Month: January 2022

Formal Response Regarding HPLD Programming Policy

As we enter a new year, we want to reflect and update our community on what High Plains Library District has accomplished and where we are headed. At the end of 2018, High Plains approved the HPLD Strategic plan for 2019-2024. The plan was informed by feedback and information provided by communities throughout the District. We have been diligently working toward the goals of that plan. In 2020, we embarked on the Baldridge Performance Excellence Program Journey in pursuance of our Excellence Goal. In 2021, we broke ground on LINC, our newest project that is a combination of Library, Innovation Center and Events Space.

The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award was established by Congress to promote improved quality of goods and services in U.S. companies and organizations. The goal of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Improvement Act of 1987 (Public Law 100-107) was to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. businesses. Achieving this goal would mean we would be the first Library District in the country to do so. On average, only four organizations are recognized with the award a year. This is a lofty goal, and whether or not we earn this award, the process of continual improvement will make for a better High Plains Library District year over year.

In our journey down the Baldrige path, we have committed ourselves to implementing a strategic plan to satisfy our community’s needs. During that process, it was determined we review and update our current procedures and practices to ensure they are aligned with our policies. We dedicated a staff member to this endeavor and made great progress.

The community input also led to an update in our Mission and Vision.

Mission

Helping build Community

Vision

High Plains Library District gives access to answers for every question.

In the Aspiration section of our Strategic Plan, we included the following steps in response to community feedback:

Shift focus of programming to skill-based and development, with the goal of providing people throughout the District an opportunity to improve their skills and life.
Offer programming that encourages crucial conversations and civil discourse.

In this shift, we had to allocate resources and even make budgetary decisions. This change coupled with the Baldridge Framework has led us to further evaluate the outcomes of programs and their potential for success. As a result, some underutilized programs were discontinued or reworked. Program topics were not eliminated but were worked through with managers and the programming committee for the best outcomes.

Much like our collection, we must make choices in what we add to the collection in accordance with our budget. If one book is selected over another, it is not about its stance, but for a mix of formal processes of consideration used for collection development and management. In collection management, books that do not meet usage goals are often removed. The same choice must be made with a finite budget for programming. Programs need to be reviewed and evaluated prior to approval and throughout their life cycle. For a variety of reasons, some programs are not approved. Again, these decisions are not made based on content; they are the result of program development and management and the need to ensure our limited physical space and budget dollars are being used efficiently and productively.

Despite the space and budget limitations, the public is free to reserve our study and meeting rooms on a first-come first-served basis, for any legal purpose.

HPLD firmly believes in the Jo Godwin quote – “A truly great library contains something in it to offend everyone.” This is true in our collection. Over the years, we have received challenges and reconsideration requests and have maintained our collection. We value having a robust collection that presents information from various points of view. This is the core of the definition of Intellectual Freedom as defined by the American Library Association.

Intellectual freedom is the right of every individual to both seek and receive information from all points of view without restriction. It provides for free access to all expressions of ideas through which any and all sides of a question, cause or movement may be explored.

It is of vital importance that we provide materials that represent all points of view. This is a foundational principle of libraries, but as of late, has been surrounded by controversy. We can only stand on a solid foundation if we continue to be recognized as being objective in our programming. If we are viewed as pushing or supporting only one specific view or stance on a subject, our foundation cracks. Doing so risks alienating one or more sides of an issue.

We continue to hear how divided people are across our nation. Many factors in life are driving people apart. We have worked to offer programming that encourages crucial conversations and civil discourse. We have worked to plan and message our programming in a way that can bring people from diverse viewpoints together to discuss, learn and grow together.

These ideas and issues have driven our programming decisions throughout the years. As the overall review of policy was conducted, it became apparent that the evolution of our programming did not always align with our goals. Staff worked to update the policy, it was reviewed by the Library Managers Group and the Board Governance Committee and was ultimately recommended by staff to go to the Board for approval. The policy change does not represent a drastic departure from our core principles and goals, but a small realignment to ensure they are met.

We believe providing programming in this manner will increase the likelihood of success in bringing our community together to have needed discussions and ultimately help to build our community further.

