You Go, Girl!

Sheenah Thrasher-Zamora, Community Relations & Marketing Assistant (pictured above with Tim Tebow), had a very special day, March 4, 2017. She said, "In an effort to create a partnership with JPL and Tim Tebow, I went to his annual Celebrity Golf Classic at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedre. I didn’t register as media prior to arrival, but I prayed about it earlier before I left home and God made a way and the people in charge let me in to see Mr. Tebow. I was able to introduce myself and snap this nice photo, as well as give Mr. Tebow a package I created for him. It included JPL marketing material and ideas of how he and the library could partner in the near future. He was so gracious and kind. I will be following up soon with his assistant. 

"I wanted to share this, not to brag, but to inspire you that no matter how big the vision and no matter who does or doesn’t believe you can do it, if it’s for you, it will be.  This quote has inspired me for a long time:  "...if you can see the possibilities, it can come to pass.” – J Dianne Tribble)."

Making The JPL - DCPS Partnership Work

Beth Friederich, SE Youth Librarian II, reported in an email to Amber Holley, Rebekah Mitchell, and Jennifer Giltrop this good news, and Deputy Director Giltrop asked that Beth's email be shared with you: "This school year, I have grown to become a part of my region’s school community. Rather than going to SAC meetings and trying to convince them to let me into their school and ask how I could assist with their initiatives and events, this month, I got an invitation! Last Thursday and Friday, I judged the Science Fair at Greenfield Elementary. The field trips from our DCPS partnership have helped to solidify the bond between our communities and are beneficial to the customers that we have in common.

"Thank you for all of your hard work in organizing and making this partnership a success."

Ms. Friederich wanted to add this note FYI, "3^rd – 5^th grades participated in the Science Fair at Greenfield Elementary. Projects varied from the traditional volcano to the creative use of a laser to power an object and were assessed using a rubric. My favorite was the ANT BUFFET. The students believed the ants would prefer a sugary cookie to other foods. Unfortunately the ants that showed up at this picnic were not sugar ants but hot dog ants.

DCPS Students Sail Thru Circ, Thanks to Cynthia & Corey

Cynthia Simmons, Main Library Clerical Supervisor, and Corey Scott, Library Assistant, received their Innovator Awards recently.  Main Library Manager Lynne Baldwin said she nominated them for "redesigning the space on the first floor near the circulation desk and in the promenade to provide better access and an easier flow for our DCPS school visits. Both Cynthia and Corey have done an outstanding job ensuring that there is enough room for the students, teachers, staff and our regular customers. They worked with the children’s department and the adult services departments on the daily scheduled visits that needed assistance, as well as opening up self-check machines to better maximize the checkout time. They organized the children’s display of books in the circulation area and made sure that I love JPL stickers are available to be given out to each student."

A big step, Cynthia and Corey, towards Getting to Yes, too.

54 JPL Educator Cards Given At TEACH Conference

On Saturday, September 12, 2015, several JPL staff attended the TEACH Conference (teachers met to inspire each other and share their ideas and concerns) sponsored by WJCT at the Hyatt Regency Downtown Jacksonville. JPL staff took this opportunity to make 54 educator cards for private, public, and charter school teachers in Duval County.

Those who took their Saturday to promote this wonderful project were Amber Holley (Youth Services Manager-Main), Susan Mankowski (Early Childhood Specialist-Main), Rebekah Mitchell (Youth Services Librarian III-Main), Lynn Jacobson (Bibliographic Systems and Access Manager, SST), Charlene Ovshak (Library Circulation Supervisor-Main), Stephanie Harley (Clerical Services Supervisor-CW), Beverly Brown (Clerical Services Supervisor- PCR), Corey Z. Scott (Library Assistant, Circ, Main), Milicia Thomas (Library Assistant, Popular-Main), and Donna Crowther (Library Assistant- Main).  Thanks to Milicia for the input.

State Sen. Audrey Gibson, Rep. Reggie Fullwood & Rep. Mia Jones To Hold Community Meeting

Everyone is invited to a Community Meeting, 6 p.m., Thursday, September 12, 2013, at FSCJ Downtown Campus, 101 West State Street, Jacksonville, FL, hosted by State Senator Audrey Gibson, State Representatives Reggie Fullwood and Mia Jones.  The focus will be:  Saving Our Youth - Civil Citations: In and Out of School.  You can meet legislators and community leaders for an important discussion on prevention and diversion and the role of the civil citations program.  They prefer you attend the meeting in person, but if you cannot, they have provided multiple ways for you to participate:

• Streaming live on the web at: http://dmp.fscj.edu/live-stream/
• Email your questions or concerns to:  civilcitationsforum@vahoo.com
•   Join via conference call:  Toll free:  1-855-212-0212 enter pin number 990544046.  The phone line will be open at 6 p.m. and Q&A will start at 7 p.m.

Panelists will include:

• Mr. Rob Mason, Office of Public Defender
• Mr. Lawrence Hills, Teen & Truancy Court Program
• Chief David Coffman, Duval County Public Schools Police
• Dr. Nikolai Vitti, Superintendent, Duval County Public Schools
• Mr. David Utter, Southern Poverty Law Center
• Attorney Rhonda Peoples-Waters, P.A.
• State Attorney Angela Corey (Invited)
• Director Michael Edwards, JSO (invited)

For more information, contact:  Brandy Wright: (904) 359-2553; Jackie Boyd: 904-353-2180; Bobbi Warford: (904) 924-1615.

Partnerships and Communication Is Pursuing Greater Efficiency and Effectiveness

Dr. Keith McLaughlin says Partnerships and Communication is striving to do its part to reduce costs and to provide services more efficiently and effectively by implementing these practices:

Reduction in use of Ink and Paper
· Re-use printed paper for internal purposes/scratch sheets, etc.
· Use double-sided printing for all internal documents, grant and proposal application drafts—everything that is not going out to a funding organization
· For lengthy documents, print at least two pages to a sheet (and double-sided)
· Use the double-sided copier setting whenever possible
· Use “draft” mode on printers to save ink
· Try to print less by sending and saving documents electronically
· Email drafts of graphic design documents in pdf format rather than print

Lower Mailing Costs
· Take time-sensitive documents to City Copy Center for mailing to ensure postmark, return-receipt (if necessary) and reduce the need to send via Fed EX
· If Fed EX is necessary, use two-day instead of next day; it’s less expensive

Miscellaneous
· Turn out the office lights for the evening
· Share or borrow supplies from team members before placing new supply orders
· Use City cars and carpool to off-site meetings and events

Programs and Marketing
Rely more on grant and private funding to support programs and less on city general fund dollars
Whenever possible, include support for part-time project coordinators in grant-funded requests and budgets
Recruit volunteers to assist with program implementation, such as with the “How Can I Afford Retirement?”
Leverage program partners to help promote and market programs, thus reducing expenses associated with paid advertising
Utilizing email blasts, electronic newsletters, Facebook and Twitter to communicate with targeted constituents and the general public

Conference Center
Have improved efforts to apply the adage “a place for everything and everything in its place” with the storage and tracking of electronic equipment and accessories in the Conference Center. This has improved security and maintenance of the equipment.