The State Library of Ohio is pleased to announce that the State Library Board recently awarded $67,146 in IMLS LSTA Minigrants to the following libraries:

Marysville Public Library was awarded $3,478 to begin to address the needs of the un- and under-employed in the Marysville community.  The Library will create an Adult Skills Center.  Funds will be used to purchase library materials for adult basic skills and keyboarding software and adult computer classes will be offered.  This is a collaborative project with Union County ABLE and the ODJFS Employment Resource Center of Union County. 

Miami University Libraries was awarded $8,400 to digitize the Miami Student newspaper using Open Source software.  Currently the newspaper is digitized using the CONTENTdm platform.  The University wishes to provide enhanced functionality and reliability by migrating to an open source system.  This system will also allow for high quality OCR for full-text search and interactive browse functions.  Successes, best practices and step-by-step instructions will then be shared with other OhioLINK members.

Ohio Historical Society was awarded $18,028 for a partnership project with the Ohio National Guard to preserve the history of Ohio’s soldiers.  “In Their Own Words” will digitize the oral histories of at least 50 veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.  These histories will then be available through the Ohio Memory Project.  A secondary part of the project will be to develop a replicable model for cost-effective, standards-based methods for digitizing oral histories.  Training will be done at an Oral History Institute hosted by the Ohio Humanities Council. 

South Euclid-Lyndhurst City Schools was awarded $11,250 to transform the media center in the Memorial Junior High School into an academic learning hub.  The learning commons will provide a technology rich environment for students and teachers.  The media specialist will collaborate with teachers to incorporate new technologies and services into the curriculum.

University of Cincinnati Libraries was awarded $15,900 to digitize the University of Cincinnati Yearbook The Cincinnatian for the period of 1951-2006.  A previous grant provided for the digitization of The Cincinnatian from 1894-1950.  This project will mean all issues of the yearbook will be available via the web. Yearbook coverage includes such speakers as George Wallace and Ralph Nader and items of interest such as African American rights and anti-war protests. 

University of Dayton, Roesch Library was awarded $2,374 for the purchase of specialized equipment which will allow for the digitization of three dimensional objects, allowing for an interactive digital image which offers the user the ability to view the object from all sides and angles.  Items to be digitized include autographed baseballs, musical instruments and over 2000 nativity sets.

Xavier University, McDonald Library was awarded $7,716 to digitize and transcribe the political letters of Moses Dawson.  The political letters, spanning 1811-1845, include those with numerous early U.S. presidents on timely topics of the day.  Approximately 403 pages will be scanned.  Both the original scanned letters and transcriptions of the letters, along with biographies of the correspondents and Moses Dawson will be made available via the web.

Five of the awarded projects center on digitization.  “Funding of these projects could have a significant impact on digitization initiatives in the state,” said Missy Lodge, LSTA Coordinator and Interim State Librarian.  “Access to these various materials will be especially beneficial for students and researchers doing primary resource research.”  All of the funded projects began with a well-documented need.

LSTA Minigrant funds may be used for items and activities which will assist a library in meeting one of the two broad based purposes of LSTA: 1) technological innovation and electronic linkages, and 2) services to the underserved. A financial match of 25% of the total project cost is required from the institution. For more information about the Ohio LSTA Grant program go to: http://oh.webjunction.org/ohlsta.

IMLS LSTA Grant Spotlight: Wood County District Public Library Launches A New Bookmobile

The Wood County District Public Library (WCDPL) held the ribbon-cutting for its new bookmobile on March 17 in the library’s parking lot. The morning began with brief remarks followed by the ribbon-cutting, story telling, and refreshments.

The celebration completes a planning process which began during the library’s building renovation project of 2002-2003. In 2008 the State Library awarded a $95,000 Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant,  for the purchase of a bookmobile to allow the library to better reach the disenfranchised of the county, particularly preschoolers and senior centers who lack the ability to easily get to the library. The grant money was supplemented by private funds raised by the WCDPL Foundation board.

“It’s not an exaggeration to say that this is a one of a kind vehicle,” said library Board of Trustee and project volunteer Scott McEwen. McEwen was joined by two other knowledgeable volunteers, Anthony Palumbo of Bowling Green State University’s Electric Vehicle Institute and Steve McEwen, retired President and CEO of Henry Filters in researching and designing specifications that led to a bookmobile which was custom-built for WCDPL. As a result of their efforts, the new bookmobile is powered by compressed natural gas (or CNG), a low cost fuel alternative that is cleaner burning than gasoline or diesel. A special bank of batteries provides the electrical power needed at stops—eliminating the need for an auxiliary battery. A full air suspension system enables the bookmobile to “kneel” several inches, making it more accessible for patrons.

All American Specialty Vehicles of Elkhart, Indiana outfitted the vehicle’s innovative and environmentally friendly custom features. Gearhart Plumbing of Bowling Green installed the CNG Fuelmaker and equipment to make it possible to fuel the vehicle on-site. Ergonomic book carts were purchased from Biofit, a Bowling Green company. The library contracted for the new bookmobile with Transportation Equipment Sales Corporation (TESCO) of Toledo. TESCO coordinated this complicated project and created the wonderful graphics.

The new bookmobile is now on the road, making stops within the WCDPL service area. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies are planned at three of its most popular stops: Wednesday, March 24 at 4:00 p.m. in Eastpointe on the Mall (Northwood); Monday, March 29 at 4:00 p.m. in Bradner; and Tuesday, March 30 at 12:00 p.m. at Owen-Illinois, Levis Commons. There will also be an opportunity for library users to see the new bookmobile Saturday March 20, when it will be parked at Bowling Green High School during the Kiwanis Pancake Day from 9:00 am until 12:00 noon.

WCDPL began offering bookmobile service to Wood County in 1951. Since then the library has owned three other vehicles dedicated to this service. The current bookmobile, purchased in 1986, has logged over 160,000 miles in the 24 years it has been on the road.

All celebrations of the new bookmobile are free and open to all. For more information, call WCDPL at 419-352-5104.

Click here to view a gallery of pictures from the March 17, 2010 ceremony.

The State Library of Ohio and the Ohio Latino Affairs Commission  are asking the Governor to proclaim April 30, 2010 as El Día de los Niños/Day of the Child in Ohio.  This proclamation will mark 2010 as the sixth year that Ohio has celebrated this very important day for all children in our state.

Ohio libraries can register El Día de los Niños / El Día de los Libros (Children’s Day / Book Day) special programs and events on ALA’s Association for Library Services to Children (ALSC) Celebrations page. 

ALSC also provides resources to help with your events such as a list of recommended books, tips on planning your celebration and a Día fact sheet about the initiative.

Libraries can post 2010 El Día de los Niños events and other programs on the news/events calendar of the Ohio Latino Affairs Commission or join their OLAnet community directory to post programs on a regular basis.         

Ohio libraries and communities can also become official El Día de los Niñossites by planning events and activities on April 30 to honor and celebrate children.  Currently, Willard, Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Columbus are official sites in Ohio.   The National Latino Children’s Institute provides tips on getting involved, organizing the celebration and activities to make your event a success.