Sincerely,

Your High Plains Library District

Downloadable PDF version

Mask Distribution Program

As of January 24th, we’ve received a second, very large shipment of masks for the state-sponsored mask distribution program, and we are sending them out to all locations immediately. They should be available late Monday afternoon or mid-morning Tuesday.

The state program is meant to give out KN95 and surgical-grade masks. In some cases, we’ve received varying numbers of these types, and some of the masks that were supposed to be surgical grade are labeled as “executive” grade.

For now, we get what we get!

All you have to do is stop by your library and ask for masks. We’re currently giving out 5 per person, per month. If you’ve already received yours, we ask that you wait until next month to give others a chance.

As libraries run out, we will announce it here and on our social media.

New This Week!

January 17, 2022

There’s some interesting nonfiction flying beneath the radar in this week’s new releases, as well as a middle grade fantasy that’s earning some starred reviews from critics! Learn more about why humans count (we promise it’s more interesting than you think), look into a shocking true crime case, or explore a fantasy starring a girl with the ability to unlock anything.

The Art of More by Michael Brooks

In The Art of More we learn that counting is not a skill humans are born with. In fact, without education few people would be able to count past three! But Michael Brooks show us that if we had never taught ourselves to use numbers, we wouldn’t have maps, music, architecture, trade, navigation, or art. He wants to take the fear out of numbers and replace it with awe. This history of counting and numbers is a strong start toward rehabilitating our relationship with math.

Book

The Doomsday Mother by John Glatt

Investigative journalist John Glatt explores the seemingly sophisticated couple of Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell, residents of the upscale Kauai Beach Resort. Chad and Lori seemed to fit right in, so neighbors were shocked when police came calling, exposing the couple’s history of religious fanaticism, doomsday prepping, and murder.

Book

The Lock-Eater by Zack Loran Clark

School Library Journal is raving about this new middle-grade fantasy, giving it a starred review and saying it’s the kind of book that only comes around every so often. The story revolves around Melanie Gate, a young woman who can open any lock with the touch of a finger, and the mysterious automaton named Traveler who takes her on as an apprentice. Comparisons to children’s classics like Howl’s Moving Castle are being made, and the book makes a tip of the hat to The Wizard of Oz.

Book

MLK Events Now Virtual

Press release from Dr. Janine M. Weaver-Douglas, Director of the Marcus Garvey Cultural Center:

With current conditions in mind, and to maintain and further the tradition of the MLK Jr March & Reception in the city of Greeley, this year’s events will be virtual and asynchronous. Current COVID transmission rates, specifically the increased transmissibility of the Omicron variant, have caused us to reconceptualize what a day of service toward Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s legacy would and could look like. We hope and encourage you to consider MLK Jr Day to be a day “on” instead of a day “off” and that even though we will not be gathering in person together, you will find myriad opportunities, resources and support below for how you can create your own plan of action and support within your community(ies).

With the hope of inspiring action, we have created a series entitled “Read/Watch/Listen/Do” that include local service opportunities; articles and books about MLK’s work & legacy; and podcasts, shows & movies/documentaries that center the work towards civil rights and the necessity of understanding our history and progress. As part of the kit, we have created Take & Make kits that can be picked up at various locations in Greeley to put your creative energy and passion into physical form in a way that is both meaningful & visible. Finally, we have worked to create opportunities to make meaning beyond MLK Jr Day, and tie into Black Heritage Month, that extend the narrative around Dr. King’s work & the relevance of that work, even into our present time. We hope that you take this time to reflect upon your own positionality, identify your own opportunities for action, and creatively engage in the active imagining of a more equitable & justice-centered community.

