For Good

70-plus artists converge for Art Off Pike

By Newsroom

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September 11, 2012

Jim Guthrie and his wife Deanna Heil have lived in Newport for about 20 years. The dynamic duo of architects met while studying at UC’s DAAP. While they planned a life far west of the town of their alma mater, a poor job economy left them little choice but to bloom where they were planted. Now Guthrie, who works for Hub + Weber Architects, and Heil, who started City Studios Architecture in OTR, are in their second home and raising three kids, aged 16 to 10. Guthrie took over as chair of Art Off Pike this year. In anticipation of this year's festival Sept. 30, Soapbox asked him to share his thoughts about the event and its latest incarnation. Q: How did you get interested in Art Off Pike in Covington--I mean, you're a Newport guy, right? A. I attended AOP a few years ago for the first time. The second time I participated as an artist—I dabble as an inner-demon catharsis. I volunteered on the committee last year. And this year, I was thrust into the Chair position because I stood still when someone asked, "Who wants to be Chair?" Everyone else took one step backwards. Q: Explain what it is for readers who haven't experienced it before. A: Art Off Pike is an urban street festival celebrating artists and downtown Covington. It was created by the Westside Action Coalition (a neighborhood coalition) eight years ago as an event (an ice cream social) capitalizing on local artists living and working in Covington and has grown from there. This year, we'll have more than 70 artists displaying their wares for sale, between $10 to $400 generally. We'll also have an area for kids art activities called "Picasso's Playground" which will be run by area arts organizations. You'll find coloring, water color, collage, doll making, bubbles, ice cube painting, hooping, finger painting and ceramics. Q: What's new about the celebration this year? A. This year there will be coffee!!! And lots of food. Both of which were painfully absent last year. We've signed up Deeper Roots Coffee, C'est Cheese, Cafe de Wheels, Lime, Yankee Doodle Pretzels and streetpops. Q: What role have you played in the festival? A: I'm the chair ... so I do everything that I can't get anyone else to do. But mostly organizing and occasionally begging. We have a great committee of folks - Natalie Bowers with the City of Covington, Jean St. Jean with My Nose Turns Red, Joan C. Lee (community leader), William Dickson with Haney, Chris Henry (community leader) and Chris Meyer.?? Q: Can you talk about the AOP posters a bit? A: The posters, and all the collateral material really, grew out of an effort to distinguish Art Off Pike from other art festivals. We wanted to recognize the urbanity of Covington instead of apologize for it. We wanted to recognize the beauty in the grit. So, we made an effort to make every piece of collateral material as authentic and real. We started out mailing "save the date" baggies to 100 of our best friends which contained hand stamped and numbered cards. We handed out business cards that were the same (stamped, signed and numbered). We walked around Pike and Seventh Streets in Covington (where the event is held) and took pictures of the cool things we noticed. We printed these images on corrugated cardboard. Each poster is individually spray painted, signed and numbered. There are eight copies of five versions for a total of 40 (41 actually). These were distributed to the area businesses and supporters that love us. I'm particularly proud of the posters and have to thank William Dickson and his firm Haney for helping us out.?? Q: When was the first time you heard about/went to Art Off Pike? What was your impression? A: It was like a yard sale for artists. And there's a certain amount of cool to that. It wasn't pretentious. It was a community. We want to grow ... but we don't want to lose that.?? Q: Describe Covington's art scene and how Art Off Pike fits in with it. A: Art and Culture are so important to cities - particularly the urban cores. You may have read recently that the Covington Arts District as a city designated zone no longer exists, but the arts initiative is absolutely alive ... just evolving, unrestricted by boundaries. Covington has recently been recognized by the governor's arts and cultural district certification. Covington's Mayor and Commission fully support the arts both personally (with their wallets) and politically. It's a recognition that Arts and culture do impact the bottom line economy. Covington is unique in that it has a city supported and staffed Gallery at AEC, but also many other arts organizations including Baker Hunt, Carnegie, Behringer Crawford, Madison Theater, Madison Event Center, concerts at the Basillica, the Ascent, public sculpture; and private groups like Bldg Gallery who regularly bring in international artists for shows and public art projects. AOP is the original arts event that Covington's Full Spectrum was based on. Capitalizing on all the artists - ceramists, painters, playwrights, musicians, singers, performers, living and working in Covington. ?Q: Anything you think people should know about the art scene in Northern Kentucky that they don't know already? A: It's there. I think the different incarnations, designations and zones and the disintegration of those zoning designations can confuse people. I think it's not where it needs to be; not where it will be. It has to come from within, and there are some energetic people working on fostering the artist community and it's going to happen (inside Covington joke).?? Do Good: • Show AOP some love on Facebook. • Make a day of it. Attend the festival Sept. 30. • Check out more Covington neighborhood action at the Center for Great Neighborhoods. Compiled by Elissa Yancey Follow Elissa on Twitter

