1. Committee Restores Funding for the Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library
2. LSTA grant information sessions
3. BadgerNet contract extension still being negotiated
4. Website of the Week - Civil War 150th Anniversary
5. Calendar
=================================================
EDITOR'S NOTE: Channel Weekly will not be published on June 9, 2011. The next issue of Channel Weekly will be published on June 16, 2011.
*************************************************************************************
1. COMMITTEE RESTORES FUNDING FOR THE WISCONSIN TALKING BOOK AND BRAILLE LIBRARY
On Friday, May 27, the Legislature's Joint Committee on Finance (JCF) voted 16-0 to restore funding for the Department of Public Instruction's contract with the Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library (WTBBL). This action restores $183,400 (annual restoration of $91,700 in each year of the biennium) from the Universal Service Fund and would bring funding for the WTBBL back to the funding level for the current fiscal year. The JCF vote did not change the proposed 10% reduction in funding for the three other statewide library service contracts (with the Milwaukee Public Library, WiLS, and the Cooperative Children's Book Center). The JFC plans to complete their work on the biennial budget bill this week, and the bill will next be considered by the full legislature.
2. LSTA GRANT INFORMATION SESSIONS
The LSTA Information and Guidelines for 2012 will be posted during the week of June 8th. There will be a limited number of booklets available in paper format. The LSTA Technology and "Boot Camp" category training sessions will be held by webinar on June 29, 2011 at 1:00-2:15 pm. Information sessions will be recorded and available at a later time via web posting. Following are the categories being discussed during the June 29th webinars and library systems are the eligible applicants:
• Broadband Upgrade Grant
• Public Library System Technology -- non-competitive
• Library Director Orientation ("Boot Camp") - competitive
The LSTA special needs categories' training sessions will be held by webinar on June 29th, 2011 at 10:00-11:15 a.m. The information session will be recorded and available at a later time via web posting. The decision was made not to fund the "JOBS: Search and Support" category in 2012. Following are the two special needs competitive categories available to public library and public library system applicants requiring partnerships and collaborations:
• Literacy -- competitive
• Accessibility - competitive
Webinar instructions for the two sessions will be emailed to those who register. To register, please email Terrie Howe at Teresa.Howe@dpi.wi.gov or call (608) 266-2413.
3. BADGERNET CONTRACT EXTENSION STILL BEING NEGOTIATED
Since March the state Department of Administration has been negotiating with AT&T on extending the BadgerNet contract for another five years (to October 2016). From the school and library perspective, it is hoped the contract will result in lower bandwidth costs thus allowing the TEACH program to fund more requests for bandwidth increases. With the contract extension it is likely that public school districts and public library system headquarters will get a 100Mbps BadgerNet circuit for $250/month. Bandwidth increases to public libraries are still under discussion. While it is not possible to know the exact timeframe to complete the contract extension, it is hoped that negotiations will be done in the next several weeks. If you have any questions, please contact Bob Bocher, 608-266-2127, robert.bocher@dpi.wi.gov.
4. WEBSITE OF THE WEEK
Civil War 150th Anniversary -- http://www.civilwar.org/150th-anniversary/ -- The Civil War Trust Civil War Sesquicentennial page offers up a wide range of historical articles and features focusing on the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. You can also find links to other state Sesquicentennial sites and news. (website reference courtesy of refdesk.com)
5. CALENDAR
July 8, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development meeting, Green Bay
September 9, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development meeting, Madison
November 1-4, 2011 - Wisconsin Library Association annual conference, Milwaukee
November 11, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development, Milwaukee
==================================================
To access previous issues of Channel Weekly, or to subscribe or unsubscribe,
go to: http://channel.dpi.wi.gov/chn_chweekly
==================================================
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
2. LSTA grant information sessions
3. BadgerNet contract extension still being negotiated
4. Website of the Week - Civil War 150th Anniversary
5. Calendar
=================================================
EDITOR'S NOTE: Channel Weekly will not be published on June 9, 2011. The next issue of Channel Weekly will be published on June 16, 2011.
*************************************************************************************
1. COMMITTEE RESTORES FUNDING FOR THE WISCONSIN TALKING BOOK AND BRAILLE LIBRARY
On Friday, May 27, the Legislature's Joint Committee on Finance (JCF) voted 16-0 to restore funding for the Department of Public Instruction's contract with the Wisconsin Talking Book and Braille Library (WTBBL). This action restores $183,400 (annual restoration of $91,700 in each year of the biennium) from the Universal Service Fund and would bring funding for the WTBBL back to the funding level for the current fiscal year. The JCF vote did not change the proposed 10% reduction in funding for the three other statewide library service contracts (with the Milwaukee Public Library, WiLS, and the Cooperative Children's Book Center). The JFC plans to complete their work on the biennial budget bill this week, and the bill will next be considered by the full legislature.
2. LSTA GRANT INFORMATION SESSIONS
The LSTA Information and Guidelines for 2012 will be posted during the week of June 8th. There will be a limited number of booklets available in paper format. The LSTA Technology and "Boot Camp" category training sessions will be held by webinar on June 29, 2011 at 1:00-2:15 pm. Information sessions will be recorded and available at a later time via web posting. Following are the categories being discussed during the June 29th webinars and library systems are the eligible applicants:
• Broadband Upgrade Grant
• Public Library System Technology -- non-competitive
• Library Director Orientation ("Boot Camp") - competitive
The LSTA special needs categories' training sessions will be held by webinar on June 29th, 2011 at 10:00-11:15 a.m. The information session will be recorded and available at a later time via web posting. The decision was made not to fund the "JOBS: Search and Support" category in 2012. Following are the two special needs competitive categories available to public library and public library system applicants requiring partnerships and collaborations:
• Literacy -- competitive
• Accessibility - competitive
Webinar instructions for the two sessions will be emailed to those who register. To register, please email Terrie Howe at Teresa.Howe@dpi.wi.gov or call (608) 266-2413.
3. BADGERNET CONTRACT EXTENSION STILL BEING NEGOTIATED
Since March the state Department of Administration has been negotiating with AT&T on extending the BadgerNet contract for another five years (to October 2016). From the school and library perspective, it is hoped the contract will result in lower bandwidth costs thus allowing the TEACH program to fund more requests for bandwidth increases. With the contract extension it is likely that public school districts and public library system headquarters will get a 100Mbps BadgerNet circuit for $250/month. Bandwidth increases to public libraries are still under discussion. While it is not possible to know the exact timeframe to complete the contract extension, it is hoped that negotiations will be done in the next several weeks. If you have any questions, please contact Bob Bocher, 608-266-2127, robert.bocher@dpi.wi.gov.
4. WEBSITE OF THE WEEK
Civil War 150th Anniversary -- http://www.civilwar.org/150th-anniversary/ -- The Civil War Trust Civil War Sesquicentennial page offers up a wide range of historical articles and features focusing on the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. You can also find links to other state Sesquicentennial sites and news. (website reference courtesy of refdesk.com)
5. CALENDAR
July 8, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development meeting, Green Bay
September 9, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development meeting, Madison
November 1-4, 2011 - Wisconsin Library Association annual conference, Milwaukee
November 11, 2011 - Council on Library and Network Development, Milwaukee
==================================================
To access previous issues of Channel Weekly, or to subscribe or unsubscribe,
go to: http://channel.dpi.wi.gov/chn_chweekly
==================================================
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
For questions about this information, contact Roslyn Wise (608) 266-6439