. That's what ARRT did. 

The Readers' Advisory Service Award

Presented by ILA Awards Committee and the Adult Reading Round Table (ARRT).

Submit a nomination.

Not sure how to get started with your nomination?

Click here to download award nomination guidelines and requirements.

Review the Criteria and Eligibility below. 

Category

This award recognizes excellence in the planning, development, and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens and has been created in accordance with the mission statement of the Adult Reading Round Table: “to promote readers’ advisory skills and reading for pleasure through libraries.” Readers’ advisory is the ability to connect readers with materials that will satisfy their desire for something to read for pleasure.

Eligibility

The award is offered annually to individual ILA members, ILA member libraries and departments or groups within ILA member institutions. Applications should be submitted to the ILA awards committee. The recipient will be selected by a subcommittee of the ARRT Steering Committee and the ILA Awards Committee. The Adult Reading Round Table is committed to promoting the award and soliciting nominations.

Criteria

• Nominees must demonstrate one or more of the following:
• Development of specialized or innovative programs or services;
• Active participation in professional organizations (at the local, state, or national level), including the planning and presentation of programs and/or workshops designed to enhance the quality of readers’ advisory service;
• Influence and/or cooperation with persons and organizations within the local community to encourage reading and discussion;
• Publication of books and/or articles that promote high quality readers’ advisory service and offer methods for strengthening readers’ advisory skills;
• Participation in research projects that contribute to the knowledge and expertise of readers’ advisory practitioners.

Award

Recipient will receive a certificate and a $200 financial award.

Please note that monetary award amounts are subject to change without notice and are contingent upon sponsor funding supplied at the time the award is presented.

Nomination Deadline

May 15

Nomination Submissions

The nominator’s statement of support should address all criteria under the individual awards as outlined. Nominator must submit the nomination form and attach all support statements, letters, and documentation, etc. required by the award’s criteria. ILA must receive all nominations by May 15.

Previous Readers' Advisory winners

2015    Downers Grove Public Library2016    Mike Hominick and Tracy Gossage2017    Debbie Hoffman2018    Adult Services Department, Deerfield Public Library

Nominate Yourself or Your Peers for Excellent RA Service And Why This Award Is Important To Everyone No Matter Where You Live

I know I have readers from all over the world on this blog, but if you will all excuse me for a moment, I have a local announcement, but, I promise at the end of this post I will have information for all my readers.

As you all know, I am on the steering committee for the oldest RA Networking group in the country, the Adult Reading Round Table. A few years ago, we started the process to honor excellence in service to leisure readers in Illinois with its own award. We love our Reference Services Forum friends, but RA had been hidden within their award for many years, and as a result, some wonderful services to patrons were going unnoticed.

Well, as I mentioned on the blog back in 2015 here, we were able to co-sponsor a new award with our Reference Forum colleagues. And, last year, Downers Grove Public Library's wonderful Book Genie won first ever ILA Readers' Advisory Service Award conferred by ARRT. 

The entire process was a huge success.  You can click here to learn more about the winners.

And now, we accepting submissions for the second annual award!

This award recognizes excellence in the planning, development, or delivery of RA services to adults or teens.  Nominees can be individuals, departments, teams, or entire libraries so long as the person (or their library) is an ILA member.

ARRT knows a lot of exciting RA work is being done in Illinois.  This award is a perfect time to recognize all the innovative ideas being explored.  We'd love to have  large application pool, so the more nominations the merrier!  The recipient will be selected by a subcommittee of the ARRT Steering Committee and the ILA Reference Services Forum.

Nominations can be submitted online until May 15, 2016.

Okay, so that’s my local announcement. By the way, you can nominate yourself. We encourage it because sometimes you are the only ones who know about the great work you are doing. Also, if you don’t live or work in Illinois, but know someone who is doing great RA work in our state, as long as 1 person you are nominating or the library itself is an ILA member, you can nominate them.  You do not need to be a member yourself to nominate anyone.

But now for the rest of you non-Illinoisans who have been patiently waiting to read this.  I hope this post serves as a public service announcement to you for your locations.

At ARRT we were tired of complaining that RA work wasn’t being recognized, so we did something about it. We put our money where our heart was.  We collect membership dollars and sell our training products to NoveList in order to have funds to “develop” and “promote” service to leisure readers in Northern IL. Using our money to fund an award that highlights RA work is the perfect service to our mission.  Last year we had multiple nominations, and while we could only pick one winner, we have now identified some great RA work happening places we did not know about. We are getting a full picture of who is doing great work in our state and how we can help develop and promote RA services for everyone.

