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Understanding (and meeting) Community Needs
with Analytics On Demand

September 3, 2015August 19, 2015

By Amber Mussman, Community Relations Manager, Cedar Rapids Public Library

Public libraries in the 21^st century are regularly faced with the question of relevance. They fight an ongoing battle for funding, loss of staff, and a constant lack of resources. In 2015, with two brand new libraries open and a very new director in place, the Cedar Rapids Public Library realized that in order to continue to be successful we must focus our efforts on meeting our community needs and telling our story.

In order to be able to accurately respond to the needs of our patrons, we needed to have the right tools. Analytics On Demand offers us the ability to use real data to drive our programming, marketing and strategic planning. Through the use of Patron Profiles, we are able to understand how our library is aligned with the community as well as find opportunities for growth.

Pick and Grin. Subscribe and Smile. Choose and Wallow.

September 3, 2015August 13, 2015

Whatever way you look at it, when you choose a large print subscription to continually update and refresh your collection, you’ll be glad you did. How? Well, we can think of 36 ways. Thorndike Press has 36 different plans to suit your patrons’ interests: from African-American titles to Christian Fiction to Gentle Romance to Westerns — and everything in between.

New Titles Added to the InfoTrac Collections in July 2015

September 3, 2015August 12, 2015

The titles below have been recently added and can be located in the product using Basic or Advanced Search forms. Titles can be found via Browse Publications within two weeks. For complete coverage information please see the product title lists.

Academic OneFile

Acta Societatis Botanicorum Poloniae (Polskie Towarzystwo Botaniczne) 0001-6977 Peer-reviewed
Chilean Journal of Agricultural Research (Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias) 0718-5820 Peer-reviewed
East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine (International Society for the History of East Asian Science, Technology, and Medicine (EASTM)) 1562-918X Peer-reviewed
Journal of Laser Micro Nanoengineering (Japan Laser Processing Society) 1880-0688 Peer-reviewed
Onomazein (Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Facultad de Letras) 0717-1285 Peer-reviewed
Pure and Applied Chemistry (International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry) 0033-4545 Peer-reviewed
Revista Digital de Biblioteconomica e Ciencia da Informacao (Universidade Estadual de Campinas. Sistema de Bibliotecas) Peer-reviewed
Standards in Genomic Sciences (BioMed Central Ltd.) 1944-3277 Peer-reviewed
World Organisation, Labour & Globalisation (Pluto Journals) 1745-641X Peer-reviewed

Cobblers’ Kids, Unite! Resources Just for Library Staff

August 11, 2015August 12, 2015

professional development library science ebooks

Posted on August 12, 2015
By Tina Creguer

We’ve all heard the expression that it’s the cobbler’s kids that have no shoes. Too often, the analogy applies in libraries. Collections are painstakingly developed for all types of community members, but library staff lack the professional development resources that could help them develop new competencies.

Now you can build core competencies with special GVRL eBook collections geared toward professional library staff. The custom collections that deepen job satisfaction were just updated with new titles and include Chandos Publishing, Information Today, Libraries Unlimited, Linworth, and Wiley and is based on the WebJunction’s Competency Index 2014, which is endorsed by the American Library Association. Covered are:

Widget Wonders: Save Students and Teachers Search Time

September 3, 2015August 11, 2015

Posted on August 11, 2015

There’s a tsunami brewing in the Pacific, and several classes are working on a project to track its movement. They have one class period to research and report. Ready? Go! But wait…where do they begin? Can anything be done to help them find information more quickly and directly?

Here’s an idea to make you a hero in your school. Gale widgets. They can give your students and teachers a shortcut to research on hot topics and ensure that content searched is trusted and relevant.

August Spotlight: Back-to-School!

February 26, 2018August 10, 2015

By Gale Training

Each month, the Gale Training team spotlights new and featured resources to give you ideas on how to use training at your school or library. For On-demand tutorials, Webinars, Materials, and more, visit the Resource Training Center. Below is this month’s “Training Spotlight.”

Say it with us …”Where has the summer gone?”

Seems like back-to-school time just sneaks up on us. Are you ready?

Look at Literature in a Whole New Way

September 3, 2015August 7, 2015

Posted August 7, 2015

Noted Russian poet and author once said, “Literature is the art of discovering something extraordinary about ordinary people, and saying with ordinary words something extraordinary.”

Literature opens doors to understanding ideas, people, and cultures. Extraordinary tools enable greater understanding and expand opportunity for discovery. And now, with upcoming enhancements, three landmark Gale literature resources will provide a more welcoming and accessible experience for literature researchers at all levels.

Content updates for Gale’s In Context (week of 8/3/2015)

August 6, 2015

Posted on August 6, 2015

Over the past couple of weeks we’ve added new content and made updates to already posted content found in your favorite Gale In Context products. See what’s there for you to access.

Biography In Context

New spotlight features have been added to the homepage that include:

U.S. President Barack Obama, celebrating his birthday on August 4
The late U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson, who signed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 into law 50 years ago
Nobel Peace Prize laureate Lech Walesa, founder of the Solidarity labor union that sparked change in his country 35 years ago on August 31
American actress Taraji P. Henson, star of television’s Empire
Chris Froome, the British cyclist who recently won his second Tour de France title
Kailash Satyarthi, Indian children’s rights activist who shared the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize with Malala Yousafzai
Daniel James, Jr., also known as Chappie, who became the first African American four-star general in 1975
Apollo 13 astronaut Jim Lovell
American filmmaker and producer Brett Ratner
Sepp Blatter, the controversial Swiss president of FIFA (soccer’s international governing body)

What Lies Beneath the Bestsellers: Mine the Gems!

February 23, 2018August 6, 2015

High-demand, bestselling titles meet the immediate needs of a large group of patrons. They’re the sparkly gold dust that attracts attention and draws in readers. But beneath that top layer of new titles are the “midlist” titles – the majority of all published works. In this group is where emerging authors, alternative and esoteric titles, and a much broader selection of works live. These are the titles chosen by libraries focused on providing a rich collection that encourages readers to look beyond the “shiny” titles.

Branching the Digital Divide: Technology as the Gateway to Curiosity

May 23, 2018August 3, 2015

By Vanessa Craig

Moreno Valley is a city nestled in between the Coachella Valley, Lake Perris, and the San Bernardino Mountains in southern California. The scenic town of Moreno Valley has a public library that serves their population of about 200,000. With only one building to serve its residents, Ivorie Franks, the library’s director struggles with providing a sufficient amount of print material to serve their population.

To save space, Ivorie is attempting to develop a digital collection for her community that replicates the print collection. However, the patrons of Moreno Valley have a variety of different technology skill levels. Many community members do not have computers or internet connection at home.

Ivorie is the driving force behind helping branch tackle this digital divide. She is working alongside her staff to make their patrons more comfortable with technology and eResources. “The key is to include various staff members in the process of educating library patrons about digital library resources,” proposes Ivorie.