Free Press

The Empowerment Zone has now been featured in the prestigious Atlantic Ave magazine. The Atlantic Ave magazine is a glossy local Delray Beach publication that features mostly upscale features on the area. (Publication price $4.99.) The magazine is not really targeted at the kinds of people I tend to get in the EZ, but free press is free press. Seeing my name on the same page as a cosmetic surgeon's ad, and in a publication that has ads for Mercedes, jewelers and restaurants I can't afford is a bit odd. But if the right people see the article, and come to the library for our resources, then that would be great.

The Drug Abuse Foundation (DFA) of Delray Beach is interested in bringing their clients to the Empowerment Zone to look for jobs, and to brush up on their job skills. This partnership would be right in line for what I had envisioned for the Zone. And since the DFA solicited me, that makes my job easier! Delray Beach is known as the recovery capitol of America, and we get many AA and NA participants in the library. I will try to help anyone who comes to the EZ, as long as they are serious and are trying to better themselves, regardless of their background.

Summer Weeding

Now that the Empowerment Zone is up and running I have started one of my summer projects. I am weeding the 780s-799s. This encompasses music, movies, Broadway, sports, etc. And from what I can ascertain this section has not been maintained in quite some time. I have located some dusty and dirty books in this section that haven't checked out in over a decade.

Last year I managed to make it all the way through the 300s (Social Sciences), and this took me almost 6 months due to the size of the section and all of the distractions that occurred while I was working. After I finish the 780s-799s I am going to weed the 920s (History) and up. This will probably take me through the latter half of the summer. And then I will begin weeding the reference portion of my Dewey sections which really needs to be done.

When I worked in Collier County I managed to weed the History section of the Naples Regional Library, and I felt a huge sense of accomplishment when that project was completed. Once I am done with these two sections I will have finished all of my Dewey areas for my library. And then next year I can start all over again, but it will be a lot easier knowing that I have already made my way through once.

On a completely unrelated note I will be running for one of the board positions for the Palm Beach County Library Association (http://pbcla.info). Ethan Allen, the current President, asked me if I was interested in running and after thinking it over for a couple of days I figured why not? I am running for one of the Public Library Director positions, of which there are two. There are three of us competing for these two spots. The other two people I am going up against are library directors, so I have my work cut out for me. Apparently you don't need to be a library director to run for this post, just a member who works in a public library who is in good standing. I figure win or lose, it will be a good experience for me. If you are a member of the PBCLA, and feel so inclined, I would appreciate your vote. My blurb on why you should vote for me should be up on the PBCLA web site (http://pbcla.info) by the end of the week.

Empowerment Zone Takes Off

Yesterday I actually had to turn a couple of people away at the Empowerment Zone as it was full capacity in our Tech Center for a couple of hours. The majority of patrons were working on applications for the Boca Raton Housing Authority. The housing authority is holding a lottery for subsidized and public housing.

Lotto Article

I talked to a couple of gentlemen who were new faces and they informed me that they had read about the EZ in the Delray Forum, and they were glad that they could come to the local library instead of having to go all the way to the Workforce Alliance in Boynton Beach. And even though the majority of people using the Zone were filling out housing applications as part of a one time lotto, they still now know about our place and may refer others to it. I am thinking that yesterday could be a sure sign that the Empowerment Zone has taken off.

Mixed with the good news of strong numbers is the bad news that two of my volunteers have moved on. And is it ironic that we now have a real need for them? Fortunately our library gets a large number of people looking to volunteer and I will hopefully find some suitable replacements. I can't help but find this somewhat amusing since I have met many people who have suggested we get rid of library staff and replace them with volunteers to save money. The problem with this is obvious - you get what you pay for, and if you aren't paying people anything, what's their motivation? Not that there isn't plenty of wonderful library volunteers out there, I just don't see them running the libraries any time soon.

So, this Thursday I am looking forward to seeing how many folks show up for the EZ, and if my new volunteer works out. I will keep you all posted...

Sunshine State, Empowerment Zone Article, etc.

So yesterday was my third to last session of the Sunshine State Library Leadership Institute (SSLLI). The focus of the session was on leading groups and we talked a lot about meetings. It was apparent to me that most of the people in SSLLI besides me have a lot more meetings, and have had some pretty unproductive meetings too. Since I work in a small library there is not a lot of committee work, and communication is typically easier than it would be in a larger library system. This means less meetings for us, but the material was still valuable.

Some of the specific things we learned were characteristics of an effective group which include keeping the group size small, making everyone accountable and having a clearly identified goal. We learned the different styles of decision making, and how to choose them based on the situation. And we also were given an excellent handout called the Meeting Planning Worksheet. This worksheet is a blueprint for the meeting, and I plan on using it the next time I am in charge of a meeting.