But there are even more important results from our work to advocate for and fund a RA award at the state level. The higher ups in the Illinois Library Association leadership were impressed with the number of nominations we were able to get. It made them realize how important RA service is to our state. Here are some tangible results from our work with this award:

• More RA focused programming was accepted at the conference last year because they knew there would be an award.
• We got to have the stage to ourselves and present a separate award in front of the entire ILA Community of library workers.
• The ILA Reporter, the official publication of our statewide organization, noticed how popular RA Service was and dedicated an entire issue to the topic, including an article by me, and interview with me, and an article about last year’s winners of our award. Click here to access that issue.
• ILA is currently reviewing program requests for the 2016 conference, but anecdotally, I have heard more RA focused programs were submitted than in previous years. I myself submitted 2.

Now think about your area? What are you doing to help promote service to leisure readers among your colleagues.  In many cases that is just as important as the promotion we do to our patrons.  I hope our example of success will inspire you to identify and honor your colleagues who are going above and beyond to serve their leisure readers.

RA for All: Call to Action- Nominate Your IL RA Peers [Or Yourself]

I know the headline says to nominate your IL peers, and while I do want to focus on getting all you Illinois RA people psyched for the ARRT sponsored award, today's Call to Action is a reminder to everyone out there to brag about yourselves and let people know how much great work you are doing.

Look, I know most library workers are uncomfortable with what I am about to say, but please hear me out....

You all need to be better about shouting to the world about how great you are.

Stop worrying about being a bragger. You aren't. You are promoting your great work. And by promoting yourself, you are reminding library users all over the country of the amazing things we- as Libraries, as an institution- can do. Yes, that's right, when you brag about yourself you are actually bragging about all of us. [Does that make you feel better?]

There are so many of you out there doing wonderful things. I am one of the only people that gets to see even a fraction of our country's awesome workers who are serving adult leisure readers in America's public libraries. I work very hard to spread the very best ideas and work that all of you do, but I need some help.

Finding ways to honor your colleagues or yourself is part of your job. And yes it is not only okay, but encouraged, that you nominate yourself for honors and awards. Most of us work in a vacuum. We do not know what others are doing. But, if you think something you are doing is working very well why aren't you letting everyone know?!?!? That is a detriment to us all.

That's right, I am telling you that NOT bragging about yourself and your work is hurting all of us and the good work we do. [Now do you feel less awkward about promoting yourselves?]

So get out there and find an award and nominate a colleague or yourself. Make it your goal to submit one nomination for something this year. Seriously. That's an order.

And if you live in IL, start with the award below. Full disclosure, I am on the ARRT Steering Committee, but I am NOT on the subcommittee that handles the nominations and chooses a winner. You can contact me to discuss who you are thinking of nominating, but I cannot nominate anyone for you.

Commence nominating.....

From the ARRT website:

Time to put on your thinking caps and nominate someone for the third annual ILA Readers’ Advisory Service Award conferred by ARRT. 

ARRT knows a lot of exciting RA work is being done in Illinois.  Help us recognize and promote all the innovative ideas being explored! 

This award recognizes excellence in the planning, development, or delivery of RA services to adults or teens.  Nominees can be individuals, departments, teams, or entire libraries so long as the person (or their library) is an ILA member.  (You can also nominate yourself!) 

Previous winners include:

• Downers Grove Public Library‘s wonderful Book Genie

• Mike Hominick and Tracy Gossage for their Watch This, Read That social media campaign at Northbrook Public Library

We’ve received wonderful nominations the last two years and are looking forward to seeing the new crop!  The recipient will be selected by a subcommittee of the ARRT Steering Committee and the ILA Reference Services Forum.Nominations can be submitted online until May 15, 2017.

If you have a similar award that a group you are a part of sponsors, please let me know. I have readers from all over the country (and the world). I would love to promote your award here too.

For past Call to Action posts click here. 

Doing Great RA In Illinois? We Want You To Win An Award

In a few hours the ARRT Steering Committee is having our regular, bi-monthly meeting.

