As anyone who has attended a webinar knows, online education is a fun and enriching experience. Do you have a specific topic you’d like to learn more about? Check out WebJunction’s webinar archives for learning opportunities in various subjects.
The Spanish Language Outreach Program has archives for the In Depth Webinar series.
Services to Rural and Small Libraries include the In Focus archives at Rural Webinars.
The Learning Webinars will keep you abreast of the great ways to optimize ongoing learning opportunities.
In Pat Wagner’s Webinar on Library Leadership and LE@D, she touts the benefits of training all library staff in leadership skills.
Create an educational environment for both employees and patrons at your library in 10 Ways to Make Your Library Great in 2008.
Last Week’s Poll Results: Podcasting
Past Tips:
The In Focus webinar series sponsored by The Association for Rural and Small Libraries has just posted the archive from last week’s webinar: The Best Small Library in America - Chelsea District Library. If you were unable to catch this 60 minute session live last Thursday, please take a look. The staff of Chelsea District Library discuss what the award has meant, as well as the numerous programs they’ve put on to help them connect with their community.
And while you’re at it, mark your calendars for our webinar next Wednesday (5/14, 11 am PST) - Professional Development: ARSL, ALA and Virtual Conferences. Join a star-studded cast of characters including George Needham, Bonnie McKewon, Patty Hector, and more, as we look at making the most of upcoming professional development opportunities. Whether it’s ALA in June, ARSL in September, or taking in a virtual conference from the comfort of your office, this session is all about development and connecting with others in your profession.
Each year in the Spring, Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream runs a “free cone” promo at their stores. Kids (and parents) line up around the block—last year my two ice cream junkies waited 40 minutes—40 minutes on line and the cone was gone in five! Luckily, the goodies from Free Comic Book Day should last quite a bit longer (and could bring returns for years).
All you need to do is stop by a participating comic store and make your free pick from a selection of titles like Archie, Superman, Hellboy, World of Aspen, X-men, Tiny Titans and many more. Seriously. These are free. I know you are thinking: “What’s the catch?” Nothing is free, right?
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By Ellen Miller
How to build a savvy, diverse board that gets results? Start with candidates who match your skill profile. In addition to racial, ethnic, gender or age diversity, look at job and community experience. For example, adding Don Developer not only strengthens planning for your new branch - he also counterbalances that powerful city architect.
Recruiting FAQ
- Should only library users apply? No! Library virgins bring an outsider’s eye to strategic issues such as annual budgets and the collection development policy. They could be your most credible advocates, too.
- Who does the recruiting? It depends. Practices range from director-only to board chair-only, and every combination in between. Whoever does it, make sure prospects care about the library - and are willing to be a link with the community.
- How to set realistic expectations? Urge the prospect to attend 2-3 board meetings. Agenda, time management, personal chemistry - they’ll see both diamonds and duds. Sending your trustees’ duties list and ethics statement show that legal and fiduciary duties are more than fancy words.
Once Walter Wonderful is hooked, he’ll either file for election or fill out an application form. This blog post deals with appointments. (more…)
Providing audio content on your library’s website improves the user experience and enriches patron services. WebJunction’s Pathfinder on Creating Audio and Podcasts for Your Library will navigate you to different resources on podcasting, including this quick guide. To acquaint yourself with the finer points of working with sound files, check out this article.
Discover the unique needs of creating podcasts for academic libraries in Learning to Speak: Creating a Library Podcast With a Unique Voice.
Check out examples of what other libraries are doing with podcasts at the Library Success Wiki Podcasting page.
Last Week’s Poll Results: Banish Burnout
Past Tips:
I’m Curious George is written by George Needham and is published regularly on WebJunction. Check out five years of George in the WebJunction archives.
Dear George:
I guess it had to happen eventually. After having pain in my arms and wrists for the last few months, I finally went to see my doctor. He told me it looks like I have a moderate case of carpal tunnel syndrome. Like most librarians these days, I spend a lot of time on my computer. I love my work and don’t want to have to quit, but the ideas of having surgery or of wearing those awful wrist braces are equally unappealing. What can I do?
Aching in Atchison
Dear AA:
I feel your pain. Literally: I was diagnosed about 18 months ago with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) and I’ve had to make a number of changes in my work space, both at home and at work, since then. Please note that what follows is very general information, and should not be used to substitute from the direction you receive from your medical professionals!
Fortunately for both of us, and for the other sufferers out there, there are many resources available to help us reduce the pain and discomfort through better posture and ergonomically sound design of our work spaces.
First, start by reviewing this excellent overview of CTS from the National Institutes of Health. There’s also an excellent article in Wikipedia on CTS. Cornell University has a dazzlingly comprehensive site managed by the University’s Human Factors and Ergonomics Research Group that addresses many issues of CTS, in the library and beyond. (more…)
There’s some interesting discussion to be had over in the Reference area of the WJ community discussions on the sticky subjects of genealogy research, copyright, for-profit end uses of library “owned” materials.
Member peteswind3 started the conversation by asking:
What should one say to keep people from copying donated material to the genealogy department and putting the copied material in a book and selling it. Is there a standard form stating a person cannot copy and sell this material? Then what recourse can be taken if it is copied and sold.
This generated questions about whether libraries “own” the copyright on donated materials.
