Begin forwarded message:
From: "Toni" <coffey41@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: June 5, 2018 at 9:56:26 AM EDT
To: "Toni Nye" <coffey41@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: SUBJECT: 2017 NLS Network Library of the Year Award winners honored in
Washington, D.C.
On Thursday, May 17, the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically
Handicapped (NLS) honored two of its cooperating libraries for their
exceptional accomplishments and service to patrons in 2017.
The Colorado Talking Book Library (CTBL) in Denver received the Regional
Library of the Year Award, and Braille and Talking Books at Taylor Community
Library (BTBTCL) in Taylor, Michigan, received the Sub-regional
Library/Advisory and Outreach Center of the Year Award.
The awards were presented at a luncheon in the historic Thomas Jefferson
Building of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Library director
Deborah MacLeod and assistant commissioner and state librarian Eugene Hainer
accepted the award for CTBL. Vanessa Verdun-Morris, assistant director of
Taylor Community Library, and Sarah Roe, braille and talking books
paraprofessional, accepted the award for BTBTCL.
“The programs and services the Colorado and Michigan libraries offer are
outstanding examples of the creativity shown regularly throughout the NLS
network of cooperating libraries,” NLS director Karen Keninger said at the
luncheon.
Library of Congress Principle Deputy Librarian Mark Sweeney was also on hand to
offer congratulations to the libraries. Sweeney said, “NLS could not provide
this important service without all of you, our network of outstanding libraries
across the country. You’re the connection between NLS and the people who need
our services the most."
All nominations were reviewed by a five-member awards committee, which selected
two finalists in each category for consideration by the four NLS regional
conference chairs. The chairs then chose a single library in each category to
recommend to the NLS director.
Strengths and accomplishments for the two winners, as noted by the reviewers,
included the following:
CTBL has organized and maintained the support of more than 200 volunteers who
supplement the work of the library’s thirteen staff members. In total,
volunteers contributed 25,000 hours in patron services and facility support
last year.
CTBL, which has more than 7,200 individual and institutional patrons, has
achieved at least a 98 percent patron satisfaction score since 2004 as measured
in biennial surveys.
CTBL volunteers have recorded 256 books of regional interest to add to the
national NLS collection
CTBL has won recognition at home—it was named Library of the Year by the
Colorado Association of Libraries in 2017.
CTBL increased its patronage by 20 percent through outreach efforts, including
making 1,000 phone calls to non-active patrons
BTBTCL—an advisory and outreach center of the Michigan Braille and Talking Book
Library—was created on short notice to meet the needs of more than 1,000 blind
and disabled patrons who would have been left without service when the Wayne
County Braille and Talking Book Library closed in 2015. Fortunately, the
independent Taylor Community Library leaped into the breach and agreed to serve
the county as an Advisory and Outreach Center.
In the short time since starting up, BTBTCL has introduced a monthly book
discussion, a support group for people with visual impairments, and a program
that provides one-on-one assistive technology instruction. The library also
installed a conference line so people who cannot attend events in person can
participate remotely.
The Awards Committee and conference chairs had their work cut out for them this
year. NLS received fourteen submissions—quite a few more than in recent
years—and all of them boasted impressive accomplishments. Although the
abundance of high-quality submissions made it challenging to choose only one
winner in each category, NLS takes it as a sign that innovation and enthusiasm
are alive and well throughout the network of cooperating libraries.
Nominations for the Library of the Year award are accepted each year beginning
in January, and NLS encourages all network libraries to submit a nomination and
tout their achievements over the course of the previous calendar year. The
nominations are an important way for NLS in Washington to learn about and
recognize network libraries’ accomplishments, the challenges they face along
the way, and the appreciative patrons that they serve.
The Library of Congress press release on the 2018 Library of the Year Awards
may be found here:
www.loc.gov/item/prn-18-065/library-of-congress-honors-colorado-and-michigan-libraries-for-service-to-blind-readers/2018-05-17/
