FROM THE PRESIDENT

It's colder, dark, and (sometimes) raining outside as we head into November. What a perfect time to curl up with a good book! I finally read Sara Ryan's wonderful Empress of the World last week. What a treat! My latest is The Kitchen Boy, a story of the last days of Tsar Nicholas II and his family, told through the eyes of their youngest servant. I hope you're also finding time to enjoy some good writing in between teaching, shelving, and collaborating!

Change is constant in living organizations, and so it is with OEMA. We have three openings on the Board of Directors as people move to new jobs and new responsibilities: Parliamentarian, Awards Co-Chair and Promotions Assistant. If you have ever wanted to see what it's like to be part of the wonderful, dedicated group that does the work of OEMA, now is your chance! We welcome your participation and your ideas. If you are interested, or have any questions, please email me at martha_decherd@ddouglas.k12.or.us.

CONNIE HULL GRANTS DUE

Only 2 weeks left to submit your Connie Hull mini-grant application. These grants, made available through the Connie Hull Endowment Fund and OEMA fund-raising efforts, are intended to support the efforts of current OEMA members to give their library program a little boost. Each of the five grants is for $200. The money can be used for anything that promotes literacy and academic achievement in your library. Some grants have gone toward Battle of the Books projects or author visits or library publicity. Be as creative as you want to be. The application is only a page and your only obligation is to share what you did at the conference at Eagle Crest next year. An application can be found on the OEMA website <www.oema.net>. The application is due on Nov. 19, the winners will be notified on December 17 and you can use the rest of this school year to be fascinating and brilliant. Beat the rush and send your application in today.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM OCT. BOARD MEETING
Summary of minutes from 10-10-04 OEMA Board Meeting

• The OSLIS Committee and the Level Reps will work on filling in gaps in the school contacts information to make the OSLIS email list as complete as possible.
• Julie Anderson from ODE invited OEMA to provide training to their trainers (ESDs) on OSLIS & EBSCO.
• Martha Decherd & Linda Ague are presenting about OEMA at a hot topics table at the Oregon School Board Association conference in November
• The Board approved a motion to make our co-sponsorship of Letters About Literature on-going, unless there's a change. (approximately $200)
• An ad-hoc committee was formed to look into certification standards.  It will be led by Karen Wedeking
• The librarian award nomination date will be moved from March 15th to Jan. 31st and the applications for the librarian and administrator awards be moved from June to March 31st.
• The Board created an Ad hoc committee to explore the possibilities, opinions and consequences of changing the names of the organization and individual titles.

THANK YOU, CONFERENCE ATTENDEES

On behalf of OEMA and the 2004 Fall Conference Committee, I want to thank all of the attendees, exhibitors, speakers, and presenters who attended the fall conference in Astoria and Seaside.

I enjoyed the humorous adventures of Nancy Farmer's life in Africa, the photographs of the Lewis & Clark Trail by Dorothy Hinshaw Patent, the vendors' new products, the excellent YA Literature Extended Session, and the informative, captivating technology keynote presentation by Wayne Free. I wish that I could have attended more sessions.

New to the fall conference was the successful silent auction and garage sale. The silent auction raised over $1,000 for OEMA! 
Check your mail in the spring as I have Wayne Free coming back to Oregon for a two-day summer workshop! Once again, thank you for taking your weekend for a fun time at the coast. See you in Eagle Crest in 2005!

SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS

Anybody who has attended an OEMA conference knows what a great opportunity it is to meet with colleagues from around the state and gather great ideas to improve library service to our students and staff. It is exciting to announce that four individuals who might not otherwise have been able to attend the Fall Conference 2004 joined us in Seaside because they were selected to receive a "First Timer" Scholarship. The recipients reflected the wide range of backgrounds of the many deserving applicants working in K-12 school libraries all over Oregon. OEMA was pleased to award conference scholarships to Stacy Eakin, Librarian at South Sherman Elementary in Grass Valley; Esther Moberg, Library Assistant at Gearheart Elementary in Gearheart; Linda Starbuck, Library Aide at Seneca School in Seneca; and Glynna Stone, Vice Principal/Librarian at New Hope Christian School in Grants Pass. Each scholarship included a two-day conference registration, a ticket to the celebration luncheon, and one year of OEMA membership. 

RECENT RETIREES

At the conference celebration luncheon, OEMA recognized recent retirees for their dedicated work in our field. Linda Campillo of Lane Middle School received the 2004 OEMA Scholarship and Sandra Corson of Aloha Park Elementary received the 2004 Joyce Petrie Scholarship. OEMA members who have recently retired or will be retiring this year are Susan Gama, Cathy Harris, Ruth Ann Hopps, Dolores Johnston, Ann Magill, Nicola Maxwell, Greg Osborn, Nancy Pratt, Linda Rasmussen, Susan Schweitzer, Christine Sime, Karen Steele, and Pat Yecny.

OSLIS EBSCO TRAINING

A total of 252 library staff attended the EBSCO database training sessions held at thirteen academic, public and school library sites in Eastern and Southern Oregon the week of September 27th, and six Oregon coast sites during the week of October 11th.

Additional training were held November 1-5th in the Portland metropolitan area and the Willamette Valley.

Thanks to all of you for returning forms to the state library which means that you are subscribed to OSLIST. There are approximately 900 people subscribed to OSLIST and 80 to OSLIS-P (the listserv for private schools). As you read in the OEMA Board Highlights, board level reps will be contacting library staff in those schools that have not returned the forms to identify the person who staffs the library. Please help if a board member contacts you.

Patty Sorensen led a successful effort to get IP ranges for all school districts and forward them to EBSCO. This effort means that usage statistics can be gathered by district.

