Index
- Lego Wall Installation at Rio Community Library
- Volunteers to Provide One-on-One Job Seeker Help Coming Soon!
- Reentry Resources and Programs for Your Community Webinar
- Grant Seeking Basics Webinar Part 2
- Fighting Fake News through Public Libraries Webinar
- Submit Your Program Proposal for WLA 2022!
-WAPL Conference to Feature Kao Kalia Yang
- Continuing Education Calendar
Lego Wall Installation at Rio Community Library
How do you create a building space without taking up floor space? With a Lego Wall, of course. Rio Community Library recently installed 3.5’ x 5.5’ Lego Wall in their children’s area to inspire young designers, creators and inventors. This new addition was purchased by the Rio Area Library Friends. Stop on by and try it out.
Volunteers to Provide One-on-One Job Seeker Help Coming Soon!
Libraries Activating Workforce Development Skills (LAWDS) Project Collaboration with Wisconsin Society of Human Resource Managers (WiSHRM) Volunteers
Enhancing the services public libraries provide to Wisconsin job seekers is one of the primary goals of the LAWDS (Libraries Activating Workforce Development Skills) project. The tools gathered on the Department of Public Instruction’s Library Staff Resources to Assist Wisconsin's Workforce can aid library staff working with job seekers.
The LAWDS project has built a relationship with the Wisconsin Society of Human Resource Managers. WiSHRM is currently polling members to identify volunteers interested in working with job seekers in local public libraries. DPI staff leading the LAWDS project will know how many volunteers have registered and where they are located, and this information will be shared with public library system directors.
Between now and April 15,
- All WiSHRM volunteers will attend an orientation to help them understand how Wisconsin libraries work with job seekers and how their expertise could be incorporated in one-on-one sessions or group training presentations.
- They will be encouraged to share the specific types of services they are willing to provide, and to learn about existing library services and resources that may be in place already.
- Volunteers will also be advised that the amount of meeting space, public access computers, and ancillary services available varies from library to library.
- The roles of library directors, Boards of Trustees, and library volunteer policies will be covered.
After receiving their orientation, WiSHRM volunteers will begin to contact the directors of their local library to offer their assistance. We encourage you to engage with volunteers who may contact your library and explore the possibilities this collaboration may present.
You can help prepare by exploring the statewide resources on Library Staff Resources to Assist Wisconsin's Workforce and identify workforce development resources and your library an possess. This information would be valuable to all frontline, patron-facing staff and the WISHRM volunteers.
The DPI and the LAWDS Project Advisory Council want to make sure that any collaborations growing out of this relationship are as positive and stress-free as possible. Please reach out to DPI (contacts: Martha Berninger and Beth Tomev) or the LAWDS Project Advisory Council (South Central Library System contact: Mark Jochem) if you have any questions.
Reentry Resources and Programs for Your Community Webinar
Wednesday, April 27th 1 – 2:30 (Register Here)
Find out about programs and services available to assist justice-involved job seekers and community members. Register to attend the Reentry Resources and Programs for Your Community panel discussion webinar on Wednesday, April 27th, 2022 from 1 – 2:30 PM.
Brief Description:
In recognition of Second Chance Month, we are offering a reentry resources and programs webinar opportunity. Second Chance Month was established in 2017 by the Prison Fellowship organization, and recognized by presidential proclamation in 2021. It recognizes the barriers and challenges to finding and keeping employment encountered by people who have completed their time in incarceration (jail or prison) and are reentering the community. Libraries can help their patrons with resources and information about programs available to assist the transition. Finding employment can be a key factor in adjusting to community life and avoid re-offending.
During this webinar, participants will learn:
- Reentry 101 – background information about incarceration and the reentry process
- Employment and social service programs available in communities and through local job centers
- Incentive programs for employers to hire people with criminal records
- LIFT Wisconsin Legal Tune-up program to review criminal records
Featured programs and speakers:
- Chris Nolet, Department of Corrections
- Carly Haug, Department of Corrections
- Amy Ernest, Forward Service Corporation
- Rachel Stewart, WorkSmart Network
- Jennifer Brikowski, Wisconsin Job Service
- Marsha Mansfield, Lift Wisconsin
- Ed Wall, 211 Director United Way of Dane County
- Ginny Whearty, WorkSmart Network
Register here to attend the Reentry Resources and Programs for Your Community panel discussion webinar.
