Category Archives: Resources

Academic, Communication, Guest Blogger, Public, Resources, School Media Specialist, Special

Creative Commons Part 2: Five Creative Commons Resources

Creative Commons

CMLE Guest Blogger: Carli Spina If you have any questions, let me know in the comments or contact me on Twitter where I’m @CarliSpina.

In my last post, I explained what Creative Commons licenses are. But how can you make use of these licenses and incorporate items that are licensed under them in your library? Perhaps not surprisingly, an array of resources have emerged to make it approachable to use Creative Commons licenses and to aggregate Creative Commons-licensed items. The resources suggested below are not the only ones available on this topic, but hopefully they will help to get you started with a variety of Creative Commons resources.

Continue reading Creative Commons Part 2: Five Creative Commons Resources →

Academic, Communication, Public, Resources, School Media Specialist, Special, Training

See some Censorship? Say something!

It can be tough to know what to do if your library has a potential censorship situation. But you are not alone!! The ALA is here for all libraries, whether or not you are a member. Being part of a profession means you have resources and support – a good thing when problems happen!

From the ALA Office of Intellectual Freedom:

The Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF) introduced upgraded tools that make censorship easier to report and easier to track. We’ve rolled out a simpler form to document censorship and hate crime and a web page exclusively for challenge support.

Report Censorship

Continue reading See some Censorship? Say something! →

Academic, Public, Resources, School Media Specialist, Services, Special

Let’s talk about grants!

Grants mean Money!!

Money is fun to have, it gives you materials you need to distribute, and brings programs to your library. Money lets you do all the things that you want to do for your community.

So don’t be shy about asking for more money!! It’s a great tool you can use to turn into better materials and better service! Don’t your patrons deserve great stuff? Of course they do! So you need to grab some grant money and provide it!

This month we will be looking at Grant Writing and all kinds of resources you might use to find, write, and administer grants.

I’ll tell you the main secret right now: It’s not hard.

Whew! There we go, the big secret is out! Continue reading Let’s talk about grants! →

Communication, General, Public, Resources, School Media Specialist

What Could Have Entered the Public Domain on January 1, 2017?

If you are interested in copyright – or if you think copyright laws don’t really apply to you – you might want to look through this article from the Duke Law School Center for the Study of the Public Domain.

Take a moment to mourn  the material we can not access, that we can not freely share with our patrons, and that may never be accessible to us!! (How many of our patrons would have enjoyed having a free copy of Green Eggs and Ham?)

Current copyright law is too often a tragedy for libraries, and for the communities we serve. Look at this list, published every year by this organization, and consider some ways you might work within copyright laws to help your patrons. And then be a voice of advocacy in your community to loosen these too-tight federal laws!!

Continue reading What Could Have Entered the Public Domain on January 1, 2017? →

Check this out:, Public, Resources

Are you ready for a Bookapalooza Program collection?

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let’s talk about books!

We are passing this on FYI, to help you connect with some library materials. If any member wants to work on the application, but is not sure where to start – we are always here at CMLE Headquarters to help out with ideas, writing, or edits!

 

From the website announcement:

Creating a better future for all children through libraries is ALSC’s core purpose.  ALSC envisions a future where:
• In every library, children come first.
• All libraries acknowledge the importance of children’s service with adequate materials and resources.
• All libraries recognize ALSC as a leader in promoting high quality service to children.
• Libraries recognize and support the value of all staff serving children.
• Resources, collections, services, and staff reflect the communities they serve.
• The library’s physical space reflects the developmental needs of children.
• Children and their families are being served by a variety of non-traditional programs and activities in off-site locations.

In keeping with this envisioned future, the Bookapalooza Program will offer select libraries a collection of materials that will help transform their collection and provide the opportunity for these materials to be used in their community in creative and innovative ways. Continue reading Are you ready for a Bookapalooza Program collection? →