You should be using your new passwords which are based on the name of your school district. The old passwords (high, middle and elem) will become inactive by the end of November.

L-NET EXTENDS 24/7

L-net is pleased to announce that the extension of trial of 24/7 chat reference coverage through the month of November. L-net is able to provide this service because of librarian support from Tutor.com during our partner libraries' off-hours.

As of Oct. 25, L-net had received 299 chat reference requests, which puts them well on their way to meeting their goal of doubling the number of chat reference sessions they had this past September (182 sessions).

So far, L-net has also learned:

• The service is available at all times, but L-net's chat reference service is busiest between 9am and 9pm.
• One third of L-net patrons identify themselves as needing Elementary/Middle School or High School level help.
• The extension of the trial will allow L-net to fully evaluate their 24/7 coverage, including how well librarians from Tutor.com serve patrons, what hours coverage is needed the most, who is using the service, and what role being a 24/7 service plays in promoting the service well.

Caleb Tucker-Raymond, Oregon Statewide Digital Reference Coordinator attributes L-net's success to all of you, who have helped spread the word by linking to us and by helping to distribute promotional materials in your libraries and local schools. To learn more about promoting the service, please visit http://www.oregonlibraries.net/promote, or contact Caleb at (503) 988-5438 or at calebt@multcolib.org.

CONSIDERING NATIONAL BOARD CERTIFICATION? RESOURCES YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT

If you're thinking of pursuing National Board Certification, you may be eligible for financial assistance.

If you reside in a small school district (serving an area of 30,000 residents or less), contact The Ford Family Foundation in Roseburg, Oregon, at (541) 957-5574 or go to the foundation web site at http://www.tfff.org/cms/Default.aspx?tabid=62 for information about financial assistance for K-12 teachers in rural Oregon.

Teachers in larger communities should contact Cecilia Caryl at the Oregon Fund to Advance Teaching Excellence (OFATE) at (503) 674-8167 or Cecilia@hevanet.com. The Oregon Fund to Advance Teaching Excellence (OFATE) is a fund supported by private and public sector contributions to provide subsidies to teachers who participate in the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) assessment. OFATE is also the state administrator for federal candidate subsidy funds provided through the National Board Certification Fee Subsidy Programs.
Additional information about incentives and support available to Oregon teachers is available on the NBPTS web site at http://www.nbpts.org/about/stateinfo.cfm?state=Oregon.

WINTER TERM CLASSES AT PSU

Portland State University Library Media Program offers several library media endorsement & enrichment classes Winter Term 2005. Complete course descriptions and registration information can be found at <http://www.ceed.pdx.edu/lib_media>

• Lib 547, 536, and 542 are hybrid WEB CT classes, with 2 on-campus meetings & the rest of the class online. The first on-campus session is Sat., Jan. 8, 2005.
• Lib 547, Library Media Instructional Programs, Instructor: Tracy Russell
• Lib 536, Design and Production of Instructional Media, Instructor: David Bullock
• Lib 542, Collection Development & Evaluation, Instructor: Rebecca Macy
  Non-online classes include:
• Lib 509, 561,562, 563, Practica, Instructors: Sharon Embree and Tracy Russell
• Lib 432/532, Multicultural Literature. Instructor: Reba Parker.

If you have questions contact Deanna Draper <draperd@pdx.edu> or David Bullock. <bullockd@pdx.edu>
Phone 503 -725-8579
toll free 1-800-547-8887 ext 8579

WINTER TERM CLASS AT GEORGE FOX

George Fox University will be offering EDFL 554 Core Collection Development (3 Semester hours) Spring semester (Face to face classes on January 15 and April 19 at the Portland Center. registration is now open at http://edfl.georgefox.edu.

Course Description:
This course introduces the library media specialist to information access and delivery including the development of information resources, learning characteristics of students and staff, and methods for matching student needs with appropriate materials. The course will also emphasize reference and information sources and services in the school media center.

Course Objectives:

1. Development of knowledge about the complete range of educational and educational resources, the learning characteristics of the students and staff, and the methods for matching individual needs and interest with appropriate material.
2. Selection of current resources and equipment that are appropriate for accessing and producing information by both students and staff.
3. Development of a collection diverse in format and content that meets the needs of all members of the learning community, regardless of language, disability or other differences.
4. Evaluation, acquisition, provision, and promotion of information resources, both print and electronic.
5. Use of a variety of appropriate, timely tools and techniques, including reviewing sources, published evaluations and Internet sites to locate evaluate and select appropriate materials.
6. Design of collaborative activities involving teachers, administrators and other members of the learning community to build and maintain collections meeting the needs of all learners.
7. Review of selection policies designed to guard against barriers to intellectual freedom.

GOOGLE HAS NEW FEATURE

In case you didn't catch this, Google announced a new feature that is similar to Amazon's "look inside" feature. Check it out:
http://print.google.com/googleprint/about.html

HELP WANTED:
OEMA Parliamentarian, Awards Co-Chair and Promotions Assistant.

Please contact President Martha Dechards if you're interested in any of these board positions. Board members attend 4 meetings during the year and get to work with a committed group of school librarians.

CALENDAR

OEMA Newsletter -- Editor: Sheryl Steinke

Published monthly on the 5th of the month September through May
To receive the OEMA Newsletter by email, subscribe to the OEMA mailing list using the form at http://www.oema.net/telecommunication/list.html

Send news items for the Newsletter to:
* Email: sherylsteinke@comcast.net
* Mail: Sheryl Steinke at 2405 Blacktail Dr. Eugene, OR 97405

Deadline: 1 week before publication, except 2 weeks for the January issue.