RILA Bulletin, October 2020, Vol. 92, No. 5
In This Issue
President's Corner ~ October Is Information Literacy Month
RI School Library Curriculum Guide ~ Open Positions ~ Rhody Radio
2021 Latino Books Month Nominees ~ RI COVID-19 Archive
Sharing Visions Conference ~ RILA 2021 Annual Conference
News from RI Libraries ~ News from the Sections
President's Corner
Julie Holden, RILA President
FROM THE ARCHIVES

Recently, I was perusing the storage mezzanine of the William H. Hall Public Library on Broad Street in Cranston when I came across a lone cardboard box on a random table. Inside: old RILA Bulletins from years past! Who knew they were there? Most of our past Bulletins are archived on URI’s DigitalCommons page, if you want to take a look.

Here are some fun facts from the October 1977 issue, exactly 43 years ago this month: annual membership started at $5. RILA co-sponsored a program in November with Rhode Island College at Gaige Hall that featured U.S. Senator Claiborne Pell. The Bulletin itself was professionally printed at East Side Copy Shop on Thayer Street in Providence, which is now a convenience store called Metro Mart. And the annual conference that year was held in the Fall, at the Sheraton-Islander Inn in Newport, and included a happy hour event called RILAxation.    

Wishing you all RILAxation this autumn season,

Julie Holden, RILA President
October Is Information Literacy Month

Click the image to the right to view this year's Gubernatorial Proclamation declaring October as Information Literacy Month in Rhode Island.
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Virtual Event: Explore the New Rhode Island School Library Curriculum Guide

The Rhode Island Library Association’s Information Literacy Action Round Table (ILART) is hosting a virtual event to celebrate Information Literacy Month on Wednesday, October 21st, from 4:00 to 5:00pm.

Librarians of all types are invited to explore the new Rhode Island School Library Curriculum Guide. This resource includes essential, equitable, and relevant learning standards for student success as well as lesson ideas and assessments by standard and grade level. The guide was developed with the goal of strengthening school library curricula and programs statewide, but public librarians serving youth in partnership with school librarians, academic librarians who build on the information literacy skills students acquire in grades K-12, and librarians from other settings who support the information literacy skills of their patrons will find it useful. Session participants will learn how and why the guide was developed, what it entails, and how it was piloted in schools. Join us to learn what happens next and how the Curriculum Guide will help you as a librarian, whether you work in a school, academic, public, or special library. 

Our virtual guides will be Mary Moen, Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the School Library Media Program at the Graduate School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Rhode Island, and Marianne Mirando, Library and Information Specialist at Westerly High School.

Click below to register.
Raised Hands
Calling All Leaders

RILA is looking for two or more members to take on leadership roles:
  • One position is open for chair of the Financial Literacy Round Table, whose members are responsible for coordinating Money Smart Week activities in April as well as Financial Planning Day in the fall.
  • Another position is open for chair of the Intellectual Freedom Committee, whose members are responsible for monitoring intellectual freedom issues in Rhode Island, coordinating Banned Books week activities, and sponsoring an event on intellectual freedom at the RILA annual conference.

Both positions are eligible for co-chair opportunities, so grab a friend and share the work! An excellent opportunity to lead a group for your state association. Please contact Julie Holden at [email protected] if you are interested.
Rhody Radio Call for Submissions
Rhody Radio Call for Submissions

Calling all programming librarians! Rhody Radio, Rhode Island's new weekly library podcast, is looking for submissions for podcast episodes.

Episodes can be adapted programs done in conjunction with local presenters, book reviews or library staff recommendations, interviews, or whatever other ideas you think would be a good fit. Learn more about how you can get involved in the project at the Rhody Radio Guide for Library Staff, where you will find two helpful archived webinars: "Getting Started with Rhody Radio" and "Basic Editing in Audacity and Garageband."

Email [email protected] to work with the Rhody Radio team to develop your ideas, record your episode, and get it ready for the airwaves. Find Rhody Radio wherever you get your podcasts, or visit rhodyradio.org to listen to previous episodes and get your creative juices flowing!
2021 Latino Books Month
2021 Latino Books Month Nominees

The Rhode Island Latino Books Month Committee is proud to announce the 2021 RI Latino Books Month Nominees, just in time for Hispanic Heritage Month!

We are going on our eighth year promoting Latino literature for kindergarten through 12th grade. Students are encouraged to read three books according to their grade level and vote for their favorite book by the end of May, which is RI Latino Books Month. Those who participate can obtain a copy of the poster, bookmarks, and pencils while supplies last. We will also be giving free book sets (provided by a grant from Raising Readers) to those who promote RI Latino Books Month and obtain votes from their students or patrons.

Join us in promoting a wide, diverse book list of children’s and teens' Latino literature!
RI COVID-19 Archive

The Rhode Island COVID-19 Archive is a public digital archive created and maintained by the Providence Public Library and the Rhode Island Historical Society in response to the COVID-19 public health crisis.

