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May 1, 2007

Play It Forward: Helene Blowers at the 2007 NJLA Conference:

Thanks to Leslie Kahn, Newark Public Library, for sharing her thoughts on Helene Blowers' presentations at NJLA

In an age of Accountability and Consequences (both usually conceived in terms not quite favorable to trusting our colleagues), Helene Blowers, Director of Technology at the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, in North Carolina worked with her colleagues to inject more joy of learning into the workplace, where we spend so much time. Ongoing scanning of our environments and learning how best to interact with their rich diversity is now intrinsic to library work, and we want to feel, not overwhelmed, but wowed by new opportunities.

In her first program at the NJLA 2007 conference, on Tuesday, April 24th, Ms. Blowers discussed “Core Competencies in the Era of Library 2.0.” At her library, “The 4 E’s” have been developed as a framework for staff development:

These E’s of Education become, not just e’s, but ease and fluid functioning of activities so that staff and public can share and create knowledge, community, and general welfare and happiness…with energy and enthusiasm –and fun.

The more we expose ourselves to innovations, the more we discover about ourselves, tapping previously unexplored talents and interests, even as we notice where we may feel like strangers in a strange land (thereby cultivating compassion for others in the same boat). Helene Blowers’ Tuesday afternoon program at the conference. “Discovering Library 2.0 Through Learning 2.0” was revelatory. Libraries have always been about sharing (traditionally communities sharing books), and Helene Blowers has just taken this cooperation to another dimension of collective intelligence, as staff encourage each other’s learning programs of 15 minutes a day of exploration.

As we engage with technologies and each other, Helene Blowers always emphasizes play. Just as libraries offer education and entertainment, now librarians and other staff are also having fun: and happy employees are good employees. Administrators will be pleased too at the very low cost of Learning 2.0.

To get a better sense of her insights into lifelong learning, library esprit de corps, and the intersection (and teamwork) of individual journeys and the future of libraries—please visit her wonderful blog, Library Bytes, at www.librarybytes.com and see the April 23 link to slides from her NJLA presentations:

More information is at:

Posted by at May 1, 2007 3:53 PM

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