Librarians' Web Directory Adds 10,000th Record

Posted on June 28, 2002

Earlier this month the Librarians' Index to the Internet added its 10,000th website. The hallmark entry -- describing Americorps, a service organization whose members earn educational credits for activities such as mentoring youth and building affordable housing -- was contributed by volunteer indexer Julianna Hamann, a San Diego resident who has written close to 200 records for the lii.org database. lii.org is a searchable, browsable website created and managed by librarians and funded by the Library of California, a resource-sharing initiative for libraries.

When asked why the self-described "grandmotherly" type would contribute content to the lii.org database, Hamann replied: "When I was a little girl, six years old, a refugee, new to the United States from Hungary, I was afraid to utter a word because of my language barrier. My mother's words still ring in my ears, 'Open your mouth and ask questions. This is America. They don't punish you for asking. Knowledge will set you free.' Since then, words became my allies."

Hamann will receive an lii.org t-shirt and a certificate for a free course through Infopeople, a training project that has brought thousands of courses to librarians and end-users throughout California.

lii.org began in 1990 as a gopher bookmark list created by Berkeley reference librarian Carole Leita. In the mid-90s, lii.org was adopted by Berkeley Public Library as an in-house resource. lii.org moved to federal funding in 1997, acquired several part-time staff, and became a signature project of the Library of California in 2000.

Diane Davenport, Library Manager, Berkeley Public Library, commented, "what Carole Leita started as her own bookmark file over ten years ago has grown to be one of the most respected Internet sources. As a file now updated and maintained by hundreds of librarians, it's a testament to librarians' abilities at evaluating, organizing, and making reliable information available."

Lii.org has three core services: a high-quality, searchable, browsable, multi-subject website; a weekly mailing, New This Week, that reaches over 13,000 subscribers; and special thematic collections, topics for which have included September 11, Black History Month, Tax Time, Yucca Mountain, and The Grapes of Wrath.

Under the leadership of librarian Karen G. Schneider since October, 2001, lii.org content is created and managed by over 130 volunteer indexers and four other permanent staff: Martha Gifford, Assistant Coordinator and Senior Editor; Wendy Hyman, Associate Editor; Pat Fell, Cataloger, and Bill Moseley, Programmer. lii.org has received additional grant funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Library Services and Technology Act, and is hosted by UC Berkeley SunSITE.