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Bees on a honeycomb
Beekeepers at the Airway Heights Corrections Center

Beekeepers at the Airway Heights Corrections Center

From the desk of Sue Box, Library Associate at the Airway Heights Corrections Center. On February 15, I had the pleasure and privilege of watching sixteen men be congratulated on a one-of-a-kind accomplishment.  About two years ago, Mr. Jim Miller, a master beekeeper and longtime member of the West Plains Beekeepers Association, decided to give of himself and his time to help the prison really get the beekeeping program going.  He helped set up hives, he taught the brand new…

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Soldier saluting flag
Veterans in Washington – Creating a Stronger Library Connection

Veterans in Washington – Creating a Stronger Library Connection

From the desk of Jeff Martin, Manager, Library Development, Washington State Library I didn’t realize how many veterans, active duty and reserve personnel, and their family members exist in Washington State. The Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) reports the figure as roughly 2.6 million persons. That means one in every three of us in Washington is a veteran, on active duty, in the reserve, or a family member of a veteran, active duty and reserve military member. Veterans…

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All Aboard for Storytime!

All Aboard for Storytime!

From the desk of Carolyn Petersen In the spirit of it takes a village to raise a child Washington libraries offer preschool storytimes because attending storytime has been proven to increase the kindergarten readiness skills a child needs. This spring the Washington State Library will debut a series of trainings, All Aboard for Kindergarten, around the state.  The trainings are intended to strengthen youth services staff skills around the five key early literacy practices. Sing, talk, read, write and play…

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“Connecting Washington through the power of libraries”

“Connecting Washington through the power of libraries”

Our mission statement is a short and simple, yet powerful statement of what we do here at the Washington State Library.  We see ourselves as an umbrella that hovers over all the wonderful libraries in our state, offering unique resources, expertise, training opportunities and grants which help you fulfill our common goal: to provide excellent service to our states residents.  We look with amazement at all that happens in our state; the programs, resources and support you each provide to…

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How your donations to the Institutional Libraries makes a difference.

How your donations to the Institutional Libraries makes a difference.

The Clallam Bay Corrections Center is trying something different.  They are reconsidering the usefulness of solitary confinement.  According to an article in the Seattle Times, “Being alone in your own head 23 hours a day in a 48-square-foot poured-concrete cell makes, inmates say, the mad madder and the bad even worse.”  Clallam Bay is using a new approach to navigating the intervention of behavioral barriers, developing a program called the “Intensive Transition Program (ITP)” and the library is a contributing…

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Announcing a new home for the Washington Center for the Book!

Announcing a new home for the Washington Center for the Book!

                              Way back in May we made an announcement that the Seattle Public Library (SPL) and the Washington State Library (WSL) were joining forces to grow the Washington Center for the Book (WCB) into a powerful statewide program. Since then we have been diligently working behind the scenes to create our digital space. Today we launch our new website.  Ta-Dah! The Washington Center for the Book,…

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Learning through play

Learning through play

With Microsoft, Amazon, Google and many other companies based in Washington we are a technology state. Washington State is endlessly hungry for skilled technology workers and STEM learning is an important component of educating our future workforce.  The State Library, seeing this need, has invested in many STEM kits which we circulate to interested libraries around Washington. Coding and robotics are work skills that are highly prized, and one of our original, and very popular kits, Lego Mindstorms teaches these…

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Keeping our library workforce well trained.

Keeping our library workforce well trained.

One of the roles we take very seriously at the State Library is making sure that the library workforce in Washington is kept up to date with the latest, and greatest information about the skills needed to be a success in the 21st century.  We do this in a variety of ways, First Tuesdays webinars, specific in person trainings offered at sites around the state, professional development grants, support for WebJunction and subscriptions to Skillsoft and Lyrasis trainings . The…

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State Library’s Annual Report Showcases Successes.

State Library’s Annual Report Showcases Successes.

From the desk of Jeff Martin Every year, the Washington State Library (WSL) reports on its use of Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funding to the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). On December 21, 2017, the LSTA State Programs Report for use of the 2016 LSTA award was submitted to IMLS for their review, comment, and approval. The year’s report is 126 pages in length. Reporting is a team effort by all those who manage and support projects…

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A job in the library helps foster new growth and knowledge

A job in the library helps foster new growth and knowledge

Sue Box, the librarian at Airway Heights Corrections Center sent us a great story the other day about a young man who is a clerk in the library.  This is  a position in the prison that is assigned for two years. Sue  described it as a dream job for the library users because they are there every day and get to be the first to see, and check out, new items. (Do any of you relate to that?) In order…

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