New Jersey State Library Newsletter

Photo from left: Michele Stricker, Deputy Director of Library Development for the NJ State Library, Maria Esche, director Moorestown Public Library, Kathy Schalk-Green, director Mount Laurel Public Library, Christine King, director Willingboro Public Library, Gail Sweet, director Burlington County Library, Westampton, and Kim Ruth, Burlington County Library.

The New Jersey State Library announced that the Burlington County Library, 5 Pioneer Blvd., Westhampton, has been awarded $10,000 in emergency supplies to be used in case of a large-scale emergency. The Library Regional Response Network Initiative provides the supplies needed by libraries to build a regional partnership for emergency response in the event of a large-scale disaster. It also ensures that the emergency supplies are readily accessible to every library in the network and that volunteers will be available to help. Network libraries include the Burlington County Library System, and the public libraries of Willingboro, Mount Laurel and Moorestown.

The supplies, which include Shop Vacs, dehumidifiers, plastic crates, brooms, mops and hard hats, are to be used to rapidly clean and preserve a library’s contents in the event of flood, fire or other disaster. The equipment is being stored at the Westhampton site in a tractor trailer, which makes mobile response to other libraries in the network possible.

The program, which is supported by the NJ State Library through funding by the Institute for Museum and Library Services, will serve as a pilot project on how NJ libraries address disaster response and recovery, and provide a model that can be replicated by librarians seeking to create their own regional response network.

MORE PHOTOS

The New Jersey State Library, in partnership with PSEG Foundation and Praxair Foundation, announced that free homework help would now be available to the students, residents and users of 109 public libraries through the popular Live Homework Help NJ program. Students in grades kindergarten to 12, and in introductory college courses, will be able to get free help with their math, science, social studies and English assignments via the Internet. This online tutoring program, delivered by Tutor.com, allows students with library cards to chat online with tutors who can help them tackle their homework problems. Spanish-speaking tutors are available for help with math and science assignments.

Live Homework Help NJ had been available through 24 NJ libraries in Camden, Elizabeth, Jersey City, Newark, New Brunswick, Paterson, Willingboro, Elmer, Penns Grove, Pennsville, Salem, Woodstown, the Gloucester County library, Deptford, Franklin Township, Monroe Township, Paulsboro, Pitman, Washington Township, Wenonah, West Deptford, Westville, Woodbury, Gloucester City. The 2010 expansion to include all the public libraries in Burlington, Essex, Hudson, Morris and Passaic counties was made possible by a $250,000 grant from PSEG Foundation. Additional grant funding from Praxair Foundation brings the program to the communities of Belvidere, Bridgeton, Princeton and Woodbridge.

Live Homework Help NJ is designed to provide the highest quality of one-on-one instruction. Tutors are available online and on demand, 7 days a week from 2 to 10 p.m. Whether students need just a few minutes of help or a significant amount of time to better understand a complex concept, certified Tutor.com tutors work with students to help them build their confidence and do well in school.

A new service called Adult Career Center will also be available, which will provide adult customers with tutors to help them study for standardized tests, such as the GED; review and proof-read resumes and cover letters; and have access to a resource center containing test preparation materials, job search tips and ways to help their children with homework. The Resource Center materials are available 24/7.

The State Library established Live Homework Help NJ in select libraries under a Cornerstone Grant of $265,000 from PSEG Foundation in 2007. It was also made available to all students enrolled in NJ After 3 after school programs. Over 90 percent of those who used the service said that it had helped them complete homework assignments, improved their grades and made them more confident about their school work.

“The New Jersey State Library, through the NJ Library Network, has long been committed to the education of young people and adults through a variety of programs we have funded and encouraged local public libraries to offer,” said Norma Blake, New Jersey State Librarian. “The extra assistance available to students from live Homework Help tutors has the potential to instill a sense of success and accomplishment that will carry forward into the school day.”

