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Volume XXXII, Issue I - March 2024

What's new at HQ?

Welcome to our Spring 2024 edition of Shortgrass Clippings! Read on to hear about what Shortgrass staff & libraries have been up to this quarter.

Upcoming Events

April 17: SLS Board Meeting

April 30: End of Radon Screening Kit lending period

May 1: Recommended deadline to make your summer programming kit bookings!

May 13: Library Manager Meeting

May 15: SLS Board Meeting

May 20: Victoria Day - Shortgrass office closed. Missed deliveries will be made up the following business day.

Shortgrass PD Day 2024 is Fast Approaching!

The Shortgrass PD Day is just a month away!

Shortgrass invites member library staff, volunteers, and board members to join us for a day of engaging and learning, on April 15th 2024, at the Esplanade in Medicine Hat.

We have a great lineup of speakers for you this year- join us to learn about everything from document accessibility through to dealing with difficult situations!

Head to Shortgrass.ca/Engage2024 to learn more & to register. Make sure you submit your registration by March 27th, 2024!

Udemy eLearning Platform

On January 1st, 2024, Shortgrass Library System launched Udemy, a new eLearning platform for libraries across the system.

We had 297 course registrations in January and February 2024, which is already a notable increase over Gale Course usage- we averaged 73.5 enrolments per month in 2023! Make sure to continue promoting this resource to your patrons, and hopefully we will see even higher usage through the rest of the year.

Don't forget that the "Getting Started with Udemy" brochure is available now (just ask Kait), and that plenty of promotional materials are available on the Promotional Materials Shared Drive!

(Also: for anyone wondering how to pronounce this new eResource- it's a portmanteau of "you" and a "academy", so we pronounce it you-demy!)

Five Fun Facts about our new Cataloguer, Sadaf!

1. I come from Iran. I was born and raised in Tehran, the capital city with a population around 16 million. I came to Canada as an international student 2.5 years ago.

2. Before I migrated, I was a translator. I have more than 10 books published in Iran.

3. I love travelling. My dream is to travel to as many countries as possible. Right now, Peru, Japan, and Italy are at the top of my bucket list.

4. I used to think that the only way to enjoy a book was to hold it in your hands. I started listening to audiobooks on my long 40-60 minute commutes to work and haven’t been able to stop. I love the fact that I can listen to books while I drive, cook, and do chores. My favourites are autobiographies read by the author.

5. I’m learning Spanish. I don’t spend as much time on it as I want to but I love it. I think it’s one of the most beautiful languages in the world.

Sadaf Hakimizadeh is the new Cataloguer / Technical Services Assistant at Shortgrass Library System. She is one of the staff who get library books ready for the shelves!

Five Fun Facts about our new Bookkeeper / Executive Assistant, Claudio!

1. I came from Chile in August 2022 to study Business Administration at the MHC. My family is here with me (wife, daughter and 3 cats!). They are my engine and biggest support.

2. I've been a metal head since I was 11 years old. There's something in heavy rock that has a hook on me....don't ask me why!

Claudio Requena is filling in as Bookkeeper / Executive Assistant during Bernadette's maternity leave. Contact him at [email protected] for all billing matters!

CEO Update

Petra Mauerhoff, CEO

Welcome to 2024!

We have hit the ground running in 2024 at Shortgrass: as our Bookkeeper / Executive Assistant began to prepare for her maternity leave, Claudio, who will be filling in for her, started training with her, to be ready to "take over" the position for 12 months. He arrived just in time to be part of the 2023 financial audit! We also welcomed new Cataloguer Sadaf in early January, making for a busy month.

• Bernadette Mouta, our Executive Assistant / Bookkeeper, has departed for maternity leave. We wish her all the best with her new arrival!
• Claudio Requena has joined us as Executive Assistant / Bookkeeper, and will be filling in for Bernadette while she is on maternity leave. Welcome Claudio! You can learn more about Claudio in the Shortgrass Updates section of this newsletter (just scroll back up!).
• Sadaf Hakimizadeh joins us as our new Cataloguer / Technical Services Assistant! Welcome Sadaf! Scroll back up to the Shortgrass Updates section of this newsletter to learn Five Fun Facts about Sadaf.

Client Services Update

Kait McClary, Client Services Librarian

Programming Kits

Shortgrass has some new programming kits! These kits are available to borrow now- contact Kait for details.

Giant Tic Tac Toss: Like tic-tac-toe, but in giant game form! This kit comes with a rope tic-tac-toe game "board", and wooden noughts and crosses. Two players can stand a few feet back from the game, and toss their pieces to try and get three in a row!

Jewelry Making for Kids: This kit has a bunch of child-friendly jewelry & keychain making supplies. That includes pony beads & cords, as well as rainbow loom supplies!

Jewelry Making for Adults: This one is for the grown ups! This kit is full of jewelry wire and cord, and thousands of beads. It even includes a bead spinner!

Summer is almost here!

Summer is almost here- have you planned your programs yet? As always, we recommend reserving programming kits as early as possible to ensure availability! This year, we recommend that you submit your booking requests no later than May 1st. Bookings will still be accepted after that date, but fewer kits will be available!

We are really excited to be welcoming back Christopher Cool the Magician, who will be visiting all fourteen libraries to put on a fantastic magic show. Libraries will have received their dates and times- shoot me a message if you want to confirm, or have any questions!