One of the biggest things we are working on right now is promoting the call for nominations for our brand new Illinois Library Association award specifically honoring excellence in the planning, development and delivery of RA service to adults and teens. You can nominate, individuals, departments, teams, or libraries as long as they are members of ILA.

One key question that arose through this process...Does the nominator have to be a member of ILA? The answer is no; just the nominee.

We are very excited to present and sponsor this award. We worked on crafting it and have committed to provide the cash award for at least 3 years.

But to make it a true success we would love to have a large pool of nominations to choose from. I know that we have some already, but the more the merrier! From ARRT’s standpoint, the more great RA work we know that is happening throughout the state, the better programming and support we can provide to all.

You still have 8 days to submit a nomination-- May 15th.  Here is the direct link to the award with directions on submitting nominations.  I have also reposted the text below.

Good luck. I can’t wait to go through all the nominations in June to see what a great job my colleagues are doing out there in the RA trenches.

Readers’ Advisory Service Award Presented by ILA Reference Services Forum and the Adult Reading Round Table Category This award recognizes excellence in the planning, development and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens and has been created in accordance with the mission statement of the Adult Reading Round Table: “to promote readers’ advisory skills and reading for pleasure through libraries.” Readers’ advisory is the ability to connect readers with materials that will satisfy their desire for something to read for pleasure. Eligibility The award is offered annually to individual ILA members, ILA member libraries and departments or groups within ILA member institutions. Nominees do not have to be a member of the Reference Services Forum. Applications should be submitted to the ILA awards committee. The recipient will be selected by a subcommittee of the ARRT Steering Committee and Reference Services Forum. The Adult Reading Round Table is committed to promoting the award and soliciting nominations. Criteria  Nominees must demonstrate one or more of the following: Development of specialized or innovative programs or services; Active participation in professional organizations (at the local, state, or national level), including the planning and presentation of programs and/or workshops designed to enhance the quality of readers’ advisory service; Influence and/or cooperation with persons and organizations within the local community to encourage reading and discussion; Publication of books and/or articles that promote high quality readers’ advisory service and offer methods for strengthening readers’ advisory skills; Participation in research projects that contribute to the knowledge and expertise of readers’ advisory practitioners. Award Recipient will receive a certificate and a $200 financial award. Nomination Deadline May 15 Nomination Submissions The nominator’s statement of support should address all criteria under the individual awards as outlined.  Nominator must submit the nomination form and attach all support statements, letters, and documentation, etc. required by the award’s criteria. ILA must receive all nominations by May 15.

First Annual RA Service Award

We had our bi-monthly Adult Reading Round Table Steering Committee meeting yesterday and one of the items on the agenda was the brand new Illinois Library Association award we are sponsoring. Click here for the full details on the award, but the basics are also posted below.

If you know an individual or a library who is doing superior RA work in Illinois, please consider nominating them for this award.  ARRT will be given the nominations after the May 15th deadline to chose the winner.

We are so proud and excited to finally be recognizing Readers' Advisory independently from Reference Service.  The ILA Reference Services Forum worked with us to craft this award, and were instrumental in helping it get approved. Please consider submitting a nomination.  We would love to reward people who are doing innovative and exciting things to engage and serve their leisure readers. We are putting our money where our mouth is too-- it's a $200 cash award to help the winner continue their work.

Below is the basic info, but click through for everything if you have someone in mind to nominate.

Readers’ Advisory Service Award
Presented by ILA Reference Services Forum and the Adult Reading Round Table

Category
This award recognizes excellence in the planning, development and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens and has been created in accordance with the mission statement of the Adult Reading Round Table: “to promote readers’ advisory skills and reading for pleasure through libraries.” Readers’ advisory is the ability to connect readers with materials that will satisfy their desire for something to read for pleasure.

Eligibility
The award is offered annually to individual ILA members, ILA member libraries and departments or groups within ILA member institutions. Nominees do not have to be a member of the Reference Services Forum. Applications should be submitted to the ILA awards committee. The recipient will be selected by a subcommittee of the ARRT Steering Committee and Reference Services Forum. The Adult Reading Round Table is committed to promoting the award and soliciting nominations.

