Issue 1
I want to get more involved in WLA
Barriers
- Small staff (who stays home to mind the baby)
- Distance
- Dollars
- Administration opposition
Solutions
- Grant money from LSTA, Nora Van Burgh Development Grants, McMurry Library Grants
- Share expenses such as car-pooling and motels
- Attend LLI
- Networking, make connections with other libraries, cross-training employees, substitutes (grant dollars), close library
Issue 2
Recruiting staff for media center/library
Barriers
- Money
- Lack of support from administration and misunderstanding of the value
- People do not understand what jobs are involved in running a library/media center
- Using library/media staff for other "important" duties such as detention hall, crowd control, study hall
Solutions
- Marketing
- Advocacy at the higher up levels: PTSB, Dept. of Education, administration in schools
- Promote value of your media center in the community. Show them what you have to offer
- Teacher/librarian cooperation
- Public library/school library partnership
Issue 3
Recruiting librarians to Wyoming
Barriers
- salaries
- rural locations
- distance from MLS programs
- strained budgets
- climates
- housing
Solutions
- online MLS program
- Promote Wyoming and its advantages
- Go to ALA and other conferences, and to library schools to recruit
- Encourage paraprofessionals
- Grant money to support continuing education (McMurry, LSTA, NVB)
Issue 4
Internet Policy Issues
Barriers
- Kids downloading inappropriate sites and stuff
- Enforcement issues
- Lack of support from tech and administration
- Lack of written policy
- WEN filtering issues
Solutions
- Add kid friendly sites to library home page
- Using Internet filters/blockers that can be turned on and off
- Develop and post your Internet policy and the consequences
- Agreement among staff to consistently enforce the rules
- Educate tech support people and administration
- Require minors to have parental consent
- Network with other libraries to develop policy
Issue 5
Distance between libraries
Barriers
- networking
- training
- participation in organizations
Solutions
- Get more travel funding (state library, McMurry, etc.)
- Support from administrators
- Utilize technology (web cams, video conferencing, WEN conferencing)
- Communication (inter and intra libraries)
- Meet as districts
- Committees meet by WEN conferencing
Issue 6
Database marketing
Barriers
- How does the library create more patron usage of the library databases?
- Patrons are unaware of the databases
- Patrons are uncomfortable using them
Solutions
- Advertise on the radio
- Outreach to a target audience(s)
- Empower the patron: ask patrons questions regarding comfort level with computers, learning style and develop instruction according to their answers, consider individualized training
- Promote on library web page
- Provide individual and group training
- Promote home usage
- Create step by step handouts
- Promote databases by topic
- Include database information in regular library columns in newspaper
- Demonstrate databases to local organizations
- More proactive reference for patrons using databases
- Staff need to use and be more familiar with the databases
- Include database access and information on paper marketing tools (bookmarks)
For more information, or to participate contact:
Trish Palluck 777-5913; tpallu@state.wy.us
Chris Van Burgh 777-3642; cvanbu@state.wy.us
