THE CHIEF LIBRARIAN’S REPORT

LIBRARY NEWS HIGHLIGHTS

NOVEMBER 19, 2008

1. TEENS OF DISTINCTION GO TO WORK

The Library has hired 87 teens under the Teens of Distinction Program. Three
hundred applied, but a rigorous selection process that evaluated skills, motivation,
and judgment, generated 87 with great promise. Congratulations to the Teens of
Distinction! After completing initial training, they were assigned to neighborhood
libraries and began work.

2. NEW COMPUTERS TO BOOST EARLY LITERACY

The Library has installed an Early Literacy Station at each neighborhood and interim
library. The Stations, designed for children ages 3 to 8, include 34 preinstalled
educational software packages. One package, “The Living Library” animates book
illustrations and highlights the words as the voiceover tells the story. Many of the
books are in English and Spanish. The most popular story reportedly is Dr. Seuss’s
Green Eggs and Ham, but the children are not the only enthusiasts. Parents and other
caregivers enjoy guiding the experience with their children.

3. WEST END LIBRARY HOSTS GRANT-FUNDED BOOK DISCUSSION SERIES

Let’s Talk About It: Jewish Literature, a fall discussion series of five books, is under
way at West End Library. The program is funded by a grant from the American
Library Association and Nextbook, a nonprofit organization. This is the second year
that West End has been given this award. The discussions are led by Ori Soltes, a
professor at Georgetown University. This year’s series, with “Neighbors” as its
theme, is attracting a loyal group of 25 adults.

4. CATCH THE READING BUG CREATED QUITE A BUZZ THIS SUMMER

Over 800 of the 15,600 children who completed Summer Quest read more than 48
books, and became eligible for a special prize drawing. Thanks to Bonnie Cohen’s
generous donation, 81 children received Summer Reading Packs that included
puzzles, ant farms, books, MP3 players, and more. Parents and summer readers were
delighted with this surprise. After thanking the library for Summer Quest and the staff
for providing tips to caregivers about book selection for their youngsters, one parent
wrote, “My son wasn’t a reader until I found books and things he enjoyed. To know
he would get a reward for doing something he enjoys is icing on the cake. I thank you
all because it gave him the boost he needed to continue doing something that he now
enjoys.”

Document #7
Board of Library Trustees Meeting
November 19, 2008
 5. CATCH THE READING BUG CAPTURED A “BUTTERFLY”
The Washington National Opera, in a bit of a stretch of the “bug” theme, brought a
Madame Butterfly program to all 26 library locations. An estimated 1,350 children
and 175 adults attended through the system. The characters and music were
introduced to the audiences, maps were used to show where Japan is in relation to the
United States, and the children were taught a simple Japanese fan dance. Several e-
mails of thanks came to the libraries. At Palisades Library, a woman who was taking
care of her grandniece when Madame Butterfly was presented, wrote, “I went
expecting a very nice program, whatever it was. It turned out to be excellent,
fantastic, informative, charming, wonderful. I suppose you get the idea.”

6. “HOLDS” ON MATERIALS INCREASE

As one measure of library usage, the Collections Division reviews figures on “holds”
placed by patrons throughout the system. The only requirement for placing a “hold” is
having a library card. Elissa Miller, Associate Director of Collections, reports that
more than 93,000 holds were placed from January 1st through November 1st this year.
Recent monthly statistics show a 30% increase over 2007.

7. TEENS JOIN IN GAMING AT THE LIBRARY

Tournaments involving board games, card games, and videogames recently have
become major attractions for teens at D.C. Public Library. In recognizing the power
of games for teens, the American Library Association is sponsoring a “Teens’
Gaming Day” this month. In addition to bringing teens into the library, and into their
special area of the library, the rationale for contests is that games challenge players to
understand the rules, sift through information, and apply critical thinking if they are
to win.

8. DCPL FOUNDATION FUNDS PRESCHOOL BREAKFAST CLUBS

Three interim libraries are offering a weekly preschool breakfast club this fall, thanks
to the generosity of the DCPL Foundation. The 10-week pilot program has concluded
at Benning Library, is almost completed at Watha T. Daniel/Shaw Library, and has
just begun at Anacostia Library. The children attend with a parent or guardian and
enjoy breakfast along with a story and related craft activity. At the program’s end, the
children are given many of the books that were featured during the 10 weeks.

9. DCPL ATTENDS THE URBAN LIBRARIES COUNCIL’S EUROPEAN CONFERENCE

“The Smart City and its Libraries” was the theme of last month’s international
conference in Amsterdam, Copenhagen, and Malmo (Sweden). The conference was
sponsored by the Urban Libraries Council and leading library organizations in
Europe, Canada, and Australia. The meeting gave attendees the opportunity to hear
about, discuss, and exchange ideas on how to ensure that libraries that are new or
newly renovated can be flexible enough in their plans to be ready to adapt to change
in the coming decades. Three outstanding libraries were visited for direct Q&A
discussions with staff. Eric Coard, DCPL’s Chief Business Officer, Pam Stovall,
Associate Director, Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, and Barbara Norland,
Senior Librarian for DCPL Building Projects, and I participated in the conference,
Document #7
Board of Library Trustees Meeting
November 19, 2008
 along with leaders from urban libraries from all over the world. The discussions and
presentations were especially useful for DCPL at this time of major rebuilding and
renovation.

10. THE PHOENIX PUBLIC LIBRARY OFFERS IDEAS FOR D.C.

Chang Liu, Associate Director, Neighborhood Libraries, and Pam Stovall, Associate
Director, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, paid a visit with me to the
Phoenix Public Library to seek ideas that would apply here. In addition to the general
architectural excellence of the buildings throughout the system, the Young Adult and
Children’s areas were noteworthy. In both settings, the furnishings were appropriate
for the age of the users, and also showed respect for costs. For example, metal
shelving and mesh metal surfaces in the children’s areas were equipped with
magnetic letters, shapes, and pictures that could be moved around to make words and
sentences, or tell simple stories. Chairs and fixtures in young adult areas were bright
and appealing as well as functional for teens, and were set up to engage small-group
conversation. The underlying theme in both settings was to invite interaction.

11. SUNDAY BROUGHT JAZZ TO FIVE NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARIES

Capitol View, Chevy Chase, Cleveland Park, Southeast, and Shepherd Park hosted
“Sunday Afternoon Jazz” programs to bring people in the neighborhood to the
library. Even though the libraries were competing with church events and the
Redskins, music lovers came and enjoyed the show. Attendance ranged from 16 to
44, with a total of 148 enthusiastic attendees of all ages. At Southeast, when the
pianist Alex Jenkins asked for requests, a 4-year-old child asked for “Blue Skies.” At
Capitol View, a 1-year-old made her way to the pianist’s lap for a closer look.

12. NOTED BOTANIST ROLAND JEFFERSON VISITS BLACK STUDIES

The Black Studies Division was honored with a visit by Roland Jefferson, who for
many years was not only the first African American botanist to work at the National
Arboretum, but the only African American botanist to work there. He selected the
Black Studies Division at Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library to review his
biographic entry in the newly acquired eight-volume African American National
Biography, published in 2008, and edited by Henry Louis Gates and Evelyn Brooks
Higgenbotham. Mr. Jefferson, a native Washingtonian and Howard University
graduate, returned to the Black Studies Division several times to share his life story
and donate his published articles. His career included pioneering work in propagating
and strengthening the Potomac Park cherry trees around the Tidal Basin.

Document #7
Board of Library Trustees Meeting
November 19, 2008