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Image of the Montana State Library Logo
This newsletter serves a biweekly digest to consolidate and archive events and news from various library directed outreach from the Montana Library Network within the Montana State Library. This newsletter will go out on the first and third Tuesdays of each month.
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Please visit our Storymap or download a printable PDF to see our year in review.
The Montana State Library is hosting an online session on Wednesday, September 13 at noon to provide the public, including library staff and trustees, with a summary of the 2023 Public Library Standards Task Force's work from their August 22 meeting and to accept public comment to share with the Task Force prior to their September 22 meeting.
The link for this online public comment session is available in ASPeN. This session will be recorded.
The Public Library Standards Task Force considered action on the following items at their August 22 meeting, and voted on all but the two items underlined in bold print. These two items have been tabled until the Task Force's next meeting on September 22 so that the Task Force can receive more information and public comment.
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defining which state payments require compliance with public library standards
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amending 10.102.1158 (1) and 10.102.4003 to include accredited tribal college libraries
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updating the formula under 10.102.4003 to account for accredited tribal college libraries and to account for the distribution of funds if no tribal college libraries apply
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amending 10.102.1158 (7) that states that the library’s budget shows year-to-year growth to better reflect the intent of the original public library standards’ task force,
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amending 10.102.1160 (7) that says that Library directors serving populations over 25,000 must have a Master of Library Science or equivalent degree,
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amending administrative rule 10.102.1162 to better define what is NOT a hardship and to clarify the process for requesting a deferral.
The recording from the August 22 meeting is available on the Montana State Library YouTube channel. Details about the charge of the 2023 Public Library Standards Task Force and a link to submit written public comment are available.
Not using your hot spots? If your library has hot spots that you no longer need, please contact Cara Orban about relocating them to a new library. Thank you!
Create, Measure, and Celebrate Library Value at Fall Workshop!
Ready to boost your skills in program evaluation, connecting with decision makers, and telling the story of your library's impact? MSL staff are offering a trio of complementary sessions at Fall Workshop in Great Falls September 18-19 centered on creating, measuring, and celebrating public value. These sessions are open to anyone interested in evaluation, and would be especially helpful for library directors, program managers, and trustees.
How do libraries create value for their communities? - Monday, September 18, 1:30 PM
(3 CE credits, Library Administration)
How do libraries make a difference for their community, and how do they communicate and align that value with the work of funders and community/government leaders? This session explores how to create value. One of the signs of creating value is the support of policy makers and funders. Tracy will be joined by three local government officials who will share what they are trying to achieve in their community. Attendees will then practice what they learned by crafting messages that align with the vision of government officials. Attendees will receive feedback from the three local government officials about their efforts with explaining the library's value.
Measuring the value of library services - Tuesday, September 19, 9:15 AM
(1 CE credit, Library Administration)
This session continues with the theme of public value and evaluating your programs through the strategic triangle framework. How can we determine whether or not a program delivers substantive value? We will consider this question and talk about meaningful ways to measure value.
Outcomes:
- Participants improve their understanding of the "substantive value" corner of the strategic triangle
- Participants feel more confident about describing or writing an evaluation plan
- Participants feel more confident about connecting program outcomes to substantive value measures
PLS = Pump-up the Library Story! Using the Public Libraries Survey to Celebrate Your Library - Tuesday, September 19, 10:30 AM
(1 CE credit, Library Administration)
The Public Libraries Survey also referred to as the PLS or Annual Public Library Statistics examines when, where, and how library services are changing to meet the needs of the public. These data, supplied annually by public libraries across the country, provide information that policymakers and practitioners can use to make informed decisions about the support and strategic management of libraries. In Montana, the PLS is also required under Administrative Rule and the essential Public Library Standards. Through this session, attendees will:
- Learn how to navigate Montana's new PLS software, LibPAS
- Address common questions about the PLS such as financials and programs
- Preview new data elements
- Discuss ways to use PLS data for informing important decisions
- Discover the bells and whistles of report templates
Registration for Fall Workshop is FREE and includes breakfast and lunch each day. Register today!
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Public Libraries Survey FY 2023
Collection for fiscal year 2023 will open Monday, October 2, 2023 and close Thursday, November 30, 2023. The Public Libraries Survey is important because it provides information that policymakers and practitioners can use to make informed decisions about the support and strategic management of libraries. It is also required under Administrative Rule 10.102.1155 and the Public Library Standards to receive State Aid. You can read more about the Public Libraries Survey on the Montana State Library website.
New this year, libraries will report their data using the software Counting Opinions LibPAS. Training for this new product will be provided via recorded web tutorials and printable guides (coming soon!). The state data coordinator, Rebekah Kamp, will host a session on LibPAS and the Public Libraries Survey via the MSL Learn Webinar Series on August 31 at 10:00am and at the 2023 Fall Workshop in Great Falls on September 19 at 10:30am. The data coordinator also will host drop-in office hours to address director questions on the following dates:
If the above times do not work for your schedule, please contact Rebekah Kamp at rkamp@mt.gov to make an appointment.
