We are pleased to announce that Library Strategist Jenny Kobiela-Mondor of the MCLS Engagement, Consulting, and Training team has been certified as an Appreciative Inquiry Facilitator by the Center for Appreciative Inquiry. Appreciative Inquiry (AI) is a strengths-based approach to organizational change. It focuses on an organization’s positive core by using a whole-system approach to …Read more »

We welcome the following libraries, who have recently joined MCLS: Arab American National Museum, MI Beaver Island District Library, MI Troy School District, MI We are so glad to have you as members! MCLS currently has 642 member libraries across Indiana and Michigan. Is YOUR library receiving all the benefits of membership? Find out by …Read more »

Lansing, MI—Ann Kaskinen, the K-12 MeL Engagement Specialist for the Midwest Collaborative for Library Services (MCLS), is the 2022 recipient of the MAISA Education Fellowship Award. This award is given each year to an individual or organization who, among other qualities, places service above self-interest, advocates for the programs and services of public education, has …Read more »

       LANSING, MI—The Midwest Collaborative for Library Services (MCLS) has been awarded a 2022 National Leadership Grant for Libraries from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The $242,351 grant will further develop and expand capacity for the Michigan Digital Preservation Network (MDPN) through a first-of-its-kind digital preservation system. The MDPN, a member-governed, …Read more »

We are excited to announce that Mary Ruthko has accepted the newly-created position of Marketing and Communication Coordinator at MCLS. Mary most recently worked as the Marketing Manager at the Bay County Library System headquartered in Bay City, Michigan. She brings to us a wealth of experience, and we look forward to working with her …Read more »

I’m thrilled to share that the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has awarded MCLS a grant for $242,351 for our project Demonstrating and Documenting a Statewide LOCKSS 2.0 Preservation Network for Cultural Memory Institutions, marking MCLS’s first-ever IMLS grant award as an organization. We will use these grant funds to continue building the …Read more »

If your staff development plan includes in-service days, MCLS can bring half-day or full-day training to your library. Our customized staff in-service training is created to apply to staff at multiple levels of the organization. We are currently offering the following training and facilitation topics: Community Engagement Foundations of Digital Literacy Customer Service: Identifying Excellent …Read more »

Over the past two years, much has changed about how we all work.  Many staff were thrown into the deep end of remote working, and we have all learned a lot from our experiences.  In response, MCLS staff has undertaken an internal process to discover what the future of work will look like at MCLS.  …Read more »

MCLS launched its new subscription management system, ConsortiaManager (CM), on July 5. Libraries can now renew subscriptions via CM. An email sent on July 13 provided libraries with a link for establishing a CM login. Also on July 13, ConsortiaManager staff conducted a training demonstrating the renewal process for libraries. The basic process for renewing …Read more »

The call for nominations to serve on the MCLS Board of Directors (2023-2025) is open to MCLS member libraries, and the Board and I invite you to nominate yourself or someone you know by July 15 to play an active role in setting and refining the vision that guides MCLS to serve hundreds of libraries …Read more »