Criteria 
Nominees must demonstrate one or more of the following:

• Development of specialized or innovative programs or services;
• Active participation in professional organizations (at the local, state, or national level), including the planning and presentation of programs and/or workshops designed to enhance the quality of readers’ advisory service;
• Influence and/or cooperation with persons and organizations within the local community to encourage reading and discussion;
• Publication of books and/or articles that promote high quality readers’ advisory service and offer methods for strengthening readers’ advisory skills;
• Participation in research projects that contribute to the knowledge and expertise of readers’ advisory practitioners.

Award
Recipient will receive a certificate and a $200 financial award.

Nomination Deadline
May 15

ILA RA Service Award Announcement

As I have mentioned before on this blog, ARRT is a sponsor of the Illinois Library Association’s Readers’ Advisory Service Award. Last year, in our first year of the award, we gave it to the Downers Grove Public Library.

The 2016 award winners were just announced and I am beyond excited and proud to share them with you because the winners are two of my former students-- Mike and Tracy!

When I heard who won from my ARRT colleagues on the subcommittee who pick the winner, I was literally bursting with joy. Mike and Tracy are wonderful people, but they have always had the RA knack. A few years ago when I found out they ended up at the same library, I was so happy for them and the community they were serving.  I am proud to have taught them the RA basics, but even more proud of what they ultimately have done with that knowledge.

Here is the official press release with details about why they won:

Illinois Library Association 33 W. Grand Ave., Suite 401 Chicago, IL 60654-6799
Press Release
Phone: 312.644.1896 Fax: 312.644.1899 E-mail: ila@ila.org

Mike Hominick and Tracy Gossage of the Northbrook Public Library are the recipients of the Illinois Library Association Readers’ Advisory Service Award. The award, presented by the Adult Reading Round Table and the ILA Reference Services Forum, recognizes excellence in the planning, development and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens. The award is sponsored by the Adult Reading Round Table.

Mike Hominick and Tracy Gossage have taken the Northbrook Public Library’s readers’ advisory services to the virtual streets with their Twitter campaign. Tweeting book reviews and recommendations with their Watch This, Read That campaign, Mike and Tracy are attracting new users to the library by connecting their recommendations to pop culture, new movies and the latest television shows. 

Their Watch This, Read That campaign helps connect Northbrook Public Library patrons to books they may like based on their favorite TV shows and movies. Mike and Tracy collaborate to create posts that feature nostalgic TV shows, Oscar-nominated films, and other trending movies and television shows. Each post provides an intriguing list of reading recommendations, an engaging summary of each title listed, as well as a link to each book in the library’s catalog so patrons can easily access the books they discover. 

To a patron who may prefer TV or film to books, the Watch This, Read That campaign exposes them to new library offerings they may not have previously considered.
Mike and Tracy have enriched the library’s social media presence, helping the Northbrook Public Library reach a larger audience within its community. Their Watch This, Read That posts are consistently the library’s most successful posts on its Tumblr, Facebook and Twitter pages. 

The Readers’ Advisory Award will be presented at the Awards Luncheon held on Tuesday, October 18th, during the 2016 Illinois Library Association Annual Conference in Rosemont. 

For further information, contact the Illinois Library Association. 

Mike and Tracy are a shining example of how the basic concept of RA Service can be expanded and used to help patrons in ways they didn’t even know they could be assisted.

Thanks to everyone who submitted nominees.  We had many to choose from.  If you did not win this year, please don’t be discouraged. We will be accepting nominations again next year and would love to see repeat nominees.

Click here for info on all of the ILA award winners.

Time to Register for ILA-- Post Includes RA for All and ARRT News

So much ARRT and ILA news today-- some of it I have been dying to share but was waiting patiently for today, and some of it is still not ready to pass on yet.  Too much awesome library stuff.

Let me start at the beginning...

Last year I was on the Illinois Library Association’s Conference Planning Committee. [You can click here to read more about that.] It was a great experience, I met librarians from all over the state who work in all types of libraries, and I got to see how a conference is put together from start to finish.

As part of the 2014 committee, I also got to see the very beginning of planning for the 2015 conference. Normally, this would be no big deal having just gone through the entire process, except for the fact that this year, 2015, all of the Illinois Library Associations have pulled together, for the very first time, to put on one giant state library conference!

