Recent News

Greetings! Here are a few sample evaluations that have been created in the ALS region:

Dance Program Evaluation

Music Performance Evaluation 1

Music Performance Evaluation 2

Music Performance Evaluation 3

Lollipop Bus Evaluation

Minneapolis Institute of Art Bus Tour Evaluation

Illustrator Visit Evaluation

Music Performance Evaluation #3

Cheryl Hill and James Hill, directors of the Pine Island and Zumbrota Public Libraries, were kind enough to share with us their experiences hosting a successful Library Legacy project, sponsored by SELCO's Community Collaboration grant program:

We contacted an artist, Greg Preslicka, who has a company called "The Big Picture" - http://www.thebigpicturemurals.net/   He visited our libraries and we talked about options and what we wanted to see for murals at our respective libraries.  In Zumbrota, we chose a section of wall near our Young Adult section that we have been developing over the past year.  In PI, they chose to paint a mural from the top of the stairway all the way downstairs and covering the walls of the lower level of Pine Island Library.  Greg and his wife, Heidi, were very easy to work with.  They offered presentations to the  community while painting the murals.  In Pine Island, the community voted on specific themes and characters the wanted to see in the mural, and these were worked into the designs.  Greg and Heidi also helped write up the overview for the grant application that we submitted for legacy funds. Greg came up with conceptual designs for both libraries, and we chose the mural we liked best (In Zumbrota, I had my board vote on the design).
The murals turned out extremely well, and we were very pleased with the project, and excited to share the outcome with everyone.  As Cheryl says, "It was such a wonderful experience that I have to say it was worth all the time and hard work. The best part of my day now is when people see the mural for the first time and I hear them go 'oh look there's Horton, there's the hungry caterpillar, there's Charlotte web'. Just the pure excitement from the kids and the nostalgia from the adults makes my day".

I've attached a couple photos of the work in progress and the final product.  Pine Island has several photos on their flickr account off their website: http://pineisland.lib.mn.us/

If you are thinking of a mural at your library, I highly recommend these artists.
James Hill

With programs, digitization projects, historical re-enactments and new books being published around Minnesota as a result of Library Legacy's creative energy, CRPLSA is happy to release an Arts and Cultural Heritage logo specific to library activities.

Greetings!  We now have our very own Minnesota Library Legacy Logo to use on our promotional materials -- woo hoo!  Please find the images to use on your materials below -- they vary in format, size and color. 

• Color logo - eps format
• Color logo - jpg format
• Color logo - pdf format
• Color logo - small png format
• Color logo - large png format
• Grayscale logo - eps format
• Grayscale logo - jpg format
• Grayscale logo - png format

The June 3rd edition of the Marshall Independent featured an article about a successful Library Legacy project. "Teens Publish!", a two-month writing course held at the library, culminated in the publication of a small anthology titled Oh My Gosh, I Can't Believe I'm Published! The anthology features selected works by thirteen different young authors, all written during the two-month course. Read more about the project and the publication release here:

Published and Proud, by Jodelle Greiner.

VLS was recently featured in an article in the Douglas County Echo Press. The article describes the wide variety of Legacy-sponsored activities availble in the region during July and August.

Local Viking Library System sponsors free cultural heritage programs

As you consider how to fill your calendar for the upcoming month - don't forget about MGG in the Libraries programming. This programming is designed for ease of use and is free to your library! Below, we've highlighted key dates and holidays in June, and offered suggestions for tie-in programs.

June

Programming Ideas:

Sunday, June 6^th: D-Day

Wartime in Minnesota Kit

Offer a family-friendly day honoring our WWII soldiers by offering educational activities, story times, and films about Minnesota's experience in the war. Consider collecting items or creating cards for current members of the armed forces as well.

Monday, June 14th^th: Flag Day

This is a special day to honor the meaning of the flag to everyone, especially those who have been a part of the armed forces.

Sunday, June 20th^th: Father's Day

Father's Day Activities for the Whole Family

Offer a family-friendly day celebrating fathers. Check out the Wartime in Minnesota Family Day and create code-breaking wheel ciphers or get a Boom! Family Day Kit to make dad a vinyl tie he'd be proud to wear. 

Book the One-Man Show: The Accidental Hero

Patrick Dewane tells his story of discovering the amazing hidden story of his own grandfather, a resistance fighter in the forests of Czechoslovakia during the war.

