All posts by admincmle

The Central Minnesota Libraries Exchange (CMLE) is one of seven regional multitype library systems established to meet the needs of and share the resources of all types of libraries. We love libraries, and are here to support them!
Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

2014 Ed Tech Trends

Image by Mosi. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons' licensing.
Image by Mosi. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons’ licensing.

It is easy to see how ed tech trends cut across all types of libraries. As K-12 students experience more tech integration in their classrooms, it affects how they approach learning, and flavors the experience they expect at the public library and upon entering college too. Some of our medical librarians feel the increased expectations too for digital learning objects and more integrated information sources. The short list of seven ed tech trends shared by iLibrarian recently are listed below, but don’t stop there, see her blog post which includes  infographics and more information on all of these trends.

  1. 3 D Printing
  2. MOOCs
  3. Big Data
  4. Digital Textbooks
  5. Gamification
  6. The Flipped Classroom
  7. Mobile Learning
Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Save the Date: Minitex ILL Conference

January 6, 2014

23rd Annual Minitex ILL Conference

Date & Location

Tuesday, May 6, 2014
9:00 AM – 3:30 PM

Continuing Education & Conference Center
University of Minnesota – St. Paul Campus
1890 Buford Avenue
St. Paul, MN 55108

Registration information will be distributed in March 2014.

Keynote Speaker: “Big Data: Too Big to Ignore” by Phil Simon

keynote
Phil Simon photo provided by Minitex

Phil Simon  is a keynote speaker, recognized technology expert, and the award-winning author of six management books, most recently The Visual Organization. He consults organizations on matters related to strategy, data, and technology. His contributions have been featured on NBC, CNBC, Inc. Magazine, BusinessWeek, The Huffington Post, The Globe and Mail, Fast Company, The New York Times, ReadWriteWeb, and many other sites.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Goodreads Choice Awards

choice-logo-large-2351c460df498161ce47dd7562e1d8f5Drum roll please….it is time for yet another book list! This one is like the people’s choice awards for books, garnering over 137,000 online  votes this year!

Goodreads has been rounding up its users favorite books of the year since 2009 through its Goodreads Choice Awards. On this year’s list, the top book in fiction is Khaled Hosseini’s And the Mountains Echoed, with over 24,000 votes. Coming in at #2 on the fiction list is Jodi Picoult’s The Storyteller, with over 21,000 votes. The full list of Goodreads’ users favorite books of 2013 in twenty categories,  can be found here. Tip: To get the lists from past years, scroll down to the bottom of the left frame on the page.

Academic, Check this out:, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Just for Fun: People Who Have Life Figured Out (Or Not)

Glasses Hey Paul Studios
Image by Hey Paul Studios. Retrieved from Flickr. Used under Creative Commons licensing.

You know you want examples of visionaries who walk among us! Take a peek at what it takes to be parent of the year and why not admire the low-cost, anti-stress machine too while you are setting your goals high for the new year? The full post is supplied by our friends at BuzzFeed, at  bzfd.it/JG8V5l

Use the comments field to share your favorites!

Academic, General, Public, School Media Specialist, Special

Appointment of State Librarian/Director of State Library Services

It is with great pleasure that I share this recent announcement about the appointment of our MN state librarian.

MDELogoOn December 23, 2013, Kevin McHenry, MDE Assistant Commissioner wrote….

After a four month process of reviewing the needs of State Library Services, I’m pleased to announce that Jennifer R. Nelson has accepted the position of State Librarian / Director of State Library Services on a permanent basis.  Jen has demonstrated commendable leadership since taking on the role of interim director, and quickly rose to the top of the candidate list when the position was posted. As interim director she has articulated and led an outcome-driven alignment of the division’s activities with Minnesota Department of Education priorities and initiated a number of new processes for redefining State Library Services’ vision, goals and strategic activities to assure transparency and accountability. She brings an expertise in administration, project management and a deep knowledge of libraries to her new role.

With more than 25 years working in libraries, Jen is committed to ensuring that Minnesota libraries are well supported by State Library Services and the Minnesota Department of Education.  From her early days as an assistant in a university archives to her role in moving forward technology programming for teens at the Minneapolis Public Library and throughout the United States, she has developed an innovative approach to helping libraries serve their communities that resonates with changing environments. She holds a Masters in Library and Information Studies and a Masters in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jen is the author of Technology and Literacy: 21st century library programming for children and teens (ALA Editions, 2012) and is an adjunct faculty at St. Catherine’s University teaching a class in grant and proposal writing for public libraries. Jen can be reached directly at 651-582-8791 or Jennifer.r.nelson@state.mn.us

Jen brings a unique blend of talent to the position of State Librarian that has shined brightly during her time at MDE.  She not only has great knowledge regarding the intricacies of Libraries throughout Minnesota and challenges they are facing, but she has the ability to communicate clearly, quickly and fairly with our partners and constituents.   I am excited about the direction of State Library Services under Jen’s leadership.  Please join me in congratulating Jen.

Kevin McHenry,Assistant Commissioner

Minnesota Department of Education

O: 651.582.8250   M: 612.306.0895

Email: kevin.mchenry@state.mn.us