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You are here: Home Page > News NewsApril 2005 - RTÉ Project 'Skeletons in the Closet' RTÉ is currently beginning pre-production on a new history series, which will give individuals the opportunity to investigate an interesting or unique character from their family’s past. RTÉ are asking libraries to circulate this information to Local History Groups in their area. The series will focus on various world events, such as the Spanish Civil War, World War One, the Irish in the British Army in India… Each story will take us right back to wherever there were larger than life Irish characters and the world they lived in. Groups or individuals can e-mail Sara Barr a couple of paragraphs outlining what you know already about your relative and what you want to ascertain. A Poster is available for download
( March 2005 - Cork County Librarian is new President of Library Association of Ireland The new President of the Library Association of Ireland is Ruth Flanagan, Cork County Librarian. She was inaugurated on Thursday 11th March at the LAI AGM 2005 in Cork during Library Ireland Week 2005.
March 2005 - Library Ireland Week 2005 was launched in the Mansion House, Dublin on Monday March 7th. The launch included a performance by the Drama Group Bare from Dundalk Institute of Technology "Building a Bridge of Books". LAI President, Gobnait O'Riordan spoke of the historic significance of the Mansion House and thanked the Lord Mayor Councillor Michael Conaghan for hosting the launch. It was in the Round Room of Mansion House that the Library Association of Ireland was founded in 1928. She also spoke of the importance of Library Ireland Week for the LAI as an event "which will see great emphasis on the role libraries and librarians in Irish cultural, educational and economic life." January 2005 - The Library Association of Ireland has signed onto The Campaign for World Libraries. Co-sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), The Campaign for World Libraries is designed to showcase the unique and vital roles of public, school, academic, government and special libraries around the globe. It is based on the The Campaign for America's @ your library® brand. The @ your library brand will be translated into Irish. For more information on the Campaign for the World's Libraries, go to www.ifla.org/@yourlibrary/index.htm There will be more information on this website including projects underway in other countries and examples of how members can incorporate the logo into their local campaigns and events. 1st December 2004 - An exciting new LAI Group, founded in response to an initiative of the Genealogy and Local History Section of IFLA, and whose primary aim is to provide a forum for LAI members working, or with an interest, in genealogy and local studies, has just been launched. Read further about the new group... 2nd April - The LAI's general discussion list, LAINET, has moved to a new home. Existing subscribers have been added automatically. To subscribe to LAINET send an e-mail to lainet-on@lists.libraryassociation.ie. Enquires to listmaster@lists.libraryassociation.ie 30th March 2004 – New issue of Leabharlann-E now available. Members who wish to receive the newsletter should submit their e-mail address to Brendan Teeling at leabharlann-e@libraryassociation.ie. 12th February 2004 - Issue number 3 of Leabharlann-E, the LAI’s electronic newsletter, is being distributed to members. Members who wish to receive the newsletter should submit their e-mail address to Brendan Teeling at leabharlann-e@libraryassociation.ie. 4th October 2003 - First edition of new electronic newsletter now available The first edition of the LAI’s new electronic newsletter is now out. The newsletter was sent to all registered members by e-mail on Friday 3rd October. Members who have not received the e-mail should contact Brendan Teeling. Please note that the newsletter is sent to members only. 13th March 2003 - New President takes office
Catherine Watters, Price Waterhouse Coopers, remains on as Treasurer of the LAI and Geraldine McHugh, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Library, continues as Honorary Secretary. A new Executive Board also took office on 13th March. View the full list of incoming Executive Board members. 4th March 2003 - Report of the organisational review of the LAI now available The review of the LAI, carried out by Work Research Co-operative (WRC)
consultants, is now completed. WRC made a presentation to the Executive
Board on 27th February, following which a copy of the Executive Summary
of the report is being posted to all members. The report will be discussed
at the AGM on 13th March. Access the full