This week, the SELCO Legacy Review Committee allocated a total of $63,986 for 4 Library Legacy projects affecting 14 communities. Congratulations to this month's grant recipients!

Recipient(s)	Project Title	Description	Date	Amount Awarded
LaCrescent Public Library, with Community Education and Appleseed Community Theatre	Summer of the Arts	The Guthrie Theatre Group will visit LaCrescent and provide two seperate three-day workshops. A Shakespeare Workshop will be offered for students aged 11-17 and includes three days of acting, voice and movement training by experienced Gutherie actors. The Storytelling Workshop is for children aged 4-10 and helps build acting, voice and movement skills using fairy tales, myths, legends and stories of their own creation. The culmination of both workshops will be a public performance in the Fine Arts Center at the LaCrescent High School.	August 2-27, 2010	$10,600
Austin Public Library, with the Paramount Theater	Rose Ensemble Community Concert	The Rose Ensemble will perform a 50-minute evening concert at the Paramount Theater, in conjunction with an educational workshop at the library that same the afternoon (a SELCO Vetted Program). This performance hopes to encourage first-time concert-goers, particularly families with children. The workshop is titled "Music from the Land of 3 Faiths," featuring music from Medieval Spain, where Christians, Jews and Muslims lived in an intertwined society. This program will reflect the growing diversity in the Austin community, drawing on local interests and existing strong faith traditions. This Rose Ensemble program will be free to the public and give Austin area residents an unparalleled opportunity to experience music that they would otherwise not hear in a concert venue that is normally beyond the financial means of many families in the community. The Rose Ensemble program is an excellent way to tap into the community's long standing interest in music as a way to enhance the ongoing dialogues on race, culture, and tolerance.	October 19, 2010	$5,245
Houston Community Garden, with Houston Nature Center and the Houston Public Library	Friday Night Food Films: Fresh the movie	The Houston Community Garden, a project of the Friends of the Houston Nature Center, will sponsor a monthly "Friday Night Food Film" to be shown in the band shell at the nature center. Films will be open to residents of Houston and surrounding communities. This grant will enable the Houston Public Library to purchase the public viewing rights for the film Fresh, one of four movies to be shown during this ongoing series. "Food films" can be used to educate people about current issues with our food supply and encourage discussion of food choices and possible lifestyle changes. It is hoped that the films will encourage greater participation in the Houston community garden. Participants will encouraged to discuss ways in chich we can make changes locally and personally to improve our food supply and food choices. The film will then be made available to borrow from the Houston Public Library for continued viewing and future discussions.	June 11, 2010	$145
Great River Shakespeare Festival, with Winona Public Library, Rushford Public Library, Northfield Public Library, St. Charles Public Library, Caledonia Public Library, Austin Public Library, Houston Public Library, LaCrescent Public Library, Lake City Public Library, LeRoy Public Library, Rochester Public Schools, Rochester Public Library, Spring Grove Public Library, Zumbrota Public Library	GRSF Library Ticket Program	The Great River Shakespeare Festival (GRSF) is a professional, 501(c)3 organization with a core company of professional actors, directors, and designers that performs in the summer months in Winona, Minnesota. GRSF is committed to developing a sense of ownership between the Festival and its host community, as well as to expanding the Festival's regional and national audience. The goal of the GRSF Library Ticket Program is to reduce or eliminate barriers to the Festival experience, thereby increasing access to the Festival's work for all Minnesotans and help fulfill the Festival's goal of increased participation in education and community outreach programs. The GRSF Library Ticket Program will bring quality arts programming to traditionally underserved audiences in 14 Minnesota communities. The Library Ticket Program removes financial barriers by offering either free tickets available for daily "checkout" through partnering libraries, or blocks of tickets and transportation to the Festival for those libraries that identify distance and ability to drive as barriers to access. The GRSF Library Ticket Program will expand participation in three SELCO libraries that have implemented successful library ticket programs in previous seasons (Winona, Rushford and St. Charles), and extend the ticket program to eleven new libraries, serving a wide geographic area in the SELCO system (Austin, Caledonia, Houston, La Crescent, Lake City, LeRoy, Northfield, Rochester, the Rochester Public School Library, Spring Grove and Zumbrota).  The Festival also intends to enhance the play going experience for Library Ticket Program participants by encouraging partnering libraries to schedule one or more GRSF workshops currently available through SELCO's Vetted Programs Catalog . By offering tickets through participating libraries, the Festival makes it possible for library patrons and specifically targeted, underserved populations to attend the productions for free, providing arts access to the citizens of Minnesota in the spirit of the Legacy Amendment.		$47,996

Check out this fantastic upcoming music program offered by the Viking Library System:

To see the full size PDF, CLICK HERE.