I’m imagine this topic is relevant for other parts of our collections—especially as self-publishing for-profit becomes more common. Please join the conversation and share your thoughts by commenting here in the blog or in the original discussion thread.
Library professionals are no strangers to burnout. Indeed, the high demands of our work are sure to take a toll sooner or later. If you’re feeling the effects of burnout, it’s time to prioritize your well-being and recharge your batteries.
Even when you love what you do, burnout can occasionally trickle in. Remember, it’s a good feeling when you can look forward to going to work. Be kind to yourself: take time to refocus your priorities, prevent exhaustion, and banish burnout!
Last Week’s Poll Results: Join the Conversation
Past Tips:
When I tell people that part of my job at TechAtlas is to introduce libraries to the idea of writing and developing technology plans - I sometimes get some painful looks. I know, I know, technology planning definitely isn’t the glamorous side of library work (whatever that side might be), BUT it so truly important and I believe that good planning helps to build good libraries. And I’m pretty much a geek at heart and I love what I do. Hopefully I get to reach people that are ready to invest in the future of their library by carving out some time for planning.
This past Tuesday I was fortunate to spend the day with a group of librarians at the Texas Library Association Conference who came to spend the whole day learning about technology planning and how TechAtlas can help them work through the steps. I co-presented with Tine Walczyk from the Texas State Library and Archives and it was really a great experience for me to get to train with her. She brought up some great points for libraries to keep in mind as the work through the planning process.
So thanks to all of the attendees in Texas and I hope that you enjoyed the session!
I attended a webinar presented by ALA’s Washington office yesterday. The presenter was advocacy “guru” Stephanie Vance, and she shared some excellent ways library staff can not only prepare for Library Legislative Day on May 13 and 14, but also prepare for other other advocacy efforts at any level of government.
I’ll outline here some of the highlights of the webinar. Vance covered five planning steps for National Legislative Day.
Step #1: create a one-pager about your library
- highlights your library’s programs and resources that you provide to their constituents
- library funding, especially if highlights a federal partnership
- outline how congress can help your library
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Lately, I’ve been a bit bummed. Our stats show people have been reading (or at least visiting) the blog, but no one has been commenting. As the new guy around here I was starting to take it personally. How could my writing inspire absolutely no response? At least on my personal blog people tell me when they can’t stand my way of thinking.
Today, I think we found (at least part of) the problem. At some point, probably in the wake of one of our many spam attacks, BlogJunction was inadvertently configured to require readers to log-in before commenting. Anyone who even tried received a not-so-subtle go away message:
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An online discussion forum is a great medium for holding conversations amongst busy, geographically dispersed people. At WebJunction, the Discussion Boards are the place where your fellow library professionals deliberate all matters concerning our work, from technology to patron services. Since we all face similar problems, the next step is to share solutions! Some interesting topics to explore:
- Test your patron services programming ideas or get inspired in The Idea Exchange.
- Seeking employment in the library field comes with unique challenges. If you’re happily settled, share any tips and tricks to landing a fulfilling position in Job Searching.
- Disaster doesn’t just happen to facilities. Check out the various Networking & Security threads for managing and protecting your library’s networks.
- Some forum questions become the Question of the Week.
Participating in a conversation with like-minded souls is heartening, and even if they’re not like-minded, thrashing out differences is an elevating learning experience. Think about taking the next step and join the conversation today!
Last Week’s Poll Results: Online Communities of Practice
Past Tips:
The REFORMA DC Metro Area Chapter, in conjunction with the Montgomery County Public Libraries, WebJunction, and the Maryland State Department of Education’s Division of Library Development & Services is offering a FREE one-day workshop, “If You Build It, Will They Come?: Expert Tips for Developing Spanish Language Collections.” Speakers include Dr. Camila Alire, Elissa Miller, and Betty Valdés.
When: Monday, May 5, 2008 (Cinco de Mayo)
Where: Rockville Library, Montgomery County Public Library
Registration is free but seats are limited so register fast!
Liz, Chrystie, and Marilyn at ALA07
Originally uploaded by WebJunction
It is with great sadness, but lots of well-wishes for a bright future ahead of her, that we bid farewell to Program Director Liz Kellison. Liz was our first Content Manager and the third WebJunction employee EVER. She’s been with the project since before it began – quite literally! – as she was one of the authors of our original grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, along with our Executive Director Marilyn Mason. Largely responsible for the initial vision of our service, Liz is famous around the office for promoting “read, learn and share” – i.e., bringing together courses, discussions, and articles all together on a single WebJunction page. Liz has been fun to work with, inspiring as a leader for us and for libraries, and a tireless advocate for our programs and the people we work with. We will miss her dearly, but hope you’ll join us in wishing her well in all her future endeavors. (sniff. sniff.)
The MaintainIT Project is producing a series of free monthly 30-minute webinars focused on topics from the Cookbooks and designed to get you started on a project today. Join the webinar tomorrow, Wednesday, April 16, 1-1:30 pm Central Time (11 am Pacific/2 pm Eastern) for Notes from a Laptop Checkout Program focusing on the experiences of Be Astengo and her colleagues from the Alachua County Library District in Gainesville, FL. Find out how ACLD turned a good idea into a successful laptop checkout program, and be sure to share your experiences, too.
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