An article by Sharon Rawlins, Youth Services Consultant for the NJ State Library, about the State-wide Summer Reading Program appeared in July’s NJ Afterschool Action, a monthly e-newsletter put out by the NJ School-Aged Care Coalition for afterschool programs. Sharon is a member of the coalition’s advisory committee.
The New Jersey State Library and local libraries from across the state have partnered with the New Jersey Sports & Exposition Authority to encourage readers to “Read Like a Library Champion” during their local library’s Summer Reading Program by giving them the opportunity to win tickets to IZOD Center events by logging in the books they read at at www.njlibrarychampions.org. Discount tickets for select IZOD Center family shows are also available at www.IZODcenter.com, by using the code LIBRARY.
Congratulations to the 25 summer readers who won a family four-pack of tickets to see The Wiggles on Aug. 17 by participating in their local library’s program:
Demetrick Family – Clark Library
Bertinato Family – Clifton Library
Schwartz Family – Clifton Library Allwood
Bartram Family – East Brunswick Library
Fiumaro Family – North Edison Library
Mauer Family – Fanwood Library
Kusznier Family – High Bridge
Quinn Family – Howell Library
Krempasky Family – Hunterdon County Library
Sammet Family – Kenilworth Library
Klesitz Family – Kinnelon Library
Johnson Family – Roxbury Library
Goriscak Family – Sussex County Library
Pennino Family – Jefferson Library
Lincoln Family – Old Bridge Library
Catania Family – Oradell Library
Dharia Family – Princeton Library
Silva Family – West Windsor
Steinfeld Family – South Plainfield Library
Fritton Family – Warren County Library Franklin Branch
Hart Family – Waldwick Library
North Family - Warren County Library Franklin Branch
Siuffe Family – Wayne Library
Hecht Family – Wayne Township Library
Abdelfattah Family - Alfred Baumann Library West Paterson
The contest for free tickets to see Sesame Street Live from Sep. 30 to Oct. 3 started August 1. To enter go to www.njlibrarychampions.org. Contests to win tickets to see Disney Live! On Nov 12-13; and Disney on Ice Nov. 23-28 will start soon.
For the past eight years, The State Library has supported the NJ Library Association’s Summer Reading Program with a $50,000 grant. This worthwhile initiative attracts thousands of children and teens each year. In 2009, over 145,000 children and teens across New Jersey participated, reading over two million books. Since its inception, the Summer Reading Program has inspired and motivated children to read purely for fun, without the pressure of taking tests or writing book reports, keeping their minds sharp, improving their reading skills and expanding their imaginations.
Library Champions is a community based public awareness campaign featuring role models from the sports, entertainment and literary fields designed to encourage reading and educate the public about the important role New Jersey libraries have in transforming the lives of their customers. Celebrity Library Champions include Yankee’s pitcher A.J. Burnett, Devil’s forward Zach Parise, Giant’s defensive end Justin Tuck, Net’s guard Devin Harris and best-selling author and New Jersey native, Judy Blume.
For more information on winning tickets to great shows at the Izod Center, check with your local library and sign up for their Summer Reading Program.
To encourage kids and teens to “Read Like a Library Champion” this summer, the New Jersey State Library is giving them a chance to win a NJ Devils/Modell’s hockey jersey autographed by NJ Devils’ forward and Olympic Silver Medalist Zach Parise. To enter, all young readers have to do is read a book, go to the website www.njlibrarychampions.org, and click on the contest page. The contest runs until September 1, 2010, when a winner will be randomly selected.
Library Champions is a community based public awareness campaign featuring role models from the sports, entertainment and literary fields designed to encourage reading and educate the public about the important role New Jersey libraries have in transforming the lives of their customers. Celebrity Library Champions include Parise, Yankee’s pitcher A.J. Burnett, Giant’s defensive end Justin Tuck, Eagles defensive end Trent Cole, and best-selling author and New Jersey native, Judy Blume.
During the summer, libraries all across New Jersey participate in the Summer Reading Program. As incentives to keep kids reading during the summer, libraries in partnership with the IZOD Center are giving them the opportunity to win tickets to IZOD Center events by logging in the books they read at www.njlibrarychampions.org. Readers may win tickets to see The Wiggles on Aug. 17; Sesame Street Live on Sep. 30 to Oct. 3; Disney Live! On Nov 12-13; and Disney on Ice Nov. 23-28. Discount tickets for select IZOD Center family shows are also available at www.IZODcenter.com, by using the code LIBRARY.