Latest in For Good

WordPlay opens Urban Legend Institute in Northside

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Diversity

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August 28, 2012

Got your zombie apocalypse survival kit yet? What about that alligator repellant? Better yet, how about some much-coveted, impossible-to-find water from the Fountain of Youth? Look no further. Those are the kind of items that will be available when the Urban Legend Institute, at 4011 Hamilton Ave., officially opens its doors Sept. 8. The family-friendly grand opening, from 5 to 10 pm, coincides with Northside’s Second Saturday celebration and will offer treats, music, word games and other surprises, promises Libby Hunter. But behind the tongue-in-cheek retail storefront is Northside’s newest and very serious nonprofit: WordPlay, a collaborative literacy group aimed at helping kids learn how to read, write and express themselves. It will offer free tutoring from 3 to 6 pm Mondays through Thursdays and from noon to 4 pm Saturdays. “It’s not just a store, the Urban Legend Institute will become our street-front personality, our interface with the community,” says Hunter, Wordplay’s executive director. “We want it to be a destination. People will wander in not knowing about WordPlay, they'll enjoy the engaging experience they have at the Urban Legend Institute, learn about WordPlay, spread the word, come back to volunteer, enroll their kids or be inspired to donate.” WordPlay takes a page from the National 826 program based in San Francisco, with eight chapters across the United States. Each chapter offers free writing and literacy services to underserved children. Each are also fronted by whimsical retail outlets, including the Bigfoot Research Institute in Boston, which sells unofficial Yeti Hairballs; The Boring Store in Chicago, which offers up all types of disguises; and the Museum of Unnatural History, which may be the only store in the world to sell unicorn tears. Hunter says she is encouraged about WordPlay after a highly successful pilot this summer, when WordPlay volunteers teamed up with Cincinnati Public School’s Fifth Quarter to work with students from Chase Elementary School. “The biggest surprise is how well Fifth Quarter went; how quickly the kids become engaged,’’ she says, adding that two retired professionals also become just as committed. “I knew we were onto something.” One of those volunteers was Tom Callinan, retired editor and vice president of The Enquirer. Callinan, a WordPlay board member, was going to just drop by one or two days to observe. Instead, Hunter says he showed up every day for five weeks to work with the students. “It was rewarding this summer to watch students transform from reluctant learners to proud ‘authors’ of their work,’’ Callinan says, noting the approach of using fun and creativity to teach certainly enlivens the experience. The Urban Legend Institute follows the same path: “It’s an excellent example of a nonprofit using social enterprise to support its mission,” he says. Hunter says the store will also feature locally produced and sourced t-shirts, funky items of lore and crazy bits of Cincinnati history. And while the Institute began with a wholly quirky theme, Hunter says it has evolved so much that she hopes it will eventually become an archive of local lore. “We find that legitimate history is becoming a central piece to it,” she says. “We want it to serve as a sort of mini-children's museum, with fun, odd, curious things from the past for kids to explore—objects that might not be for sale but they can work with them, ponder them, use them for writing prompts.” Imagine a place, she says, where electronics are turned off. Instead, kids are turned on to actual hand writing, the art of letter writing, creating pieces of tactile art that is not crafted from tapping on a screen or moving a mouse. “Funny enough, as we talk to people and gather information on local legends and history, we find we are becoming something of a repository for local lore and unusual objects,” Hunter says. “How cool to get to share all this with the kids.” Do Good: • Volunteer. Share your passion for the written word and creativeness. Teens and adults can both volunteer their time and talents. • Donate. As a 501c(3), donations are tax deductible. • Follow news and happenings on their Facebook or Twitter. Chris Graves is the vice president of digital and social media at the Powers Agency. Editor's Note: Soapbox Managing Editor Elissa Yancey serves as vice chair of the board for WordPlay.

