Continuing Education Archives

Safety and security incidents in the library and/or exposure to distressing situations can have lasting impacts on library staff. As library leaders, providing debrief support to staff after such events can improve library culture as we prioritize care for staff. This session explores how trauma exposure impacts us and how to identify the signs in others. In addition to understanding the elements of an effective and safe incident debrief, the importance and strategies for communication after a significant incident occurs are also discussed. 

The objective of the presentation is to provide management fundamentals to all people managers, but particularly those who have transitioned to a people manager. As often happens, people are promoted or assigned job duties and then are left to figure out the ‘now what’. Our time together will be a chance to discover those things that all managers want to be doing and need to be doing. It is an honor and a privilege to be a people manager. Let this session help you secure and maintain an engaged team.

Libraries are like airports with continual arrivals and departures of key staff. In order to have takeoffs and landings go smoothly, directors and trustees need to prepare for the departure of a director in times of crisis and otherwise by creating a succession plan. After covering what the current director and board must put in place prior to the landing of a new director, learn how to prepare for the arrival of a new director and the role of trustees in successfully onboarding a new director and gain strategies for how to transition the new director.

With the pandemic fading into the rearview mirror, libraries are looking to the future and hoping to take what we've learned from this challenge with us. It would seem we're at a watershed moment, offering us a chance to drop some old habits and hang onto the new ones.

This program was recorded on October 6, 2022, and runs for approximately one hour.

How far would you go for your job? According to vocational awe, the ideal librarian should die for it, happily, and without complaint. It is the idea that your work is good and sacred, and therefore is more important than any one person. Mission above all. When your work is holding up democracy and democratic values, it's a lot harder to advocate for "simple" things such as equitable pay and a reasonable work-life balance.
This webinar was recorded live on April 7, 2020, and runs for approximately one hour.

As we have witnessed the social, financial, and mental health challenges of our patrons escalate during the COVID-19 pandemic, libraries must connect and build relationships with local providers focused on these needs so that we may serve our communities as effectively as possible. This session will explore why it is imperative that libraries connect with social service providers in their communities, how to cultivate these connections, and tips to make sure the agencies you work with are effective, ethical partners.

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Illinois library statutes require a public library to engage in the competitive bidding process under many circumstances. Attorney Derke J. Price, partner at Ancel Glink Law Firm, shares valuable information on the competitive bidding process. Topics covered in this presentation include:

• Powers and limitations under the library code
• General requirements for competitive bidding and exceptions
• Intergovernmental agreements and additional opportunities
• Issues for review and inclusion in contract documents

After years of stable prices, libraries are running into the prospect of sharp increases in costs, compounded by labor shortages. Piled on top of COVID-stress, the normally sedate budgeting process may suddenly feel chaotic and uncertain. In this webinar, we'll talk about the impacts inflation is likely to have on your library - and it turns out some of these are good! We'll provide strategies for approaching and taking control of planning this year. You'll also find out a little about what your colleagues are expecting and doing too.

With multiple funding opportunities now available to purchase library technology, it is a great time to assess and upgrade your technology based on your community's needs. But how does one even start such a daunting task?" Join library technologist Carson Block as he introduces tools for pinpointing technology problems and needs, provides strategies for prioritizing and purchasing new equipment, and explains how to create an ongoing maintenance plan for your library's technology.

An essential process for any library, strategic planning engages stakeholders to create a shared vision for the future and charts a course for how to get there. This training will provide a top-level overview of community needs assessment methodologies, user engagement tactics, and key considerations as you prepare to embark on a strategic planning effort.

Topics:

- Benefits of community need assessment methodologies

- How to involve the community and users in the process

- How to decide on the length of time a strategic plan will cover

Since the CDC issued its updated masking guidance in mid-May, several other governmental entities have followed up with added guidance on masking and vaccination, including OSHA, State of Illinois, City of Chicago, and most recently, the EEOC.

Disaster can strike at any time in any locale, disrupting operations, threatening human safety, and damaging or destroying collections. Having a plan in place before disaster strikes makes good business sense; institutions that view emergency management as critical and provide staff with the authority and tools to plan will ultimately respond more successfully than those that have not prepared. Annie Peterson of LYRASIS provides an overview of different steps that libraries can take to be better prepared for a disaster of any size.