For the past eight years, The State Library has supported the NJ Library Association’s Summer Reading Program with a $50,000 grant. This worthwhile initiative attracts thousands of children and teens each year. In 2009, 110,000 children and teens across New Jersey participated, reading nearly two million books. Since its inception, the Summer Reading Program has inspired and motivated children to read purely for fun, without the pressure of taking tests or writing book reports, keeping their minds sharp, improving their reading skills and expanding their imaginations.
Thomas Edison State College has received a $5.1 million federal grant to support the New Jersey State Library’s Broadband Technology Opportunity Program, a project designed to add computer workstations, upgrade Internet connectivity and provide job search assistance and workforce development programs at hundreds of libraries throughout New Jersey.
The grant, provided by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s Broadband Technology Opportunity Program, was announced on July 2 and was the only award made to a New Jersey institution in round two of funding. The award, along with a $1.5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation made to the New Jersey State Library, an affiliate of Thomas Edison State College, will be used to add computers at 124 libraries, upgrade connectivity at 79 libraries, and provide job search assistance, employment skills, workforce development programs and other online resources at 365 libraries across New Jersey. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation gave an additional $150,000 to the New Jersey State Library to support E-rate technical assistance, which will help sustain the project’s services.
“This grant will help to pave a road to economic recovery for our state,” said New Jersey State Librarian Norma Blake. “New Jersey job seekers are facing a job market in which access to computers and broadband Internet is a basic requirement for job searches, employment applications and workforce skills training. With this award, New Jersey libraries will provide the access to the Internet and free training to help get New Jersey residents back to work and stimulate the economic growth our state needs. We are pleased to partner with the New Jersey Library Association, NJN, the NJ League of Municipalities and the NJ Council of County Colleges.”
Dr. George A. Pruitt, president of Thomas Edison State College, said “New Jersey libraries are uniquely positioned to play a key role in our state’s economic recovery by greatly enhancing the accessibility of broadband Internet to New Jersey residents. The New Jersey State Library has an extraordinary record of developing and leveraging online resources for the citizens of New Jersey, including thousands of adult learners who are enrolled students at our institution.”
“This funding will provide critical resources needed to expand technology infrastructure at libraries across New Jersey,” said Michael Drewniak, Press Secretary to Governor Chris Christie. “The federal award, along with the generous grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, will help New Jerseyans with the technology support they need to find work and develop new skills, while increasing access for underserved communities. As New Jersey begins its economic recovery, these resources will be an invaluable community asset and help people get back to work.”
A consortium of New Jersey’s community colleges will deliver training using its existing curriculum for library staff and job seekers. In addition, residents will receive online content and training developed by New Jersey Network, the public broadcasting network in New Jersey. This project is designed to enhance broadband capability and workstations in New Jersey libraries so they can become strategic job-creating facilities providing increased availability of job search assistance and workforce development programs. More than 5 million New Jersey residents will be served through this initiative.
BTOP Public Job Center Criteria and Project Goals:
• Establish libraries as “instruments of recovery” by providing job search assistance, employment skills and workforce development programs enabled by the increase in broadband connectivity in high-need communities
• Serve vulnerable populations (unemployed, underemployed or other vulnerable populations: non-English speakers, seniors, disabled, etc.)
• Provide technical support and other resources to support job search and career advancement by establishing libraries as community anchor institutions
• Job search assistance, employment skills and workforce development programs will be offered in partnership with community colleges and New Jersey Network
• Advance the use of E-services for training, employment, digital literacy, and education
• Stimulate employment and provide job opportunities.
Scope of the Project
The NJ Libraries Anchor Institutions as Instruments of Recovery project proposes to:
• Offer affordable pricing for high-speed Internet access services to libraries from the state’s major service providers
• Serve up to an additional 22,500 computer users weekly, offer in-person training for as many as 12,800 residents over the life of the project, and provide online content and databases to the approximately 440,000 unemployed and 230,000 underemployed residents of New Jersey
• Provide up to 938 new workstations to libraries across the state.
“Federal investments in connecting libraries to high-quality Internet services are critical to realizing the universal broadband access our country needs,” said Jill Nishi, deputy director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s U.S. Libraries program. “When libraries provide broadband to communities, they can deliver valuable online opportunities that help people find jobs, further their education, and access important government information. We hope that this BTOP award will help other public and private funders understand the importance of investing in public technology access at New Jersey’s libraries.”
