Congratulations AJ on a terrific job! And thank you Lisa for sharing that wih all of us! It's great to know people like you, both of you :)
Julie At 09:42 AM 3/21/04 -0500, Lisa Arsineau wrote: >Helllo, everyone, > >I wanted to let you know a little something about AJ. He has sort of of >become a bit of a celebrity in Rhode Island and the library community. He >was selected as a Mover & Shaker by Library Journal, which is one of the big >professional journals for librarians. Each year the journal highlights 50 >librarians from across the United States to keep an eye on for the future. >This is what they had to say about him: > >"You Gotta Have a Gimmick" > If you want to turn teens into library users, it helps to have a young, >cool librarain lik Aaron Coutu. It also helps id the librarian is willing >to undego various personal humiliations, like shaving his head if they read >150 books (they read 196) or dying his hair green if they read 250 (they >read 312). Gimmicks work. > But so does respect. Coutu gives their "boundless energy and ideas" an >outlet through the Teen Advisory Library Council, which recommends new >titles for the collection. He encourages teesn to write reviews of their >favorite books for other teens, because it makes them feel like they're part >of the library. > Though, his current space makes room for comic books, computers, and >chess as well as books, his ideal YA space would also include a pool table, >a foosball table, and an area where they could play on a game cube. The >trick, he says, is to get them in the door, then point out the great books >you have for them. He tries to read at least 80 percent of the books he >buys to tailor his reading recommendations to each teen. > "Professionalis" may not be your first word association for a man with a >piercing, a tattoo, and the email name Lunar Hunk, but it applies. Coutu is >involved with a dozen professional organizations and chairs the Rhode Island >Teen Book Award Committee. What better way to serve teens, he asks, than >getting ideas, assistance, and advice through networking with your >colleagues? > Coutu believes teens get a raw deal from communities that don't spend >money on them but "complain when kids get in trouble because they have no >place to go and nothing to do." He serves on the Juvenile Justice Board in >his hometown because he believes his job is to advocate for all teens, >including those who never come to the library. > Green hair works well, but Coutu's most effective gimmick is that he >genuinely likes teens. "I know when I go to work I am going to have fun." > >I just thought I would congratulate him and spread the news to everyone. > >Sorry, AJ ... I couldn't not tell. > >}}};) Lisa > >_________________________________________________________________ >Get reliable access on MSN 9 Dial-up. 3 months for the price of 1! >(Limited-time offer) http://click.atdmt.com/AVE/go/onm00200361ave/direct/01/ > > >_______________________________________________ >Spacedock mailing list >[EMAIL PROTECTED] >http://scifi-rpgs.com/mailman/listinfo/spacedock_scifi-rpgs.com > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------- "He who is certain he knows the ending of things when he is only beginning them is either extremely wise or extremely foolish; no matter which is true, he is certainly an unhappy man, for he has put a knife in the heart of wonder." --Qanuc proverb, "The Dragonbone Chair" by Tad Williams _______________________________________________ Spacedock mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://scifi-rpgs.com/mailman/listinfo/spacedock_scifi-rpgs.com