Summer prizes and materials have been ordered, and will be on their way to you in June.

Watch your emails for more summer updates!

eSkills Challenge

The latest eSkills Challenge is live!

As a reminder, the eSkills Challenge gives you a chance to brush up your skills on different digital resources. Practice logging in, searching, and more, and you'll be an expert in no time! The challenges are open to everyone across the system, and those who successfully complete the challenges are entered in the draw to win a $25 gift card.

This month, we're focusing on Udemy! Practice with our brand-new resource, and become more comfortable with patron questions. Follow this link to brush up your skills and enter the draw to win!

Systems and Technical Services Update

Lauralee Gilmour, Manager, Systems and Technical Services

WorkFlows: Secrets to Stylishness!

Customize WorkFlows with some cool settings tucked away in the Preference menu at the top! Under Preference, go to Desktop, then Desktop Setup, and you'll get a popup window with the following options.

• Want a snazzier colour scheme in WorkFlows?  Select a different choice in the Theme dropdown, like "Purple" or "Winter"!
  
  
• Put a checkmark next to "Tabbed windows" to set up WorkFlows to work like your browser - with tabs!
  
  

What's New at Shortgrass Member Libraries?

Five Fun Facts about Bow Island (Susan Andersen) Municipal Library Manager, Kathryn

5. And yes, I do love Vegemite sandwiches!

Kathryn van Dorp is the manager of the Bow Island Susan Andersen Municipal Library.

Grand Opening of the new Irvine Community Library!

The brand-new Irvine Library is now open!

February 3rd 2024 marked the grand opening of the new facility, which more than 200 people attended!

The beautiful new building more than doubles library floor space, and provides the library with a designated office/workroom, and a huge increase in storage. The facility is also home to a large meeting room, and a new playground with accessible equipment that is the first of its kind in Western Canada.

"Out Your Way" Paper Quilt at Bassano Memorial Library

At the CBC "Out Your Way" event in Bassano last November, community members created paper quilt tiles. CBC has put these together into a beautiful paper quilt, now displayed at the Bassano Memorial Library!

Chinese New Year at MHPL

Medicine Hat Public Library celebrated Chinese New Year, also known as Lunar New Year, on Feb. 4.

More than 200 people piled into the library theatre and the hall outside to see a lion dance performance by the Jing Wo Cultural Association of Calgary, after which the dancers and drummers posed for photos and allowed people to get a close up look at the lion costumes.

Calligraphy, crafts, new year fortune telling and more were also part of the popular event. The cultural group also donated a lion and drum to the library which was displayed in the lobby.

Thanks to everyone who attended and Medicine Hat Learn Mandarin Chinese for partnering for the event!

3D Printing now available at the Graham Community Library!

Graham Community Library has a brand-new 3D printer, which is already proving a great tool for community engagement! In early March a group of grade 2 students visited the library. They are learning about shapes, so the library printed out shapes for them- and while in the library, the students chose a model and watched the printing process!

Check out some of the library's fantastic 3D creations below.

In Library News...

Minister's Awards for Municipal and Public Library Excellence

Submissions are being accepted for the 2024 "Minister's Awards for Municipal and Public Library Excellence". If you have a program, project, or initiative that you are proud of, consider submitting it for this award!

Submissions are open until April 15th, 2024. More information can be found here.

Professional Development & Training

Engage 2024: Don't miss out on the 2024 Shortgrass PD Day!

Register by March 27th, 2024!

RA Divas: Spring 2024 Top Picks

Get to Know Udemy

Udemy is our new online learning platform! Check out this 45-minute webinar to learn all about this new resource, and how you can best share it with your patrons.

Available any time on-demand.

Southern Alberta Library Conference 2024: Navigating the Currents of Change

Register by April 12th!

The Librarian's Guide to Homelessness

Until December 2024, Shortgrass Library System is providing member libraries with The Librarian's Guide to Homelessness. This is an empathy-based training program aimed at providing frontline library staff with the tools to help them manage problem situations.

Consisting of a three-hour Core Training session and 30+ additional one-hour modules, this training is available to all member library staff/volunteers.

Register to dive into issues such as dealing with unsupervised children and teenagers; handling sensitive subjects such as body odour; de-escalating fights before they happen; and more.

To access the training, please get in touch with Kait. This training is available until mid-December, 2024.

Don't forget that our virtual meeting software, Zoom, is available to all Shortgrass member libraries.

Please contact Lauralee if you would like to book Zoom to host your next virtual program or Library Board Meeting.

Share Your Stories!

Anything new to share? Send us your photos, stories, and updates!

• Screenshots of a popular online event
• Photos of what's going on at your library- displays, programs, renovations, weeding projects
• News about your library

Submit updates to [email protected]

Shortgrass Library System

Resourceful by Nature

shortgrass.ca

2375 10th Ave SW, Medicine Hat, AB T1A 8G2

Tel. (403) 529-0550 – Toll Free Number 1-866-529-0550

Shortgrass Library System honours and acknowledges that we are situated on Treaty 7 and Treaty 4 territory, traditional lands of the Siksika, Kainai, Piikani, Stoney-Nakoda, and Tsuut’ina as well as the Cree, Sioux, and the Saulteaux bands of the Ojibwa peoples. We also acknowledge and honour that we are on the homelands of the Metis people.

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