Event Details:

MON 1.17.22

Virtual Remarks & Selected Performances via View Here– Virtual Resource
Read/Watch/Listen/Do Resources for Personal Action via View Here– Virtual Resource
Take & Make Kit Pick Up- Physical Resource
Pick up at HPLD, Aims & Marcus Garvey CC
PopUp MLK Storytimes – High Plains Library District-In- Person Event

FRI 1.21.22

A Conversation about the Importance of Truth, History, & the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: An MLK, Jr Keynote with Pulitzer Prize Winning Journalist, Nikole Hannah Jones (creator of The 1619 Project) – Virtual Keynote
Register here: Nikole Hannah-Jones

TUES 1.25.22 and WED 1.26.22

Colin in Black & White Screening at The Garvey (928 20^thStreet)- In-Person Event
TUES 1.25- 5:30p-8p
WED 1.26- 5:30p- 8p

MON 1.31.22

The 1619 Project Book Club Meeting- Virtual Meeting
Join club via email at mgcc@unco.edu
Time: 6p-7:30p (Register Here for Zoom)

Specialty Checkout Policy Change

Sometimes we make policy changes to certain services, and the most important thing to know about them is that the changes come about in an attempt to make the service better, smoother, and more accessible for as many people as possible.

On that note, we’ve made a change to our Specialty Checkout policies that we want to make everyone aware of.

In plain language, if you have 3 “abandoned” holds on Specialty Checkout items in the same year, you’ll be unable to use the service for 6 months following the third abandonment.

To avoid this, pick up your hold during the 24-hour pickup period OR cancel the hold.

Let’s be SUPER clear about this: this only applies to specialty checkout items (laptops, mifi units, etc.). This does not apply to regular items, books, DVDs, Prospector, or Interlibrary Loans.

The reason we’re trying this out is because once a hold is placed, the item is unavailable to anyone else during the entire checkout period. When a hold is not picked up, it takes that item out of circulation, usually for a full week, and we can’t always turn it around fast enough to get it back in the line.

The other thing we tend to see in libraries is that a very small number of people end up being responsible for the majority of abandoned holds. So, it’s our hope that by incentivizing people to pick up their requests (or make their requests more carefully, so they know they’ll be able to pick them up), we can adjust the system to get these items to a larger number of people.

Specialty Checkout items are really limited, and their use is a big help to a lot of folks. We owe it to our communtiy to get these items to as many people as possible.

New This Week!

January 11, 2022

This week’s new releases include a debut epic fantasy inspired by Chinese mythology, the long-awaited return of a beloved author, the memoir of an influential journalist, and a critically acclaimed documentary about Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – just in time for Martin Luther King Day.

Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan

Xingyin has grown up on the moon, hidden from the Celestial Emperor by her mother until she comes into her power and is discovered. This debut epic fantasy, which will finish in a second book in the Fall, was inspired by the Chinese legend of the moon goddess, Chang’e. It should draw in fans of S.A. Chakraborty’s City of Brass books, and anyone who loves emotional stories with a high stakes love triangle. Although the book is being published for an adult audience, there is strong potential for teen readers.

Book / eBook

The Final Case by David Guterson

Author David Guterson won over audiences in the 90s with his bestselling novel Snow Falling on Cedars, and fans have been waiting for more than a decade for a new Guterson book. The wait ends this week with The Final Case, which is his first courtroom drama since the runaway success of Snow Falling on Cedars. The story of the murder of an adopted Ethiopian girl was not only inspired by true events, but is also brought to life by Guterson’s own experiences as the father of an adopted Ethiopian daughter.

Book

Chasing History by Carl Bernstein

Carl Bernstein, along with his reporting partner Bob Woodward, made history when they broke the Watergate story and set in motion the resignation of a president. They won the Pulitzer Prize for that story, but long before they ever began that investigation Carl Bernstein was a 16-year-old high school student with a talent for writing and a dogged interview style, but who was in danger of not graduating. In Chasing History Bernstein brings us along on his first reporting job at the Washington Star, a first job that would set him on a path to change history.

Book

MLK/FBI directed by Samuel D. Pollard

Today we view Martin Luther King, Jr. as an inspiring visionary, a leader, and the shrewd decision maker at the head of the Civil Rights Movement. In the documentary MLK/FBI, we are shown how United States officials viewed Dr. King with suspicion, overwhelming him with surveillance and often treating him as an enemy of state. This sobering 2020 documentary has been a favorite of both critics and audiences, earning a 99% fresh rating on the website Rotten Tomatoes.

DVD

Freegal and Guidestar Not Renewed

Every year we have to make choices about which resources we will keep and which we will discontinue, and this year we will be saying goodbye to Freegal and Guidestar.