Take a look at the evaluation form for Summer Reading Illustrator Henry Cole that the Arrowhead Library System used for his visits to local libraries.

Evaluation Form

As you consider how to fill your calendar for the upcoming month - don't forget about MGG in the Libraries programming. This programming is designed for ease of use and is free to your library! Below, we've highlighted key dates and holidays in May, and offered suggestions for tie-in programs.

May

Saturday, May 8th: V-E Day is declared

Programming Ideas:

• Bus Tour to the MGG Exhibit in St. Paul

Get your community on board for a day trip to the Minnesota Historical Society to see the Minnesota's Greatest Generation exhibit. Don't forget to book a History Player or leave time to visit the MHS library.

• Trivia Contest Kit

Celebrate the end of the war in Europe with a spirited trivia contest covering the 30s, 40s, and 50s.

     • Film Festival Kit

Hear the stories of those that survived the war and how they continued to inspire those around tem with innovation, creativity, and good works with the film festival "Looking Back: A Lifetime of Stories."

Sunday, May 9th: Mother's Day

Programming Ideas:

• Film Festival Kit- Honor the women of the Greatest Generation by showing the film festival "Women of the Greatest Generation."
• Have a Mother/Daughter Craft Afternoon
  Check out the Wartime Craft Kit to make Scrap Fabric Pins, the Growing Up in the 1930s Craft Kit for Clothespin Dolls, or the Boom! Family Day Kit to create Vinyl Clutch Purses.
• Host a Performance by Andrea Leap and Friends- Listen to the songs of WWII women with Leap's show "Songs She Sang Back Home."

Saturday, May 15th: Armed Forces Day

Programming Ideas:

• Bus Tour to the MGG Exhibit in St. Paul
  Get your community on board for a day trip to the Minnesota Historical Society to see the Minnesota's Greatest Generation exhibit. Don't forget to book a History Player or leave time to visit the MHS library.

•  Film Festival Kit
   Honor those MGG members who fought by showing the film festival "WWII" that highlights the stories of Minnesotan's at war.

• Book one of the many speakers featured in the MGG Catalog who can speak to Minnesotan's experiences in WWII. 

May 29th- 31st: Memorial Day Weekend

Programming Ideas:

• Wartime in Minnesota Kit
  Offer a family friendly day honoring our WWII soldiers by offering educational activities, story times, and films about Minnesota's experience in the war. Consider collecting items or creating cards for current members of the armed forces as well!
• Feature books written about the WWII experience by Minnesota authors like:

Mister Roberts by Thomas Heggen, fiction, 1946

Never So Young Again by Dan Brennan, fiction, 1946

Remembering the Good War: Minnesota's Greatest Generation by Thomas Saylor, nonfiction,   2007

April 22, 2010 -- Plum Creek Library System has come up with wonderful publicity tools for the MN Author tour in SW Minnesota.  Please click on the below links for examples:

Bookmarks

Author Press Release

Tour Press Release

April 22, 2010 -- Pioneerland Library Systemis happy to announce the launch of the Minnesota Authors Visit SW Minnesota Libraries presentation and book signing tour.  The tour kicks off on May 1 at the Raymond Public Library and the Atwater Public Library and will end with the Minnesota Crime Waveon June 24 at the Canby Community Center.  The tour will stop at 23 different locations.  To see the tour poster, please click here.

April 22, 2010 -- The Minnesota State Arts Board and Minnesota's regional arts councils, in partnership with Springboard for the Arts and Creative Capital, are underwriting a pilot artist development project to offer professional development workshops and education opportunities statewide for individual artists of all disciplines and all stages in their careers. Thanks to support from the arts and cultural heritage fund, the workshops will be free of their regular cost to participants, but space is limited.  Apply today!

All ten sessions of Springboard's Work of Art: Business Skills for Artists workshops are being presented in all eleven arts council regions in Minnesota, plus Creative Capital will present one-day intensives on strategic planning, public relations, funding your work, and the Internet.