This session was timely for me since I would like to make my next project at my library adding subject specific signage in the stacks. Public libraries have been using the Dewey Decimal System for decades now, and it is still a difficult thing for most patrons to learn. My goal is to create a workgroup in my library to create and add signage in the non-fiction section of the library. This experience would enable me to lead a group and meetings, and to hopefully make finding materials in my library easier for the patrons. This would increase our circulation and create a more positive atmosphere when people are browsing for books. I do not plan on getting rid of our Dewey numbers, just adding signs like Travel, History, Art, etc. to enhance them.

Besides SSLLI, and my thoughts on a new project, the Delray Forum published an article on the Empowerment Zone yesterday. The Forum is a free weekly that mainly discusses local news in the Delray Beach community. The article is on the front page, and if you use your imagination one of the guys in the picture is actually me. My contact info is listed and I am hoping that there is an increase in the amount of people using the EZ due to the article. We are getting people every time the Zone is in session now, and that is certainly positive. And I now have three volunteers to help out if it gets busy.

Trying to Stay Relevant

Last week was a bit of a come back to earth week for me after being pretty charged up from the FLA Conference. Being in an entry level position at my library does not afford me a lot of opportunity to change things too much at my library. I accept the position I am in, and am appreciative of having my job, and I am learning to be a leader regardless of my rank. I have managed to stay positive (mostly, since we are all human) and productive in a profession that needs some change to stay relevant. I try not to think of all of the issues in my library since I am not in a position to fix most of them. This is not easy for someone like me who can at times see areas of improvement and then want to find solutions. Not that I invent issues, but that I can't help noticing how things could be improved at times to make my library more ideal. My goal is to have positive energy and patience, since those traits are more desirable than being overly critical and undermining.

I try to stay active with projects that I create for my library, like my SSLLI project the Empowerment Zone. Today we had a photographer from the Sun Sentinel in to take pictures for an upcoming feature story in the Delray Forum (more on this when the article gets published). We are also getting more patrons using the room consistently which is boosting my confidence that my project was a good idea. SSLLI has regular assignments too, which keep me busy.

On top of my current SSLLI project I try to stay involved with library associations for professional development and to give back to the profession. I have recently been selected (after submitting an online application) for the Florida Library Association's Public Relations Committee, and we are working on a new public awareness campaign for Florida libraries. I am on the City of Lake Worth's Library Board as an alternate (I hope to find out more on this at my first meeting in June) and I help with the Palm Beach County Library Association's web site by posting news items, and other association related items on the web site. My goal in all of this is to stay as active as possible in my profession so that I can move towards a position of authority and leadership. I am also trying to stay focused and keep my head down in order to avoid getting bogged down in negativity. Here's hoping my formula is a success.

Week After FLA 2010

I have had a couple of days to process all that I took in last week in Orlando at the Florida Library Association Annual Conference 2010. I am hoping that writing down what I learned, and mulling it over will help me hang onto the experience longer. I definitely will say that the number one thing that I took from the conference was how it easy it was to network with other librarians, and how receptive almost everyone was to exchanging ideas, and talking about the profession. My goal upon attending the conference was to get on one of the committees and attend as many sessions as possible that are applicable to my job. Instead I was lucky enough to meet a few library system directors, the current President of FLA, several committee heads and members, and some vendors who should prove resourceful.

My goal of getting on a committee should be accomplished as I managed to get invited to the Public Relations Committee meeting, and they were receptive to adding me to their committee. Appointment must come from future president John Callahan, and experience has taught me to not count my eggs before they hatch. A couple of other committees were seeking members, and if I do not get appointed to the PR Committee I will aim for another. I also managed to gather some needed info like the fact that Sirsi should not be crashing on our computers several times a day, how to use Google Analytics for computer stats, and that eGov is indeed looking like part of the future for libraries. The final point makes me glad I chose the Empowerment Zone as my SSLLI project.

I can not emphasize enough how important the convention was from a networking perspective. Being a current member of SSLLI helped me meet many important people, and allowed for many introductions. I was always under the impression that networking involved a certain level of sleaziness, but I learned how to meet and greet while staying true to myself. Having my mentor Daniel around for feedback really helped with this. And anyone who is interested in making a career out of Florida libraries should attend these conferences. If you are looking to get on the fast track then this is the place to be. Just talking about the EZ resulted in the suggestion that I publish an article on my project, and also that I could possibly present at FLA 2011.

Now to take all that I learned and put it to work in my library. More to follow on this...

Back in Lake Worth

Just got back from Orlando. FLA 2010 was awesome. I met some major players, plugged the Empowerment Zone, and have some new ideas along with a bunch of energy for my job and library. Anyone who is interested in Florida libraries as a career should go to these conferences. It is too easy to meet the movers and shakers, and to interact with them. I can not get over how supportive librarians are in Florida, and am really glad I made the choice to be a librarian, and to move back to Florida.

Now to take a nap b/c I am drained! I will write more tomorrow, or next week, about the things I learned and the people I met.