{"id":1976,"date":"2025-08-27T12:58:58","date_gmt":"2025-08-27T16:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/?p=1976"},"modified":"2025-09-23T21:34:29","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T01:34:29","slug":"aug25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/2025\/08\/27\/aug25\/","title":{"rendered":"Service Update – August 27, 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
PDF of MBLC Service Update – August 2025<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\n

\ud83d\udd59 MBLC Monthly Board Meeting on September 4th<\/strong> (Hybrid)<\/em>
Contact: <\/strong>Rachel Masse<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The regular monthly board meeting<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners is scheduled for 10AM on Thursday, September 4th, 2025, <\/em>at the Holyoke Public Library.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcf0<\/strong> MBLC Funds Statewide eContent<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Jaccavrie McNeely<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

At its August board meeting, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) approved $500,000 in grants to Automated Networks to purchase eContent for the Library eBook and Audiobook (LEA) program. LEA gives Massachusetts residents access to eBooks, audiobooks, and more from 400 participating libraries from across the Commonwealth. This statewide system allows eContent to be shared in a similar way to physical materials, opening up access that was previously unavailable for eBooks and audiobooks. The LEA collection has grown 37% over the past three years and totals almost 1.5 million eBooks and Audiobooks. To read more about funding statewide eContent, visit the MBLC website.<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcdd<\/strong>NEW BLO<\/strong>G POST<\/strong> <\/strong>Fortifying Your Library: The Future is Unknowable, but the Past Can Help Us Prepare<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Al Hayden<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Welcome back to another edition of Fortifying Your Library!  Let\u2019s spend some time addressing a question that has been at the top of the mind for several months now: what happens to public libraries during an economic recession? To read the full post, visit the MBLC Blog<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\uddd3\ufe0f<\/strong>Financial Report Closes on Friday, October 3rd<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Cate Merlin<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>Jen Inglis<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

State Aid season continues! The FY26 Financial Report survey will close on Friday, October 3rd. Waiver applications are due on Friday, November 7th<\/strong>. Financial Report & Waiver workshops will be held this month. Sign up for the<\/strong> State Aid Listserv<\/strong><\/a> for updates and information. <\/strong>Don’t hesitate to reach out to the State Aid team if you have any questions or concerns. More information and dates can be found at at the MBLC website.<\/a> <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcac State Aid + Financial Report Weekly Drop In Hours <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Cate Merlin<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesdays in September at 9am – Zoom Link<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In September, Wednesday State Aid Office Hours are now also Financial Report Drop In Hours- and they’re weekly at 9am! Make sure your budget, materials spending, and hours open fully meet State Aid requirements, and bring your Financial Report and\/or Waiver questions, big and small. Registration is not required, and session and chats will not be recorded or saved. Use the same Zoom link each week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\uddd3<\/strong>\ufe0fSeptember State Aid Financial Report Workshops<\/strong> <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Jen Inglis<\/strong><\/a>, <\/u><\/strong>Cate Merlin<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday, September 2nd at 10am – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesday, September 10th at 1pm – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friday, September 12th at 10am – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, September 15th at 1pm – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review the FY26 Financial Report and questions. Workshop information (meeting ID, etc.) will be emailed to registered participants as the date of the session approaches. Registration is required.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\uddd3<\/strong>\ufe0fSeptember Waiver Workshops<\/strong> <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Cate Merlin<\/strong><\/a>, <\/u><\/strong>Jen Inglis<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesday, September 3rd at 10am – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tuesday, September 9th at 1pm – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thursday, September 18th at 10am – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Review the FY26 Waiver application and requirements, required for libraries that have not met the FY26 Municipal Appropriation Requirement (MAR)<\/strong>. Workshop information (meeting ID, etc.) will be emailed to registered participants as the date of the session approaches. Registration is required.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcbb Web Accessibility Office Hours<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Jaccavrie McNeely<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>Kate Butler<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Need help making your web content accessible?  MBLC staff are here to help!  Join our office hours every first Friday at 11AM or third Wednesday at 3PM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next First Friday Session: Friday, September 5 at 11AM – No registration needed<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next Third Wednesday Session: Wednesday, September 17 at 3PM – No registration needed<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

