Continuing Education Archives

When new trustees and directors start their roles at the library, some confusion about responsibilities can arise. Clarifying boundaries and roles helps strengthen relationships and the organization as a whole. Chatham Area Public Library Vice-President Christine Westerlund and Library Director Amy Byers discuss how each position is essential and how success depends on understanding their respective roles.

Mazi Robinson, licensed counselor and experienced speaker, shares practical strategies for handling criticism, reducing reliance on external validation, and refocusing energy on meaningful professional and personal goals.

In this session you'll learn practical strategies for adapting your customer service to better support neurodivergent library users. You'll also gain insights from research interviews and leave equipped with tools to foster patience, empathy, and connection with all patrons, especially those with ADHD.

Dr. Brandy McNeil discusses the key ethical and operational considerations in AI use; translating library values into actionable AI principles; communicating policies effecitvely to staff and the public; and addressing bias, transparency, and accountability in AI tools.

Generative AI is reshaping the publishing industry, from an upsurge in “AI slop” to the rise of AI-narrated, human-authored materials. Given how central our collections are to the library’s mission, these industry developments demand our attention. In this session, we’ll examine AI’s impact on our collections and explore strategies for how libraries can respond. 

Learning Outcomes: 

• Attendees will identify generative AI's impact on the publishing industry. 

• Attendees will identify generative AI's impact on library collections.