report here. 27th February 2003 - LAINET now at new address [NOTE: Obsolete - 04/10/03] The LAI's e-mail discussion list, LAINET, has moved to a new address on the LAI's web server. Subscribers to the original Yahoo list have been subscribed to the new list and will receive a message announcing the change. People wishing to subscribe to the list should send a message to requests@lists.libraryassociation.ie with the following command in the body of the message: subscribe lainet To subscribe to the digest version the command is: subscribe digest lainet There are over 200 subscribers to LAINET but list administrator, Brendan Teeling, says that he hopes even more people will join. “The list is a great way for library colleagues to announce events, ask questions, have a moan, or propose new ideas - all are welcome to join.” Further information from Brendan Teeling. 17th December 2002 - LAI REVIEW GETS UNDERWAY The review of the Library Association of Ireland, being carried out by Work Research Co-operative (WRC) consultants is now underway. Members' Survey Non-members' Survey Report 20th September 2002 - KNOWLEDGE BEGINS ...AT THE SCHOOL LIBRARY [Press Release] This publication is the report of a study carried out in 1999, by Dr. Deirdre Haslett, for the Library Association of Ireland. The research and this new publication have been made possible though funding from the Department of Education and Science. It is the first comprehensive review of library provision for primary schools in Ireland. The Consultative Committee that directed the study was representative of the main stakeholders- the Irish National Teachers' Organisation, Library Association of Ireland, the National Parents' Council-Primary, An Chomhairle Leabharlanna and the Department of Education and Science. The report looks at school library provision internationally and in Ireland. Teachers' views on school library provision were analysed by means of questionnaire. In addition, there were focus group meetings with teachers, parents and librarians. The Library Association of Ireland has been campaigning for many years for improved funding of school library services provided through the local authority public library system; it has also been seeking the provision of school libraries at all levels of education. The Library Association of Ireland believes that good school library provision will help to provide equality of opportunity for all children. Copies of the Report will be distributed to all primary schools, free
of charge, through the local authority schools library service. Distribution
to the schools library service nationwide is through the generous sponsorship
of John Treacy, IES, Leixlip. Copies will also be distributed to every
public library. [Print version (MS Word (24.5kb)) of this press release] 10th June 2002 - NOMINATION TO CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL PANEL [Press Release] The Library Association of Ireland has nominated Paschal Mooney to contest the election on the Cultural and Educational Panel. Marjory Sliney, 14th April 2002 - Copyright Explanatory Leaflet. The European and International Affairs Panel of the Library Association of Ireland recently published an explanatory leaflet which outlines the main provisions of the Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000 as it relates to the supply of copies to library users. Copies of the leaflet are being made available to all library staff
in academic, public and special libraries. 7th March, 2002 - Annual General Meeting 5th March 2002 - Munster Regional Section
Annual General Meeting 17th December 2001 - Online Directory launched. [Press Release] The Directory is hosted at the LAI's web site, www.libraryassociation.ie, and contains contact details and information on libraries throughout the island of Ireland. "We're delighted that the Directory has come alive at last" said Marjory Sliney, President of the LAI. "I'm sure that this online version will become just as invaluable to colleagues as the old hard-copy editions did." The last printed edition was published in 1996 and well-thumbed copies are still a familiar sight on librarians' desks. The online Directory includes the facility for libraries to update their own entry, thus ensuring that the data are always up-to-date. Madeleine Coyle, Chair of the Library Association (Northern Ireland Branch) (LANI), remarked that this is one of the main features of the online version: "I hope that colleagues will take the time to update their entries, as this is the best way to ensure the currency of the data." Although it has been a long time coming, the Directory will be further developed over the next year, according to the editor, Brendan Teeling. "Many entries have not yet been updated and are still based on the last print edition, so people should check the data as soon as they can. I can give them the username and password needed to access the edit facility. I hope people will use the Directory and let us have their suggestions as to how it can be approved" said Brendan. 4 December 2001 - The Library Association of Ireland welcomes BABIES LOVE BOOKS PROJECT. [Press Release] Babies Love Books packs have been specially selected by librarians for children under 1 year and will be delivered by the public library network to local health centres for children at their 9 month check-up. These packs have been funded by the Department of Education and Science and will be available free of charge to parents. There are 5 books in the pack: Rosie's Walk Speaking after the launch, Marjory Sliney, President, Library Association of Ireland said "International research shows that the more children are familiar with books, the greater are their literacy skills and hence their ability to partake in the democratic process. We know that this initiative will introduce babies to the excitement and pleasure of books and reading - a gift that will last throughout their lives." For further information, please contact: 22 October 2001 - Policy Statement on Library Services to Children and Young People published. [From Press Release] The Library Association of Ireland supports the provision of quality library services to ALL children and young people. Quality provision by professionally qualified staff is crucial in an age when we can see the results of a widening gap between different sections of society. We call on decision-makers to make a commitment to our children - the leaders of tomorrow. The policy covers the Information Society, literacy, culture and the arts, funding and staffing levels for the provision of library services to young people. The policy calls for
