December 2009 Newsletter

Grand Forks
Public Library
Library Hours
Monday-Thursday 9am-9pm
Friday, Saturday
9am-5pm
Sunday
1pm-5pm
Open Dec. 24
9am-1pm
Open Dec. 31
9am-5pm
Closed Dec. 25 and Jan. 1
I
Volume 4, Issue 4
December 2009
Farewell, 2009
Library Board
Thursday, Dec. 10, 4:45pm
Friends of the Library
Thursday, Jan. 7, 7pm
Children's Events
*Holiday Craft*
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 4pm
Preschool Story Time
Tuesdays at lOam & 1 :30pm
Thursdays at 7pm
Toddler Story Time
Thursdays at lOam
*Babies welcome.
Chess Club
Thursdays
at 3:45pm
*AII ages welcome.
39 Clues Club
While 2009 has seen
some exciting changes
at the library, 2010
promises to be full of
even bigger things:
The question of renovating the current library
versus building a new
one will hopefully be
answered early in the
year.
The library will be open Director Wendy Wendt
limited hours on Christ- gives us an update on
mas Eve (9am to l pm] the library Revitalization
and New Year's Eve Project on page 4.
(9am to 5pm). The
library will be closed on
Christmas
Day.-------·--.--.-------1
d NY'
The library has a new mission statement.
an
ew
'llearbs
Watch for it in next month's issue.
Day. We WI
eL..
open on Dec. 26 and
27th, as well.
th
The library's new logo
will debut, inspired by
the creative minds of
our patrons.
The two-part Database
of the Month article continues on page 2.
Weare planning to have
more teen and adult
programming this year.
Find out which longtime employee is retiring
on page 3.
Watch the newsletter for
all the library news you
need to know.
Wednesday, Dec. 2, 3:45pm
For a list of new holiday
music at the library, see
page 4.
*Grades 3 -6 only
The Book Club
Wednesday, Dec. 16, 3:45pm
*Grades 3 -6 only
Creative Writing Club
Saturday, Dec. 12, 1:30pm
R. E. A. D. Therapy Dogs
Saturday, Dec. 12, 10:30am
Please contact the
Children's Department
for an appointment.
Kid Stuff
by
Aaron S.
Everyone who attended
the Thanksgiving Craft
had a fun time making
paper bag turkeys. We
hope that you willjoin us
for our next Holiday
Craft at 4pm on Dec.
22nd.
The 39 Clues Club met
Nov. 4th• and members
watched an Advanced
Agent Training webcast
event. The club will meet
again
Dec.
2nd at
3:45pm. Students who
are fans of this popular
book series are encouraged to attend.
The R.E.A.D. dogs will
also be at the library
Dec. 12th. Please call to
sign up your child to
read for fifteen minutes.
The Toddler and Preschool Storytimes conThe Creative Writing tinue to be well attended.
Club will meet Saturday,
Please feel free to bring
Dec. 12that 1:30pm. New your children and check
members are welcome. it out. Happy Holidays!
J
Wacky Word Definition of the Month: raisin - a grape with a sunburn
Page 2
Database of the Month - Learning Express, Part 2
In part two, we cover Learning
Express learning centers geared
towards adults. In order to
access the courses and exams,
you must register for a free
account.
GED Preparation
The GED preparation learning
center has practice exams and
preparation courses for reading,
writing, mathematics,
science
and social studies. The skills
improvement section offers essay
writing practice. There is also a
section for Spanish -language
GED preparation.
Job Search & Workplace Skills
The Business Writing section of
worker exam and the postal
worker
exam;
Commercial
Driver's License (CDL) with
endorsement and general knowl~:
edge practices;
Cosmetologg'
career preparation; Electrician's
License test; Emergency Medical
Services with the EMT-Basic
exam and the paramedic exam;
Firefighter practice tests; Law
Enforcement, including tests for
Border Patrol, Corrections Officer, Court Officer, Police Officer,
Police Sergeant, Probation Offi-s
Jobs & Careers'
cer / Parole
Officer,
State
Trooper / Highway Patrol, and
The Jobs & I ~eers learm~g Treasury
Enforcement
Agent;
center has praitlce tests ~or ~.r / Military with ASVABand military
Traf~c Co~troll~r. (Af-SAT), C~~il' flight aptitude tests; the Nursing
Service, including
the
<;(vil entrance test and licensure and
serV,~e exam, federal cl~cal
certification
test;
Plumber's
//"""-'~"Y ..~ ~.,.................