From the conference website:

"The 2015 All for One Conference: A Library State of Mind brings together library organizations in Illinois for a chance to connect, network, and learn together. Academic, public, school, and special libraries will come together for the first combined annual conference of the Illinois Library Association and Illinois School Library Media Association, in collaboration with the Illinois Association of College and Research Libraries and the Special Libraries Association Illinois Chapter. "

Okay, so first the RA for All conference related news... RA for All [aka- me] is a Silver Sponsor of the entire conference.  [Click here and scroll down the right gutter to see the proof that my check cleared.] Specifically, I will be sponsoring the much needed Saturday morning coffee for all attendees. This is the coffee which will be served the day after the Awards Gala [and its cash bar]. More on exactly what you can find from me besides coffee at the conference is one of the things I am not prepared to share yet-- but it is in the works.

Speaking of the awards gala, as I have mentioned before, this is the first year that ARRT is sponsoring the Readers’ Advisory Service Award to be given out at the gala. The winner will be announced sometime in August or September.  The awards gala costs $45 extra with your registration, but from what I hear, it is going to be great- dinner, dancing, and more. Plus we have a fun contingent of ARRT people planning to be there and celebrate our new award and it’s inaugural winner. I have already secured my spot.

ARRT is also behind another honoree at the gala, but that is also something you will have to wait to find out.  I promise though, it is news all of my readers, regardless of what state (or country) they live in, will be excited to learn.  

And finally for today, ARRT and I have teamed up to present the following conference program on Saturday morning:

Genre Study Success!: Working Together to Help Leisure Readers  

The Adult Reading Round Table [ARRT], the country’s oldest group dedicated to developing readers advisory skills and promoting leisure reading, has been using the genre study as a training program for more than twenty years. This year, ARRT wants to share their success. Genre studies are a great way for librarians at any library that serves leisure readers at any age level to work together to improve their skills. At their essence, genre studies are group-centered discussions about categories of popular reading. Participants engage in a shared reading experience, compare reactions, and discuss both the books they have read and how patrons interact with the genre. As the actual study itself can take many forms, ARRT will walk you through the process of crafting a genre study model that works best for your needs, sharing their time tested tips and tricks to insure success for you, your staff, and, most importantly, your readers.

This program will help workers from any library where there are leisure reading patrons-- public, school, and even some academic.

So, what are you all waiting for? Registration opened today.  Go sign up.  This is going to be a fantastic conference, a chance for all library workers, from all library types, to be together. I hope to see you there.

2019 Readers' Advisory Service Award Winner Announcement and Come See Them Present for ARRT

One of my favorite things about being on the Steering Committee of the Adult Reading Round Table is that we created and sponsor an award for RA Service here in Illinois through the Illinois Library Association. This week all of the annual winners were announced here.

Below I am proud to feature this year's winner, the Popular Materials Department at Ela Area Public Library District. 

Click here for details 
and to register

You can get all of the links and read the press release below; however, before you do that, I also want to invite you to Ela Area Public Library District on 8/27/19 for the second ARRT Program of the year-- Earworms for Bookworms. Details here.

One of the listed reasons Ela won this award [below] is because of their podcast, Three Books. But that is not the only reason. What is so inspiring about this team [and they truly are a team because I have been there and seen it myself] is that they knew their RA Service was being overshadowed when their department started also doing passports, and yet, people wanted RA Service too. Instead of throwing up their hands, they went out and did something about it....without sacrificing service to any patrons or overtaxing staff in the process.

Details and links are all below.

*****************************************

Readers' Advisory Service Award

Popular Materials Department at Ela Area Public Library District

About the award »

Press Release » [and below]

Illinois Library Association 33 W. Grand Ave., Suite 401 Chicago, IL 60654-6799

Press Release

Phone: 312.644.1896 Fax: 312.644.1899
Email: ila@ila.org

The Popular Materials Department at the Ela Area Public Library is the recipient of the Illinois Library Association Readers’ Advisory Service Award. The award,presented by the Adult Reading Round Table, recognizes excellence in the planning,development and delivery of readers’ advisory service to adults and teens. The award is sponsored by the Adult Reading Round Table.

Ela’s Popular Materials Department was selected as this year’s winner in recognition of their innovative efforts to promote Readers’ Advisory in ways that are inclusive and impactful. With initiatives such as the Three Books Podcast, Ask Me What I’m Reading, Ela Book Buzz, Teen Margin Project, and Great Read Out, the Popular MaterialsDepartment has made readers’ advisory a central focus and more than doubled theirreach over the past two years.

