gmagarian's posterous

Final Assignment - Library Multimedia project

Los Angeles has been hit hard by the economic down turn and is still suffering during its recovery stages. Public institutions such as schools, transportation and all city-run programs suffer the most from the severe budget cuts. The LA public library deals with budget cuts that affect the community as a whole as well as the sustainability of the libraries themselves.

Throughout the city, public libraries have been forced to cut hours and employees in order to maintain the new budget.  Regional libraries, such as the Central Library, were open 7 days a week while smaller branch libraries were open 6 days a week. Since the cuts, all libraries are now only operating 5 days a week Tuesday through Saturday.

According to the Los Angeles City Budget Summary from the fiscal year 2008 – 2009, the largest cost for the libraries are embedded in the salaries and allotted money for employees.  More than $14 million of the $71 million total appropriated funds are directed towards pensions and retirement. Libraries are also only allocated 3% percent of the budget, as stated in the Budget  Summary.

“They have cut over 30% of the employees throughout the city,” said Acting Senior Librarian for the Sunland-Tujunga Branch, Ania Bloch. “Two thirds of our staff has been affected by the layoffs. The work load that was once manageable is now placed on a much smaller staff.”

The Sunland-Tujunga branch, along with all other branches, have felt the pressures of the budget cuts and are still working out new ways of adjusting the work load. “We do everything we can to not make it the Patrons problem,” said Bloch.

The patrons of the Library, however, do see the harm in the cuts made and are not happy about being forced to conform to them.

“As a teacher, these hour cuts are very annoying,” said Elizabeth Benington. “If I want a book Monday, I can’t even consider that option anymore, and have the plan days in advance.”

“I worry about the kids, the youngsters,” stated Victor Trujillo, a concerned patron. “This is like a safe place for them to come and have something to do. If they don’t have this place to go to, they instead can find themselves at the park, messing around with the wrong crowd and getting into trouble.”

Although the physical library may no longer be as available as it use to, one aspect that remains unharmed by the budget cuts are the resources found online.  “We aren’t just a book store,” said Bloch, “Our website offers many things that many people may not know of and that is why I think we need to be more aggressive as an institution on getting the word out on our vast services.”

Sunland – Tujunga is made up of a mixed population, with high percentage of white and Hispanic or latino races, according to the 2000 Census. The median age of residents is 35 years.  As found on LAUSD website, Sunland –Tujunga has three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school, all of which are within one mile of the branch.

With a median household income of barely $50,000, the library provides access for internet and entertainment. Although the website that provides a lot of information can be accessed on any computer, many people use the library computers to obtain all the necessary information.

With the budget cuts increasing in a trend that will continue to demand more layoffs and even shorter business hours, many people will lose access to free public information.

“We must get the word out to let the public know that the Library is the #1 info source,” said Bloch.

For more information on the free services and information provided by the LA Library, visit www.lapl.org.

 

 

Thanksgiving and Giving Back

Thanksgiving has many different personal meanings for  people through out the United States. The students at California State University, Northridge are of the most diverse students in the Los Angeles area and express a variety of values and Thanksgiving traditions.

From traveling out of state to spend the weekend with the entire family, or only getting together for dinner on Thanksgiving night, many families come together to celebrate in their own special ways. 

"I live in Camarillo and my family comes to my house," said Marissa Girolamo, Junior. 

CSUN is a commuter campus but is also home to many students from out of state. Many spend Thanksgiving away from their families, and go home for winter break instead. The CSUN dorms provide housing and activities that allow the residents to still celebrate and partake in the holiday festivities.  

The holidays, Thanksgiving especially, is a time that is known to spark an interest in helping those that typically cannot help themselves.

According to Google Analytics, the highest search for volunteering is during the month of November. Holidays tend to be a time when many people feel inspired to donate and volunteer their time to help others. CSUN students use a variety of outlets to help others.

"I help serve food for the homeless, help clean up parks and beaches and participate in fundraisers for organizations," said Alan Flores, sophomore.  

Unified We Serve, an organization on campus, promotes and provides an opportunity for students to get involved. Every year they collect cans to donate to homeless shelters just in time for Thanksgiving dinner. 

