Know More

Pat Wagner Retiring

One of my favorite presenters (and people), Pat Wagner, is retiring from training and presenting at the end of 2022. When I started at SCLS in 2007, Pat was among the first presenters I worked with as a Continuing Education Consultant. SCLS and other Wisconsin library systems have had Pat for in-person and online workshops and webinars.

Pat is doing a final series of webinars for LibraryWorks and SCLS is coordinating group registration for them. The webinars are:

• Recruiting, Hiring, Orienting, Maintaining, and Saying Goodbye to Library Volunteers, October 6
• Mastering Uncomfortable Conversations with Library Visitors, October 20
• Everyday Leadership, Regardless of Your Job Title, November 3
• Spark! Little Things that Attract Library Users and Increase Circulation, December 3

The webinars are one hour long and scheduled from 1 - 2 p.m. Central Time.

If you are interested in attending one (or more) of Pat's webinars, please fill out this registration form and I will take care of the rest. To attend the first webinar on October 6, please fill out the form by Monday, October 3.

Registration for these webinars is funded in part by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services which administers the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Thank you!

Scholarships for Fall WLA Conference in Lake Geneva

Thinking about attending the Fall 2022 WLA Conference in Lake Geneva? SCLS is offering Continuing Education Scholarships for member library staff to attend the conference. This scholarship will cover registration, mileage, lodging, meals, and other costs to attend the conference. The WLA Conference is scheduled for November 1 - 4 at the Grand Geneva Resort & Spa. There are seven (7) scholarships available for the fall WLA Conference and the deadline to apply is October 14, 2022.

The Scholarship program complements our existing CE Grant program. Applicants who don't receive a scholarship are encouraged to utilize CE Grant funds to offset the costs of attending a conference. The limit for in-state conferences has been increased to $300.

The SCLS CE Scholarship and Grant programs are funded in part by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services which administers the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Thank you!

WAPL Conference Scholarship Reports

SCLS provided scholarships for three member library staff to attend the WAPL Conference in Pewaukee this past May. Here are a few highlights from our scholarship recipients.

Darla Allen, director of the Charles & JoAnn Lester Library in Nekoosa, attended her first WAPL in a few years. Darla "really enjoyed the Dynamic Dozen with Cathryn Pescinski. In this program, she talked about the 12 low-cost items she always keeps on hand, and how she uses these items to develop imaginative and fun programs. We've already worked a few items and ideas into our Summer Reading Program." Darla also noted how good it was for her to sit in a room and enjoy the questions and the speakers and get new ideas. "I can't put a price on what that did for my mental health."

Cynthia Schlegel, Adult Services and Teen Library Assistant for the Stoughton Public Library was a first-time attendee at the WAPL Conference. Cynthia also attended the Dynamic Dozen program and said it "was the most beneficial session" she attended. In addition, Cynthia attended Reaching out for Outreach with Jennie Fidler and Kelly Davis. "I particularly liked the idea of providing photo booths at outreach or even in the library; I am going to set one up in the teen area for SLP. Some very practical tips on checking out materials while not in the building and good suggestions for reaching out to the schools. It never occurred to me to go to a school open house - it is now on my radar!"

Carolyn Seaver, director of the Albertson Memorial Library in Albany, attended WAPL for the first time in her role as director. Among the sessions Carolyn attended was Veterans in the Library. "There were great resources presented for getting information about starting a veteran’s group in the library and presenting programming that would interest veterans and their families. The biggest takeaway was how the library partnered with a patron with a passion. By helping to facilitate his “dream” the library was able to do some great programming with a partner who came up with the ideas and had the contacts, leaving the library with hosting and promoting. It made me think of the patron in our library with a passion for history. We have partnered with him for some programming, but he may be an underutilized asset."

The SCLS CE Scholarship program is funded in part by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services which administers the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Thank you!

