by County Commissioner Hal Valeche

The Palm Beach County Library System is part of the regional multi-type library consortia known as the Southeast Florida Library Information Network (SEFLIN), which connects both public and private libraries of all types to one another and allows the community to be served more effectively through the joint use of technology, continuing education and training of library staff.

Our libraries have become key resource centers for the public and job seekers are turning to library resources to give them an edge in the job market. Available in the county libraries and from your home computer with a library card or an ecard, these electronic resources can help in every step of the employment process. Ecards are available online and can be converted to a regular library card at any branch library. The link to eresources is www.pbclibrary.org/databases.  Here are some additional tools available to you from our county library system:

• Learn techniques for job searching, resume writing and interviewing, and brush up on workplace and computer skills with Learning Express Database. This eresource can also help users study for certification for a new field, or prepare for the GED, the SAT or the ASVAB, to name just a few of the interactive study guides and ebooks included.
• Take a career assessment and get detailed information on 3,300 jobs, with sample resumes, cover letters and job interview techniques from Ferguson's Career Guidance Center. Ferguson's also offers industry-specific contact information, glossaries of industry terms and directories of associations, educational institutions and Internet resources.
• In Live Homework Help, Career Help Specialists can review your resume or proofread a cover letter to make sure it's just right before you send it in, or help you find open jobs in your neighborhood. Brush up on computer skills, or learn job searching techniques. If you need to study for your GED, SAT or GRE, or prepare for citizenship, find help for these tests in Live Homework Help, too.
• When you're ready to hit the streets or send out your resume, you can create lists of hundreds of potential employers by targeting specific business types in ReferenceUSA. Nail technicians can find all the salons in Palm Beach County; paralegals can find all the new attorneys opening for business in a geographic radius; nursing assistants can generate lists of assisted care facilities in any area; the possibilities are endless. You'll get names and addresses for sending out resumes and phone numbers you will need for follow up calls. And of course, it doesn't hurt to walk right in and introduce yourself! ReferenceUSA includes maps so you won't lose your way.

It may interest you to know that for every $1.00 invested in public libraries, the return on investment is $10.18, Gross Regional Product increases by $13.23, and income (wages) increases by $28.42. For every $2,574 spent on public libraries from public funding sources in Florida, one job (in the economy, not just in libraries) is created.

Your public library system is keeping pace with the latest technologies and online resources and I hope you will take advantage of these services at a branch near you.

As always, if there is any way that I or my staff can assist you, please do not hesitate to contact me at 561-355-2201 or by email at hvaleche@pbcgov.org.