Survey Changes
The FY 2023 survey eliminates questions related to COVID-19. The Montana State Library will request information regarding buildings, salaries, and broadband. This information will help MSL and its Network Advisory Council better understand opportunities for supporting libraries in Montana. Please see the Survey Instrument: Worksheet for a complete list of questions and Survey Instrument: Data Element Definitions for complete descriptions.
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Consulting and CE Office Hours
MSL Consultants and the Continuing Education coordinator will be available for drop-in office hour sessions, beginning August 22. Check out the ASPeN Event Calendar to find the MSL Consulting and CE Office Hours events, twice each month. We're ready to hear from you and answer any questions you might have, so come by and say hi! These aren't recorded and there is no CE credit; this is a chance to visit - we'll be around for the full hour but you can drop in and leave whenever you like.
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MLN Virtual Programs for September, October, and November
The MLN Virtual Programming Series is starting back up in September, and we are looking for library co-hosts to help share out the event information and/or host a watch party! Please contact Amelea Kim at akim@mt.gov if your library is interested in co-hosting any of the virtual programs below. As a reminder, co-hosting involves the following:
- Sharing the event with your community through posters, bookmarks, social media, and other outreach channels. Attendees join individually using their own devices at home
- Helping patrons troubleshoot Zoom registration questions, and/or connect them directly with Amelea
- Optional: Hosting a watch party at your library.
Bison Archaeology in Glacier National Park with Kyle Langley
Hauntings of Montana with Ellen Baumler
Logic and Magic with Jon Turk
There are publicity templates for bookmarks, social media posts, and flyers that you are welcome to use. Please contact Amelea Kim at akim@mt.gov for more information!
The Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP) will host the 3rd annual CSLP Summer Symposium. This half day virtual offering is for public library staff to connect, learn, and collaborate as we plan for summer library programming around the upcoming theme of Adventure Begins at your Library. Scheduled for Thursday, December 07, 2023, speakers and topics will be announced soon.
To view the archived recordings from previous Summer Symposiums, go to the CSLP Summer Symposium webpage.
Bat Week is fast approaching! 2023 Bat Week is happening from October 24th - October 31st, and you can help your community learn about the amazing contributions that this animal has on our environment. Here are the resources available for libraries to use:
If you have any questions, please reach out to Amelea Kim at akim@mt.gov.
Ready 2 Read Texting Program Changes
Important Announcement: The Ready 2 Read Texting Program will be changing their sign-up phone number to a 1-800 number. MSL will be working on creating new publicity materials to reflect this change. Things to know:
- The new sign up number is now 844-213-2697, and is currently active.
- For current enrollees in the texting program, there is no change - if they want, they can update their phone contact when they start receiving messages from the new number, but they do not have to sign up again.
- For staff: It's a good idea to start using the 844 number to sign people up for the texting program. Similar to the previous process, they will just need to text "signup" to the 844 number
Please let me know if you have any questions - I will be sending out more information regarding these changes as I learn more!
Medicaid and Healthy Montana Kids Eligibility Review Changes: Please Share with your Community!
In March 2020, states were required to maintain enrollment in Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs (Healthy Montana Kids) during the pandemic in exchange for enhanced federal funding. This helped to prevent people with Medicaid and Healthy Montana Kids (CHIP)—in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the five U.S. territories—from losing their health coverage during the pandemic.
As of February 1, 2023, states were allowed to restart Medicaid and Healthy Montana Kids eligibility reviews. According to some estimates, nationwide, up to 15 million people could lose their current Medicaid or Healthy Montana Kids coverage through the eligibility renewal process that is happening now.
It's important for people with Medicaid or Healthy Montana Kids to take action to stay covered. To do that, they will need to:
- Update their contact information since their addresses may have changed since they first enrolled.
- Watch their mail for communications from Montana Medicaid or Healthy Montana Kids, open it up, and read it for next steps.
- If they receive a renewal form, they should fill it out and return it right away to avoid losing coverage.
Many people are unaware that the renewal process is occurring, since they have not had to complete a renewal in quite some time, or possibly ever, if they were enrolled in the last three years. We want to avoid people being disenrolled simply because they were unaware and fail to return necessary paperwork to keep their coverage. The worst-case scenario is if a person finds out they are no longer enrolled when they are seeking health care or picking up their prescriptions.
It’s also important to note that children may still be eligible for Medicaid or Healthy Montana Kids, even if their parents are no longer eligible. We want parents to respond and return any paperwork on behalf of their children to keep that coverage.
Examples of materials you can use can be found at the Medicaid: Unwinding and Returning to Regular Operations webpage, and we’ve attached a few examples as well. Some resources are available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Korean, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.
If you are interested in having materials at your library to post or for the public to pick up, please email Helen Collins with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services at helen.collins@cms.hhs.gov who can assist you with your request.
Thank you for raising awareness and assisting your patrons and community on this important issue!
Free Caregiving Programs from AARP Montana – Looking for Library Hosts!
