Month: June 2017

Pride Month Resources for High School Students

| By Traci Cothran | Last Sunday marked the very first Pride Parade in my small town here in Michigan—it’s a lovely place but one whose history is characterized more by exclusivity than acceptance. It’s wonderful to witness the changes that have occurred, and I was delighted to spy several local school teachers marching alongside … Read more

Introducing: The Dashboard

A new tool has been added to Analytics On Demand. It’s called the dashboard. What is the Dashboard? The Analytics On Demand dashboard gives users the ability to transform patron data and drill down into rich visuals. Best of all, once the three apps needed for the dashboard output are acquired by the library, it’s no … Read more

San Luis Obispo High School Improves College Readiness and More

San Luis Obispo High School (SLOHS) is one of the top-ranking academic high schools in California. According to the school’s website, beyond their core academic program, they provide elective classes to better prepare students for what’s next. Recently, they acquired Gale’s Biography In Context,  a user-friendly portal experience containing context on the world’s most influential people. Here’s … Read more

Celebrate World Oceans Day

| By Debra Kirby |

Did you know that World Oceans Day is celebrated June 8 each year and that it was officially recognized by the United Nations in December of 2008? Or that the Canadian government first proposed the idea at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992?

Each year World Oceans Day events are organized around a different theme, with this year’s focus on “plastic pollution prevention and cleaning the ocean of marine litter.” http://www.worldoceansday.org/

Even if you don’t live near an ocean, or are not planning to participate in an event on June 8, there are many things you can do to make a difference. Since all of Earth’s waterways are connected, what affects your local stream, river, or lake also eventually makes its way to the oceans. Here are a few easy things anyone can do throughout the year:

Read moreCelebrate World Oceans Day

Nashville Public Library Named 2017 Library of the Year

Tennessee’s Nashville Public Library (NPL) has been named the 2017 Library of the Year by Library Journal magazine and Gale, a Cengage company. The Library of the Year is a prestigious honor awarded to a library that demonstrates profound service to community, creativity, leadership, and innovation in developing community programs. Nashville Public Library stands out … Read more

Partners in Connecting with Nashville’s Youth


By Allison Barney
Limitless Library Coordinator
Nashville Public Library

At Nashville Public Library (NPL), our story is about more than books. It’s about education, community, and enabling others to thrive. Our award-winning programs allow our entire city to dream, learn, see, do, and become more. Better yet, these programs don’t just happen inside our buildings. We connect with them right in their own communities. In fact, two of our very successful community programs, Limitless Libraries and the Nashville After Zone Alliance (NAZA), use this model to reach thousands of children and youth through the public schools who might not otherwise have access to library resources.

Read morePartners in Connecting with Nashville’s Youth

Science Behind the Headlines—U.S. Abandons the Paris Climate Agreement

| By Debra Kirby |

On June 1 President Trump’s announcement that the United States will exit the Paris climate accord made headlines throughout the world. To learn more about the agreement, climate change, global warming, and other topics relevant to this news, Gale’s databases are the perfect resource.

Learn more about the Paris Climate Agreement from Science In Context.

Unclear on the difference between Global Warming and Climate Change—which are sometimes used interchangeably by non-scientists? Science In Context has the answer here!

If you’re more of a visual learner, watch this mini-lecture on global warming, or watch this interview with President Obama on the Threat of Climate Change.

Read moreScience Behind the Headlines—U.S. Abandons the Paris Climate Agreement

Booklist Webinar—Developing and Supporting your LGBTQ Collection

Join us Thursday, June 15 at 1 PM Central for a Booklist webinar on the importance of LGBTQ material in your library’s collection. During the webinar, Kristin Pekoll, assistant director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, will review how LGBTQ books can serve an underrepresented population and how to protect these titles from censorship, along with information about self-censorship and … Read more

Summer Escapes!

Must-Reads for Vacationers Anytime of Year

These titles were featured in May’s Library Journal as must-reads if you are looking for “summer escapes.” Anyone planning vacation reads or just armchair getaways will want to check out our large print editions:

Read moreSummer Escapes!