Students who live in one of the 109 designated municipalities can connect to a Live Homework Help NJ tutor through their local libraries, or from their home PC or Mac with their library card number. The program Web site is www.homeworkhelpnj.org. In addition, students enrolled in NJ After 3 can access Live Homework Help NJ at local program sites. NJ After 3 nonprofit partner sites include Boys & Girls Clubs, faith-based groups, museums, universities, community development corporations, YW/YMCAs, and others.

Tutor.com has been delivering its Live Homework Help® service to students in the U.S. through libraries since 2001. More than 5 million homework help sessions have been delivered to date–with an average of 5,000 sessions each evening.

In photo, Karin Emmitt of Pedricktown and her daughters Shannon (center) and Kailyn check out the Homework Help NJ program now available in 109 communities across New Jersey.

Four public libraries in New Jersey will benefit from the expertise of a group of librarians who addressed space challenges at their own libraries and led the transformation to improve the interior areas to better serve their customers. The “SWAT Team of Library Transformers,” Jayne Beline, director of Parsippany - Troy Hills Library; Cheryl McBride, director of North Brunswick Library; Kathy Schalk-Greene, director of the Mount Laurel Library, and Gloria Urban, director of the Vineland Library, will work with the selected libraries as expert consultants regarding their projects.

The SWAT Team was created and is funded by the NJ State Library on the recommendation of the State Librarian’s Blue Ribbon Task Force on the Future of Libraries. The team is tasked with assisting libraries with their transformation projects. Libraries were selected for the program by submitting an application detailing their needs and transformational goals, and had to commit $5,000 to the transformation. All projects will be completed by Dec. 31, 2010.

The selected libraries are Caldwell, Matawan-Aberdeen, Midland Park and Gloucester County Library’s Glassboro Branch.

The Caldwell Public Library opened in 1917 as a small one-story brick structure funded with the help of a grant from Andrew Carnegie. Expansion had compromised the original charm of this “Carnegie Library,” so the proposed transformation will restore the grandeur of the original library, organize the space to reflect the warm “heart of our town” feeling, improve signage, optimize available space, and establish a new technology center.

The Gloucester County Library Glassboro Branch was once an Acme food store, circa 1950. The proposed transformation will improve lighting, brighten the interior, arrange library materials in a more inviting and easily accessible way, and better utilize the interior space.

The Matawan-Aberdeen Library showed a 257 percent increase in DVD circulation over last year, with demand for new and old movies increasing. Their transformational challenge is finding space for this popular service in their 9,880 square foot library, to include how the DVD’s are arranged and displayed for their customers.

The Midland Park Memorial Library was built in the 1950’s and expanded over the years. The transformation will address the main circulation area so that new materials will stand out, and update and improved the overall ambiance.

“With the guidance of our experts, by the end of the year these libraries will be able to show the dramatic, visible transformations in their floor plans resulting in the same improved customer service that was achieved in the SWAT Team members’ libraries,” said Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian. “This program will serve as a demonstration project for other libraries, both in NJ and nationwide, that library interiors can be transformed without a lot of money.”

Photo above, from left (standing): Michele Stricker, deputy head of Library Development, NJ State Library; Gloria Urban, Vineland Library; Kathy Schalk-Greene, director Mount Laurel Library; Cheryl McBride, director of North Brunswick Library; Jayne Beline, director of Parsippany - Troy Hills Library, with the paint roller.

From left: Anne Wodnick, director of Gloucester County Library; Carol Wolf, branch manager, Glassboro ; Michele Stricker, deputy head of Library Development , NJ State Library; Melissa Hughes, director of Midland Park Library; Karen Kleppe Lembo, director of Caldwell Public Library; Susan Pike, director of Matawan-Aberdeen Library.

Ever wonder how to store old baseball cards? How to carefully handle a fragile old family photo? How to preserve your digital diary or your quilt collection? Everyone who saves things, from family mementos to world-class collections, has similar questions.

Libraries care for their vast and varied collections everyday, so they are the perfect places for learning about preservation. In recognition of this, the American Library Association will launch its first Preservation Week May 9–15, 2010. The New Jersey State Library is partnering with ALA in developing and piloting a new workshop to help your library celebrate collecting and preservation in your community, and to highlight your institution as a source of preservation information.