/
i
this learning center has courses
in business writing, grammar
practice, grammar skills for writing, and vocabulary & spelling
courses and practice. The Job
Search, Resumes, and Interviewing section includes job searching and networking, creating
resumes and cover letters, interview tips, and a course called
Success on the Job with advice
on how to excel once you have
the job you want.
b
.
Learning
Express
~
license
test;
Real
Estate
appraisal, broker and salesperson exams; and Teaching exams,
including
CBEST, NYSTCE,
PPST: Praxis 1, Praxis 2, and
TExES.
Skill Building for Adults
If you would like to improve your
general skills in math, reading
and writing, this learning center
has courses for all three su bjects.
The Math and Reasoning Skills
Improvement section has practice exercises for algebra, data
analysis & probability, geometry,
math fundamentals, word problems, measurement & conver-
J'
0~q;A,
sion, and ql},aFl<ti,ta~~ comparison. There
"~ courses for
algebra skil -and ~ath skills.
The Reading S~ltf' Improvement
section has practice exercises,
diagnostic tests and courses in
reading comprehension. There
are also practice exercises for
synonyms & antonyms, vocabulary & spelling, and word analogy.
The Writing Skills Improvement
section has grammar and writing
practice exercises and courses
on grammar skills and fundamentals of writing.
U.S. Citizenship
The U.S. Citizenship preparation
section has History & Civics ci~f.~
zenship test practice. There I:lT~I.s
100 questions taken from the'
official naturalization test that
will help anyone in their pursuit
of becoming a United States citizen.
Spanish language courses
In the Spanish language section,
there are courses for reading and
writing, mathematics, and GED
preparation.
This database can be a valuable '.•..
tool for students and anyone,
who wishes to maintain thet~
basic skills in math, reading and
writing.
Page 3
Sharon,
assistant circulation
supervisor,
is
retiring after 15
years
at
the
Grand
Forks
Public Library.
Sharon and her
family moved to
Grand Forks in
the winter
of
----'
1993 after living
in Australia for 18 years. She remembers leaving the Australian
summer for the North Dakota
winter and having to buy winter
coats after landing in Minneapolis. Her love of books and libraries
prompted her to apply for a job
here, where she was hired as a
circulation desk worker in the
spring of 1994. In the fall of 1997,
she became the assistant circulation supervisor. Her main duties
include assisting the supervisor,
overseeing staff, training new circulation workers, and performing
general circulation work.
area, the need
for more staff, V
and the change
from checking Sharon,August
things in and
_~
out with cameras and crossing
things off with a pencil to using
computers.
The biggest changes she has seen
at the library over the years are
The '97 flood was a memorable
time for Sharon, especially "the
~~.
C
--
. Sharonputsoutfires, both
literallyandfiguratively, as
assistantCirculation
supervisor.
eak Into the City of Thieves by Andrea
. crime: looting a dead German
rooper who fell into the
streets
of Leningrad.
The
punishment: secure a dozen eggs
for a powerful colonel to use for
'his
da ugh ter' s
wedding
~ake.
Seems
like
an
easy
~~mishment, doesn't it? Not in the
., viet Union during the infamous
e of Leningrad in 1941 where
folks would eat anything to
1;
~:\~
\{~
h' ',I' ~
20071
Sharon and her husband plan to
sell their house and relocate
somewhere centrally located between Missouri, Connecticut, and
Georgia, where their three children and grandchildren live, as
well as Arizona, where Sharon's
mother lives. They would also like
to travel to Europe someday.
way the library pitched in to try
and help the community, " and
~howthe staff helped each other.
~ ay Berg, former circulation suervisor, was a great help and influence in Sharon's career at the
library. "She had great patience
with me during my training period
and let me develop into my position. We would work through
things together, other times she
would help me and a few times, I
.was able to help her!"
the addition of
the
DVD/CD
station, the expansion of the
circulation
She will miss working at the library - "It is fun and interesting
and gets me out of bed in the
morning!" - as well as the friendships she has made.