View all upcoming Web Accessibility programming under the Internet, Technology, and Access category<\/a> on our calendar.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcc4Accessible Word Documents<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Jaccavrie McNeely<\/strong><\/a>, <\/strong>Kate Butler<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thursday, September 11 at 2PM – Registration required<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn advanced Word skills to make your documents accessible!  MBLC staff will be discussing and working through hands-on exercises for accessible headers, document templates, alt text, and more.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcac State Aid + Financial Report Weekly Drop-in Hours<\/strong> <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Cate Merlin<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesdays in September at 9AM – Zoom Link<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For August and September, Wednesday State Aid Office Hours are now also Financial Report Drop-in Hours- and they’re weekly at 9am! Make sure your budget, materials spending, and hours open fully meet State Aid requirements, and bring your Financial Report and\/or Waiver questions, big and small. Registration is not required, and session and chats will not be recorded or saved. Use the same Zoom link each week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83e\udd1d<\/strong>Library Advisory Office Hours<\/strong> <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Al Hayden<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, September 8 at 9AM – More Information & Zoom Link<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, September 22 at 2PM – More Information & Zoom Link<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Open to all Directors, Trustees, Library Friends, and Foundation Members. They are designed to be an open-ended, safe space for questions and interaction among participants. Sessions will NOT be recorded, and chats will NOT be saved. Registration is not required; stop by anytime during the hour!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udcc5 ESOL Roundtable Discussion <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Ally Dowds<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesday, September 24 at 10AM – Zoom Link & More Information<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Connect with literacy coordinators and library staff to exchange ideas, collaborate on projects, and build a supportive community. Whether you\u2019re an experienced educator, a new ESOL coordinator, or a librarian developing services and collections, this roundtable provides a forum to come together for meaningful discussion and resource sharing.  Bring your questions, challenges, and successes!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83e\udd1d<\/strong>So You Want to Be a Library Trustee? <\/strong>(Online)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contact: <\/strong>Al Hayden<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wednesday, September 24 at 7PM – More Information & Registration<\/strong><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you want to do more to advocate on behalf of your local public library? Are you considering running to be a Library Trustee? Join Rob Favini, Head of  Library Advisory & Development\/Government Liaison and Al Hayden, Library Advisory Specialist from the MBLC as they provide information about what your library does for your community, the role of a Library Trustee, what responsibilities you’ll encounter should you become a successful candidate, and what supports and resources the MBLC offers to the library community and its advocates. This program is a basic primer designed for people who are considering becoming a Library Trustee in their community, though new Trustees may find valuable information and are welcome to attend as well. This session will be recorded and slides will be shared<\/strong> with all who register, regardless of whether or not they are able to attend live. To encourage frank questions and open discourse, the Q&A session will NOT be recorded.  <\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\ud83d\udd59 MBLC Monthly Board Meeting on October 9 <\/strong>(Hybrid)<\/em>
Contact:<\/strong> <\/strong><\/a>Rachel Masse<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The regular monthly board meeting<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong>of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners is scheduled for 10AM on Thursday, October 9, 2025, <\/em>at the Nevins Library, Methuen.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\ud83d\udd59 MBLC Monthly Board Meeting on September 4th (Hybrid)Contact: Rachel Masse The regular monthly board meeting of the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners is scheduled for 10AM on Thursday, September 4th, 2025, at the Holyoke Public Library. \ud83d\udcf0 MBLC Funds Statewide eContent Contact: Jaccavrie McNeely At its August board meeting, the Massachusetts Board of Library […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[285],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1976","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-service-update"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1976","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1976"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1976\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1983,"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1976\/revisions\/1983"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mblc.state.ma.us\/mblc_blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}