Commenting on the Policy Statement, Minister for the Environment and Local Government, Noel Dempsey said "this policy echoes the Branching Out report in calling for free library membership for all children and I will be announcing a major new initiative on this matter in the near future." Following the publication, Storyteller Michael Moylan of Irish History Live entertained young people at Cabra Library. For further information, contact: 19-21 October 2001 - Libraries for Life: Assistant Librarians' Section Annual Conference 2001 Location: Bloomfield House Hotel, Mullingar, County Westmeath. One-Day Seminar The Munster Regional section of the Library Association of Ireland will hold a one-day seminar entitled "The Library in the Community" in University College Cork on Monday, September 17th, 2001. The purpose of the day is to suggest practical ways in which we can raise the profile of our libraries in the various communities they serve. The seminar is open to all library staff working in public, academic and special libraries in Munster and it will address the theme from a number of different perspectives. For further information, please contact Denis Murphy, Cork County
Library, Farranlea Road, Cork. Tel 021-4546499 e-mail dinjmurphy@hotmail.com
or Catherine Kennedy, Institute of Health Sciences, Limerick Tel. 061-483975
e-mail ckennedy@mwhb.ie. 31 July 2001 - Poster on Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000 launched [Press Release] The poster was prepared by the European and International Affairs Panel of the Association. This Panel has been monitoring the recent legislation and is still lobbying on behalf of libraries and their users. The poster is being distributed to every library in the country - academic, public and special. It is hoped that distribution will be complete by the end of August 2001. For further details on the poster or any aspect of copyright, please
consult Libraries requiring copies of the poster should e-mail marjory.sliney@fingalcoco.ie Copies of the poster are also available here in MS Word (31.5kb)and PDF (35.4kb) format. 30 July 2001 - Changing Faces at the Library Association of Ireland [Press Release] Marjory Sliney has been a librarian for twenty years and has worked in academic, public and special libraries. She has also worked in Saudi Arabia where she set up a hospital library. A sociologist by training, she read for a primary degree at the National University of Ireland, Dublin, and for a Master's degree at the National University of Ireland, Cork. She pursued her library training at the College of Librarianship at Aberystwyth, Wales. She is a Chartered Librarian (UK) and is an Associate of the Library Association of Ireland. She was a Vice-President of the Association for three years and has been actively involved in LAI affairs over the last several years. She was Director of Fundraising for the Library Association of Ireland's publication, Library File: making a success of the School Library (1999). As well as contributing a chapter to this publication, she contributes regularly to the professional press and has been a reviewer for Library Association Record (UK) since 1987. She has lectured on various aspects of librarianship over the years and has contributed, on behalf of the Association, to the ASTI (Association of Secretary Teachers in Ireland) in-service training programme. Other officers of the Library Association of Ireland are: See the full list of Officers for 2001-2002. Access the News Archive
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and distribution to Local History Groups or to advertise in the library.
A
native of Cork, Ruth Flanagan has been Cork County Librarian since 1982
and has been involved with The Library Association of Ireland for as
many years. Speaking at the inauguration, she said "libraries have so
much relevance to society today, playing a vital role in medicine, commerce,
research, industry, Government, the arts and education." "Every week
in Ireland, 350,000 people walk through the doors of public libraries,
yet it is very hard to raise the profile of libraries and show what
an impact they have on people's lives. It is up to us to raise that
profile." "It is exciting to note that libraries are more popular than
ever with recent research showing 94% of people reporting a happy experience
at their local public library," she said. 
Gobnait
O'Riordain of the University of Limerick is the new President of the
LAI. Gobnait was elected President unopposed in succession to Marjory
Sliney, who steps down after a two-year term. Gobnait took over at the
AGM on 13th March. |
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