CCM Prep hosts first adult chamber program

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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August 28, 2012

Learning isn’t just for children. In fact, says Amy Dennison, assistant dean for CCM’s Preparatory Department, adults sometimes have an easier time learning than children do because of their enthusiasm and free will. “Our prep department serves performers anywhere from ages three to 84,” Dennison says. “And most of our faculty love working with adults because they’re excited and want to be there.” This September, the staff from CCM Prep and musicians from the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO) plan to give amateur adult musicians opportunities to work with one another, work with professionals and share their music with the community by organizing CCM Prep’s first Adult Chamber Music Weekend. The weekend, which is designed to expose amateur musicians to professional coaching, will include group rehearsals, guidance from Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra musicians, breakfast, lunch and a final performance in the CCM village. The staff from CCM is now accepting online applications for the program. The form asks applicants to detail their musical capabilities as well as what instruments they play. Applications for the program, which costs $125 per person, will be accepted until Sept. 8. Then, based on their musical capabilities, the musicians will be put into groups of three to four. Participants will practice and perform within their chamber groups for the duration of the weekend. Staff at the CCM Prep Department will choose music for the final performances, and professionals from the CSO will coach the players along the way. The final performance, which will be free and open to the public, is scheduled for Sept. 29. Dennison says that the weekend will be a wonderful way for the community to engage in the arts. The small, intimate groups will give musicians the chance to share their passions with like-minded people. “Our main goal is to provide opportunities for people of all ages and abilities,” Dennison says. “I strongly believe that everyone in the community should have access to the arts, regardless of their talents or abilities. It just gives people a sense of fulfillment and joy.” Do Good: • View CCM Prep Department’s class offerings. • Attend the final performance Sept. 29. • Check out the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra’s fall schedule. By Jen Saltsman Follow Jen on Twitter

Neighbor wish lists get chance of boost from PNC Bank

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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August 21, 2012