This webinar is sponsored by the LAWDS (Libraries Activating Workforce Development Skills) Project and the Bridges, Monarch, South Central and Winnefox Library Systems.
For additional information or questions, please contact Mark Jochem ([email protected]) / (608) 630-0270
Grant Seeking Basics Webinar Part 2
Do you have some project ideas that need funding? Do you know where to find potential funding partners? Do you need tips on writing a successful grant application?
Attend this webinar to learn more about successful grant seeking. Ellen Jacks is the Grants Information Librarian at UW-Madison, and will share tips and provide demonstrations on funding databases.
In the webinar, you will learn:
- Where to search for grants, including a great free tool
- What funders really want to know
- How to match your needs to your potential funding partner's mission
Date: Wednesday, April 20, 2022
Time: 10 – 11am
Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ezIFgx2USyax5tecZu5pww
The webinar will be recorded, captioned, and archived on the NEWI and SCLS websites. It supplies one continuing education contact hour for library directors needing certification.
This session is part two of a six-part series of fundraising webinars provided by NEWI (Manitowoc-Calumet Library System, Nicolet Federated Library System, Outagamie Waupaca Library System, and Winnefox Library System) and South Central Library System. Webinars in March, April & May focus on fundraising through grants, and September, October & November focus on fundraising in your community.
Fighting Fake News through Public Libraries Webinar
Fake news has become a new constant. Whether it’s propaganda, advertainment, or literal fake news, misinformation is not going away. In a world where you can’t trust everything you read, where can you turn? Unsurprisingly, many people turn to their local libraries.
Public libraries have worked hard to offer programs on this topic, but it can be tricky territory. Politics can be an issue in any library, but public libraries in particular have to be careful about alienating audiences. So, how can we create safe, nonjudgmental opportunities to teach our patrons how to assess information for accuracy, bias, and legitimacy? How can we teach about fake news without it feeling forced or pedantic? By slipping it into programming that your audience wants to know more about! In this free webinar on April 27, participants will learn strategies for using information literacy as a gateway to teach about fake news (and have it actually sink in). REGISTER NOW!
Learning Outcomes
At the conclusion of this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Identify topics (of local interest) where information literacy skills can easily translate to identifying fake news in the rest of the world;
- Identify resources for locating primary documents to use in library programming;
- Apply important information literacy strategies to their libraries’ current programming; and
- Create new programming for their libraries and communities that expand the use of information literacy.
Submit Your Program Proposal for WLA 2022!
This year’s annual WLA conference will kick off Wednesday, November 2 at the Grand Geneva Resort and Spa with Keynote Speaker Jason Reynolds. Reynolds is a #1 New York Times bestselling author whose award-winning book "Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks" was a National Book Award Finalist, Carnegie Medal winner, and named one of the best books of 2019 by NPR, School Library Journal, and many more. He's currently serving as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. For more information on this Speaker, please visit www.simonspeakers.com.
The theme for this year’s conference is “Rising to the Challenge'' and we would like you to share your stories of how you’ve overcome obstacles, collaborated with your communities and how you’ve not just survived but thrived despite the challenges of the past few years and how you’re preparing for future challenges. We’d also like to continue the important conversations around diversity and inclusivity, staffing, fundraising, advocacy and cultivating connections. We’d like you to consider the big picture but also encourage you to share your practical and effective strategies and inspiring projects from your corner of the library world.
Proposals for presentations, panels, and workshops are welcome. Sessions will run 45 minutes in length (with a limited number of 90 minutes sessions available) and with a maximum of four presenters.
Help shape this year’s conference by submitting your proposal via this link by Monday, April 25, 2022.
WAPL Conference to Feature Kao Kalia Yang
Please mark your calendars for the Wisconsin Association of Public Libraries (WAPL) Annual Conference on May 11-13, 2022 at The Ingleside Hotel in Pewaukee, Wisconsin. Join us for keynote speaker Kao Kalia Yang, sponsored by NoveList, and luncheon speakers Zhanna Slor and Michael Schnitzka.
The goal of the 2022 WAPL conference is to empower attendees to explore the INFINITE POSSIBILITIES for their libraries, communities, and beyond!