Summer 1999
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Emergent Reader Collections
APL highlighted as a leader among libraries
Summer Library Reading Program
Meet the Circulation Section
Planning Process Update
Young Adult Programming
Meet our New Technology Coordinator
Let's Talk About... Book Discussions
Greg Brown Concerts at APL
Greta Van Susteren Speaks at APL
Summer Activities at APL
Emergent/Beginning Reader Collection
With a generous grant from the Library Foundation, a browsing collection of book/cassette tapes for beginning/emergent readers has
been added to the materials in Children's Services. The reading level of the books in this collection ranges from kindergarten to grade
3 and contain some favorite authors such as Peggy Parish, Arnold Lobel, Cynthia Rylant, and Lillian Hoban with their Amelia
Bedelia, Frog & Toad, Henry & Mudge, and Arthur titles, along with other favorites.
For many, especially beginning readers and second language students, listening while reading helps improve reading and listening
skills and eases the transition to reading longer chapter books independently. Listening, while reading, adds the benefit of hearing
pronunciation, phrasing, and inflections of the English language.
Picture book/cassettes for preschoolers and audio book versions of longer chapter books in the fiction collection for older readers were
already a part of the Children's Collection. With the addition of this new book/cassette collection, children from the very young to
older elementary readers and beyond will have the benefit of being able to listen to a story as they read along.
APL highlighted as a leader of libraries
The Appleton Public Library has been included as a notable library "poised to enter the twenty-first century" in the new book
Reinvention of the Public Library for the 21st Century, edited by William L. Whitesides, Sr. and published by Libraries Unlimited.
The book contains essays about the library environment, the public library as "place", people and libraries and the use of technology to
provide library service. Eleven libraries, most from large cities such as Atlanta, New York, San Francisco and Kalamazoo as well as
the Appleton Public Library are profiled as leaders among public libraries.
Library Director Terry Dawson says in the book that new technologies have given librarians new tools and opportunities to do "what
we've always tried to do," which is to promote learning and make all kinds of knowledge from all points of view available to all parts
of society.
Graduate students from the School of Library and Information Science of Catholic University of America wrote the essays in the
book.
1999 Summer Library Reading Program
A free Tom Pease concert kicks off the Public Library's 1999 children's summer library program theme: "Go Global: Read!" The
library can play a key role in maintaining reading skills as well as keeping kids productively entertained in the summer. Exciting free
activities with a world-wide spin will be offered. Children of all ages can register June 7 or any time after to participate in the nine
week reading program, including reading incentive games for school age children and a "read-to-me" program for birth through five
years of age.
There will be a 6 week series of story times scheduled for preschoolers in July and a three week series of videos on Wednesdays in
August. The program features volunteer opportunities for teens to work in the library store. New this year is an electronic reading
program for school age children via the library's web pages.
Families are invited to shows by special performers. The kick-off program with songster Tom Pease will include performances June 7
at 1:30 and 2:30. Tuesdays in July include storytellers, musicians, and story time by staff from radio station WROE. The Library
Foundation's FOAL Endowment Fund has generously underwritten the costs of the performances.
The statewide program is sponsored annually by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction to encourage children to read for
pleasure and explore resources available at their public library. As they enjoy books and other library materials, they can maintain or
improve their reading skills and build lifelong interests.
Call 832-6187, stop in at the library or visit the library's web page at www.apl.org for more information. The library building is
handicapped accessible, and with advance notice, arrangements can be made for sign language interpretation.
Meet the Circulation Section
The Appleton Public Library circulation desk is the public part of the library's circulation section. The behind-the-scenes section is
actually about three times as large as the visible circulation desk area and has roughly 30 full-, part-time, and weekend staff members
who are responsible for keeping track of the library's collection.
Some of the circulation staff work at the circulation desk, where they check out, renew materials, negotiate fines, retrieve reserves,
register patrons, and answer questions. They also prepare materials from other libraries for checkout, collect materials from the
shelves that are wanted at other libraries, maintain the new books shelves, notify people that the materials they've reserved are
available, and monitor gate security.