Mary Lazzari wasn’t quite sure what she was going to do when she retired from a life-long career in nursing. She figured she’d volunteer; maybe spend some time helping out at the Mary Rose Mission Soup Kitchen, which will be the first and only one in Boone County when it opens this fall in Florence. Instead this summer, she’s taught herself about Facebook, viral marketing and grassroots organizing as part of PNC’s Neighborhood Wishlist Challenge. The challenge is a voting contest that will give up to $500 to each of 100 finalists to help kick-start neighborhood-based programs. “I figured I’d be chopping carrots and celery back in the kitchen. I didn’t think I’d be out hustling,’’ Lazzari jokes. Lazzari’s submission, on behalf of the Mary Rose Mission, was one of four local entries chosen from 500 in the 17 states in which PNC Bank operates. To be fully funded, each finalist now has to receive the same number of votes for each dollar they requested. Lazzari asked for $500, so she has to get her friends, family and anyone else she can convince to vote for the soup kitchen. Voting ends Sunday, Aug. 26, at 11:59 p.m. Peg Moertl, a PNC senior vice-president in community development banking based in Cincinnati, said the bank’s goal was to get 500 submissions in two weeks. They got more than that in 48 hours. “We know there’s a lot of really good stuff happening in our neighborhoods,” Moertl says. “And sometimes a small bit of capital can make a huge difference.” That’s exactly what Jeni Jenkins is hoping for. Jenkins, an artist and educator, applied for the full $500 to pilot the Youth ArtBRIDGE project. The youth/artist printmaking collaborative is intended for low-income Northside youth, ages 8 to 18, to create socially conscious artwork. “I’ve always known I’ve wanted to do this … to bring together all kinds of artists and kids with different skills and have them create art with a social justice bent,” says Jenkins, 32, who is the director of Education and Outreach for the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition. Jenkins, whose project still needs a few hundred votes to secure funding, says she was excited to make it to the voting phase. “Five-hundred dollars may not seem like a lot to many people, but it really is. This is about getting funds to do a small project, to provide a kind of jumpstart,” she says. “It’s about getting myself out there; about showing outcomes.” Moertl was delighted to see the local submissions, which also include Bob Ashbrock’s $500 request to provide new landscaping in and around the Reading Veteran’s Memorial Plaza and Joshua Hanauer’s $500 request to buy balls to expand the burgeoning youth rugby program in Norwood. Each winner of the $500 will have 90 days to provide the bank with a project recap that provides outcomes, photos and videos, “so we can see the impact of these,’’ Moertl says. “I’m very eager to see the results,’’ she says. “For any project that really pops, I would think that one of our teams may reach out to these folks and see if we are supporting them.” For Lazzari, winning will likely mean paying for one of the first trips to the grocery store to stock the soup kitchen’s pantry. “Every little bit helps,” Lazzari says. “It may not seem like a lot, but it’s a beginning for us.” Do Good: • Vote on the local projects. • Watch Jeni Jenkin's video. • Contribute to the Mary Rose Mission.

Treasure hunt introduces local couple to state’s natural gems

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Environment + Sustainability

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August 21, 2012

Joyce Gardner has been hiking for years. And as a lifelong Cincinnati resident, she was pretty sure she had visited most of the area’s natural spaces. So Gardner was surprised when she found some hidden gems this summer as part of the Nature Conservancy’s Natural Treasures of Ohio Challenge. “People don’t realize that we really have some great trails here,” says Gardner, of Covedale, who hiked in Ault Park and Mt. Airy Forest locally and visited another 11 natural areas across the state with her husband. Sure Gardner and her friend, Kathy Brown, visited the Ault Park Pavilion and Everybody’s Tree House in Mt. Airy; but they also spent hours discovering the trails that many may miss, she says. That was exactly the point of the Nature Conservancy’s challenge: To introduce and showcase some of the state’s natural areas and encourage residents from all corners of the state to learn about the various natural wonders of the state. “Our hope is that folks would find natural areas and say: ‘Wow, I had no idea that this is here,’ ” says Josh Knights, executive director of the Nature Conservancy in Ohio. “And at the end of the day, we believe that if Ohioans discover and come to know these areas, they will be inspired to help us protect them.” That Nature Conservancy and Honda launched the challenge, a kind of treasure hunt, in June. Ohio residents could visit one to 30 designated places and upload a photo of themselves at the designated landmark on the Nature Conservancy’s Web site for a chance to win a 2012 Honda Insight Hybrid. The contest, which will also award five $500 REI gift certificates, ran from May 22 to Aug. 8. Winners are expected to be announced in September. More than 3,000 entries were filed, with many people visiting all 30 places this summer. Many families used the challenge as their summer vacation, Knight says. While pleased with the participation, he wonders if this summer’s record-breaking heat and high gasoline prices may have hindered some participation. The photo galleries, as well as the detailed descriptions and maps of each of the 30 destinations that are organized by geography, will remain on the Nature Conservancy at least through December and maybe longer, Springs says. While winning would be nice, Gardner says the challenge really created an opportunity for she and her husband, John, to visit areas they have always wanted to – including Kelly’s Island State Park on Lake Erie, where they celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary. They also stumbled across several parks they normally would never have set out to themselves. Her new favorite? Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, in Northern Ohio between Toledo and Sandusky on Lake Erie. She likened the 2,200-acre state park to being in the Everglades. “I was really impressed with that one,” she says. “I really couldn’t believe I was standing in Ohio.” That’s not the first time Knights has heard that about the state’s varied natural elements. “Ohio really does have a diverse landscape; from one of the largest lakes in the world to the Ohio River there in Cincinnati … Ohio has all of these fantastic places. We wanted to introduce more Buckeyes to what we have at home.” Do Good: • Follow the Ohio Nature Conservancy on Facebook. • Visit some of the designations this fall. • See the photos of the Southwest Ohio designations and read the scrapbook. • Watch the video. • Donate. Chris Graves, assistant vice president of digital and social media at the Powers Agency, loves the outdoors. You will find her camping with her daughters on Kelly’s Island this fall.