For more information, a list of dates and locations, and instructions on how to apply, visit Springboard for the Arts.

Please share this information with anyone you think might be interested.
 

Last week, the SELCO Legacy Review Committee allocated a total of $18,574 for 13 Library Legacy projects. 5 Vetted Programs were also approved. Congratulations to this month's grant recipients - remember, the next grant round deadline is Sunday, April 25! Vetted Programs can be applied for at any time and are awarded on a weekly basis.

Recipient(s)	Project Title	Description	Date	Amount Awarded
Buckham Memorial Library (Faribault)	Minnesota's Gangster Past: Land of 10,000 Crimes	Chad Lewis, author of "Minnesota Road Guide to Gangster Hot Spots", will present a program in the library's Great Hall about the lesser known activities of famous gangsters in Minnesota's past. Mr. Lewis, an author who writes books about Minnesota, is a very interesting speaker and covers the more unusual and sometimes bizarre subjects of Minnesota history. His dynamic talks include slides, and he often invites the audience to go out and find some of the places he talks about for themselves.	September 23, 2010	$250
Dodge County Licensed Child Care Assn., with the Dodge Center and West Concord Public Libraries	"Mike the Baker" by Mike Mann - Celebration for the Week of the Young Child & Child Abuse Prevention Week	The child care providers, librarians, and preschool teachers of Dodge County will host Mike Mann as "Mike the Baker." Mike will perform a storytelling presentation, followed by story time, face painting, temporary tattoos and the distribution of information about Early Literacy and Child Abuse Prevention. The event will be held at the Triton High School in Dodge Center. It will provide entertainment for the children and it will get information (about the importance of early literacy and  prevention of child abuse) out to the parents. There will also be information available on agencies to get additional information.	April 17, 2010	$423
Freeborn County Historical Society, with the Freeborn County Genealogical Society and Albert Lea Convention & Visitors Bureau	Genealogical Crossroads Workshop	The Freeborn County Historical Society Library and the Freeborn County Genealogical Society are partnering to host a 2 day Genealogical Workshop to promote individuals to research, record and share their family history for future generations. There will be 7 speakers: Jay Fonkert, CG (Director, Association of Professional Genealogists); Tom Rice, CG (HeritageHunters.com); Mary Bakeman (Park Books); Linda Coffin (History Crafters); Linda Evenson (FCHS Librarian); Patricia Mulso (FCHS Executive Director and Genealogist); and Vickie Storlie (Genealogist).	August 28-29, 2010	$965
Kasson Public Library	Building Community Connections Through Collaboration	The Kasson Public Library (KPL) will partner with the Kasson-Mantorville High School architectural (CAD) class to design a larger, functional library facility using an existing vacant building. This design project is as an academic exercise for a hypothetical library design. After the Request for Design (RFD) has been announced, students will be given a list of needs to be incorporated in their designs for a functional library. They are advised to visit area libraries to observe how library space is utilized and how patrons use library services. The students are also advised to consult with the KPL director and a board trustee for additional guidance to be used in their designs as they are being developed. The student designs, when submitted, will be reviewed by the Library Director and the KPL Board of Trustees. Two designs will be chosen that best meet the needs of a larger, functional library and stipends will be awarded to the two students with the best designs. The stipends will be announced and the winning designs will be on display at the time of K-M's graduation ceremony (June 6, 2010). The winning designs will also be on public display at the library and other sites throughout the KPL service area during the summer of 2010.	Spring, 2010	$650
Lake City Public Library	CLIMB Theatre performance of "Stubby the Elephant"	The Lake City Public Library has engaged CLIMB Theatre, noted for using dramatic arts  for building literacy and reading readiness, to perform "Stubby the Elephant" for the children of Lake City. The play is an adaptation of Rudyard Kipling's fable, "The Elephant's Child." This will be a chance for at least 150 children and adults in a small, rural town, to experience the arts as performed by a metropolitan group. The children will also gain an appreciation of classic literature as demonstrated by their enthusiasm and involvement, which will be photographed. The performance will take place at the library which will provide correlating materials for the children to check out.	June 22, 2010	$550