Preservation is a theme that can be used to bring in people and develop new audiences in your library. You do not have to be an expert in preservation to present informative programs to the public. This workshop will give you the ideas and resources you will need to develop successful preservation programming for your customers.

Participants will learn some basic preservation strategies for assisting the public in caring for their family treasures, as well as ideas for fostering preservation awareness and developing outreach programs in your community.

Possible outreach and awareness ideas include digitizing family photographs or papers, digital archiving and metadata for the home photographer, display of family treasures, sharing your family food heritage, a memories “road show,” caring for family documents, scrapbooking for posterity, organizing family collections, home movie day, quilt/wedding dress care, and disaster recovery for important family papers. Register now for what promises to be an interesting and informative workshop for library directors, preservation staff, or program/outreach managers.

Cost: $20 (covers continental breakfast and lunch)
Time: 9:30– 3:30 workshop (9:00-9:30 Registration)

March 30: Parsippany Troy Hills Public Library
March 31: Hasbrouck Heights Public Library
April 7: East Brunswick Public Library
April 8: Cherry Hill Public Library

Space is limited. Registration and payment takes places online at: https://secure.thriva.com/Reg/Form.aspx?IDTD=1607587&IDRPH=1659115

For further information please contact Michele Stricker, Deputy Director, Library Development Bureau, New Jersey State Library at mstricker@njstatelib.org.

In April 2009 at the NJ State Library,Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian (left), presented Christiane Leitinger, director, Pennies for Peace, Central Asia Institute, with a check for $13,400. The money was raised by over 75 New Jersey public and school libraries.

Throughout February and March 2010, the New Jersey State Library, the New Jersey Library Association and libraries throughout New Jersey plan to again honor the legacy of Abraham Lincoln, as part of the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commemoration, by collecting pennies.

Lincoln firmly believed in education, equality, opportunity and peace. To help continue his legacy, the State Library and NJLA are encouraging New Jersey libraries to participate in the Lincoln Pennies for Peace Campaign. All funds collected will be donated to Pennies for Peace which collects funds for the Central Asia Institute co-founded by Greg Mortenson, the subject of the bestselling biography, “Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace… One School At A Time.” The money will be used to build school libraries in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

“Last year, school and public libraries from all over New Jersey raised over $13,400 in pennies. The campaign really caught on with young people and children, because they all could be part of the fundraiser just by putting in a few pennies. We found the ‘children helping other children’ aspect resonated with them,” said Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian. So far, almost 90 public and school libraries have joined the 2010 campaign.

The original Pennies for Peace was conceived by students in a Wisconsin elementary school in 1996. Since then, over 16 million pennies have been raised by over 700 schools in all 50 states, including over 10 million pennies in the past year. The program is designed to educate children about the world beyond their experience and show them that they can make a positive impact on a global scale, one penny at a time.

After failing to reach the summit of K-2, Mortenson, emaciated and exhausted from his experience, staggered into a poor remote village whose residents nursed him back to health. He noted the children had no school or school supplies, using the ground and sticks to practice their multiplication tables. He promised to build them a school, and since then has made it his life’s work to build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan to educate students where no schools existed. His mission has been to promote education and literacy, especially for girls, in remote regions of these two countries. To date, the Central Asia Institute has established 130 schools, educating over 51,000 students.

Now those schools need libraries. “We believe that Lincoln would have been proud to have New Jersey libraries adopt this campaign in his honor,” said Blake. “Lincoln would have been very supportive of helping children in other areas of the world receive an education to help them become insightful leaders and active participants in global peace.”