 

 

ARSL and Back in Circulation Scholarships Available

This year's Association for Rural & Small Libraries (ARSL) Conference is scheduled for September 14 - 17 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Early bird registration opens next Tuesday, June 14. If you're thinking of attending, consider applying for a CE Scholarship from SCLS. This full scholarship will cover one year's membership in ARSL, registration, transportation, lodging, and meals. One of the nice things about attending ARSL is that your registration includes five meals - this is a great way to get to know your fellow conference attendees. Apply for the scholarship by July 20, 2022, for the Early Bird registration rate.

If you're looking for something closer to home, registration for Back in Circulation Again from the UW Madison iSchool Continuing Education is now open. This conference is scheduled for October 3 and 4 on the UW Madison campus. SCLS is offering full scholarships for this conference which include registration, transportation, lodging, and meals.

Contact Jean Anderson with any questions about CE Scholarships or CE Grants.

The SCLS CE Scholarship program is funded in part with a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services which administers the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).

Trustee Training Week 2022

Registration is now open for Wisconsin Trustee Training Week 2022. This year's webinars will be held from August 22 - 26. There will be one webinar each day from noon to 1 p.m. on a topic that's relevant to public library boards, friends, and trustees. Webinars are available free of charge and are open to anyone.

The schedule of presentations is as follows:

• Monday, August 22 -- Materials Challenges and Your Library from the Trustee Table-- Regardless of whether or not your library has had a request for reconsideration of library materials, the increase in challenges is dramatic, and quite frankly, upsetting. Becky Spratford, an expert in serving leisure readers through the public library with over 20 years of experience as a locally elected library trustee, Reaching Across Illinois Library System board member, and Illinois Library Association Executive Board member, will walk you through everything you need to do to prepare for a request to ban titles at your library. From the steps you need to take right now, to how to properly handle a challenge from your seat at the trustee table, Becky will help you to put the emotions aside and protect intellectual freedom.
• Tuesday, August 23 -- Here to Stay: Recruiting & Retaining Dedicated Library Workers -- The highly competitive job market makes it much harder for libraries to attract and keep library staff - including directors. While libraries might struggle to compete with other employers on wage scales, they can create a culture of inclusivity, inspiration, and belonging that appeals to creative and hard-working employees. This session will include practical tools for library boards like improving board-director relationships, reviewing job descriptions, and investigating options for improved salaries and benefits, and more to make your library a great place to work and help reduce staff turnover and shortages.
• Wednesday, August 24 -- Effective & Efficient Meetings: Parliamentary Procedure -- Planning great meetings and running them effectively and efficiently is crucial to a strong organization. This webinar will help make parliamentary procedure understandable and useful to you as well as focus on the tools to help you with the meetings you conduct and attend. After this webinar, the attendees will not only have a better understanding of parliamentary procedure but will have the knowledge and skills to help run an effective meeting.
• Thursday, August 25 -- Making Sense & Cents of a Library Building Project: The Library Trustee Role -- Public libraries around Wisconsin are building, expanding, and/or renovating their spaces. Your Library Director or Building Consultant is recommending to the board the need for additional library space. What is the role of the library board? How can the library board support the project? John Thompson will share some tips and insights on the library board role, an overview of the process, some of the costs involved, and how potential choices might impact the project and library services.
• Friday, August 26 -- From Stories to Action: How to Talk about Your Budget to Activate Support & Secure Funding -- The core of any library's strategic plan, management plan, or development plan is the organization's own mission, vision, and values system. But very often, the plans describe the “features” of the library, like hours, collections, staffing levels, and facilities rather than the expected or hoped-for outcomes. And library leaders are ready to share powerful stories about how the library impacts users, but not often about their own work. Learn how to talk about your funding in a new way by talking about you, your staff, and board, and why you do the work you do.

You must register for each webinar individually at www.wistrusteetraining.com. More information, including bios of the presenters, is also available at the link above, and you can also access recordings from the 2015-21 webinars.

Trustee Training Week (TTW) is produced by the South Central Library System with support from all Wisconsin Public Library Systems. TTW is funded in part by a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services which administers the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). Thank you!