ARSL

ARSL, Conferences, News, Online Collaboration, Rural and Small Libraries, chrystie
ARSL’s New Website
September 11th, 2009 | Permalink | 1 Comment

In September of 2007, the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) was a new organization. Having just separated from Clarion University because of the impending retirement of Professor Bernard Vavrek, and the university’s subsequent decision to discontinue the Center for the Study of Rural Librarianship, ARSL’s 12-member board was meeting that fall for the first time. According to Patty Hector, 2008-2009 ARSL board president, “We were fairly overwhelmed by the massive amount of activity that needed to be addressed and decisions that needed to be made in a very short period of time.”

About this same time, WebJunction approached ARSL with the offer to use follow-on funding from the Gates Foundation’s Rural Sustainability Project. The idea was to support ARSL’s website on WebJunction.org, and make WebJunction tools available to the ARSL board at no charge. The board accepted the offer of support as they helped the association get off the ground. Since then, ARSL has been using the webjunction.org/arsl page as their primary home page, along with ARSL BCR pages that allow memberships and conference registrations to happen as a link to that page.

I’ve worked closely with the team who managed our Rural Library Sustainability project since its inception, and served on ARSL’s board as an ex-officio member since February. In my time with ARSL’s board I’ve had a unique opportunity to observe an exciting time in the history of their organization’s development. Every member of the ARSL board has made great strides in developing an organization that’s truly poised and responsive to the rural and small library members they serve. It has been a great pleasure to get to know the ARSL board members and to be a small part of this work.

Two years later, ARSL is no longer a new organization. They have many things well-established now and are looking to step out into new directions. One of their areas of focus over the coming year is to look for ways to define their unique identity, and to be more responsive to their members. One way they plan to do this is to launch an all new, independent website. The vision for this site is that it be a dynamic space that captures ARSL’s personality and mission in a way that is appealing and relevant their members. Elements of this website, including the new ARSL logo, were unveiled at their annual conference this weekend.

Please visit their new website at http://www.arsl.info.

We are very excited about this development for ARSL and look forward to seeing the new site evolve. We also look forward to finding new ways to partner with ARSL in the coming year, as we each strive towards a common mission of working together to meet the needs in small and rural libraries. Co-sponsoring webinar programs is one idea, but there are so many other possibilities.

WebJunction will continue our focus on public access computing support for rural and small libraries. We’ll publish our Rural Update with news and announcements of special interest to those working in small and rural libraries. We’ll also keep you posted when we have rural-focused programs, webinars, or new content posted to the site. WebJunction will remain a great resource for people to find and connect with one another to support whatever you’re working on in your library. If you have ideas for topics, programs, or other things you might need, as always, please let us know.
ARSL, Trustees, Webinar
Trustee Blog: Dream Team = City Hall + Courthouse + Your Board
October 3rd, 2008 | Permalink | Comment?
By Ellen Miller

Listen up, trustees! It’s time to get serious about showing your library’s value to your community. A rocky economy means fierce competition for tax dollars from the police, Public Works and others.

Make sure local officials help, not hinder, your library. Where to start? With ARSL’s first-ever two-part webinar, Library Value: What’s YOUR score? On October 9, find why you need “TWO goal posts: Library and community.”
- Learn why trustees are the essential ingredient in savvy communications with officials
- Review the skill set needed for an effective board
- Hear “How we made friends with officials and gained control of our own budget” from library director P.J. Capps, Atchison, KS
Veteran trustees Jim Connor and Ellen Miller will join PJ to “tell it like it is” to get your dream team. Audience participation includes rating your relations with city/county officials, Q&A and a webinar evaluation.

On November 13, log in for the ARSL webinar’s second part, “How they see us: Bulls-eye or fringe?” Topics will include:
- Image and marketing – and why your hard-pressed staff should bother!
- How partnerships can stretch dollars and show your community commitment
- Ways to position your library to get seats at – not under – decision-making tables
Tip: Bring a power bar to these fast-paced sessions! To join the ARSL webinars visit us at: http://www.webjunction.org/rural-webinars

Trustee Tips and Tricks is a regular guest feature on BlogJunction. You can reach Ellen at www.ellenmillergroup.com and keep on top of the series by following the BlogJunction Trustees category.
ARSL, Rural and Small Libraries
Sails Up for ARSL Conference
September 20th, 2008 | Permalink | 1 Comment

Coinciding with National Talk Like a Pirate Day, Joan Frye Williams kept the opening session rolling by encouraging the 280 attendees here to practice their best “Ahoy”, “Avast”, and “Aye”. One example of the laid-back, easy feel this conference always seems to deliver. Day one in Sacramento was full of tips, tricks, laughs, and fun. The presenters have shared their hand-outs and presentations with everyone, and they are available on the ARSL site. So if you’re not here with us, pull some of those slide decks and follow along at home.

A theme running through the first day’s sessions is to meet your members and guests where they are…go with their strengths and experiences. Williams told folks to emphasize their mainstream convenience (”Librarians are the only one’s who like searching. Everyone else likes finding.”), and stop thinking of them as clients and patrons (See: aforementioned members and guests). Bill Harmer stressed the importance of thinking like an entrepreneur, and getting out there. His mantra: “Don’t ask permission.” Just be passionate and connect with your community. Try new things. A senior “lock-in”, and a free monopoly tournament for seniors are two of the many examples he gave of connecting with that important segment. His slides give recipes for many of the successful programs that made Chelsea District Library the Best Small Library in America.

Finding a place at the table for everyone in your community is really the key task of those who work in libraries. Williams told folks: “Allow others to work at the top of their game rather than trying to prove you are at the top of yours.” That’s what everyone here is working on: How can I better serve my youth, my seniors, my tech savvy, etc. Which really comes down to leadership. Leaders don’t need to have the world know they are at the top of their game. They just act it. They succeed when those around them succeed.

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ARSL

ARSL, Conferences, News, Online Collaboration, Rural and Small Libraries, chrystie

ARSL’s New Website

ARSL, Trustees, Webinar

Trustee Blog: Dream Team = City Hall + Courthouse + Your Board

By Ellen Miller

Trustee Tips and Tricks is a regular guest feature on BlogJunction. You can reach Ellen at www.ellenmillergroup.com and keep on top of the series by following the BlogJunction Trustees category.

ARSL, Rural and Small Libraries

Sails Up for ARSL Conference