SEMLS News

SEMLS has launched a new blog for reference staff to share ideas and post questions. The SEMLS Reference Discussion Group is moderated by Regional Reference Librarians Linda Beeler and Jill Erickson. Anyone can post comments to the blog. If you would like to create your own posts on the blog, you will need to contact Kathy Lussier to create an account.

Be sure to sign up for e-mail notifications so that you can be alerted whenever there is a new post on the blog.

SEMLS has funds to subscribe to a new regional database this year. We have set up several trials to science and health databases under consideration. Please help us select a new database by testing these databases, using our evaluation packet as a guide, and providing us feedback in our online survey. Survey results are due by May 31, 2008.

Applications are now being accepted for the New Director's Essentials Boot Camp to be held on May 20, at the Tower Hill Botanical Garden in Boylston, MA. The boot camp is intended for Directors of all types of libraries from across the Commonwealth who have less than two years experience in their present position. It will be a full day of discussion, inspirational speakers, information and resources that will be useful for directors in doing their jobs.

The application deadline is May 9th so act now. Limited housing is available for those who travel farthest to the boot camp so they can arrive early and ready to participate with full enthusiasm. An online application is available at  http://www.cmrls.org/forms/director_essentials.htm.

This is part of a two-year federally funded LSTA grant awarded by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners to provide this training and a website for Massachusetts Directors in all library types.

The 2008 SEMLS Continuing Education Survey has now been posted.  We greatly appreciate your comments and insights as we being planning workshops for FY 2009.  Please take a few minutes to complete this survey.  The survey deadline is Saturday, June 14.  We will keep you posted as to the results.  Thank you!

In case any of you missed the live show or the subsequent YouTube videos, we wanted to let you know about the spectacular performances put on by the Plymouth Public Library and the Sandwich Public Library for MLAs first-ever book cart drill team competition at last week's conference.

The Plymouth Rockettes came in second place and also won an award for the "Wow" factor. Sandwich's team, the "Austin"tations, came in third place and won the award for Best Costumes.

You can see both teams in the below YouTube videos.

Just a reminder that we have set up several trials to science and health databases. Please help us select a new database by testing these databases, using our evaluation packet as a guide, and providing us feedback in our online survey. Survey results are due by May 31, 2008.