News of Nebraska Libraries and People

Nebraska Library Association/Nebraska Educational Media Association (NLA/NEMA) Annual Conference, Leading, Linking, and Learning, is scheduled for October 23-25 at the Cornhusker Hotel and Convention Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. For more information see www.nol.org.

Allana Novotny, Network Services Librarian, has been selected as the Nebraska Library Commission's 2002 Employee of the Year. Congratulations, Allana!

Kevin Leapley has accepted appointment as Republican Valley Library System Administrator. He most recently served as Automation Librarian for the Plum Creek Library System in Minnesota. Welcome, Kevin.

The Nebraska Library Commission recently awarded $260,034 in Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) grants for 2002. See <nlc.nebraska.gov/libdev/lsta/2002-lsta-grantsawarded-quicklist.html> for the list of forty-three public library and other library organizational recipients.

Go Figure!, a national traveling exhibit organized by Minnesota Children's Museum and the American Library Association (ALA), visits the Morton-James Public Library, Nebraska City, June 24 through July 20. The exhibit introduces early math concepts through kid-sized environments inspired by familiar children's books.

Database Roadshow 2002 is underway. Librarians are invited to learn more about the databases the Library Commission purchased for libraries across the state. For summer location and registration information see the Commission Web site, nlc.nebraska.gov, search on Database Roadshow.

Nebraska libraries will be contacted this summer regarding their status as grant recipients through the U.S. Library Program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Grants will be awarded and computers installed in Nebraska libraries through February 2003. For more information, see the Commission Web site, nlc.nebraska.gov, search on Gates Index.

Mountain Plains Library Association, North Dakota Library Association, and South Dakota Library Association are joint hosts for the Fall 2002 Conference, Exploring New Pathways to Information, celebrating the bicentennial of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, October 2 - 5, in Fargo, North Dakota. See ndsl.lib.state.nd.us for more information.

The Pierce Library Foundation was recently awarded $300,000 from the Lied Foundation Trust, $100,000 from the Peter Kiewit Foundation, and $10,000 from the Cooper Foundation and Midwest Bank for construction of a new library. The total cost of the library is estimated at $757,000.

MacKenzie King, winner of Nestlé's Very Best in Youth Award 2001 celebrated National Library Week at the Crete Public Library. She was selected for her community volunteer activities and donated her $1,000 prize to the library.

Troy Johnson, librarian at the Creighton Law Library, developed an online librarian's book club to read and discuss books about libraries and the library profession. A new book is selected every two months, see the Librarian's Book Club at Bibliofuture: The Future of the Library and the Book, www.bibliofuture.com.

Gretna Public Library now offers a monthly program for seniors. LEARN @your library^TM combines entertainment and social interaction with educational programs like travelogues, book talks, speakers, and videos.

Nebraska librarians and media specialists are invited to attend the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial: Challenges and Solutions for the Information Specialist Videoteleconference on August 14. This free, distance learning workshop (supported by the National Park Service, Nebraska Department of Education, Nebraska Humanities Council, Omaha World-Herald, and the University of Nebraska at Omaha) will be facilitated by library media specialists at sites across Nebraska. For more information see Announcements on the Commission Web site, www.nlc.state.nlc.us.

New Library Directors include: Bartley Public Library, Ronni Harding; Chester Public Library, Judy Smith; John G. Smith Memorial Library, Dawson, Carol Kean; Dorchester Public Library, Mark Bartek; Genoa Public Library, Sharon Jones; Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, Christine Jorgensen; Douglas County Correction Center Library, Omaha, Barb Glaser; Sidney Public Library, Mary Beth Sancomb-Moran; Keya Paha County Library, Springview, Jo Prentice; and Table Rock Public Library, Frances Workman.