About the Opportunity Online Broadband Grant Program
States participating in the foundation’s Opportunity Online broadband grant program received technical and consulting assistance to develop competitive funding proposals for BTOP, and will receive federally-required matching funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to support their respective BTOP-funded projects. Participating states will also receive assistance to help secure additional federal E-rate funding to sustain broadband connection costs in the future. The foundation solicited letters of interest for the Opportunity Online broadband program from state libraries seeking to acquire significant additional broadband access for public libraries. The foundation chose to support states that articulated the most compelling and feasible projects aligned with the objectives of the BTOP program. The foundation also considered a state’s need for assistance in developing a competitive BTOP proposal.
About the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, Washington the foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett. Learn more at www.gatesfoundation.org or join the conversation at Facebook and Twitter.
The NJ State Library received a 2010 Silver Astra Award in the Out-of-Home Campaign category from the NJ Communications, Advertising abd Marketing Association for its Library Champion Billboard Campaign.
Two New Jersey State Library partnerships were recognized for public relations excellence at the Public Relations Society of America - New Jersey Chapter’s 2010 Pyramid Awards.
In the Special Events category, the NJ State Library’s 2009 Pennies for Peace Campaign to raise funds to create libraries for schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan, received an Honorable Mention award.
In the Community Relations category, the NJ Sports & Exhibition Authority received an Honorable Mention for its program with the State Library and the NJ Library Association to boost reading statewide by offering tickets to events at the IZOD Center to readers registering their books through the Library Champions website.
Ken Hunter, PRSA-NJ president, (right in photos) presented the Pennies for Peace award to Gary Cooper, PRSA-NJ member and NJSL public relations & news media contact, and the NJSEA Reading Program award to Melissa Klein, marketing coordinator for the IZOD Center.
Excerpt from from app.com. Read the full article here
In recognition of her leadership skills, Tonya [Badillo] has been selected by New Jersey State Library to attend to the 2010 NDLC Forum Groundwork to Action: National Diversities in Libraries Conference and, in conjunction with Library Director, Ingrid Bruck, she will also attend Project Compass, and online summit held to leverage library expertise nationwide.
To the Summit, Tonya and Ingrid will contribute information gleaned from assisting the unemployed through the development of the Virtual Career Center, Computer Lab Back-to-Work Classes, Ex-Offender Back-to-Work Classes, webinars, and development of virtual job skills training. We wish Tonya the best and hope you all join us in congratulating her on her latest achievements!
Devils’ Chairman/Managing Partner Jeff Vanderbeek (left) and Devils’ forward Zach Parise presented First Lady Mary Pat Christie with a NJ Devils’ jersey during the trios visit to the New Jersey State library to promote reading and the importance and value of libraries. Parise and the Devils organization have been supportive Library Champions.
During his visit to the NJ State Library on Tuesday, May 25, Parise, NJ Devil forward and Olympic Silver Medalist, read a story to the children from the Marie H. Katzenbach School for the Deaf. Parise, a New Jersey Library Champion, also received a letter from New Jersey’s First Lady Mary Pat Christie, showed the children his Silver Medal and posed for pictures with fans under the large Zach Parise banner which hangs from the State Library building. Also on hand for the kids were Devils’ mascot N.J. Devil and Trenton Devils’ mascot Scorch.
above photo courtesy of New Jersey Devils/Getty Images
The New Jersey State Library was recognized for Public Relations excellence for its Tell Us Your Story public relations campaign by the NJ Library Association at its annual conference in Long Branch. Accepting the award was Nancy Dowd, NJSL director of marketing, and Gary Cooper, NJSL public relations & news media contact.
The campaign was created to collect compelling stories from library users to show how libraries transformed their lives and to show librarians how to effectively use those stories for local advocacy efforts. One element of the campaign trained librarians in the art and process of public relations and storytelling, which resulted in a change of attitude toward marketing and a better understanding of its value. An overwhelming majority of people who participated in the campaign indicated they now viewed marketing as an important service essential to the financial health and viability of their libraries. The stories provided the NJSL marketing department on how libraries were meeting their customers’ needs in the economic downturn resulted in an expansive statewide media campaign that reached millions of people through news media stories, commercials, outreach and the Web.