National recognition puts Museum Center among nation’s elite

By Newsroom

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Arts + Culture

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August 21, 2012

Sarah Evans can’t imagine how other high school students figure out what they want to study in college. Evans has Cincinnati Museum Center to thank for the ease of her choice. The 2012 Madeira High School graduate will study archeology when she start classes this fall at the University of Cincinnati. Evan has been involved in the Museum Center’s Youth Program since was 13 years old, logging an incredible 6,000 or so hours working in each of the center’s three museums. The program is intended to teach teens about museum work and prepare them for college. “I’m what they call a regular,’’ she says. “I just love our staff. It’s really a place of opportunity and friendship. It’s become a huge part of my life. It has definitely influenced 100 percent of what I want to study in college.” The youth program was one of two programs specifically lauded as a national model by the American Association of Museums in its recent accreditation of the Museum Center at the historic Union Terminal in the West End. The Learning Through Play annual conference that brings parents and teachers to the museum to discuss the importance of play in education was also singled out as a model of excellence. The recognition puts the center in elite company. Just 4.5 percent of the nation’s 17,000 have won accreditation, which is voluntary and is the highest recognition for a museum. The three-year process examined every facet of the Museum Center’s operation, including finances, governance, programs and programming, stewardship of its vast collection as well as its professional standards. “It’s really the best news for us. It’s a validation of our peers that we are doing things right,’’ says Elizabeth Pierce, museum vice president of marketing and communications. “We are delighted.” The Museum Center had to wait to apply for accreditation after the merger of the Museum of Natural History and Science, which had been accredited. And while accreditation is on a five-year cycle, the Museum Center will be reviewed in 2014 due to the merger with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, she says. “Accreditation assures the people of Cincinnati that their museum is among the finest in the nation,’’ says Ford W. Bell, president of the AAM. “Citizens can take considerable pride in their homegrown institution, for its commitment to excellence and for the value it brings to the community.” The distinction comes just three years after the Museum Center was awarded the National Medal for Museum and Library Service, making it only one of 16 organizations in the United States to have both. “We really are in good company,” Pierce says. “I hope this reinforces to the community that we are an organization of quality; that we are doing our job well, and we are respectful of donations and we invest in this organization.” Evans, who is also the outgoing president of the center’s youth advisory council, hopes the accreditation will mean continued success for the Youth Program. “I would say to youth: The more you give to the program, the more the museum can give back to you,” she says. “You will be repaid far more in your future.” Do Good: • Watch a video of teens involved in the Youth Program. • Join or renew your membership. • Plan a visit. • Follow them on Facebook. Chris Graves is the assistant vice president of digital and social media at the Powers Agency.