These efforts are even more remarkable when you consider the challenge the Popular Materials department faced in the recent past. Due to a large volume of passports being processed at the Popular Materials Desk, staff were spending up to 50% of their time on passports. This was preventing other users from accessing the desk, and it was difficultfor staff to focus on or promote readers’ advisory. As the library worked on makingpassport processing more manageable, staff began brainstorm ideas to ensure thatpatrons’ readers’ advisory needs were met.

Highlights of the resulting readers’ advisory initiatives include:

Three Books Podcast

This monthly podcast is hosted by staff members Christen Wiser and Becca Boland and features staff recommendations as well as guests including genre experts, authors, andlocal readers. One review of the podcast on iTunes states, “Three Books has become one of my most-anticipated podcasts. I love hearing the conversations about books almostas much as I love reading!”

Ela Book Buzz
This event featured book promotions and giveaways led by staff from across the library. Alexis Neumann, an attendee of event, states, “Book Buzz was an incredible one nightprogram in which various staff members of the library spoke on their favorite booksthey read within the past year. Hearing each person’s review and what they lovedabout the books made me incredibly eager to read each and every one.”

“Ask Me What I’m Reading”
Initiatives such as Book Clip Signage, Reading Stands, and Pins/Buttons highlight that staff are available and eager to provide reading suggestions, with a goal of encouragingmore casual readers’ advisory interactions.

Teen Margin Project
This program encouraged teens to write their thoughts, feelings, and reflections in the margins of the book before returning it to the library. Other readers could then reflect and add their thoughts, which created a discussion between readers.

Great Read Out
Library patrons were welcomed to the library after hours on the first day of summer to enjoy some ice cream and read together as a community.
Executive Director Matt Womack applauds the work of the Popular Materials staff as both inspiring to staff and a big hit with patrons. Assistant Director Erica Christiansonadds, “From engaging patrons through direct and indirect methods, to empoweringand involving staff in RA activities, the Popular Materials Department has usedinnovative methods to make our Library a more welcoming place for all readers.”

The Readers’ Advisory Service Award will be presented at the Awards Luncheon to beheld on Tuesday, October 22, during the 2019 Illinois Library Association Annual Conference in Tinley Park.
For further information, contact the Illinois Library Association.

ARRT Book Discussion: Exit West Discussion Notes and A Distant Heart Announcement

On January 23, 2018, the ARRT Book Club Study met to discussion Exit West by Mohsin Hamid. The notes on the discussion of the book, led by Jennifer, can be found here. For the second half od the meeting, Elizabeth led the the Leadership Discussion which focused on discussing "best" books. "Best" books referred to either award winners or popular book club picks. Click here for the notes on the Leadership Topic discussion.

And now on to the announcement of our second discussion of the year. This one is in conjunction with the start of our 2 year genre study. From the ARRT Book Club Study Homepage:

Think romance isn’t discussable?  Let us prove you wrong with A Distant Heart by Sonali Dev!  Sonali is a local Naperville author who writes romances with a Bollywood flavor that tackle big issues perfect for any book club to discuss. Sonali’s novels often win starred reviews and have been listed on Library Journal, NPR, Washington Post and Kirkus Best Books of the year lists. She has also received the American Library Association’s award for best romance, the RT Reviewer’s Choice award for best contemporary romance, the RT Seal of Excellence, and is a RITA Finalist.  

Please join us for a discussion of A Distant Heart by Sonali Dev led by Karen Toonen: 

Her name means “miracle” in Sanskrit, and to her parents, that’s exactly what Kimaya is. The first baby to survive after several miscarriages, Kimi grows up in a mansion at the top of Mumbai’s Pali Hill, surrounded by love and privilege. But at eleven years old, she develops a rare illness that requires her to be confined to a germ-free ivory tower in her home, with only the Arabian Sea churning outside her window for company. . . . Until one person dares venture into her world.

Tasked at fourteen-years-old with supporting his family, Rahul Savant shows up to wash Kimi’s windows, and an unlikely friendship develops across the plastic curtain of her isolation room. As years pass, Rahul becomes Kimi’s eyes to the outside world—and she becomes his inspiration to better himself by enrolling in the police force. But when a life-saving heart transplant offers the chance of a real future, both must face all that ties them together and keeps them apart.