In such a large and diverse community, the opportunities are endless. Some people view this day as a time for family to come together, putting aside their differences and rejoice with one another. For others, people choose to spend their time and do good for their community by helping others. Either way, the students of CSUN are sure about one thing, food!

Santa Monica Pier

View Santa Monica Pier in a larger map

 

 

How to Pass a Drivers Test

My little cousin just turned 17 and has been practicing for her drivers test for a year. She is so nervous that she is constantly asking questions and claiming that she is not ready yet. She asked me how I passed my drivers test the first time, and I gave her some advice. Truth be told, its been five years since I got my license and I'm sure things have changed. I decided to figure out whats changed and what new advice they give for students! I spoke to a former DMV employee and driving instructor, Mr. Louis Gonzales.

 

Step One: Be Ready. Come in on time, with papers and certificates ready. Review the general rules and regulations of the road. Make sure you've been practicing!

Step Two: Have a car that not only you've been practicing and feel comfortable in, but also make sure the car is in great condition. If there is a crack in the window or a light does not work, they will send you home and make you reschedule.

Step Three: BE CALM! If your nervous (which is perfectly normal and always expected) you are more likely to make mistakes. However, if you are confident in your skills then your nerves can easily go down and your practice will shine through.

Step Four: Once your behind that wheel, focus and stay alert. Make sure you are following the rules and making full stops and clearly looking all ways.

The instructor gave some great advice as well. Go to the DMV that you will be taking your test at and practice on a Sunday when there will be no traffic or cars. Become familiar with the area and learn each turn and stop light. It will make you feel much more comfortable if you know where you're going and what to expect!

 

For more information, visit http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/brochures/fast_facts/ffdl22.html.>

Animoto - LA Weekend Symphony

Central Park

Dipity Timeline of Seasons

My Weekend in Washington D.C.

How To Prepare for College

Chandrea and I decided to write and shoot our "How To" on the topic of successfully preparing for college. By following these five easy steps, anyone can have a great experience and become a prosperous student!

You will need to first and foremost, be enrolled in a Community College or 4 year University.

Always be prepared with notebooks, pens, paper, scantrons, exam booklets and the class text book.

Steps:

1. Once you are enrolled in a college, register for classes.

2. Locate your campus bookstore so you can purchase all books and necessary items for class.

3. Study hard in order to be prepared for up coming exams. If you need support, study groups can be very beneficial!

4. Never be late to class. You may miss something important.

5. Always come prepared with all your materials in hand.

Get ready! Passing classes and learning new information will be easy as one through five!  

Lack of Funding Hit Libraries Hard

 

Los Angeles public libraries are facing a huge struggle due to massive budget cuts. Suffering from these unfortunate sequence of events are students, professionals, and the general public. Libraries are an asset to our society and their further restrictions can and will harm every ones access to public information and  the opportunity to learn.

Libraries are government non-profit organization which attain most of their budget from the state government. Due to the lack of funding available in California, all essential government based organizations suffer.

 At first, the libraries resorted to shorting hours and the work week in order to save what they can and keep from laying off employees. According to the LA Times article published on March 24, “We can barely get by," said Roy Stone, president of the Librarians' Guild AFSCME Local 2626.  Libraries were forced to close down two hours earlier on Mondays and Wednesdays and open 2 hours later on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

More recently, the City Council closed down the central and eight regional libraries on Sundays. All 73 branch libraries also closed down completely on Mondays along with Sundays. For the 2010- 2011 fiscal year they have slashed over $22 million on top of the shortened hours, according to LA Weekly.

Mayor  Antonio Villaraigosa proposed a 15 percent cut in budget, along with the five day week and comes up short even more due to an “increase in costs attributable to the library” such as utilizes, according to the Library Journal website.

In the past fiscal year of 2009-2010, the libraries were allocated $75,463,926 as stated in the Annual Budget for the City of Los Angeles. From the previous fiscal year, the budget actually went up from $71,572,143.

Public Libraries are an essential part of our community, over millions of Los Angelenos use their databases for free every year. They offer not only information at their locations but also provide most of their information on line. Now, there are chat rooms where librarians can help students with homework and assist with research.

Budget cuts harm schools and libraries the most. It is essential to our society to make sure these two institutions remain available and free to the public.