Rhodarian

The Pew Internet & American Life Project has just issued a new report on Social Isolation and New Technology.  While a 2006 study argued that since 1985 Americans have become more socially isolated and that the size and diversity of their discussion networks has declined, this study finds that those using digital technologies are actually more socially engaged with a greater diversity of people than those who are not using technology.

According to this latest survey, Americans are not as isolated as has been previously reported. In fact, people’s use of the mobile phone and the internet is associated with larger and more diverse discussion networks. And when examining people’s full personal network, internet use in general and use of social networking services such as Facebook in particular are associated with more diverse social networks.

Check out the study, which shines a new light on the use of mobile devices and social technologies.  And as 85% of adult Americans now have cell phones and 32% use mobile devices for information seeking, it is important for libraries to look to these new arenas as areas where they can serve users.

At the 11th Annual Awards Ceremony on October 28th, inductees to the 2009 RI Employer Honor Roll were honored. This ceremony celebrated RI Employers for their excellence in hiring and support of employees with disabilities.

“Sponsored by the Office of Rehabilitation Service, those who attended the award ceremony witnessed an inspirational keynote by John Robinson, director of corporate support for WMHT Public Television in Albany, NY. He shared his job interviewing experience and determined he wasn’t going to get a job unless he could help the employer see beyond his disability. Employers receiving Outstanding Achievement Awards [at the ceremony] shared their experiences. The common themes were that employees with disabilities are good workers, have a positive impact on the workplace, and any job accommodation made has been worth it.   The bottom line is that it is a good business decision”, reported event coordinator, Vicki Ferrara in the October 3, 2009 issue of RI Employment/Disability E-News which is in a pdf version under TheWORKSEN listserv. Disability E-News is distributed by the Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities at Rhode Island College.   

Disability Employment Awareness month ended October 31st. Vicki Ferrara says “there are still many job seekers with disabilities looking to join the workforce. What else can we do to make a difference?” 

A limited supply of StoryLines New England and StoryLines Midwest CDs are available free of charge through the ALA Public Programs Office.

StoryLines is based on a series titled “Big Sky Radio,” which aired in Montana from 1993 to 1995 with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). StoryLines has been characterized as “a cross between ‘Larry King Live’ and college English class.” The series’ dynamic format combines author interviews and scholarly commentary with listener call-ins. Each program begins with the consideration of a featured book, its historical background and literary significance, using it as a lens to examine the experience of living in each area. Interviews with various guests follow, and then the phone lines are opened to allow listeners to participate in the live, on-air dialog. The discussions are lively and provocative. More

Did this headline catch your attention because you were stunned at such a low literacy rate? Or perhaps you work in the field of literacy and you questioned the data. I am no expert, but I am aware that literacy levels in the United States are not where we would like them to be. When I read headline I was shocked, but probably not for the same reason that you are. You see, the headline is from a 1936 edition of the New York Times. I realized that literacy has been a challenge in the US for decades, but reading the article also provided a delightful surprise. Librarians and public libraries were in the forefront of literacy monitoring and service as far back as the 1930s. I also noted that the California library system of 1936 and its delivery capacities helped promote reading. In Rhode Island today, our public libraries are hard at work offering literacy programs and the OLIS-LORI statewide delivery system plays an important role in getting reading materials into the hands of residents statewide. The challenges of literacy continue and we join together to surmount them! Original article Only Half of Adults Can Read with Ease, © New York Times, August 9, 1936.

After an extensive search, the Tiverton Library Services Board of Trustees has announced the appointment of Ann Grealish-Rust as the new director of Tiverton’s public library. Prior to her appointment at Tiverton, Ann was the director of the public library in Dighton, Massachusetts where she had worked for 14 years.

According to the search committee, Ann stood out for her depth of experience in a library building project, including  her participation in a capital campaign, successful grant writing for funds for planning, design, and construction of a new library, and innovative programming under her leadership. Tiverton is currently planning to build a new green library to replace the outdated Essex Public Library building.

Ann holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth and earned her MLIS at Simmons College Graduate School of Library and Information Science. We welcome her to the Rhode Island library community!

The Rhode Island Library Association has issued a resolution calling on Congress to dramatically revise the up-for-renewal USA PATRIOT Act.  Read the resolution on the RILA website. (look for it in the right column)

Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation. The Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation provides literacy and education grants to support children in summer reading programs, early childhood education programs, and special needs literacy programs

Libraries and Deaf-Related Organizations

If you have special interests in promoting quality reading resources that are related to deaf history and the diversity of the deaf community, please read on.

The East Bay Newspapers featured a great first hand account of Homework Help RI.  Want to know what a tutoring session is like?  Check out Abigail Crocker’s First Hand Account: An inside look at Homework Help RI.

In September, over 1300 students made use of Homework Help RI, powered by Tutor.com (check the stats on the OLIS website).  We encourage all libraries to publicize the resources available on AskRI so that more students can benefit from this and the many other electronic resources available to them, including World Book, EBSCO databases, and HeritageQuest.

Our thanks to the George Hail Library in Warren for doing their part in promoting AskRI by contacting their local newspaper and working with them on this story.  Bravo!