The following libraries/library systems are participating:
Ridge High School Basking Ridge
Belvidere High School Library
Bernards Township Library
Bloomfield Public Library
Bloomfield High School
Bloomingdale Public Library
Brick Branch of the Ocean County Library
West Avenue School Bridgeton
Bridgewater Library
Pemberton Branch of BCLS Browns Mills
Sandshore School Library Budd Lake
Old Turnpike School Califon
Cape May County Cape May Court House
Carteret Public Library
Cedar Grove Public Library
Richard Stockton Elementary Cherry Hill
Clifton Public Library
Clinton Twp. Middle School
Henry Inman Branch Library Colonia
Cranbury Public Library
Cranford Public Library
Orange Avenue School Cranford
Demarest Public Library
North Dover Elementary Dover
Twin Rivers Library East Windsor
Robert Morris School 18 Elizabeth
McCloud Elementary School Englewood
Dismus Middle School Englewood
Fords Branch Library - Woodbridge Public
Franklin Lakes Public Library
Freehold Public Library
Academy of Our Lady Glen Rock
Morgan Early Elementary School Act Club Hamilton
Sunnymead School Library Hillsborough
Pascack Valley High School Hillsdale
Miller Branch Library Jersey City
Kearny Public Library
South Hunterdon Regional High School Library Lambertville
Leonia Public Library
Chapel Hill Academy Lincoln Park
Passaic Valley High School Little Falls
Little Ferry Free Public Library
Livingston Public Library
Mahwah High School
Taylor Mills School Media Center Manalapan
Manasquan Public Library
Cranberry Pines Elementary School Medford
Campbell Elementary School Library Metuchen
Metuchen High School
Middletown Township Public Library
Milford Public Library
Woodland Elementary School Monroe Township
Monroe Township High School
Monroe Township Public Library
Pascack Hills High School Montvale
Lazar Middle School Montville
Moorestown Public Library
Mount Laurel Library
Fleetwood Elementary School Mount Laurel
Gloucester County Library System Mullica Hill
Neptune Public Library
New Providence School District Libraries
West Essex Middle School Library North Caldwell
West Essex High School North Caldwell
Otto Bruyns Library Northfield
North Plainfield High School & Middle School
Nutley Public Library
Ocean City High School
Park Ridge Public Library
Parsippany-Troy Hills Library System
Peapack Gladstone Branch Somerset County
Piscataway Public Library
Leeds Ave School Pleasantville
Ringwood Public Library
Woodside School Library River Vale
Robbinsville High School
Rockaway Township Library
Rutherford Public Library
Sayreville Public Library
Somerville Public Library
Sparta Public Library
Oak Knoll Lower School Summit
Tinton Falls Public Library
New Jersey State Library Trenton
Talking Book & Braille Center Trenton
E.T. Hamilton School Library Voorhees
Wanaque Elementary School Library
Valley View School Library Watchung
Watchung Public Library
BCIT Westampton
West Long Branch Schools
Westfield Library
Camden County Library System Westmont
Academy of Allied Health/Biomedical Sciences Woodbridge

Gary Cooper, public relations & media contact for the NJ State Library, presented Denise Milby of Little Egg Harbor with a Basket of Books she won for her school in a drawing held at the 109th Annual NJ PTA Convention in Atlantic City, Dec 2 & 3.

Alka Bhatnagar (center), analysis & trends specialist for the NJ State Library, accepted the Francis Keppel Award given for timely submission of public library data. The award, which was presented at the State Data Coordinators Conference, is given annually by the U.S Dept. of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics and the U.S. Commission on Libraries and Information Science.

The New Jersey State Library has awarded a grant to the New Jersey Library Association to continue One Book NJ (OBNJ) to New Jersey readers in 2010. OBNJ is an exciting program that libraries and their partners promote across the state to bring people together through their love of books by encouraging them to read the same novel and participate in discussions and other events centered on it.

OBNJ celebrates reading, literacy and all that New Jersey’s libraries do that has made them the community gathering place for people of all ages. The NJSL serves as a leader in the provision, promotion and support of excellent quality library and information services for all people in New Jersey. Their support for One Book New Jersey will help to ensure another successful year of this valuable program.

“The New Jersey State Library is proud to once again partner with the New Jersey Library Association and the Secretary of State to support One Book NJ. This excellent program helps bridge our communities together through reading, discussions and programs at local libraries,” commented Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian.

