Between the Stacks: 8/10/2022

When you have been a librarian as long as I have, it is always a pleasure to attend a well-organized, well-planned conference. This past week I was at the Montana Library Association, Mountain Plains Library Association, and Pacific Library Association tri-conference. I was able to attend technology sessions, a session on human trafficking and how Libraries can help, transforming teen services, libraries, social work, children and youth programming, and more.

There were two highlights to this year's programs. The first was when eight of our teens presented on their Holocaust program to a full house. We have since received four invitations to come and do a program at other libraries and conferences. The second was when I was informed the Whitehall Community Library received the ELSA Award from the Montana State Library Commission. ELSA stands for Excellent Library Services Award and is given to libraries who meet the criteria. The two Jefferson County libraries (Boulder and Whitehall) have received this award for a number of years but this year we each were given separate awards. It was quite an honor for us to receive a separate award.

One of the more interesting sessions I attended was on gentrification, the reclassification of books in the library by topic as they do in book stores. The library in Polson went to this system and it was fascinating to see what they liked and disliked about it, how difficult it was to change everything, and how their patrons felt about the change. We have a limited genre separation as our sci-fi, westerns, young adult, paperback mysteries and fiction paperbacks already have their own sections. I don't think I am ready to separate every fiction book we have into 20 or 30 categories with their own separate shelving sections. Our fiction is by author's last name and there are stickers on the spines for major genres such as Christian Fiction, Large Print, Classics, and more. It is a different way of doing things and it gave me a lot to think about.

In other news, the August calendars are out. They are pretty empty but September will be packed with programs for every age group. August is always our month for the staff to have a few days off, plan for the fall and get the Library back in shape after the rush of summer reading. It was a crazy summer but we were happy to see so many people participate in programs, summer feeding, and keeping all the books shelved and washed. Enjoy this quiet month and get ready for the fall schedule, it is going to be a busy one!!