With over 240 NJ libraries and 800 individuals participating, the campaign established an effective communication network through the NJSL Marketing Blog and listserv, and created a foundation that strengthened the librarians’ ability to convey the transformative role that their libraries play as the needs of their communities evolve. The influence of this campaign continues to grow as libraries in Maryland, Florida, California and Vancouver adopt elements of it for their marketing and advocacy efforts.
On Wednesday, April 14 at the New Jersey State Library, Trenton, Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian, was joined by librarians and school children from around New Jersey, to present a check for $14,000 to Laura Andersen public relations manager for the Central Asia Institute, and Fozia Naseer, from the Azad Kashmir area of Pakistan.
After the check presentation, the school and public libraries that raised the most money were recognized. The New Providence School District, which raised $3,270.30, was represented by Amy Nagel, media specialist, and Christian Fraehmke, a student, and his family, to accept the award in the school library category. Accepting the public library award for the Rockaway Township Public Library and the Copeland Middle School, which collected $1,169.84, was Barbara Hauck-Mah, reference librarian. Also receiving recognition were Bridgeton’s West Avenue School ($1012.25), Glen Rock’s Academy of Our Lady ($509.12), Medford’s Cranberry Pines Elementary School ($485.58), Woodbridge Public Library ($462), Hamilton Township’s Morgan Early Elementary School Act Club ($411), and Lambertville’s South Hunterdon Regional High School ($401.55), which had a dozen students in attendance.
“We are really pleased to see that so many children and teens are spearheading this campaign in their schools and libraries,” said Blake. “By learning about what their pennies can do for children on the other side of their world and by taking an action to do something, they have become global citizens and library champions.”
After the ceremony, Naseer visited Monroe Township’s Woodland Elementary School, to talk about her life in Pakistan.
Throughout February and March 2010, the New Jersey State Library, the New Jersey Library Association and libraries throughout New Jersey honored the legacy of Abraham Lincoln, as part of the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commemoration, by collecting pennies in support of Greg Mortenson’s Central Asia Institute. One hundred public and school libraries joined the State Library and the Talking Book & Braille Center in the campaign.
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.
Throughout February and March 2010, the New Jersey State Library, the New Jersey Library Association and libraries throughout New Jersey honored the legacy of Abraham Lincoln, as part of the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commemoration, by collecting pennies in support of Greg Mortenson’s Central Asia Institute. One hundred public and school libraries joined the State Library and the Talking Book & Braille Center in the campaign.
On Wednesday, April 14, at 9:30 a.m., in the New Jersey State Library Second Floor Reading Room, 185 West State St., Trenton, Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian, will be joined by librarians and school children from around New Jersey, to present a check to Laura Andersen, public relations manager for the Central Asia Institute, and Fozia Naseer, from the Azad Kashmir area of Pakistan.
After the check presentation, the school and public libraries that raised the most money will be recognized. Following the ceremony, Anderson and Naseer will visit the children at the Woodland Elementary School, Monroe Township, who raised over $330.
Photo above is the display at the Franklin Public Library; below left, the NJ State Library; right, Tinton Falls Library.
The New Jersey Devil Mascot checked out the larger than life banner of All Star hockey player and Olympic silver medalist Zach Parise which hangs on the NJ State Library building. Parise is a NJ Library Champion promoting the importance of reading and literacy.
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.
As a result of their reading accomplishments in New Jersey’s statewide reading program, over one hundred children at the Hasbrouck Heights Library received a special visit from Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus clowns, Billy, Anthony & Oscar, and NJ Library Champion, Ringmaster Johnathan Lee Iverson. The clowns entertained the children with their unique brand of circus silliness, and Johnathan talked with them about the importance of reading and how he became Ringmaster for The Greatest Show On Earth!
Rose Heck, Mayor of Hasbrouck Heights, presented Jonathan with the key to the city, and Lisa Traina, president of the library Board of Trustees, presented him with two books.
Photo Above, from left: Lisa Traina, president of the Hasbrouck Heights Library Board of Trustees, Jonathan Lee Iverson, ringmaster, Mayor Rose Heck, and Mimi Hui, library director.
From left, standing: Lisa Traina, president of the Hasbrouck Heights Library Board of Trustees, Jonathan Lee Iverson, ringmaster, Mimi Hui, library director, Oscar, Billy, and Anthony (kneeling).
The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority has partnered with the New Jersey State Library to promote reading and reward participation in the State Library’s NJ Library Champion program. The program spans across every library in the State of New Jersey and offers accomplished participants an opportunity to win tickets to upcoming Meadowlands Sports Complex events and special visits from show characters.