One Book Projects were initiated by the Washington Center for the Book in 1998 and have spread to communities throughout the United States. The NJSL has partnered with the NJLA to present OBNJ since its initiation in 2003.

This year’s reading selections are:
Adult - The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time by Mark Haddon
Young Adult - The Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
Middle Grade - The Tale Of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Read to Me - Click Clack Moo : Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin

One Book NJ is presented by the New Jersey Library Association’s Public Relations Committee and Children’s Services and Young Adult Sections, in collaboration with the New Jersey State Library and the Secretary of State. Local and statewide events will occur between January and April, with major events planned for National Library Week during the month of April.

Anne H. Redlus (second from left), president of the New Jersey State Federation of Women’s Clubs of GFWC, presented a check for $763 to the Cliffside Park Public Library to purchase books. On November 30, 2009, a two-alarm fire damaged books and two offices inside the library.

According to Fire Chief Anthony Lupica, the fire began around 7:15 a.m. after a transformer outside the building exploded and likely sent a surge of electrical current into the building’s electrical panel.

Because of extensive smoke and water damage, the library is currently closed during clean up operations.

Accepting the donation from Redlus were (from left): Pat Tumulty, president of the New Jersey Library Association, Norma Blake, New Jersey State Librarian, and Kathleen Peiffer, director of the Library Development Bureau.

The New Jersey State Library is pleased to announce the appointments of Victoria Rosch (photo left) to the position of Associate State Librarian for Special Projects, Peggy Cadigan (center) to the position of Associate State Librarian for Innovation & Outreach Strategies, and Michele Stricker (right) to the position of Deputy Head of Library Development.

In her new position, Rosch will be responsible for working on pilot and other special projects, advocating for legislative priorities, overseeing construction issues and assuring compliance with various administrative requirements and priorities. She will continue to write regulations and serve as a resource for library law. She began her career with the New Jersey State Library in the Library Development Bureau in 2003, and has served for the last two years as deputy director of the bureau. Her responsibilities included managing the Per Capita State Aid grant program and regulation updating, and serving as the state data coordinator and as a resource for New Jersey library law. For the 12 years prior to joining the staff of the State Library, Rosch held various positions of increasing importance at the Gloucester County Library, including eight years as the library director. She is a graduate of Rutgers University – Camden and received her Masters of Public Librarianship from Rowan University. She is a member of the New Jersey Library Association and the American Library Association.

Cadigan’s duties will include giving presentations on the future of libraries both in and out of state, and addressing varied audiences of library professionals and other interested parties to present information about State Library programs and projects. She will explore ways to enhance the State Library’s services to the libraries and residents of the state by engaging in partnerships and seeking development opportunities. She is also planning a follow-up to the Mid-Atlantic Library Futures Conference which she convened with other partners in 2005. Her most recent successful venture was the creation and implementation of “Snapshot Day,” held in 2009 in partnership with the New Jersey Library Association. The purpose of Snapshot Day was to capture the impact that New Jersey libraries have on their communities on a typical day. A survey captured the daily activities of libraries across the state, and revealed that, in just one day, more than 160,000 people walk through the doors of New Jersey’s libraries. The American Library Association will be promoting Snapshot Day as a national event. Cadigan graduated magna cum laude from Hobart & William Smith College, Geneva, N.Y., and received her Master’s degree in Library Science from Rutgers University.

As Deputy Head of Library Development, Stricker will be responsible for working on library law, trustee education, the Trustee Institute, preservation and disaster preparedness programs & grants, and other grants programs. She had been serving as consultant for Library Trustees, Preservation and Literacy at the State Library, and received certification as a Preservation Management Consultant from the Rutgers School of Communication & Information. She was one of only 70 representatives from libraries and museums nationwide selected by the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to attend a national forum last June in Buffalo, New York, entitled “Stewardship of America’s Legacy: Answering the Call to Action.” Stricker holds a bachelor’s degree from Tyler School of Art of Temple University, a master of fine arts in Museum Studies from Syracuse University, a master of arts in Art History from the University of Pennsylvania, and a master’s in Library & Information Science from Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ. She is a member of the American Library Association Preservation & Reformatting Section, a board member of NJ Library Association History & Preservation Section, and Lyrasis Preservation Group.

