WA Secretary of State Blogs

Washington Libraries Shine in eBook Checkouts

Thursday, January 9th, 2014 Posted in Articles, For Libraries, For the Public, News, Technology and Resources | Comments Off on Washington Libraries Shine in eBook Checkouts


One Million Digital Checkouts Club Official Members 2013

Two Washington libraries are in OverDrive’s 2013 Million Digital Checkouts Club. The King County Library System (KCLS) actually led the way with the most OverDrive digital checkouts of any library system worldwide! Seattle Public Library (SPL) was also in the club, at position number 6. OverDrive recently published the numbers (see below) on their blog.

OverDrive is a vendor which libraries frequently use to provide access to downloadable digital content, especially eBooks and eAudiobooks. Here are the 2013 members of OverDrive’s Million Digital Checkouts Club:

Last year, only two libraries broke the 1 million mark in digital circulation, but the number one both years was KCLS. We posted the top five for 2012 here on the blog last March. SPL was number 4 in 2012.

Here at the Washington State Library we also have the privilege of managing an OverDrive consortium for a group of smaller libraries, most of whom could not afford to offer this service to their patrons on their own. Going in together, these 39 libraries provide the Washington Anytime Library, also powered by OverDrive, and partially subsidized with federal LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act) funds administered by IMLS (The Institute for Museum and Library Services). The group calls itself the Washington Digital Library Consortium (WDLC).

The 39 WDLC libraries serve a combined population of 725,362 which is less than King County’s 1,362,870, but more than Seattle’s 616,500. But, the group has a way to go to make it into the same league as KCLS and SPL, at least in terms of digital checkouts. In 2013, the Washington Anytime Library had 380,000 checkouts, compared to 216,000 in 2012. Still, that’s a 76% annual increase, compared to the 22-25% increases shown by the larger systems. So look out big guys, the WDLC is on your tail!

Congratulations to all of these libraries for staying relevant by offering eBooks and eAudiobooks to their eager patrons, who love to read, whether in digital formats, or in traditional print. It will be fascinating to track how these numbers continue to increase in years to come!

Washington Libraries Lead in eBook Circulation

Thursday, March 14th, 2013 Posted in Articles, For Libraries, For the Public, News | 1 Comment »


ALA-ebook

OverDrive, one of the most popular public library eBook and eAudiobook vendors, recently announced its “Library eBook Leaders” for 2012. Two Washington libraries ranked in the top 5!

King County Library System (KCLS) was Number 1 in eBook and other digital title circulation, with Seattle Public Library (SPL) not far behind, in the Number 4 spot. Here’s a listing of the top 5, with the circ numbers:

1. King County Library System, Wash. (1.3 million checkouts)

2. New York Public Library (1.1 million checkouts)

3. Toronto Public Library (900,000 checkouts)

4. Seattle Public Library (850,000 checkouts)

5. Hennepin County Library, Minn. (750,000 checkouts)

Congratulations to KCLS & SPL for leading the North American continent in eBook circulation!

WSL Updates for March 29, 2012

Wednesday, March 28th, 2012 Posted in For Libraries, Grants and Funding, News, Updates | Comments Off on WSL Updates for March 29, 2012


Volume 8: March 29, 2012 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) FUNDS FOR LIBRARY SUPPORT STAFF CERTIFICATION

2) FIRST TUESDAYS – MOVING TO EVERGREEN

3) LEARNING FROM BILINGUAL COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH

4) CELEBRATE SCHOOL LIBRARY MONTH

5) LIBRARIES FOR ALL – SERVING DIVERSE POPULATIONS

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

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1) FUNDS FOR LIBRARY SUPPORT STAFF CERTIFICATION

The Washington State Library offers financial assistance to library support staff participating in the American Library Association’s Library Support Staff Certification (LSSC) Program. The LSSC Program offers library employees the opportunity to achieve recognition for their experience and to increase skills and knowledge in areas like the foundations of librarianship, technology, and communication.

The Washington State Library will be offering five Registration Assistance Awards this spring. The Awards are for $175, one-half of the LSSC registration/application fee. To be eligible, applicants must have a high school degree or its equivalent and must have worked for the equivalent of one year (1820 hours) as a library staff member or volunteer within the past five years.

The LSSC Program is funded by a grant to ALA from the federal Institute for Museum and Library Services, and managed by the ALA-Allied Professional Association. The Registration Assistance Awards are part of this grant.

Applications are due May 1, 2012. Recipients will be notified by May 30. For more information and to apply, visit www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/LSSC-RAA. LSSC information is available at ala-apa.org/lssc.

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2) FIRST TUESDAYS – MOVING TO EVERGREEN

Have you thought about leaving your library catalog vendor in the dust for Evergreen Open Source? King County Library System did, learning many valuable lessons along the way. You can benefit from the experience of KCLS as they describe and demonstrate their implementations and share other insights, from preparing the patrons, to training the staff. Participants will leave with valuable tips on how to, and how not to, successfully implement Evergreen.

