Get help filling out Public Housing waitlist applications at the Library

WCCLS is pleased to partner with the Housing Authority of Washington County (HAWC). HAWC will be taking applications for their Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher and Public Housing waitlists from May 2nd to May 9th.

If applicants do not have Internet access, they can use the public computers at WCCLS member libraries to submit an application online. In addition, staff from the Housing Authority staff will be at WCCLS libraries and PCC at scheduled times throughout the week to help people apply.

To learn about the waitlist opening, visit www.co.washington.or.us/housingpreap. This site includes a link to the application, as well as days and times when Housing staff will help the public at WCCLS libraries.

HAWC plays an important role in providing affordable housing in Washington County. WCCLS is glad to have the opportunity to assist HAWC in this critical service to our community.

WCCLS catalog and online accounts are back up!

Thank you for your patience while the WCCLS catalog and online accounts were unavailable for software updates! We are now back up and running as usual.

If you are seeing any odd behavior with the catalog or account, please clear your browser's cache. We aren't expecting any problems, but this should resolve any issues. We have information about clearing your browser's cache on your desktop computer and your mobile device on our website.

If your browser is not storing your WCCLS barcode and PIN when you log in to your account, clear your browser's cache (see above for info), and then adjust your browser's settings for saving login information. You'll find that at the bottom of this page on the WCCLS website.

If you want to get deeper into some features of the catalog, we have videos on creating saved searches in the desktop catalog (these alert you to new items added that match your search), as well as creating and managing lists of saved titles.

Questions?
If you have questions about your WCCLS account, please contact your local WCCLS library for assistance.

Catalog and account software will be down starting Sunday night until Tuesday

We will be posting more frequent updates about the catalog and account availability on Facebook and Twitter.

Starting at 6:00 pm on Sunday, April 26th, the WCCLS catalog and accounts will be unavailable. This is because WCCLS will be performing software updates during this time. We anticipate that the catalog and accounts will become available sometime on Tuesday, April 28th.

Here's what you need to know:

• No library materials will be due on Sunday, April 26th, Monday, April 27th, or Tuesday, April 28th
• 3M Cloud  e-books will not be available during this time.
• Follow WCCLS on Facebook and Twitter to get the most frequent updates about the downtime
• When the catalog and accounts are available again, we will also announce it on our News & Events blog

What will be available during the software updates?

• You will be able to access downloadable e-books and audiobooks via Library2Go as usual while the WCCLS catalog and accounts are down
• WCCLS online resources will be available
• The wccls.org website will also still be available, including the events calendar

What will be different when the WCCLS catalog and accounts are updated?
This update adds functionality to the staff version of the library catalog, but you will not notice any significant changes with the look or performance of the public catalog or with your library account. 

Thanks in advance for your patience while we work to upgrade our catalog and account software! We apologize for the inconvenience.

Tualatin Teen Librarian Wins State Award

Congratulations to Aimee Meuchel, Tualatin Public Library Teen Librarian, for receiving the OYAN You’re Excellent Award at the 2015 Oregon Library Association conference. The Oregon Young Adult Network [OYAN] gives this award to recognize an individual or organization that has made a positive and significant contribution to teens in Oregon libraries.

In their letters nominating Meuchel for the award, Tualatin teens shared these comments about Meuchel:

"It was because of Aimee that I began to actively seek out leadership opportunities and become more involved in my community. Without her guidance and support throughout the years, I would have never grown out of my shell or realized how much I enjoy helping others."

"Aimee is always smiling and having fun, which influences me and some other teens to smile and have fun with life, because you can't let the past or a bad day bring you down and ruin fun. ... Aimee honestly has the most creative mind in the world, and is the funnest person I have met."

"I have learned from her the meaning of leadership and responsibility ... and she taught me to trust myself. ... I have never met someone older than me that understands how teens feel; she relates to us, and that is why she is a friend to me."

"I would never have become to person I am today if it weren't for talking to that special little red-haired librarian."

