Better Together Blog

The forty seven team partner organizations that will be participating in the Better Together Conference are:

Aging and Independence Services - County of San Diego [San Diego County LIbrary Team]
Alpine Library Friends Association [San Diego County LIbrary Team]
Basin Wide Foundation [San Bernardino County Yucca Valley Branch Team]
Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose [San Jose Public Library Team]
City of Buena Park Cultural & Fine Arts Office [Buena Park Library District Team]
City of Camarillo [Camarillo Library Team]
City of Stockton Channel 97 [Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library Team]
City of Torrance [Torrance Public Library Team]
Community Partnership for Families (Stockton) [Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library Team]
Dublin Heritage Center (Livermore) [Livermore Public Library Team]
Fresno Art Museum [Fresno County Library Team]
Friends of the Camarillo Library [Camarillo Library Team]
Friends of the Lincoln Library [Lincoln Public Library Team]
Friends of the Yucca Valley Library [San Bernardino County Yucca Valley Branch Team]
Haggin Museum [Stockton-San Joaquin County Public Library Team]
Hi-Desert Nature Museum Association [San Bernardino County Yucca Valley Branch Team]
KOCT Television (Oceanside) [Oceanside Public Library Team]
KTEH Silicon Valley Public Television [San Jose Public Library Team]
La Habra Old Settlers Historical Society [Orange County Public Library Team]
Lawrence Hall of Science [Lafayette Library and Learning Center Team]
Lincoln Arts [Lincoln Public Library Team]
Livermore Heritage Guild [Livermore Public Library Team]
Long Beach Museum of Art [Long Beach Public Library Team]
Maidu Interpretive Center [Roseville Public Library Team]
Museum of Latin American Art [Long Beach Public Library Team]
Museum on Main [Livermore Public Library Team]
Natural History Museum of Santa Maria [Santa Maria Public Library Team]
Orange County Mexcian American Historical Society [Orange County Public Library Team]
Parks and Recreation (County of Los Angeles) [Florence Library Team]
Pleasant Valley Historical Society, Museum and Garden [Camarillo Library Team]
Roseville Arts! [Roseville Public Library Team]
Roseville Electric [Roseville Public Library Team]
Roseville Environmental Utilities [Roseville Public Library Team]
Roseville Media Division [Roseville Public Library Team]
San Clemente Historical Society [Orange County Public Library Team]
Santa Ana Public Library [Orange County Public Library Team]
Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum [Santa Maria Public Library Team]
Santa Maria Valley Railroad Museum [Santa Maria Public Library Team]
Sierra College - Nevada County Campus [Lincoln Public Library Team]
SLS Creative Business Solutions [Buena Park Library District Team]
Torrance Art Museum [Torrance Public Library Team]
Torrance CitiCable [Torrance Public Library Team]
Town of Yucca Valley [San Bernardino County Yucca Valley Branch Team]
Tri-Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau [Livermore Public Library Team]
Victoria Gardens Cultural Center [Rancho Cucamonga Public Library Team]
Western Placer Unified School District [Lincoln Public Library Team]
Whittier Museum and Historical Society [Whittier Public Library Team]

Posted by gail mcgovern at 03:25 PM | Permalink

The Ottawa (Canada) Public Library (OPL) partnerships with the Canadian Museum of Nature and the Canadian Museum of Civilization allow library cardholders to "borrow" free museum visits.

To visit the Museum of Nature free, OPL cardholders sign out a museum pass from any OPL branch. The museum pass allows two adults and three children or three adults and two children to visit the Museum of Nature, at no cost. 75 museum passes are in circulation; they are housed in each of the OPL's 33 branches as well as its bookmobile.

To visit the Canadian Museum of Civilization free, library cardholders must be Ottawa residents. They can use their library cards to sign out a Privilege Card from any OPL branch. The Privilege Card allows up to four people to visit the Canadian Museum of Civilization, which includes the Canadian Postal Museum and the Canadian Children's Museum, or the Canadian War Museum at no cost. 50 Privilege Cards are in circulation and they are also available at each of the library's 33 branches and bookmobile. The cards, which are in CD cases, can be borrowed for up to one week at a time.

Posted by gail mcgovern at 03:38 PM | Permalink

The Cuyahoga County (OH) Public Library and Cleveland Museum of Natural History collaborated on The Art of Travel, a series of travelogues broadcast live during interactive videoconferenced sessions at two regional libraries.

The museum staff presented the travelogue and librarians guided virtual travelers by presenting print, audiovisual, and online resources.

Posted by gail mcgovern at 01:46 PM | Permalink

In studying exemplary collaborations between local museums, libraries and public broadcasters, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Institute of Museum and Library Services identified success indicators and expected outcomes for new collaborative efforts.

Posted by gail mcgovern at 05:36 AM | Permalink

Grants, professional development activities, and an online resource center are available through Partnership for a Nation of Learners (PNL), a joint initiative of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

PNL's mission is "to serve America's communities by encouraging and enabling museums, public broadcasters, and libraries to work together to address locally-identified lifelong learning needs and opportunities."

The PNL initiative will provide $2.2 million in grant support for new and existing community-based lifelong learning collaborations and the infrastructure/technologies that enable them, in two rounds of funding.

The deadline for 2006 Community Collaboration Grant applications is March 1, 2006. For grant guidelines see the PNL website.

For details about the seven grants awarded to partnerships in Boston, MA; South Portland, ME; St. Johnsbury, VT; Charleston, WV; Haines, AK; Lincoln, NE; and Las Vegas, NV in 2005, see the online descriptions.

Posted by gail mcgovern at 04:54 AM | Permalink