4C steps up efforts to improve childcare quality

By Newsroom

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Education + Learning

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August 14, 2012

Think Ohio day care providers have to have a degree to care for children? Think that cozy, home-based, daycare center just down the street, has to be licensed by the state of Ohio in order to operate? If you answered no to both of those questions, you are right. And that’s just wrong, according to 4C for Children. The mission of the Cincinnati-based nonprofit, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, is to improve the quality and accessibility of childcare in a 33-county area spanning Southwest Ohio, the Miami Valley and Northern Kentucky. And if you’ve searched for childcare in the area, you likely have touched their services. The organization was initially created by five agencies as a means to ensure there was enough high-quality childcare in Greater Cincinnati. The group, first called Comprehensive Community Child Care – hence the shortened 4C – quickly blossomed into much more and impacts hundreds of thousands of people each year, says Communications Vice President Karen Hurley. The group provides free referrals to parents looking for childcare, works to educate current childcare providers and others working in the area of early childhood education, advocates for issues impacting childcare in Ohio and Kentucky and works to increase childcare options. The agency maintains a database of more than 2,600 childcare options for parents that include licensed centers, preschools and family child-care homes registered with 4C. The group helps more than 8,000 families annually find childcare and provides a series of checklists and tips to help in their quests. Last year alone, the group held 1,400 workshops and classes which 24,000 providers have attended. The number of children impacted is well over 169,000 kids, Hurley says. “Our mission is to professionalize these providers so they no longer think of themselves as merely a babysitter,’’ Hurley says, noting that 90 percent of a child’s brain is developed before they set a foot into kindergarten. “One of our biggest victories is when a childcare provider gets it,’’ she says. “When they think of themselves as having a real impact on the early learning of a child.” Hurley says the group spent more than a decade advocating for the licensing of home-based day care. Ohio was one of five states in the United States that did not regulate home-based child care businesses. In Ohio, one person can care for up to six children in his or her home with no license, no training and no safety measures. But by 2014, the state of Ohio will mandate that as part of the federal Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge. Ohio received a four-year, $400 million grant to enact a series of changes in Ohio schools and that President Barack Obama believed would improve education. Ohio was one of 12 states to receive funding. But the work for the agency, with 80 staff member and an annual budget of $5 million, is far from done, Hurley says. The group is working to provide more resources to parents who may feel isolated to get them needed support and continuing to build higher levels of quality into childcare programs. In Ohio, the group is working with providers to help them meet standards outlined by the Step Up to Quality rating program. They are also doing the same for providers in Kentucky that fall under the Stars for Kids Now award system. Do Good: Donate to the group.Subscribe to their Newsletters.Read their blogs.Follow them on Faceboook or Twitter.Watch what others say about their work and the importance of early education.By Chris Graves Chris Graves is the assistant vice president for digital and social media at the Powers Agency and is the mother of two teens.

Caracole’s new space in Northside offers room to grow

By Newsroom

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Diversity

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August 14, 2012

It only seems fitting, David White says, that Caracole Inc.’s offices are now at the former Charles Miller Funeral Home in Northside. The funeral home was one of only two in the entire Greater Cincinnati area that would accept the bodies of AIDS victims in the 1980s. “Back in the day, people thought you could catch it from a sneeze,” says White, Caracole’s Community Investment Coordinator. “But the folks at the Miller funeral home were not scared. You have to remember, this was back in the days when AIDS was a death sentence.” Caracole, the non-profit that that provides safe, affordable housing and supportive services for individuals and families living with HIV/AIDS, moved into the former funeral home at the corner of Hamilton Avenue and Knowlton Street June 29. The move was necessitated after Caracole assumed the caseload from fellow local nonprofit Stop AIDS in April 2011. The shift increased Caracole’s clients from 200 in Hamilton County to nearly 1,000 clients served in eight counties, White says. “The best thing, my favorite thing, has been the community of Northside. They have been so welcoming,’’ he says. “The neighborhood is so excited a social services agency is here, let alone an AIDS group. It’s been amazing, really.” The move more than doubles their space to 9,400 square feet, centralizes their location and puts them directly on Metro routes. It is also close to hospitals and provides private offices for staff. The new location houses the group’s administrative and case management offices. Two transitional homes, each with 11 beds, did not move. Those homes provide housing and services for homeless residents who are HIV positive or suffering from AIDS. White is excited because the increased space means many like services are now under one roof. Caracole’s HIV/AIDS support groups can meet regularly, which was not the case at their former Roselawn location. A local GLBT group will also hold meetings at the offices, and two employees from Planned Parenthood of southwest Ohio will administer anonymous HIV tests there. “We would not have been able to move without the donations—from paint, furnishing and the majority of the carpeting,’’ says White, who estimated that donations were worth tens of thousands of dollars. “This helps us save money on rent and is money we can put toward client services.” Two foundations provided more than $30,000 to move the group’s offices as well as for data installation. Matt Kotlarczyk, who bought the 15,000-square-foot building with a partner in late 2011 for $260,000, says redeveloping it with Caracole has gone extraordinarily well. Caracole signed a 10-year lease for first-floor offices. “It gives them a new home and us a good, solid investment,” says Kotlarczyk, a local sculptor who owns Refined Sugar Studio. Future Life Now LLC is leasing about 2,500 square feet on the second floor of the building. Another 3,500-square-foot space on the second floor and the 3,500-square-foot hearse garage, which is fully insulated, remain vacant, he says. Kotlarczyk has been told the building, originally built in 1875 and added onto numerous times, was the longest continuously operated funeral home in Cincinnati. And at least one woman thought it still was. The woman walked into Caracole’s offices a couple weeks ago, White says, and asked who she might talk to about funeral services. That wouldn’t be Caracole. They are too busy working on living. Do Good: • Attend Caracole’s open house celebration from 4 to 9 pm, Sept. 13, 4138 Hamilton Ave. There will be music, a photo booth and tours. It is not a fundraiser. • Call 513-679-4455 to schedule an anonymous HIV test, administered at Caracole through Planned Parenthood, Monday-Thursday from 9 am to 5 pm, and Friday from 9 am to 1 pm. • Email oracle@caracole.org to volunteer your time. • Donate cleaning supplies or toiletries to Caracole’s pantry to help residents. • Use your Kroger Plus card to give a percentage of your total spend to Caracole. By Chris Graves Chris Graves is assistant vice president of digital and social media at the Powers Agency.