Spring Grove Public Library, with the Piecemakers Quilt Guild	Festival of Quilts Show & Sale	The Spring Grove Public Library, in collaboration with the Piecemakers Quilt Guild of Spring Grove, will host a Festival of Quilts Show & Sale during the town's annual "UffDA Fest" in October 2010. The show will feature the artwork of area quilters and provide a venue for these local artisans to sell their work, creating awareness of quilting as a modern art form as well as an historical one. Author/quilter Jennifer Chiaverini of Madison, WI will hold an author talk, and Spring Grove resident Kay Capps Cross will host a professional quilter's presentation.	October, 2010	$10,000
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, with the Winona Public Library	A Gathering for Narnia	A gathering at the Winona Public Library will be held to celebrate the visit of Theatreworks USA's production of "The Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe" at the Page Theatre on October 26, 2010. This will be a craft orientated program with SMU Teacher Education majors, developing craft-making projects for children from Kindergarten through 6th grade. They will develop different stations to create masks, simple costumes, and accessories based upon the characters from C. S. Lewis's novels. Families will register for a drawing to receive tickets to see the performance of "The Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe" at the Page on Oct. 26. This drawing will be held at end of the event.	October 23-26, 2010	$1,387
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, with the Winona Public Library	A Gathering at the Waters	A nature inspired gathering will be held at the Winona Public Library on Saturday, October 9 to celebrate the visit to Winona on October 12 of the Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble at the Page Theatre. Ed Lagace, Park Ranger of the Upper Mississippi River Wildlife Refuge, will present a program exploring the connections of native peoples of the past and current residents of the region with the natural landscape of the region. There will be a sign up for a drawing to be held at the end of Mr. Legace's presentation for free tickets to the October 12 performance of the Kevin Locke Native Dance Ensemble at the Page Theatre.	October 9-12, 2010	$1,367
Wabasha Public Library, with Wabasha Community Education and the River Junction Arts Council	Children's Music and Show: Safari Band	This show will be an opportunity for children to experience a live band suited to their age group. The band dresses in costumes as animals with Safari guides. There is music with a variety of instruments and singing. It will be in the early evening on a weekend night to allow whole families, especially rural families to attend.	June 11, 2010	$617
Whalan Standstill Parade, with the Lanesboro Public Library	Eagle Education Program	Whalan will bring a new level of interest to their 15th "golden anniversary" of the Whalen Standstill Parade, attended by more than 1,500 visitors each year. A "nose-to-beak" eagle education program will be provided by the National Eagle Center (NEC). NEC staff and a live eagle will provide educational programming under four educational themes. Dedicated to environmental stewardship and community sustainability, the NEC delivers entertaining and educational programming to audiences of all ages. This program will add an extra special highlight to the day's festivities in downtown Whalan.	May 15, 2010	$680
Winona Public Library	Winona Reads!	Winona Reads! is a "One Community One Book" program designed to promote reading and literature through the experience of the community reading and discussing the same book at the same time. Winona has chosen *The Turtle Catcher*, by Minnesota author Nicole Helget. Three public discussions are scheduled; one each at the library, the senior center and the history center. The project ends with a "Meet the Author" event, giving readers a chance to ask questions of the author.	Spring, 2010	$1,000
Zumbrota Public Library	Pirate Storytelling	A pirate-themed storytelling summer reading program for families and children age 2-10.	June 23, 2010	$300
Zumbrota Public Library	Splish Splash Science! By Mad Scientist of Iowa Plus+	Mad Science tackles the imagination of young readers by engaging in Impact Shows, designed to match the summer reading program theme, "Make a Splash at your Library!". The show will draw from the likes of water optical illusions, and other science-based themes dealing with water.	June 29, 2010	$335
Houston Public Library	Underwater Adventures	VETTED PROGRAM See the informational flyer about this performer	May 2010	TBD
Chatfield Public Library	In the Heart of the Beast Puppet & Mask Theatre -- "Coyote Stories"	VETTED PROGRAM See the informational flyer about this performer	July 6, 2010	TBD
Cannon Falls Library	The Rose Ensemble -- The Last Queen of Hawai'i	VETTED PROGRAM See the informational flyer about this performer	May 1, 2010	TBD
Caledonia Public Library	Underwater Adventures	VETTED PROGRAM See the informational flyer about this performer	July 26, 2010	TBD
LaCrescent Public Library	Underwater Adventures	VETTED PROGRAM See the informational flyer about this performer	June 24, 2010	TBD