These choices are never easy as any resource has its fans and power users. This is never a personal choice, one that we make with the intention of hurting our users. It’s always a choice where we have to weigh the dissapointment against some other factors.

When we evaluate something like Freegal or Guidestar, we primarily look at how many individuals are using the resource, how much it costs, and then we can combine those two things to find a cost per user.

There are also cases where we provide an important educational resource that may or may not be heavily used, but it’s the only way someone can access certain material, and we want to make sure we leave that door open whenever possible.

The loss of Freegal is not one we’re excited about. It provides significant benefits, especially to those of us who prefer to listen to music without streaming or being connected to a smart device all the time. It was also a great way to maintain a level of service during shutdowns in 2020 and early 2021.

For now, the best ways to get music are to stream it on Hoopla, or to check out CD’s from your library. You can also use our Prospector and Interlibrary Loan services to get music that HPLD doesn’t currently own, and most libraries will happily lend CD’s that you can check out the same way you would check out an item from HPLD’s collection. It’s quick and easy, and the turnaround on Prospector especially tends to be fast.

We wish we could provide everything, but with the likelihood of a few lean budget years due to COVID effects, we’ve had to make some difficult choices. We’re hoping that by making some tough decisions early on, we can save some money at the start and avoid some of the harsher effects of tough economic times.

Thanks for sticking with us, and while we can’t promise all the choices in the coming years will be pain-free, we’re going to do our best to make smart financial decisions that make good use of taxpayer dollars.

Trustee Smock to remain on HPLD Board of Trustees

Effective January, 2022, High Plains Library District will reappoint Joyce
Smock to the Board for another term.

The High Plains Library District Board is a governing board which determines the policies of the library in relation to community needs, oversees the Executive Director, and ensures proper industry standards be maintained. The Board also oversees annual budget requirements and ensures adequate financing for the library operations.

Joyce Smock will remain on the Board representing Region 6: New Raymer,
Kersey, Grover. Smock will serve on the Board through December 2025.

“We are thrilled Trustee Smock was selected to remain on the Board and look
forward to her continued service and guidance,” said Dr. Matthew Hortt,
Executive Director for HPLD.

The Board typically meets the third Monday of each month at 5 or 6pm.
Meeting locations rotate among all of the libraries in the District. For
meeting details and more information about the Board please visit www.mylibrary.us/board

New This Week!

January 4, 2022

Welcome to the first installment of New This Week, where we share a few of our picks out of the week’s new releases. Our picks are likely to be generating industry buzz, flying below the radar, or be collecting praise from critics, library staff, or the general public. The week of January 4^th brings us three exciting books — one with big buzz from libraries, one with high expectations from critics, and a teen novel that’s flying below the radar.

The Maid by Nita Prose

The Maid was selected as the top LibraryReads pick for January, identifying it as the book library staff members nationwide are most excited about. Molly Gray works as a hotel maid and excels at keeping up appearances and keeping everything orderly, although she’s much less adept at reading social cues. When she stumbles on a body in a locked hotel room, her social awkwardness lands her directly on the main suspect list and forces her to try to find the real killer and clear her own name.

Book / Audio eBook

The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan

This debut novel is generating lots of buzz with its near-future dystopia that’s drawing comparisons to Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale. Frida Liu is the daughter of immigrants who’s been unable to live up to their expectations for her career, and who’s been unable to win her husband back from his mistress. Her only achievement of perfection is her daughter, but after a bad day and a mistake she loses parental rights. To get them back, she must enter a re-education institution to prove that even if she is a bad mother she can learn to be good by parenting an artificially intelligent doll.

Book

In Every Generation by Kendare Blake

Kendare Blake is a YA author who’s become known for her dark, scary, and often violent tales of horror and fantasy for teens. Who better to tackle new tales of the vampire slayer? Original fans of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and newcomers alike will enjoy this return to Sunnydale, which focuses on Willow’s daughter and a new generation of scoobies. When the slayers are attacked and Frankie’s Aunt Buffy goes missing, it’s up to Frankie to suit up in some vintage 90s clothes, carve a stake or two, and step up to save the world.

Book / eBook