If your library is interested in providing support to caregivers to your community, AARP is looking to provide free caregiving programs across the state! LaDawn Whiteside is a Caregiving Consultant with AARP Montana and would love to give a presentation at your library on a variety of caregiving topics. Here are the details:
- 90-minute time slot preferred, for presentation and questions,
- No request or requirement for AARP membership,
- Can do in-person or virtual,
- Free training for library staff and community,
- Libraries provide meeting space and technology required,
- Available topics:
- Preparing to Care
- Caregivers in the Workplace
- Caregiver Support Groups
- Long Distance Caregiving
If you are interested in this, please reach out to Amelea Kim at akim@mt.gov, and I can connect you with LaDawn to chat over scheduling and options!
This is an update to let you know that the main Lifelong Learning page on the MSL website has been reorganized. Instead of publishing all Lifelong Learning programs in one long list, each program has been separated out into an individual webpage. You can access all webpages from the main Lifelong Learning page, which is still at this web address: https://msl.mt.gov/libraries/lifelonglearning/
Please let me know if you have any questions, or if you encounter any broken links!
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Lifelong Learning Data Dashboard
If you are interested in a data overview of Lifelong Learning programs, please visit the FY23 Lifelong Learning Data Dashboard!
You can also see the Data Dashboards for all of MSL's Services and Programs.
The Montana Library Spotlight is an opportunity for us to highlight and celebrate the awesome things that Montana libraries are doing!
Today’s highlight comes from Yvonne Redding, directory of the Rosebud County Library.
Murder at the Library – Whodunit Murder Mystery Dinner at the Rosebud County Library!
Please describe your library project:
Our library hosted a murder mystery event in January 2023 featuring our local middle and high school students as actors during the event. The event was titled “The Anne Cleeves Murder Mystery Pack”, and we organized a full evening program, complete with a lasagna dinner! The event was scheduled for 6 pm, but the public started showing up over an hour beforehand. There was so much excitement! Everyone who came got a delicious meal, and the students did a wonderful job acting out the murder mystery. They gave an amazing performance. Afterwards, many of the attendees came up to me with compliments on everything – the performance, the food, the student involvement - and they asked for us to do more events like it in the future.
Local high school students performing as their murder mystery characters
Abigail Morris as Nina Backworth
How did this project start?
I started planning this program after I learned about the free resources available through the Reading Agency last fall. As I was browsing through their website, I found the "Ann Cleeves Murder Mystery Pack" which included a script and instructions on how to host the event. As I needed actors to play the different murder mystery parts, I decided to reach out to our local high school drama club sponsor, Andrew Buck. Originally, we did not plan on serving food, but one of our library patrons (Mr. Buck’s mother, no less!) suggested serving dinner to make it a Murder Mystery Dinner, and we thought that was a great idea! The students did such a wonderful job – they showed up well-rehearsed, dressed, and ready, and they put on a great performance. We were so happy with how everything turned out!
Brody Kennedy as Lennie Thomas
What positive outcomes have you seen from this project?
The students got to see a large portion of the community supporting the drama club. Forsyth is more known for being a big sports town, so it was nice seeing the drama kids being embraced like that. The whole community benefited by having a different kind of activity to attend in town, and we got so many positive comments about the event, and they wanted more programs like this in the future.
What are you hoping to accomplish in the future?
We are hoping to do another program like this in the future, especially since this first one was such a success. I am hoping to find more volunteers to assist, and luckily, many people have.
Jacob Fay as Godfrey Rickard
Karissa Fraker as Joanna Tobin
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Thank you Yvonne and the Rosebud County Library for sharing this wonderful program!
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MSL Learn Webinar series!
Join us on the second and last Tuesday of each month for timely topics and the wildly popular “Tiny Tech Trainings!”
Visit the ASPeN event calendar to see the lineup of topics and speakers! Registration is open for all sessions.
Each 30-minute session will start at 10:00 a.m. Recordings will be available in the MSL YouTube channel.
On-Demand Learning for Libraries
Visit the MSL Continuing Education webpage to find out about continuing education opportunities.
WebJunction Webinars:
MSL sponsors access to WebJunction for Montana librarians. Stay in the know and build your skills through the webinars and courses offered through this service. All WebJunction webinars are recorded and available for free in the Course Catalog.
New MSL YouTube Channel Content
Visit the new MSL YouTube Channel to access meeting recordings, webinars, and training from across all MSL Programs.
Please subscribe!
You can still access content created prior to July 2022 in Vimeo. All new recordings and content will be posted to the MSL YouTube Channel.
Is your ASPeN account up to date?
Updated contact information in ASPeN helps with event registration, claiming credits and completing certification!
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There is so much happening in September!
Click on the image below to see the coming months and register for upcoming events.
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MSL's Continuing Education credits can double as OPI credit for teachers as long as you have the correct form.
Need OPI credit for MSL Continuing Education?
Open a helpdesk ticket under ASPeN > Continuing Education for assistance!
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See all MSL topics on our News feed at https://msl.mt.gov/about/news
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