Keep Cincinnati Beautiful wins national kudos for green initiatives

By Newsroom

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Education + Learning

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August 7, 2012

Some might say that the City of Cincinnati gets more beautiful every day, what with the continued development of its urban core and riverfront, an ever-expanding “green” construction movement and a treasure trove of amazing parks and public spaces. Keep Cincinnati Beautiful (KCB) works to ensure that the surrounding environment keeps pace by creating innovative and award-winning programs that encourage recycling and conservation practices among schoolchildren, and make it easier for folks to save the old VCR in the basement from a landfill. KCB earned notable recognition in July when Keep America Beautiful recognized the organization’s Sustainability in Action and One Stop Drop programs at its annual assembly of Ohio affiliates in Columbus. While many public schools strive to set environmentally friendly “green” goals, KCB noticed that schools struggle to meet them. “There is a misperception out there that ‘green’ programs create more work for school staff and faculty,” says Brooke Romaniw, KCB public awareness and volunteer coordinator. “We wanted to find a way to reverse this perception and help Cincinnati Public Schools educate both students and adults.” As a result, Sustainability in Action (SIA) was born. Funded by partners including P&G, Hamilton County Recycling and Solid Waste District and the City of Cincinnati Office of Environmental Quality, SIA is a three-year program that engages students in hands-on activities that work to forge “green” habits. Launched in January 2012, the SIA program focused first on waste reduction in school lunchrooms. Each day at lunch, students were taught to sort the waste on their trays, identifying items that could be recycled or composted. Students at Dater High School, Rees E. Price Academy, Roselawn Condon, Rockdale Academy and Silverton Paideia were part of the pilot year. “The students saved tons of waste from landfills during the pilot and benefitted from hands-on experience,” says Romaniw. Some students took it a step further by creating their own compost bins and gardens. As the recipient of Keep America Beautiful’s Civic/Nonprofit Award, SIA is set to begin its second phase, focusing on energy conservation during the upcoming school year. The idea is that by year three, participating schools should be ready to take over the programs themselves. “We’ve found that schools really see the value in this program,” says Romaniw. “It is exciting to see children building sustainable habits that have the potential to change the future for the better.” KCB won more national recognition for its One Stop Drop event, which launched in November 2011. It won the America Recycles Day Award from Keep America Beautiful. Romaniw spearheaded the development of One Stop Drop to make recycling unusual items convenient. While curbside recycling saves many items from the landfill, it does not accept things like electronics and number 5 plastics. During the One Stop Drop, you can drop off these types of items, drive-thru style, with free refreshments available. By partnering with 2TRG, the Cincinnati Zoo, Hamilton County, the City of Cincinnati and Whole Foods, the One Stop Drop program reached hundreds of people in just a few hours. Items like old cell phones, batteries, dried-out pens and markers, plastic bags and number 5 plastics were collected. “We are pioneering the way for schools and our community, and are proud to lead the pack,” says Romaniw. What are you doing to keep Cincinnati beautiful? Do Good: • Help students learn to sort recycling in the Sustainability in Action program. Email Brooke Romaniw. • Mark your calendar for the 2012 One Stop Drop coming in November. • Find out what Keep Cincinnati Beautiful has in the works; like the group on Facebook. By Deidra Wiley Necco

