We've crawled the web for some of the most useful library learning opportunities, most of them free and all of them curated for the librarians of Illinois.

Here's where you can expand your skills in July 2024...

All learning is online unless noted otherwise.

Library Issues & Book News 

• Aug. 1, 11 a.m.
  Daring YA Debuts from Zando Young Readers (Booklist)
• Aug. 6, 10 a.m.
  Evaluating Transformative Agreements (ASERL)
• Aug. 6, Noon
  Why Can't I Just Google It? (ACRL-Choice)
• Aug. 6, 1 p.m.
  Fall Adult Faves (Booklist)
• Aug. 7, 1 p.m.
  Effective Health Communication and Health Literacy: Understanding the Connection (NNLM)
• Aug. 8, Noon
  D-CRAFT Toolkit — Assessing Use & Reuse of Digital Collections (DPLA)
• Aug. 8, 1 p.m.
  DK School & Library Fall 2024 Preview Event (Booklist)
• Aug. 8, 2 p.m.
  Work It Out @ Your Library with the Wombats! (WebJunction)
• Aug. 8, 3 p.m.
  Virtual Fall 2024 Adult Librarian Preview (Simon & Schuster)
• Aug. 12, 1 p.m.
  Project Outcome 101 (PLA)
• Aug. 13, 1 p.m.
  YA All Day: Upcoming Titles for Fall, Winter, & Beyond (Booklist)
• Aug. 14, 10 a.m.
  Collection Development and Reference Strategies for Sexual and Reproductive Health Information (NNLM)
• Aug. 14, 10 a.m.  
  Operating a Culture of Belonging: Personal Librarian 2.0 (NCompass Live)
• Aug. 14, 11 a.m.
  Level Up Your Booktalks! New Ways to Engage in School Outreach (Colorado State Library)
• Aug. 14, 1 p.m.
  MacKids School & Library Fall 2024 Preview Event (Booklist)
• Aug. 20, Noon
  Safeguarding Collections (Connecting to Collections Care)
• Aug. 20, 1 p.m.
  Amazing Picture Books (Booklist)
• Aug. 21, 1 p.m.  
  Yoga and Mindfulness Techniques for Calm Kids (and Librarians!) (PLA)
• Aug. 22, 8 a.m. – 4 p.m.
  SLJ Teen Live! (SLJ)
• Aug. 22, Noon
  Health Programming at Your Library (NNLM)
• Aug. 22, 1 p.m.
  How Library-Publisher Partnerships Can Support the SDGs (ACRL-Choice)
• Aug. 28, 1 p.m.
  Civic Literacy in Public Libraries: Why, What, and How (Niche Academy)

Cataloging

• Aug. 13, 9 a.m.
  Name that Identifier! : Standard Numbers, National Bibliography Numbers, & Others (OCLC)
• Aug. 22, 3 p.m.
  Name that Identifier! : Standard Numbers, National Bibliography Numbers, & Others (OCLC)

Grants & Fundraising

• Aug. 6, 1 p.m.
  Introduction to Project Budgets (Candid. Learning)
• Aug. 13, 1 p.m.
  Get Your Board Fundraising (Candid. Learning)
• Aug. 15, 1 p.m.
  Introduction to Fundraising Planning (Candid. Learning)
• Aug. 20, 1 p.m.
  Introduction to Finding Grants (Candid. Learning)
• Aug. 27, 1 p.m.
  Introduction to Proposal Writing (Candid. Learning)
• Aug. 27, 2 p.m.
  Crafting Impactful Annual Reports: Inspiring Change Through Storytelling (Whole Whale)
• Aug. 29, 1 p.m.
  Introduction to Measuring Your Impact (Candid. Learning)

Leadership and Communication 

• Aug. 6, 11 a.m.
  From the Ground Up: How to Advance DEI in Any Organization (Nonprofit Learning Lab)
• Aug. 7, 1 p.m.
  "Toxic," Traumatized, or Neurodivergent? Setting Appropriate Boundaries Without Writing Anyone Off (Niche Academy)
• Aug. 7, 1 p.m.
  3 Must Haves for New Hire Training (Carterette Series Webinar)
• Aug. 7, 1 p.m.
  How to Explain Data Through Visualization and Storytelling (GovLoop)
• Aug. 12, 10 a.m.
  Why Retention & Succession Belong in your Strategic Plan (Nonprofit Learning Lab)
• Aug. 12, 3 p.m.
  Meeting Your Constituents Where They Are: Exploring Multi-Channel CX Concepts (GovLoop)
• Aug. 19, 10 a.m.
  Identifying and Filling Data Gaps to Tell Your Full Story (Nonprofit Learning Lab)
• Aug. 20, 1 p.m.
  How to Get Leadership Buy-In for Innovation (GovLoop)
• Aug. 21, 1 p.m.
  Strengthening Your Communication Skills (Niche Academy)
• Aug. 26, 3 p.m.
  Tips for Introverted Leaders (GovLoop)
• Aug. 27, 1 p.m.
  How to Get Comfortable With Peer-to-Peer Management (GovLoop)

Technology 

• Aug. 1, 1 p.m.
  Building Nonprofit Capacity: Strategic Staffing with AI (Bloomerang)
• Aug. 7, 10 a.m.
  Learning New Technologies On-the-Fly: Vendorbrarian to Public Librarian (NCompass Live)
• Aug. 14, 1 p.m.
  A Place Called Vertigo: A Skeptic’s Guide to AI, Large Language Models, and Research Libraries (ASERL)
• Aug. 15, 1 p.m.
  The Reading Program App You've Been Waiting For (Reader Zone/ SLJ Webcasts)
• Aug. 22, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
  School Libraries and AI (Library 2.0)
• Aug. 28, 10 a.m.
  Pretty Sweet Tech (NCompass Live)

Additional Resources 

For more free training events, visit these additional calendars:

WebJunction: Free Training (webjunction.org)

Maine State Library: National CE Calendar – Continuing Education Calendar – LibGuides at Maine State Library

Upcoming Conferences 

Grab your tickets! These conferences are coming up in the next few months. 

• Sept. 11–14, 2024
  ARSL Annual Conference 2024 (Association of Rural and Small Libraries; Springfield, MA)
• Oct. 8–10, 2024
  ILA Annual Conference 2024 (Illinois Library Association; Peoria, Ill.)
• Nov. 7–9, 2024
  AISLE Annual Conference 2024 (Association for Illinois School Library Educators; Tinley Park, Ill.)
• Feb. 12, 2025
  IHLS Member Day — SAVE THE DATE! (Illinois Heartland Library System; Virtual)

Other Events by IHLS

Illinois Heartland Library System has an expanding variety of learning opportunities, too. View them all on our Events page.

Have suggestions, ideas, or questions about Continuing Education? Contact our Continuing Education Coordinator at 618.474.9948. 

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