Created in March 2020, during the beginning of our state’s stay-at-home orders, the digital archive is composed of submissions from Rhode Islanders from all walks of life documenting and sharing their lived experiences during the pandemic. The archive strives to represent the diversity of experiences throughout our state; we believe that every person in our community has something of value to contribute to this documented history, and that we are empowered by telling our many stories. We’re particularly interested in views that may be otherwise lost, obscured, or ignored in news media accounts, press releases, and government advisories. 
Sharing Visions Conference
Upcoming Regional Conference Coordinated by LORI Resource Sharing Working Group

On November 18th, the Library of Rhode Island (LORI) Resource Sharing Working Group, in partnership with the state library agencies of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, will present a day-long, free, virtual conference to bring together library staff from all over New England to examine visionary approaches to resource sharing. 

The event, which is called "Sharing Visions" and kicks off at 9:00am, features keynote speaker Trevor A. Dawes, Vice Provost for Libraries and Museums and the May Morris University Librarian at the University of Delaware. Dawes will speak about the changing landscape of resource sharing and examine its future role as an integral part of library services.

Other sessions will cover how standards can support resource sharing partnerships; Connecticut State Library's Evergreen FulfILLment project; Project ReShare, a community-owned resource sharing system; patron identity management; and delivery sustainability.
RILA Conference - June 3-4, 2021
RILA 2021 Conference: Save the Date!

The RILA 2021 Annual Conference will be June 3-4, 2021. Our theme will be "Well + Connected: Libraries and Healthy Communities."

Start brainstorming your session proposals that share all the ways your library contributes to a healthy community, whether by responding to community needs in the midst of a global pandemic, providing inclusive programs and services that build connections in your community, or supporting the mental health and emotional wellbeing of your community and library staff.

The Conference Committee looks forward to bringing the RI library community together in 2021, whether that ends up being in person at Bryant University or online for another engaging virtual event. Stay tuned for the final decision on virtual vs. in-person in early 2021.
News from the Rhode Island Library Community
News from Cranston Public Library
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CPL Presents New School Tools Collection
You can now check out a globe, a microscope, a roll-up keyboard, a play cash register, and a programmable robot from the Cranston Public Library. The library is building a new collection of “School Tools” to support parents and children who are learning at home--whether they are homeschooling, virtual learning, or doing a mix of all of the above.
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William Hall Library Youth Services Librarian Elise Petrarca reached out to members of ENRICHri, a statewide secular homeschooling network, as well as families in her neighborhood who were considering homeschooling for the first time. “I asked what they needed from the library and learned that there are a lot of hands-on teaching materials that parents would like to have access to, like microscopes, base 10 blocks, phonics cubes, anatomy models, and globes,” said Petrarca.

Each toolkit contains a fun object for learning and play, plus any necessary accessories or instructions. The library offers are School Tools for arts, life skills, literacy, science, math, and social studies.
Robin Nyzio
CPL Welcomes Robin Nyzio as the New Branch Librarian at the William Hall Library
The Cranston Public Library is pleased to announce the hiring of Robin Nyzio as the new Branch Librarian at the William Hall Library. Nyzio replaces Adrienne Gallo Girard, who recently was appointed the Director of the East Greenwich Public Library.

Robin was most recently the Assistant Director of the Lincoln Public Library, a position she held since 2016. Robin started her library career in 2002 at the Pawtucket Public Library and has since worked at both the Jesse Smith Library in Burrillville and the Middleborough (MA) Public Library. She holds a Masters Degree in Library and Information Science from the University of Rhode Island. Robin is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Coalition of Library Advocates (COLA) and is a member of the Rhode Island Library Association (RILA) Legislative Action Committee.

Robin started in her new role on August 31st.
Share Your School Year Stories
Back to School
It's been a couple of months. How is the school year going?

We are interested in learning how your school, academic, or public library has adapted this school year...and how it's going so far.

Share your stories with us, and we will feature them in the next issue of the RILA Bulletin!
News from the RILA Sections
Tracie D. Hall
Keith Stokes
Karen Mellor
Cornucopia of Rhode Island Hosting Annual Fall Mini-Conference: A Look Back As We Move Forward

Cornucopia of Rhode Island, a library community of color, will host its annual conference on Wednesday, November 4, 2020, from 3:00 to 4:30pm, on Zoom.

Join us for a conversation with featured speaker Tracie D. Hall, Executive Director of the American Library Association. The conversation will be moderated with opening remarks by Keith Stokes, Vice President of the 1696 Heritage Group, with greetings from Karen Mellor, Chief of Library Service for the State of Rhode Island, Office of Library & Information Services.

Click below to register for this free event. For more information, contact [email protected].
The Rhode Island Library Association
is a professional organization that serves its members through career development, education, advocacy, networking partnerships, and legislative action.
The RILA Bulletin is produced by the RILA Communications Committee. The RILA Communications Committee is responsible for publicizing and supporting Rhode Island Library Association activities using a variety of communication tools. Responsibilities include publishing the RILA Bulletin, managing social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, and exploring other media as needed.

Rhode Island Library Association members can contribute content to the RILA Bulletin by submitting an article or emailing the editors at [email protected].
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