Eleven-year-old Elizabeth Ann Bishop is a library MVP. Bishop earned a trip to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, winning the 2009 Step Up to the Plate @ your library contest by demonstrating her information literacy skills.

In early October, Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith (seen below) drew Bishop’s name as the grand-prize winner. She was randomly selected from eligible contestants across the country and Puerto Rico who correctly answered a series of baseball trivia questions.

As the 2009 winner of Step Up to the Plate @ your library Bishop, a frequent library user from Chambersburg, Pa., traveled with her family to Cooperstown, N.Y. for the Hall of Fame’s 13th Annual World Series Gala on Saturday, Oct. 31. The Gala featured a live broadcast of Game 3 of the 105th World Series, between the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies in the Hall of Fame’s Grandstand Theater.

“The best part was watching the game at the Hall of Fame with other fans,” said Bishop, who sported Phillies player Ryan Howard’s jersey for the occasion. “It was like being there.”

Bishop also received a tour of the Baseball Hall of Fame and library.

Each year librarians at the Baseball Hall of Fame work to generate a series of questions for Step Up to the Plate that test library users’ information literacy skills.

Read more about the Bishops’visit in the Chambersburg Public Opinion, Chambersburg’s local newspaper.

Contributed by Megan McFarlane, Coordinator, Campaign for America’s Libraries

Photo courtesy of the Chambersburg Public Opinion

Tags: ALA Membership, ALA Midwinter Meeting, ALA News, PR tools, State of America's Libraries Report, Youth Media Awards by admin
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Join thousands as ALA , ALSC and YALSA unveil the best of the best in children’s and young adult literature and media.

The American Library Association (ALA) will provide a free live webcast of its Youth Media Awards, a national announcement of the top books and media for children and young adults, on Jan. 18, at 7:45 a.m. EST. The award announcements are made as part of the ALA Midwinter Meeting, which will bring together librarians, publishers, authors and guests to the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center from Jan. 15 to 19.

Recognized worldwide for the high quality they represent, the ALA Youth Media Awards guide parents, educators, librarians and others in selecting the best materials for children and young adults. This year’s announcement includes 18 awards including the Coretta Scott King Book Awards; John Newbery Medal; Michael L. Printz Award; Schneider Family Book Award; and the Randolph Caldecott Medal.

Unikron, a streaming content provider, will host the ALA Youth Media Awards Webcast. The number of available connections for the Webcast is limited and the broadcast is available on a first-come, first-served basis. Online visitors can view the live Webcast the morning of the announcements by going to http://alawebcast.unikron.com. Those interested in following the action live should bookmark the URL.

The ALA will instantly announce presentation results using Twitter. Members can view live updates on the ALA Youth Media Awards press kit and via tweets at http://twitter.com/ALAyma. Members can also follow live updates via the Youth Media Awards RSS and the ALA Youth Media Awards Facebook page.

The press release announcing all ALA Youth Media Award recipients will be posted in the Youth Media Awards Press Kit at http://www.ala.org/yma prior to 9:30 a.m. EST.

Tags: ALA News, PR tools by admin
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Hundreds of libraries across the country are preparing to celebrate National Gaming Day @ your library on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2009. How popular is gaming in libraries? A recent study shows that more than 75% of public libraries support gaming, by offering computer or board gaming, circulating games, or offering gaming events and programs.

A National Gaming Day @ your library publicity toolkit is now available at “http://www.ala.org/ala/newspresscenter/mediapresscenter/presskits/ngd09/ngd09mtk.cfm” to help libraries promote their gaming programs and events to the media. The Web toolkit includes downloadable artwork, customizable postcards, a sample press release, a sample letter to the editor and much more.

To learn more about National Gaming Day @ your library please visit http://ilovelibraries.org/gaming.

Contributed by Macey Morales, manager, media relations, ALA Public Information Office

Tags: ALA Membership, ALA Midwinter Meeting, ALA News, Libraries in a tough economy, National Library Week, PR tools, State of America's Libraries Report by admin
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Ten libraries in 10 states from New York to Alaska received $5,000 grants as part of the American Library Association’s (ALA) Libraries, Literacy and Gaming initiative, funded by the Verizon Foundation.

The winners, representing a broad spectrum of libraries – seven public, two school and one academic – will use the funds to develop and implement gaming and literacy programs that provide innovative gaming experiences for youths 10-18 years of age. The 10 libraries were selected out of 390 that applied for the grant.

Among the libraries chosen was the Indian Trails Public Library of Wheeling, Ill.

In this video, we visit the library and talk with library officials about how they heard about and obtained the grant, as well as their plans for using it.

The Libraries, Literacy and Gaming initiative is generously funded by the Verizon Foundation and managed by ALA’s Office for Literacy and Outreach Services. Dr. Scott Nicholson, an associate professor in the School of Information Studies, Syracuse University, is the evaluation specialist.

Tags: ALA Membership, ALA Midwinter Meeting, ALA News, PR tools, Youth Media Awards by admin
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In the latest in a series of videos in which respected Americans describe how they value libraries and librarians, astronaut Sally Ride recounts the importance of libraries to her storied life and career.

According to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, “Ride was selected as an astronaut candidate by NASA in January 1978. In August 1979, she completed a 1-year training and evaluation period, making her eligible for assignment as a mission specialist on future Space Shuttle flight crews. She subsequently performed as an on-orbit capsule communicator (CAPCOM) on the STS-2 and STS-3 missions.”

She went on to serve as a mission specialist on STS-7, which launched from Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on June 18, 1983. This was the second flight for the Orbiter Challenger and the first mission with a five-person crew. She served in the same capacity on STS 41-G, which launched from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida on Oct. 5, 1984. This contained the largest crew to fly to date.

Ride subsequently was assigned to NASA Headquarters as special assistant to the administrator for long range and strategic planning.

In 2001 she founded her own company, Sally Ride Science [http://www.sallyridescience.com] to motivate girls and young women to pursue careers in science, math and technology.

The author of five science books for children, she is a member of the National Women’s Hall of Fame and the Astronaut Hall of Fame.

Contributed by Steve Zalusky, Manager of Communications, ALA Public Information Office

Tags: ALA News, Campaign for America's Libraries, Library stories, PR tools, Podcasts by admin
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The Coretta Scott King Awards honor African American authors and illustrators of outstanding books for children and young adults that demonstrate sensitivity to “the African American experience via literature and illustration.” This year marks the 40th year that the Coretta Scott King Awards will be presented. The awards are administered by the ALA Office for Literacy and Outreach Services (OLOS). Winners receive a framed citation, an honorarium of $1,000 and multiple formats of the Encyclopedia Britannica or World Book Encyclopedia. Certificates are given to authors and illustrators of books receiving honor awards or for new talent.

The ALA Public Information Office collaborates with OLOS in providing media outreach for the awards.

In this interview, Satia Orange, OLOS director, talks about the awards.

Contributed by Steve Zalusky, Manager of Communications, ALA Public Information Office

Photo from the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives

Tags: ALA Membership, ALA Midwinter Meeting, ALA News, PR tools, Youth Media Awards by admin
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