Iowa - Staff Training & Recruitment

Knowledge River Now Accepting Applications!

2009-01-14T21:59:40Z

Dear Colleague,

It is a pleasure to announce that Knowledge River is now accepting applications
for our 8th cohort. Based at the University of Arizona?s School of
Information Resources and Library Science (SIRLS), Knowledge River is concerned
with the information interests and needs of Hispanics and Native Americans. Our
program offers students the opportunity to earn a Master of Arts degree in
Information Resources and Library Science, enhanced with Hispanic and Native
American cultural perspectives. Our degree is fully accredited by the American
Library Association.

Since its inception six years ago, Knowledge River has become a leader in
graduate professional education of Hispanic and Native American librarians and
information specialists. When the current cohort graduates, more than one
hundred Hispanic and Native American librarians will have entered the field
through Knowledge River.

Cohort 8 begins with one introductory class (IRLS 504: Foundation of Library
and Information Services) requiring a one-week residency in Tucson. Information
on dates is available on our website at http://sirls.arizona.edu. Full-time
semester attendance in Tucson is required in Fall 2009 and Spring 2010. Most
students complete the 36-credit degree with an additional summer and/or fall
semester. Support offered to KR scholars includes tuition and fees for IRLS
504, a graduate assistantship for Fall 2009 and Spring 2010 (usually involving
20 hours of work per week in a library), customized academic advising and
support, and peer support from fellow students. Additional funds for completing
the degree are usually available.

Knowledge River scholars must be accepted for admission into the SIRLS graduate
program. Application materials must be submitted no later than February 1,
2008. More information, including how to apply, can be found on our website:
http://sirls.arizona.edu/KR/indexl . Anyone interested is encouraged to email
us at KRiver@mail.sbs.arizona.edu, or call us at 520-621-3565 and ask to speak
to someone about Knowledge River applications.

Librarians today are front line information providers, and Knowledge River
scholars bring the benefits of the Information Age to Native American and
Hispanic communities. We appreciate your support by posting our brochure and
sharing this information with others. Assistance from colleagues such as you is
essential for the ongoing recruitment of the most qualified applicants. Thank
you!

Sincerely,

Jana Bradley
Professor and Director, SIRLS

Re: Pay differential for Spanish Speaking Staff?

2008-05-28T19:01:21Z

Hi J,

José Ruiz-Álvarez of the Irving (TX) Public Library kindly shared the City of Irving's language ability pay policy. Please see attached and keep us posted on how things shake out in your community.

Laura Staley

Re: Pay differential for Spanish Speaking Staff?

2008-05-22T15:27:25Z

Hi J,

Welcome! I know that the City of Irving Texas has a very good Language Pay Policy. If you pass a spoken language test (right now mostly Spanish and and a few Asian languages), you can get paid up to $150 a month for your skills.

I just sent an email to a librarian there to ask his permision to share their policy document with you.

LA County also offers compensation for bi-lingual employees.

I know that Tulsa City-County Library System is implementing a Compensation Study. I will email a contact there to see if she has any info she can share.

Laura Staley

Pay differential for Spanish Speaking Staff?

2008-05-21T19:48:35Z

I am currently gathering information on whether or not any libraries around the country (or elsewhere) institute a pay differential of any sort for Spanish-speaking staff.

If you have any information or examples it would be greatly appreciated. For example: What are the criteria for receiving such an incentive? How much is the incentive?

Thank you very much,
J Gerard

Knowledge River Now Accepting Applications

2007-11-16T18:40:14Z

Knowledge River is currently accepting applications for our next cohort
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What is Knowledge River?

Knowledge River, at the University of Arizona's School of Information Resources and Library Science (SIRLS), is concerned with the special information interests
and needs of Hispanics and Native Americans. Knowledge River offers students the opportunity to attain a Master's Degree in Information Resources and Library
Science and develop special areas of expertise, enhanced by our unique multicultural learning community.

Since its inception six years ago, Knowledge River has become a leader in graduate professional education of Hispanic and Native American librarians and
information specialists. When the current cohort graduates, more than 100 Hispanic and Native American librarians will have entered the field though Knowledge River.

Apply now to be in our next class!

Cohort seven begins with one introductory class (IRLS504) requiring a one-week residency (August 1-7, 2008) in Tucson. Full-time semester attendance in Tucson is required in Fall 08 and Spring 09. Most students complete the 36-credit
degree with an additional summer and/or fall semester.

