June 15, 2008 (Vol. 14, No. 16)- Happenings

Oral History at ALA Annual/ PNLA Registration / Willamette ESD offers E-Rate filing service

Attending ALA Annual in Anaheim? Add Your Story to an Oral History!
Capturing Our Stories: a National Oral History Program of Retiring/Retired Librarians is coming to the ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim. We would like to invite librarians approaching the end of their professional careers to share their stories and be included in this oral history of librarianship.

Please visit the Stories website at http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/~stories/ to view the complete program description and learn how to become involved. You may volunteer to be a part of the project at http://www.ischool.utexas.edu/~stories/help/index.html .

There will be a workshop to learn more about oral history at the Annual Conference on Friday, June 27th. Lunch will be provided for participants who RSVP prior to June 10th. RSVP by emailing Stories@ischool.utexas.edu.

This is a wonderful opportunity to preserve our collective library wisdom.

Thank you,
— Loriene Roy, 2007-2008 President, American Library Association
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PNLA Conference 2008 – Libraries Go Wild! Early Bird Registration Ends June 27th
The call of the wild (librarians)!
Come and share your adventurous spirit as we sharpen our sticks, send our smoke signals, climb mountains, blaze trails, and yes—even sample bear stew!
You won’t want to miss Libraries Go Wild! Beyond the Expected! What’s more for those of you who take advantage of the early bird discount, you will be entered into a drawing for an Apple iPod nano – flash 4 GB – video playback! Get your registration in or postmarked by June 27.
Libraries Go Wild! (August 6-9). Online registration forms, Conference hotel information, and program schedules are now all available on the Conference Website at http://www.pnla.org/events/conference08/index.htm.
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Willamette ESD Offers E-Rate Filing Service to Libraries
The Willamette ESD is now offering e-Rate application services to Oregon libraries on a contract basis. 
My name is Sabrina Ganoe and I am the e-Rate Coordinator for Willamette Education Service District in Salem. My duties include processing the e-Rate application for our consortium as well as full service e-Rate application support to many school districts in Oregon. Willamette ESD provides these services on a contract basis to any eligible entity that needs help utilizing the program. We are now expanding our services to include Oregon libraries, and wanted to make you all aware of what we have to offer.
For those of you who may not know, e-Rate is a federal program that started in 1998 and is funded by the Universal Service charge that is assessed on telephone and Internet bills each month. The program is administrated by the Universal Services Administrative Company (USAC), and provides discounts to schools and libraries for their telecom and Internet services. There is a complex set of rules that govern the eligibility of each entity as well as the discount rate provided to them. The discount level ranges from 20% to 90%, and is determined by the percentage of students that qualify for the Free and Reduced Lunch program in your local school district. Here are some statistics:
There are 127 libraries in Oregon that may be eligible for e-Rate discounts. In 2007, only 36 of those requested a total of $328,712.41 from the program. In 2008, only 32 of those requested a total of $318,853.79 from the program. That means less than 1/3 of Oregon’s libraries are benefiting from this program.

The application process is tedious and in some cases it is perceived to be more work that it’s worth. That’s where we can help. Willamette ESD will handle all aspects of the application process, and can help you plan your purchasing activities in order to take full advantage of the program, and stay compliant with its rules. I work closely with your technology, procurement and finance departments to gather the necessary information to maximize the discounts you receive. In most cases, information can be gathered via email, fax, and phone; making it easy for your library to participate.

I really look forward to speaking with any of you who may be interested in obtaining our services. I can answer questions about the program, eligibility, and more. Check out the attached flyer for more information, and please feel free to contact me any time.

Sabrina Ganoe
e-Rate and Training Customer Service Rep
Willamette Education Service District
2611 Pringle Rd SE
Salem, OR 97302
P: 503.540.4495
F: 503.540.2962
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