Meuchel has worked at the Tualatin Library since 2006, starting as a Children's Librarian. When the Tualatin Library was expanded in 2008, Meuchel became Tualatin's first Teen Librarian and was instrumental in the development of the Library's dedicated Teen Room.   Because of Meuchel's efforts, Tualatin Library has a highly successful teen program. The Library presents more than 200 programs for teens each year, including weekly drop-in gaming and movie nights. The Teen Room regularly has more than 600 visits each month.

As part of the award, Meuchel received an engraved plaque and a monetary donation of $100 to support teen services at the Tualatin Public Library. 

2015 Library Supporter of the Year Award goes to Three Beaverton Women

Three Beaverton women are recipients of the 2015 Library Supporter of the Year Award from the Oregon Library Association.

Congratulations to Dawn Prochovnic (pictured left with with OLA President Candace Watkins), Debbie Plawner, and Mitzi Sandman, founders of School Libraries Matter: Beaverton.  This organization advocates strong school libraries and teacher librarians. 

The Library Supporter of the Year Award is presented to an Oregonian or a group of Oregonians for exceptional effort to support and promote libraries.  Read more here.

Help us organize the new WCCLS website!

Do you have a spare 10-20 minutes to help with the WCCLS website?  

Click here to complete the online survey and card sort.

The purpose of a card sort is to help us organize content on our website in a meaningful way, so that people can navigate it quickly and easily.  We are in the process of redesigning our website, and the information you provide will help create the structure of our new site.

During the card sort, you will be given a set of online cards to organize in a way that seems logical to you. There are no “right answers” in a card sort, but as a group we can see trends that will inform the navigation of our website.  The survey will close May 1.  Your participation is greatly appreciated! 

Oregon Book Award winners announced for 2015

The Oregon Book Award winners for 2015 were announced on Monday, 4/13.  Below is a selection of the winners in some categories; find a full list of the winners here.

Eloise Jarvis Mcgraw Award for Children's Literature
Whistle in the Dark by Susan Hill

Leslie Bradshaw Award for Young Adult Literature
The Body in the Woods by April Henry

Frances Fuller Victor Award for General Nonfiction
Big Little Man: In Search of my Asian Self by Alex Tizon

Sarah Winnemucca Award for Creative Nonfiction
The Great Floodgates of the Wonderworld by Justin Hocking

Ken Kesey Award for Fiction
The Revolution of Every Day by Cari Luna

Readers Choice Award
The Free by Willy Vlautin

Congratulations to all the winners!

"How to Start an Investment Club" program at the Tualatin Library

The old adage "there's safety in numbers'' can be applied to investment clubs in more ways than one. An investment club is a group of individual investors who come together to learn, share investing experiences and help each other become more successful investors.

Thursday, April 23, 6:30-8:00 p.m.
Tualatin Library Community Room
No prerequisites: anyone can learn how to invest for your future goals.

Clubs provide education, camaraderie and buying power, plus the confidence of knowing you don't have to go it alone. This workshop will review the ins and outs of starting an investment club and the advantages of learning and earning in a group.

Officers and members of the Portland, Oregon and SW Washington Chapter of Better Investing will present the workshops.

Updates to WCCLS catalog & account April 26-28

Starting at 6:00 pm on Sunday, April 26th, the WCCLS catalog and accounts will be unavailable. This is because WCCLS will be performing software updates during this time. We anticipate that the catalog and accounts will become available sometime on Tuesday, April 28th.

Here's what you need to know:

• No library materials will be due on Sunday, April 26th, Monday, April 27th, or Tuesday, April 28th
• 3M Cloud  e-books will not be available during this time.
• Follow WCCLS on Facebook and Twitter to get the most frequent updates about the downtime
• When the catalog and accounts are available again, we will also announce it on our News & Events blog

What will be available during the software updates?

• You will be able to access downloadable e-books and audiobooks via Library2Go as usual while the WCCLS catalog and accounts are down
• WCCLS online resources will be available
• The wccls.org website will also still be available, including the events calendar

What will be different when the WCCLS catalog and accounts are updated?
This update adds functionality to the staff version of the library catalog, but you will not notice any significant changes with the look or performance of the public catalog or with your library account. 