When materials are late, overdues are sent, shelves and replacement prices are checked, and bills are prepared. When materials are
returned, they are sorted and reshelved. After that, circulation staff inventory materials, help weed the collection, and scan the shelves
to keep the collection in order. They also prepare magazines and newspapers for public use, clean up library materials lying around at
the end of the day, and shift the collection when necessary.
About 45,000 people use the Appleton Public Library each month, checking out on a monthly average 72,000 items. Each month
about 2,000 patrons will receive items they had reserved. About that same number of patrons at other libraries in the area will receive
APL's materials, too, because APL is the resource library for the Outagamie Waupaca Library System. APL will register more than
8,000 new patrons this year, maintaining a database of 65,000 patrons. Staff at the circulation desk answered more than 1,000
questions last month. They also keep track of all these statistics!
Since APL's circulation section manages patrons' reserves and checks out all materials, they know that patrons' favorite novelists are
John Grisham, Maeve Binchy, Nora Roberts, John le Carre, Barbara Kingsolver, Patricia Cornwell, Robert Parker, Robin Cook, and
Barbara Taylor Bradford. Titles with the most reserves right now include The Testament by Grisham and The Greatest Generation by
Tom Brokaw.
Planning Process Update
The library's Planning Committee has been working with library consultants Himmel and Wilson to discuss a community vision and
the library's place within that vision. They reviewed library surveys to formulate service responses, which were then reviewed by
library administration and supervisors. After fine-tuning, the service responses will be incorporated into the 1999 city budget planning
process.
Library surveys showed a high level of customer satisfaction. The top priorities for service responses included providing popular
reading, listening and viewing materials, information and materials related to school assignments and materials to help people learn
about topics of interest. The surveys indicated low usage of the library's web site and problems with placing holds from home. While
most library users were from the city of Appleton, almost ten percent of the users drove over ten miles to come to the library.
Adequate parking continues to be a concern. Most non-users of the library indicated they just do not have the time.
Members of the Planning Committee include: Kathy Schuessler, Chair, Ethel Himmel, Bill Wilson, Terry Dawson, Barbara Kelly,
Cecilia Wiltzius, Donald Churchill, Terry Bergen, Jody Merenick, Rick Krumwiede, Kathy Voigt, Jane Garton, and Patricia Warrick.
Young Adult Programming
With a grant from the Appleton Library Foundation, the library has hired a part-time Young Adult Library Assistant, Dan Weiner.
Dan, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, also works as a substitute teacher in the area.
On Monday June 7 at 7:00 pm, the library will host a kick-off event with a Star Wars theme that is free and open to the public,
particularly middle and high school-age young adults. The party will feature science fiction character costume and trivia contests with
prizes for the winners. The video "The Making of Star Wars" will be shown. Refreshments will be served.
Dan will also be a discussion leader for the summer Feel the Force...of Reading book club. The programs are open to middle school
students and will be held at 1:00pm on selected Tuesdays this summer. The schedule is:
June 15
June 29
July 13
July 27
Aug 10
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
Shadow of the Dragon by Sherry Garland
John F. Kennedy by Marta Randall
Pre-registration is requested for Feel the Force...of Reading. Contact Community Services at 832-1695.
Meet the new Technology Coordinator
The Library is happy to welcome Patty Curthoys as our new Technology Coordinator. Patty comes to us from her most recent
position as Electronic Library Development Specialist at the Library of Michigan. She has also worked as a selector of websites for
the University of Michigan's Michigan Electronic Library, and as Technology Coordinator for the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library
System.
Patty is single, and lives in her newly purchased home with her pets, including cats, dogs, and fish. She enjoys golf, gardening and
cross-country skiing, as well as reading and "puttering around the house". She was involved with Habitat for Humanity in the other
areas where she has lived, and hopes to become involved with that organization here in the Valley.
She comes originally from Buffalo, New York, and Patty's two brothers and sister still live in that area. She also has family in Florida,
California, New York City and Phoenix, Arizona.
Patty began her new job here at the library on March 29, 1999, and has begun to get our technological house in order already. Her
position is a new one for the library, and the duties she will be performing have been spread out among several staff members in the
past. The Library will benefit from having them centralized in one person and will also benefit from her considerable expertise in
these areas. Welcome Patty!