Throughout February and March 2010, the New Jersey State Library plans to honor the legacy of Abraham Lincoln as part of the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commemoration. Lincoln firmly believed in education, equality, opportunity and peace. To help continue his legacy, the State Library is encouraging all New Jersey libraries to participate in the Lincoln Pennies for Peace Campaign. All funds collected will be donated to Pennies for Peace which collects funds for the Central Asia Institute co-founded by Greg Mortenson, the subject of the bestselling biography, “Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace… One School At A Time.” His newest book, “Stones into Schools: Promoting Peace with Books, Not Bombs, in Afghanistan and Pakistan” is due out Dec. 1, 2009 and continues the story begun in “Three Cups of Tea.” The money collected for the Pennies For Peace Campaign will be used to build school libraries in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The New Jersey State Library encourages New Jersey school and public libraries to join this campaign:
• Register at the Pennies for Peace website. You can receive free postcards and stickers and other materials.
• Let us know too. To receive a free poster for your library and to have your library included in statewide media releases please register with the NJ State Library here.
• Design a creative donation container and send in pictures for posting on the State Library Website. Either post the photos to your Flickr account and send Gary Cooper the link or send us the digital photos and he’ll post them for you. (gcooper@njstatelib.org)
• Get children and the community involved in contributing pennies. Pennies for Peace has lots of suggestions to get you started.
• The libraries collecting the most pennies for New Jersey libraries will receive recognition during National Library Week in April 2010.

To be eligible for this contest, libraries should collect the pennies, make a check made out to “New Jersey State Library” and send the check to the State Library by April 1, 2010. We’ll send all the checks to Pennies for Peace.

Send your check to:
Sheri Shafer, Chief Financial Officer
NJ State Library
PO Box 520
Trenton, NJ 08625-0520
Checks must be received at the State Library by April 1, 2010.

The original Pennies for Peace was conceived by students in a Wisconsin elementary school in 1996. Since then, over 16 million pennies have been raised by over 700 schools in all 50 states, including over 10 million pennies in the past year. The program is designed to educate children about the world beyond their experience and show them that they can make a positive impact on a global scale, one penny at a time. To date, the Central Asia Institute has established 130 schools, educating over 51,000 students, with an emphasis on girls’ education.

Media Inquiries: Gary Cooper email: gcooper@njstatelib.org
Contact for Libraries: Sharon Rawlins email: srawlins@njstatelib.org.

One Book New Jersey is a fun and exciting program sponsored by the New Jersey Library Association with generous support from the New Jersey State Library. The goal of the program is to bring people together by encouraging them to read and participate in discussions and other events about the same book.

Although modeled after other “One Book” programs throughout the country, New Jersey’s program is unique in that it involves not just one community, but the whole state. NJLA also felt it was important to reach people of all ages, so while the program is called “One Book,” it is, in fact, four books: an adult selection, a young adult selection, a book for older children and a read-to-me selection.

The selections for 2010 are:

Adult Selection
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon

Teen Selection
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Middle Grades Selection
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate Di Camillo

Read to Me Selection
Click Clack Moo: Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin.

Visit the One Book New Jersey Web site for updates www.onebooknewjersey.org. Posters and publicity will be available in early 2010.

Alka Bhatnagar, analysis and trends specialist for the New Jersey State Library, had an article published in Information Today’s Nov/Dec 2009 issue of ONLINE Exploring Technology & Resources for Information Professionals. The article, “Web Analytics for Business Intelligence: Beyond Hits and Sessions,” discusses the importance to libraries of using web-based analytic tools to provide the best or most relevant products to business users. The article will be available online in the near future at www.onlinemag.net.