Support offered to KR scholars includes tuition and fees for IRLS 504, a graduate assistantship for Fall 08 and Spring 09, (usually involving 20 hours of work per week in a library), customized academic advising and support, and peer support from fellow students. Additional funds for completing the degree are usually available on a competitive basis.

Knowledge River Scholars must be accepted for admission into the SIRLS graduate program by submitting application materials no later than February 1, 2008. Application information and materials are available on our
website: http://knowledgeriver.arizona.edu.

Please do not hesitate to ask us any questions you may have regarding Knowledge River, application procedures, academic requirements, financial aid, etc. For more information, contact us at kriver@mail.sbs.arizona.edu, or call (520) 621-3958.

SLO training for library directors

2007-10-23T20:39:11Z

Hello. I was a Round 2 trainer and conducted 3 workshops in Suffolk County, NY that were well attended and well received. However, just 2 of the 56 system directors attended. One of those directors suggested that I do a 2-hr version of the workshop, specifically for directors, since those were usually the ultimate decision makers in any library and would have the final say on Spanish language outreach initiatives in their service areas. Shortley after we scheduled a date, I found out that Yolanda Cuesta would be in the upstate New York area presenting a similar workshop for library staff there. We contacted Yolanda, and she agreed to do the workshop for directors here on Long Island. So, if you think you might have the need to reach more of your directors, check out where Yolanda may be. You never know! What follows is an excerpt from the invitation to system directors announcing the workshop. Jean

Colleagues,

SCLS is excited to be able to host a Multicultural Workshop geared specifically towards library directors and other top library administrators on serving ethnic and culturally diverse communities.

The workshop will be held on Wednesday, November 14 from 2:00-4:00pm in the SCLS Auditorium. The workshop will be presented by Yolanda J. Cuesta.

Ms. Cuesta specializes in helping libraries and other non-profit organizations serve ethnic and culturally diverse communities. Prior to starting her own consulting business, Yolanda was Chief of Library Development Services and Ethnic Services Consultant for the California State Library. She is a member of ALA; the California Library Association; the American Marketing Association; and REFORMA, the National Association to Promote Library Services to the Spanish-Speaking. Her library publications include "From Survival to Sophistication: Hispanic Needs = Library Needs" and "Guidelines for Library Services to the Spanish-Speaking," both published in Library Journal. Yolanda has a BS in Elementary Education and an MLS from the University of Texas at Austin. She has pursued additional training in cultural diversity, grantsmanship, program planning and evaluation, and train-the-trainer techniques

We know how important this issue is to all of our libraries at this time and we are confident that this will be a very worthwhile program. There is no registration required and we strongly encourage all directors to attend. Please feel free to bring along and/or send other top administrative staff.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Re: Recruitment of Spanish Speaking staff for public libraries

2006-10-19T20:17:06Z

Hi Patricia,
 
 
I just got back from the <a href="http://www.ala.org/ala/olos/jointconferenceoflibrariansofcolor/jclc2006.htm">JCLC</a> conference in Dallas and had LOTS of conversations about recruiting. I heard about one program that may have some ideas for your question, but really want to emphasize the need for some more resources in this area. I'm actually hoping there is enough out there to maybe pull together some best practices, templates, etc. to start a new area on WJ!
 
 
So, I blogged about the one presentation I saw that got me totally excited, the <a href="http://blog.webjunctionworks.org/?p=292">Urban Library Program</a>. They may not have anything posted as specific as their recruitment materials, but I'm hoping to find out more about their program.
 
 
I haven't dug too deep into ALA resources but their <a href="http://www.ala.org/ala/diversity/divrecruitment/recruitmentdiversity.htm">Recruitment for Diversity</a> looks to be a good place to start or the <a href="http://www2.lib.udel.edu/personnel/clearinghouse/">Recruitment Clearinghouse</a>. 
 Unfortunately I think there's a lot more out there for recruitment of LIS level staff and not much for entry level or paraprofessional.

I hope you all contribute some of your strategies here, and I'll look forward to having enough to create a wealth of resources on WJ!!

Recruitment of Spanish Speaking staff for public libraries

2006-10-17T23:12:33Z

Has anyone developed recruitment materials specifically targetting Spanish speakers as potential library employees? We would like to come up with a flyer about why the library is a great place to work.

Any samples, wording or tips welcome!

Patricia Pasqual
DC Public Library