1. School library aid distributed
2. IMLS releases FY2011 budget allocation table
3. Get a sneak peek of the new Every Child Ready to Read toolkit
4. Website of the Week
5. Calendar
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EDITOR'S NOTE: Channel Weekly will not be published on May 5, 2011. The next issue of Channel Weekly will be published on May 12, 2011.
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1. SCHOOL LIBRARY AID DISTRIBUTED

Wisconsin's public school districts are receiving school library aid payments of $27.29 per child, aged 4-20, who lives in the district. For the list of payments see the news release at /sites/default/files/imce/eis/pdf/dpinr2011_35.pdf.

Districts must use the aid by June 30 for books, media, or computer equipment housed in the school library.

The funds represent interest earned by investing the state's Common School Fund, which is composed of money paid to the state as fees, fines, or forfeitures, and revenues from public timberlands and unclaimed property. The Board of Commissioners of Public Lands, which manages the Common School Fund, puts the fund's principal into local government loans and bonds, as well as the State Investment Fund.

Earnings on these investments then become the only state aid specifically designated for library materials.

"A strong school library, with adequate resources and staffed by a school library professional, has a positive impact on student achievement," said State Superintendent Tony Evers.

This year's distribution was 5 percent larger than last year's. Tia Nelson, who serves as executive director to the board, attributed that to an increase in loan demand from Wisconsin communities.

Board members are Secretary of State and Board Chairman Douglas La Follette, Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen, and State Treasurer Kurt Schuller.


2. IMLS RELEASES FY2011 BUDGET ALLOCATION TABLE

Earlier this week, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) released its FY 11 budget allocation table (http://www.imls.gov/pdf/FY11BudgetAllocation.pdf).

This announcement follows Congress' approval of H.R. 1473, the budget bill that will fund the government through the remaining months to September 2011, which included across-the-board cuts.

The bill included a $28 million cut to IMLS, not including the agency's $16 million in lost earmarks that had already been eliminated. H.R. 1473 appropriated IMLS at $237.8 million for FY2011 and gave the agency up to 30 days to determine how to administer the cuts.

For FY2011 the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) will be funded at a total of $189 million, a $24.5 million cut from FY2010. The Grants to States section, which are the state population-based grants within LSTA, was appropriated at $160 million, down $12.5 million from the FY2010 level of $172.5 million. The Laura Bush 21st Century Library Professionals program that is designed to promote professional development among librarians was cut 47.7 percent from $24.5 million in FY2010 to $12.8 million in FY2011.

For Wisconsin, reduced funding for the Grants to States LSTA program will mean a 2011 allocation of $2,946,913, down 7.2% below our 2010 allocation of $3,174,392.


3. GET A SNEAK PEEK OF THE NEW EVERY CHILD READY TO READ TOOLKIT

At 1 p.m. CDT on May 4, the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC) and Public Library Association (PLA) will host a free Sneak Peek Webinar (http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/ecrr/ecrrwebinar.cfm) for the eagerly anticipated "Every Child Ready to Read® (ECRR) @ your library® 2nd Edition."

Featuring Dr. Susan Neuman (http://www-personal.umich.edu/~sbneuman/), professor in educational studies at the University of Michigan School of Education, and Elaine Meyers (http://plan-itelaine.com/), independent library consultant, this hour-long webinar will provide a review of the early literacy research that led to the development of the "ECRR 2nd Edition", an overview of the toolkit's components, and an opportunity for participants to ask questions.

Registration for the "Every Child Ready to Read® @ your library® 2nd Edition Sneak Peek Webinar" is free and is open to members and nonmembers alike. Registration is available at
https://plawebinars.webex.com/mw0306lc/mywebex/default.do?siteurl=plawebinars.

The ECRR program provides public libraries and other early literacy centers with tools to help prepare parents/caregivers for their critical role as their child's first teacher. The "2nd Edition" toolkit includes a series of customizable workshops that demonstrate how parents, grandparents, childcare providers and preschool teachers can use five simple practices-talking, singing, reading, writing and playing-to develop language and pre-reading skills in children from birth to age 5. "Every Child Ready to Read® @ your library® 2nd Edition" is scheduled to be available in June 2011.


4. WEBSITE OF THE WEEK

The National Center for Education Statistics -- http://nces.ed.gov/ -- The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the primary federal entity for collecting data related to education in the U.S. and other nations, and is located within the U.S. Department of Education and the Institute of Education Sciences. The purpose of this site is to make this data available.


5. CALENDAR

May 4, 2011 - Wisconsin E-Book Summit, Madison

May 4-6, 2011 - Wisconsin Association of Public Libraries (WAPL) annual conference, Madison

May 13, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development meeting, Madison

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Roslyn M. Wise
Editor, Channel Weekly
Department of Public Instruction
Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community Learning
PO Box 7841
Madison, WI 53707-7841
Phone: (608) 266-6439
FAX: (608) 267-9207