Pilot program focuses on South Jersey Businesses
By Tina Keresztury, Associate State Librarian, NJ State Library

The current economic climate has made it more critical than ever for businesses to operate as efficiently as possible. The New Jersey State Library has recently launched an exciting marketing pilot program in South Jersey to inform businesses about free research and reference services available at local libraries. Business librarians from Atlantic City, Burlington County, Cherry Hill, Gloucester and Ocean County Libraries have been visiting business groups throughout the area to educate them about these invaluable business reference tools.

Pam Boyd, president of Thomas/Boyd Communications, the firm selected to spearhead the communications and marketing outreach for the project stated, “With today’s economic challenges, business professionals are expected to do more with less time. The library’s free business resources are a breath of fresh air for business people who need valuable marketing information but simply don’t have the time, expertise or resources at their disposal.”

Working in partnership with the Southern New Jersey Development Council (SNJDC), the NJ State Library conducted an initial focus group to discuss the most effective ways to inform local businesses about library business services. One of the things we learned is that only two out of 15 participants had ever used their local public library for business services. Why? They simply were not aware of these services. Based on the valuable feedback obtained from the SNJDC, including the importance of saving time and money, we developed the NJ Libraries Biz services logo and positioning line.

According to Marlene Asselta, president, Southern New Jersey Development Council, “The Southern New Jersey Development Council is proud to be a part of this important outreach effort which will greatly benefit the business community in both our region and statewide.”

“We’re finding that business people, in general, have been pleasantly surprised to learn that libraries offer state-of-the-art technology, sophisticated databases and other tools free-of-charge right at their fingertips,” said Norma Blake, State Librarian. “Our business presentations, open to business groups and organizations, provide an overview of library reference services including: database access, sample marketing and business plans, training sessions, Webinars and one-on-one business consulting.”

Local business reference librarians are available for calls, e-mails, live chats and in-person meetings. It is interesting to note that reference librarians in the nation’s public and academic libraries answer nearly 8 million questions each week. In New Jersey alone, the number of reference questions in 2008 was over 8.4 million. They key to obtaining this information is simply a library card.

Top 5 Business Services
The library provides hundreds of business services, but we have identified the top five as outlined below:

1. Access to premium databases that you won’t find on Google or Bing. Search engines search what’s free on the Web, but the most accurate and verified information resides in expensive password-protected databases such as Ref USA or EBSCO. Librarians can search over 10 million businesses in the Ref USA database to find detailed company information. The EBSCO Database offers articles from over 1,000 businesses, management, and trade magazines to help you track trends in your business.

2. Access to marketing and business plan templates readily available at local libraries. Librarians will also meet with businesses to help in developing a business plan.

3. Training sessions on using research tools and databases as well as training on software such as PowerPoint, Excel, Microsoft Office features and social media tools for networking, marketing and blogging. Many libraries bring in U.S. Census trainers for more in depth business research.

4. Many libraries are beginning to offer Webinars as online tutorials for various subjects. Webinars are time-saving because you can watch when you have time, in the convenience of your home or office.

5. One-on-one business consultations are also offered at many libraries. Personal appointments can be made with the business reference librarian for special research or training.

If you would like to schedule a business reference presentation for your business group or company, please contact Alka Bhatnagar at 609-278-2640 ext 133 or abhatnagar@njstatelib.org.

One Book New Jersey is a fun and exciting program sponsored by the New Jersey Library Association with generous support from the New Jersey State Library. The goal of the program is to bring people together by encouraging them to read and participate in discussions and other events about the same book.

Although modeled after other “One Book” programs throughout the country, New Jersey’s program is unique in that it involves not just one community, but the whole state. NJLA also felt it was important to reach people of all ages, so while the program is called “One Book,” it is, in fact, four books: an adult selection, a young adult selection, a book for older children and a read-to-me selection.

The One Book New Jersey 2010 website is up and running, so go to the website, www.onebooknewjersey.org, to vote for your favorite titles in each of the four categories- adult, young adult, juvenile fiction(chapter book) and picture book(read to me). Voting will take place through Sunday, November 15, 2009.