L.
survive,
including
their
own
pets. Lev Benioff, a gawky teenage
half-Jew, is paired with the
charismatic army deserter Kolya
to complete
this
seemingly
impossible task. The two travel
behind enemy lines on foot in
search of a poultry collective
Kolya believes is in the hands of
the Germans. This odd couple
narrowly avoids danger at every
turn
escaping
ravenous
cannibals, thwarting blood-thirsty
German soldiers at chess, and
getting revenge for dogs killed in
battle.
The
novel
weaves
effectively between action-filled
scenes, heart-breaking moments,
and
laugh-out-Ioud
scenarios. David Benioffs City of
Thieves (F Benioff) is not one to
miss.
Grand Forks
Public Library
2110 Library Circle
Grand Forks, ND 58201
Phone: 701-772-8116
www.grandforksgov.com/library
Contact Director Wendy Wendt
GFPLDirector@inbox.com
Contact CheckIt Out:
gfplcheckitout@yahoo.com
Contact the Children's Dept.
GFPL_Childrens@yahoo.com
Contact the Reference Dept.
gfplreference@hotmail.com
Library Director
Wendy Wendt
Library Board
Chairperson
Susan Mickelson
Vice-chairperson
Mike McNamara
Secretary
Kay Powell
A Word from Wendy
In order to better serve your needs
and to help ensure that the Grand
Forks Public Library remains a
vital part of the community, the
Library has undertaken a Revitalization Project. As an initial step
in that project, consultants have
done a formal Needs Assessment
to help determine
what the
community wants and needs from
its library.
•
Over 850 people
Library each day.
•
Each day, over 2,400 items
are checked out.
•
The library was designed to
hold about 100,000 items and
now holds nearly 400,000.
•
The consultants recommend a
building of 65,000-70,000 sq.
ft. with approximately 123 onsite parking spots to meet the
community's
wants
and
needs.
What came across loud and clear
is that the Grand Forks Public
Library community appreciates
and values the library staff and
services, but is not emotionally
attached to the current building.
Lila Christensen
Richard Fiordo
Check It Out
Editor /Head Writer
Tanya Palmer
Here are a few other things we
learned from the Needs Assessment:
visit
the
A copy of the Needs Assessment is
available at the Library's reference
desk for your review. Please send
your
comments
to
speakup.gfpl@yahoo.com
or
contact me directly at GFPLDirector@inbox.com. We look forward
to hearing from you!
(783.65 M316) - greatest hits from
the group's previous albums.
The library has added several new
CDs of Christmas music just in
time for the holidays.
mas by Jim Brickman (783.65
B762) - the pianist's latest holiday
album.
Acoustic Hearts of Winter by Aly
What a Night! by Harry Connick
and AJ (783.65 AL97) - the teen
pop stars sing classic Christmas
songs.
Jr. (783.65 C762) - the crooner's
third Christmas album.
singers perform Christmas songs.
A Cherry Cherry Christmas by Neil
by
David Archuleta (783.65 Ar25) the American Idol runner-up's
second album.
Diamond (783.65 D541) - a mix of
the artist's old and new music.
(783.65 St56) - Sting celebrates
the winter season with traditional
folk songs and original music.
Christmas
From
the
Heart
Christ is Come by Big Daddy
Weave (783.65 B48) - Contemporary Christian group sings classic
and original songs.
My Christmas by Andrea Bocelli
(783.65 B631) - the blind vocalist's first Christmas album.
The Hymns and Carols of Christ-
Ultimate Christmas Collection by
Jackson 5 (783.65 J133) - the
group's classic Christmas album
with six bonus songs.
This
Christmas
by Michael
McDonald (783.65 M145) - the
former Doobie Brother's latest
holiday album.
Christmas: 25th Anniversary Collection by Mannheim Steamroller
Now That's What I Call a Country
Christmas (783.65 N86) - country
If on a Winter's Night by Sting
Voices: A Gospel Choir Christmas
(783.65 V87) - gospel singers perform holiday classics.
\