Downtown Cincinnati library named busiest on continent

By Newsroom

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For Good

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August 7, 2012

Ask Greg Edwards what made the downtown branch of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County the busiest in North America last year and you might think you were talking to a large retailer. He refers to library patrons as customers and books and other materials as the library’s product. He talks frequently of using library data to anticipate trends, primarily in the exploding digital world. “We haven’t cut our materials as some libraries have done to cut costs. We’ve made every effort to keep our product on our shelves,’’ says Edwards, library services director. “It makes sense to us to provide what our customers need and want. “We listen to customer demand.” The Public Library Association survey ranked the Cincinnati Library’s downtown branch, at 800 Vine St., the busiest in terms of materials borrowed in 2011. About 6 million books and other materials – or about 34 percent of the system’s 17.6 million items - were borrowed from the downtown branch alone. The total system was ranked the eighth busiest in terms of circulation in North America, Edwards says. The Cincinnati Library was compared with 1,300 public libraries that included the largest in the United States and Canada. Last year was the busiest year in terms of circulation since the library’s founding in 1853, and circulation was up 8 percent year over year, Edwards says. “This shows us that people value the library and this particular library branch,’’ Edwards says. “This demonstrates the support, trust and the need people have for their library … It makes you feel good.” Continual changes and upgrades to products and services the main branch offers also helped fuel the high circulation. Consider: • Just last week, the Library launched a new “Google-like” catalogue system that allows users to search and find exactly the materials they are seeking for. The system also lets users both leave and read reviews and recommendations. • In February, the Library launched a robust mobile app that lets smartphone owners check their account, search the catalog, download eBooks and audiobooks and use their phones to search barcodes on books to see if the Library has a copy in its collection. More than 7,000 people have downloaded the app and have run 557,749 queries, Edwards says. • The Library’s Virtual Library lets users download thousands of books, music, magazines and newspaper articles. Last year, there were 470,725 downloads of materials – a 518 percent increase from 2010. Edwards says digital downloads will likely double to more than 800,000 in 2012. • The Library’s Virtual Information Center, which is a team of librarians who answer emails, call or text messages 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. While there is no doubt technology improvements fueled circulation gains, Paula Brehm-Heeger also points to changes made in services and to the physical layout of 542,500-square-foot downtown branch. Brehm-Heeger, library services manager for the central region which includes downtown, credits a two-year project that analyzed how patrons were using the library to make changes to staffing, the layout and programs to more effectively meet patron needs while they were physically inside the main branch. The library branch has added more than 100 computers, increased the services and the space devoted to teenagers, reshaped and expanded the popular library area and created “grab-and-go” displays near the front of the libraries. The library also centralized its call center to allow librarians to interact more with customers and to help them find materials. “It is a very retail model,’’ she says. “We are very customer-focused and very forward-focused.” Do Good: • On the go, check out the Library’s mobile tools. • Got a question about the Library, chat online with a librarian, day or night. • Follow latest library news via RSS. By Chris Graves Chris Graves, assistant vice president for Social and Digital Media at the Powers Agency, uses the Library’s Mobile App at least weekly.