Calendar

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The American Library Association has called climate change the “greatest challenge of our generation.” In partnership with the Mid-Hudson Library System and Ramapo Catskill Library System,  Sustainable Hudson Valley has designed a program of action planning, training and support for libraries as living laboratories for climate resilience in their communities.  This will help library leadership make their facilities energy-secure, safe and comfortable in extreme weather, and position them  to serve as community hubs for education and action projects to help their surrounding neighborhood deal with climate change.

This cohort program includes 4-sessions to facilitate participants’ understanding of climate resilience needs and opportunities at and around their locations, and the participatory approaches to working with local stakeholder partners to capture these opportunities.

Session 4:  Howland Public Library | Putting it all Together. Based on the outcomes of the place assessment, workshops and input from community stakeholders and partners, each library identifies specific priority projects and a pathway to their implementation.

Meeting of the MHLS Audit Committee.

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At this meetup we’ll check in with MHLS member library teams going for a 414 vote this year, share best practices and ensure your team is on track to hit all of the required milestones for a successful vote. This is also an opportunity to learn from your peers also working on 414 vote campaigns this year.

Meeting of the County Funding Advocacy Group

This event is designed for those working to advocate for county-level funding for member libraries. Directors, staff, trustees and Friends are welcome.

At this event we will discuss:
County funding updates from each county.
Effective strategies to position libraries to receive county funding.
Grassroots advocacy efforts that work.

MHLS will be closed on May 27, 2024 in observance of Memorial Day.

There will be no deliveries and the MHLS ticket system will not be monitored.

Meeting of the Putnam County Library Association.

This is a closed session available ONLY to participants of the May 3rd workshop: Balancing Acts: Cultivating Compassion for Library Worker Wellness. 

This is the second of four, ONLINE mini sessions to help participants of the May 3rd workshop: Balancing Acts: Cultivating Compassion for Library Worker Wellness, apply the principals learned during the workshop.

Workshop participants will be emailed a link to register for this online event.

Though this session will be held online it will not be recorded to help foster a safe space for participants to have an open dialogue.

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The Mid-Hudson Library System is partnering with Dutchess BOCES School Library System to offer a free book care workshop with Kimberly Young, the Book Doctor from DEMCO. Book Doctor Workshops provide book care training with the aim of helping you keep your collection in circulation longer.

Training includes protection and repair techniques and offers:

• A hands-on experience
• Ideas for protecting books ahead of circulation
• Tried-and-true methods for a variety of repairs

Kimberly will tailor the 3-hour training to your specific needs but workshops typically cover basic page repairs, tip-ins, hinge and spine repairs, book jacket and laminate applications, and how to reinforce spines.

Hardcover and softcover books, as well as small tools, will be supplied for participants.

Course Instructor: Your Book Doctor is Kimberly Young. She has worked in a wide variety of library settings across regionally, socially, and culturally diverse areas of the U.S. Her work focuses on collection development, material processing, and book care. As the Book Doctor, she has traveled the country helping hundreds of attendees build a range of new skills, a better understanding of processing books, and confidence. Kimberly loves meeting all the new people who are as passionate about book care as she is.

The current Directors Association Meeting Packet will be available at Mid-Hudson Library System Directors Association page.

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Libraries are under increasing pressure to connect with the media and to generate publicity that will attract attention, create interest, and win support for their libraries and programs.

Understanding media and publicity can be a daunting task but with the right Public Relations plan in place, you can reach more of your community and promote your library in a way that will build support from your local community members.

In this session, you’ll learn:

• How to set realistic publicity goals in 3-6 month increments
• How to identify spokespeople in your library that can be introduced to media
• How to write a press release
• How to create and execute a successful public relations strategy
• The best ways to nurture relationships with writers and publications after a story is published
• How to collaborate with local influencers to gain publicity

Presenter: Kosi Harris has been a public relations specialist for the past ten years. She specializes in non profit, consumer products and hospitality clients including: EveryLibrary, Time Warner Center, American Heart Association, Easter Seals, Wethos, Peru Tourism, Bird + Stone Jewelry, Tourette Association of America, Wham-O Toys, Grand Canyon Railway, and Reebok Watches.

She has become adept at amplifying the voices of brands and maximizing client visibility through key relationships with press, media, and prominent influencers such as Harper’s Bazaar, Fatherly, Thrive Global, USA Today, Forbes, People Magazine, Buzzfeed, NY Times, and Yahoo Finance.

This session is co-sponsored by Ramapo Catskill Library System, Mid-Hudson Library System, and Westchester Library System.