FEBURARY-MARCH 2012
INTERNATIONAL FILMS
SEE THE WORLD AT YOUR LIBRARY page 2 OFFLINE
MEET LISSA BLOGGER & BOOK EVANGELIST page 3
A place for pre-readers
SOME OF OUR
SPEAKERS BUREAU
ENGAGING SPEAKERS WILL COME TO YOU page 4
customers CAN’T EVEN READ (YET)
R
eading is the basis for everything. Whether it is success in school or day-to-day stuff like grocery shopping or ordering at a restaurant.
HOT NEW GARDENING BOOKS
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GARDENING? page 6
School isn’t that far off for ShaMecha Simms’ 4-year-old boy, Tatum. They frequently use the library to work on his reading skills, and she credits the library with many of Tatum’s reading developments. “He already sees value in coming here, being here and wanting to check out books,” she said. “He gets excited about books, even though he doesn’t understand words – just starting on letters.” She said Tatum learned to identify shapes because of the hearts, circles, squares and triangles that adorn the sides of the shelves in the Kids Library. Tatum would ask, “what’s this?” ShaMecha hadn’t considered those symbols before, but now she knows these shapes are a part of the library’s effort to grow the next generation of readers.
LIBRARY TRUSTEE BOB HARDER
ON A QUEST FOR KNOWLEDGE page 7
continued on page 15 see READERS
Millsap ALA President Candidate
G
ina J. Millsap, Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library CEO, is a candidate for president of the American Library Association (ALA). ALA is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 60,000 members. The president is responsible for the leadership, development, promotion and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship. Millsap has been in the library industry for 36 years, and came to
the Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library in August 2005. “Topeka is a library-loving community, and our library is recognized as a leader of innovation and services in public libraries,” Millsap said. “I am excited about being able to share Topeka’s story with other libraries in the U.S. and around the world.” If elected in April by her fellow professionals, Millsap will be traveling the world and will bring the best of the best in libraries home to Topeka.
THE KIDS LIBRARY
A COOL PLACE TO EXPLORE & LEARN page 8 WHAT’S HAPPENING
YOUR LIBRARY SCHEDULE African-American Read-In
Teen Tech Week Kansas Reads page 10