Bill and Melinda Gates Opportunity Online Hardware Grants

 

Choose to Read Ohio

 

Connecting to Collections

 

Digital Collections: Opening History

 

Find Help in Tough Times

 

KnowItNow24X7

 

LearningExpress Library

 

Ohio eBook Project

 

Ohio Libraries Share: MORE

 

Ohio Memory

 

Stark County Job and Career Workshop

 

State Librarian Library Visits

 

State Library New Website Design

 

Talking Books

 

Serving Every Ohioan Library (SEO) Center

 

Spotlight on WebJunction Ohio Courses: Online Video

 

WebJunction Ohio

 

Books added to the State Library Circulating Collection in 2009

 

2009: Selected Electronic Titles from the Ohio eBook Project

The year 2009 was filled with many exciting opportunities, accomplishments, and challenges at the State Library. It’s natural for most of us to focus on budget reductions, day-to-day management strategies, and future plans for our libraries and library organizations. While good stewardship requires us to focus on these issues, I find that it is also important and rewarding to reflect on the why, how, and what we have accomplished. This issue of The News includes articles highlighting budget information, new and continuing programs and services, partnerships, and initiatives at the State Library of Ohio.

 

When looking back on 2009, again I see the pattern of highs and lows we experienced in 2008. The impact of the economy continues to reduce the budget of libraries across the state while the need for library service increases. The State Library launched several initiatives to help libraries and Ohioans during these tough economic times. The Find Help in Tough Times resource center was developed to establish a one-stop center for Ohioans to quickly access relevant state and federal agencies’ websites to locate assistance and information. A special LSTA grant was awarded to Stark County District Library to conduct a series of workshops for libraries helping job seekers. In addition, information and resources for helping job seekers is available on WebJunction Ohio.

 

The Choose to Read Ohio statewide initiative was launched in April during National Library Week. The goal of the program is to encourage the reading of Ohio literature together in all types of settings including libraries, schools, community centers, neighborhoods, and churches.

 

We entered our second year of the WebJunction Ohio partnership and now have over 1800 registered Ohio affiliated members. While the online course enrollments have steadily grown, we still have a large quantity of course units available for staff working in libraries and library organizations at no cost to them. With the decrease in funding, these courses are even more attractive since there is no required travel and no tuition cost. I urge you all to take another look and sign up to take a course today!

 

Our commitment to digitization continues. The State Library received a Connecting to Collections planning grant in 2009 to assess the state of care and preservation of Ohio’s cultural heritage. The Opening History survey project of cultural-heritage institutions was completed in the spring. The next generation of Ohio Memory, a collaborative project to increase digital accessibility with the Ohio Historical Society, was launched in early March.

 

This was a difficult year. It is easy to despair when lack of adequate funding makes it necessary to cut programs and services. But looking back over the past year was a pleasant surprise.   I am proud of the accomplishments of the State Library staff and the Ohio library community – and hope you will be, too as you read about them in this issue of The News. 

 

Happy holiday season and the best to all of you in the new year.