Thanks in advance for your patience while we work to upgrade our catalog and account software! We apologize for the inconvenience.

Art of the Story 2015 performer spotlight - Brody Theater

Members of Portland's Brody Theater

Brody Theater is Portland's longest running improvisation focused theater. Founded over 19 years ago as Tom Johnson's ambitious improv project, the Brody has become a world renowned comedy and storytelling theater company.

Brody Theater specializes in narrative improvisation, or "long-form." The underlying goal of their work is to tell engaging stories that make people think, that help people grow, and that make people laugh. The Brody puts an emphasis on both entertainment and experiment, making it a showcase for both audience-pleasing performances and cutting edge theatrical presentation.

Members of the Brody Theater ensemble will be performing at these 2015 Art of the Story events:

• Monday, April 13, 6:30pm at Raleigh Park Elementary School
• Tuesday, April 14, 7pm at Walters Cultural Arts Center
• Saturday, April 18, 6:30pm at Sherwood Center for the Arts Festival Finale

Grand Opening: Beaverton Murray Scholls Branch!

Join Mayor Denny Doyle, city councilors, Beaverton City Library staff, and the Beaverton community for a celebration of the newly expanded and renovated Murray Scholls Branch Library.

Adults, children, and families are invited to the Grand Opening, to enjoy cake and fun activities for kids along with a few words by Mayor Doyle.

Saturday, April 11, at noon
1200 SW Murray Scholls Place, Suite 102

This event will celebrate a pivotal expansion of Beaverton’s library services. The Reser Family Children’s Room unofficially opened last month and residents have already expressed great enthusiasm. Since reopening, the number of patrons visiting the library has increased 30 percent over last year. More than 300 people attended events in February, including the first programs ever held during library open hours.

The additional 5,000 square feet includes a large new room for children and their caregivers to participate in additional storytimes and activities such as “Make It” Mondays and WOW Wednesdays. It also facilitated the repurposing of existing space for teens with more study tables and an erasable IdeaPaint wall where they can show-off their creativity. Teen programming will continue to grow in the coming months, as will the selection of young adult fiction and graphic novels in the teen book collection.

“We encourage families to explore and interact with the new space,” said John Finn, branch manager. “This project has been a great success, thanks in part to the Reser Family Foundation, the estate of Wayne Whitbeck, the Beaverton Library Foundation, and the Friends of Beaverton City Library, along with Gramor Development.”

Art of the Story 2015 performer spotlight - Kuniko Yamamoto

Kuniko Yamamoto

A native of Japan, Kuniko Yamamoto started performing in her hometown of Osaka. After performing on Kansai National TV in 1985, Kuniko studied in the United States with Tony Montanaro. She then toured with Leland Faulkner’s Light Theater, bringing ancient Japanese tales to life with shadows and magic.

Since creating her solo show, she has appeared at Epcot Disney, The Kennedy Center, and the National Storytelling Festival. To date, Kuniko has performed at over 2,000 theaters, schools, colleges, and festivals from Alaska to Florida.

Kuniko Yamamoto will be performing at the following 2015 Art of the Story events:

• Wednesday, April 15, 7pm at Banks Public Library
• Thursday, April 16, 7pm at Tualatin Public Library
• Friday, April 17, 7pm at Cedar Mill Community Library
• Saturday, April 18, 6:30pm at Sherwood Center for the Arts, Festival Finale

Here is a video of Kuniko's work, created by Jon LeClair.

A Jobseeker's Workshop at the Tualatin Public Library

WorkSource Oregon and the Tualatin Public Library present A Jobseekers’ Workshop on Thursday, April 9, at 4:00 p.m.

Mark your calendar to learn an overview of the available services at the Tualatin Public Library and WorkSource Oregon. Representatives from the Library and WorkSource Oregon will provide information on the resources, training opportunities, and tools that can help you land your next job.  No reservation required.  Free.