Moving to Evergreen Open Source ILS: If we knew then what we know now, is the topic for April’s First Tuesdays webinar, presented by Darlene Pearsall, Jed Moffitt, Matthew Carlson, Lisa Hill, and Maggie Buckholz, April 3, 2012, 9:00 – 10:00 PDT. For more information about First Tuesdays, visit www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/tuesdays. To join the presentation, and for instructions, go to www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/FirstTuesdays.

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3) LEARNING FROM BILINGUAL COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH

We know that the best time to learn a second language in life is to start as a baby, but why is that so? New studies are uncovering details on how experiences early in life literally shape babies’ brain and language development, and relate to other cognitive capacities. While there are marked differences between monolingual and bilingual patterns of learning, there are also fundamental similarities, observable from infancy. Whether learning one language or three, research findings can be applied to support all children’s learning, starting from their first relationships, and the quality of their interactions with adults in the first years of life.

Please join the UW’s Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences (I-LABS) and the Washington State University (WSU) Parenting Education Series for a webinar on Early Bilingual Experience and its Relationship to Language and Cognitive Development by outreach specialist Gina Lebedeva, Ph.D. & SLP. This discussion will highlight current best evidence on early bilingual language development, key findings from early childhood bilingual brain research, and connections between executive function and bilingualism in young children.

The April 10, 2012 webinar will run from 11:50 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Pacific Time. Registration is limited to the first 100 applicants. To register, go to www.surveymonkey.com/s/parentingApril10 and complete the registration process.

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4) CELEBRATE SCHOOL LIBRARY MONTH

Recognizing school libraries as the centers of the school community where learning, research, and collaboration happen and technologies and information resources are available 24/7, the American Association of School Librarians (AASL) invites everyone to celebrate School Library Month in April. The 2012 theme, “You belong @ your library,” will highlight the role strong school libraries play in a student’s educational career. More information and resources can be found online at www.ala.org/aasl/slm.

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5) LIBRARIES FOR ALL – SERVING DIVERSE POPULATIONS

ASCLA, a division of ALA, offers expertise in serving special populations. Take advantage of this expertise: enroll in one of their upcoming webinars or online courses to gain valuable knowledge that will help transform your library’s services to Latino populations, the blind and visually impaired, and people with disabilities. These include:

  • Webinar: Serving the Blind and Visually Impaired in Your Library: Thursday, April 5, 2012, 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. PDT;
  • Online Course: Improving Library Services to People with Disabilities: April 23 – May 18, 2012;
  • Webinar: Creating a Latino Friendly Library: May 17, 2012, Noon – 1:30 p.m. PDT.

Registration is open to all individuals interested in these topics, regardless of membership status, but discounts are available for ASCLA and ALA members, students, and retirees. For more information, and to register, use this shortcut: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/ASCLA-learn.

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6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

Tuesday, April 3:

  • OneClickdigital for Library Staff: Tour, Administration, Promotion (Recorded Books); 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/RB-01;
  • First Tuesdays: Moving to Evergreen Open Source ILS: If we knew then what we know now (WLS); 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. PDT;
  • Introduction to the New ProQuest Platform (ProQuest); 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ241;
  • OCLC WorldCat Resource Sharing-Borrowing (Amigos); 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. PDT;
  • You’ve Got Male: Great New Books for Boys (Booklist ): 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT;

Wednesday, April 4:

  • Dream Big READ: Summer Reading Program 2012 (NCompass Live ); 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PDT;
  • ProQuest Administrator Module (ProQuest); 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. PDT: www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/PQ240;
  • WorldCat Holdings: Why They Matter and the Tools to Maintain Them (OCLC ); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT;
  • OCLC WorldCat Resource Sharing-Lending (Amigos); 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. PDT;
  • Skills for the Everyday Leader (WebJunction ); 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. PDT.

For more information and to register (for those not linked above), visit the WSL Training Calendar at www.sos.wa.gov/quicklinks/training.

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Sammamish Library is LJ Landmark!

Wednesday, May 25th, 2011 Posted in Articles, For Libraries, For the Public | Comments Off on Sammamish Library is LJ Landmark!


Congratulations to the King County Library System‘s Sammamish Library, which has been selected as one of Library Journal’sLandmark Libraries” for 2011! Read the full citation here. The rest of the winners and honorable mentions are here.

KCLS Gets Attention for Staffless “Library”

Thursday, December 10th, 2009 Posted in Articles, For Libraries, For the Public, News | 1 Comment »


http://www.kcls.org/libraryexpress/images/redmondridge.jpgKing County Library System (KCLS) has been getting quite a bit of attention the last few days for its staffless library branch.

It started on LJ – http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6710470.html

“So, how to expand library service on a tight budget? Some libraries have tried vending machines (such as the Go Library/Library-a-Go-Go) or kiosks. The King County Library System (KCLS), WA, just opened an unstaffed 300-square-foot Library Express @ Redmond Ridge, in partnership with the Redmond Ridge Residential Owners Association.

“The new mini-branch was inspired by a survey of community residents; some 95 percent said they would rather pick up their holds in a nearby unstaffed library than drive to a full-service library. Redmond Ridge is a 1,228-unit master-planned community.”

Read the rest of this entry »