Let's Talk About… Book Discussions
With a grant from the Appleton Library Foundation, Community Services has hired Camille Banks as a part-time Program Assistant.
Camille has conducted book discussion programs for the library in the past and will continue doing so as she leads the Let's Talk
About... the Oprah Book Club Books this summer. The discussions will be held in the lower level meeting room of the library at
7:00pm. The schedule is:
June 21
Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts
July 19
Midwives by Chris Bojahlian
August 16 Jewel by Bret Lott
Copies of the books are available through the Community Services office. Call 832-1695 for details.
APL hosts Greg Brown concerts
Recording artist Greg Brown will present two concerts at the Appleton Public Library June 17 at 4:00pm and 7:30pm in the lower
level meeting room. Free tickets, two per person, are being distributed through Library Administration from 9am-5pm. Any
remaining tickets will be available the day of the show on a first come, first served basis in any number requested.
Brown's publicity brochure says "Greg Brown writes powerful, intimate songs, full of unforgettable images and well-lit snapshots of
the human condition. In his live shows, he takes the humor, warmth, and insight of his recordings and multiplies them exponentially,
as he improves on his lyrics, music, and stories in a way the best jazzman improvises on a melody."
Brown's music combines old country, blues, folk and gospel. He has recorded thirteen albums for Red House Records. His latest title
is Slant 6 Mind. Some titles will be available for sale at the concerts. Brown has appeared on Prairie Home Companion and at the Big
Top Chautauqua. Other performers who have recorded his songs include Willie Nelson, Carlos Santana, and Mary Chapin Carpenter.
The Appleton Library Foundation has provided support for the concerts.
APL hosts speaker Greta Van Susteren
Appleton native Greta Van Susteren will speak at the Appleton Public Library July 15 at 7:00pm in the lower
level meeting room. Her presentation, "Current Topics in American Law", is free and open to the general
public.
Van Susteren is the co-host of CNN's Burden of Proof. Calling herself a "law geek", Van Susteren will try to
demystify the law in her presentation.
Van Susteren graduated from Xavier High School in Appleton. She completed her undergraduate degree at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison and two law degrees from Georgetown University in Washington, DC.
Her presentation is made possible with a grant from the Appleton Library Foundation.
Summer Activities at APL
Summer at the Appleton Public Library
For Children and Families (Call 832-6187 for details)
Go Global: Read! Summer Library Program June 7-August 7
Birth and up: Read-to-me Club
Age 7 and up: Readerville Game
Age 10 and up: Bookopoly
All ages: Ports of Call Online Program at www.apl.org
Tom Pease June 7 1:30pm & 2:30 pm
It's a Small World Storytimes Mondays July 12-August 16 7:00pm
Drop Anchor! Programs Tuesdays in July 1:30pm
International Buffet of Stories on Video August 4, 11, 18 10:00am
For Young Adults (Middle-High School; Call 832-1695 for details)
Feel the Force...of Reading Party June 7 7:00pm
Feel the Force...of Reading Book Discussion Programs 1:00pm
June 15 A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court by Mark Twain
June 29 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
July 13 Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
Aug 10 John F. Kennedy by Marta Randall
For Adults (Call 832-1695 for details)
Greg Brown
June 17 4:00 and 7:30pm (Free tickets required)
Greta Van Susteren Current Topics in American Law July 15 7:00pm
Friends of Books Discussions 2:00pm
June 9
Personal History by Katharine Graham
July 14 What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day by Pearl Cleage
Aug 11 A Civil Action by Jonathan Harr
Let's Talk About...The Oprah Book Club Books 7:00pm
June 21 Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts
July 19 Midwives by Chris Bojahlian
Aug 16 Jewel by Bret Lott
American Visions video discussion 6:30pm
Aug 5
A Wave From the Atlantic
Discussion leader: Laurel Spencer-Forsythe
Healing and the Mind video discussion 1:00pm
Aug 19 Mystery of Chi
Aug 26 The Mind Body Connection
Health Related Resources on the World Wide Web
June 22 1:00-3:00pm
Or
July 13 10:00am-12:00pm