As Kimi anticipates a new life, Rahul struggles with loving someone he may yet lose. And when his investigation into a black market organ ring run by a sociopathic gang lord exposes dangerous secrets that cut too close to home, only Rahul’s deep, abiding connection with Kimi can keep her safe—and reveal the true meaning of courage, loss, and second chances.

Infused with the rhythms of life in modern-day India, acclaimed author Sonali Dev’s candid, rewarding novel beautifully evokes all the complexities of the human heart.

The discussion will be held:

Wednesday, April 25

2-4 p.m.

Naper Blvd. location of Naperville Public Library

(This is a different location than ARRTCon 2017!)

RSVP to Karen Toonen (ktoonen@naperville-lib.org)

Please arrange to obtain your own copy of the book for the discussion

As always, discussion of the book includes a nuts-and-bolts session devoted to sharing practical solutions to the problems and concerns of book discussion leaders.

The Leadership Topic, led by Becky Spratford, will focus on incorporating romance novels into any book club. Please note: Sonali will be joining us for the leadership topic! Sonali is a delightful speaker, passionate about romance novels, and an excellent advocate for diverse authorship in all publishing. In addition to the notes, ARRT will also be providing a booklist of discussable romance novels! If you have discussable romance titles, bring them and we will add them to the list to share with everyone.

Also, remember that you can always bring any problems or concerns you have with your group, no matter the topic, so we can all help each other.

RA for ALL at the Library State of Mind Conference-- Free SWAG Can be Yours!

I don't want to repeat myself too much, but back in July, I mentioned here that RA for All [that's really just me] is a silver sponsor of the joint Illinois Libraries conference.

I am there is a variety of capacities.

1. As a sponsor [See my ad in the program book, page 120]
2. As a speaker
3. As a representative for ARRT both as a speaker and for our exciting, first annual RA Award.

Again, you can click here for all of those details from back in July.

I am not headed to Peoria until Thursday, but I wanted to give  those of you who are going a heads up on a few things now.  Plus, if you are not going, and even if you don't live anywhere near IL, I still have some info for you too.

Let's start with #1. I am a sponsor of coffee. Here is your proof from the program book.

But caffeinating you [specifically on Saturday morning] is not the main reason I am a sponsor. I am a sponsor because I want to get the word out that I want to come to your library and help you to help your staff help your leisure readers. I work mostly with public libraries, but I am also beginning to branch out into school, academic, and even special libraries too. I want to be available to my home state libraries first and foremost. 

If you are at the conference, come find me. Just tweet me @RAforAll and we can meet up. I have stickers for all RA for All fans to wear. I also have pens and postcards for libraries that talk to me about possible trainings and the kicker.....a RA for All awesome TOTE BAG if we set up a specific training at the conference itself.

Yes, I know my audience, TOTE BAGS will win your hearts.

But, for the rest of this month, I am extending this offer to anyone out there reading this. You book me for a 2016 event (2015 is closed to appearances) you get a TOTE BAG mailed to you now.

This is a limited time offer. As always, you can contact me by clicking on the logo or the "About" page. Or simply, click right here, right now.

#2: My presentation is on Saturday morning at 9am. It is on running a successful genre study and is geared toward School and Public Librarians. I have embedded a screen shot of the basic info here in the post, and I will also make the slides Friday's post. But if you cannot wait, go to the conference website and search for my program.  There you will get a full summary of the program and access to the slides immediately.

If you come to my presentation, I also have stickers, pens, and some books to giveaway. Yes, I am bribing you to fill my room. I have no shame and I am fine with that.

I am presenting for ARRT which leads me into #3. On Friday night, before I present for ARRT, Saturday morning, I will be at the awards gala dinner in support our Chair, Annabelle Mortensen as she presents our first ever award:

Yay DGPL. They are friends and do great work. We are all so excited for them, and, quite frankly, for us-- ARRT. Our leadership has made RA Service important enough here in IL to get it's very own award. We are now as important as Tech, Youth, YA, and Reference Services. This is a big step for all of us who put working with leisure readers at the top of our service priorities.

I am going to try to pre-load RA for All with a lot of reviews this week, but if something worth blogging about happens at the conference, I will post more.  Otherwise, look for me on Twitter @RAforAll using the official conference hashtag: #ILLibrary15. And if you are not on Twitter [as many of my readers always remind me that they are not], you can follow what I am tweeting in the right gutter of this blog.

I hope to see you in Peoria.