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Continuing Education Programs

LAMA continuing education (CE) programs are any workshops, regional
institutes, teleconferences, packaged programs, online courses or other continuing education activities scheduled outside the ALA Annual Conferences.

LAMA creates, develops, schedules and administers CE programs to serve the needs and interests of its members and to provide opportunities for professional growth in the areas of library leadership, management and administration to the profession at large.

Responsibilities of LAMA officers, members and staff

Various LAMA personnel, including the LAMA Continuing Education Committee, the LAMA Board of Directors, the LAMA Budget &
Finance Committee, the Section Executive Committees, and the LAMA
staff share responsibility for CE.   Tasks include:

• Solicitation and development of program proposals;
• Assistance and support to program planners;
• Review of program proposals and budgets to make certain they are
  well planned, consistent with LAMA procedures and priorities and
  within LAMA's resources;
• Making recommendations for LAMA Board of Directors action;
• Advertising, marketing and administration of presentations.

The LAMA Continuing Education Committee is the group charged with providing leadership and coordinating the overall development of the LAMA regional institute program.  Its specific responsibilities include:

• Soliciting and developing proposals for CE from LAMA committees, sections, COLA, and from private consultants and trainers;
• Providing assistance and support to program planners;
• Reviewing and recommending program proposals to the Board of
  Directors;
• Conducting evaluations of LAMA CE;
• Reviewing individual CE programs for continuation, modification or deletion periodically following initial approval;
• Carrying out periodic structured needs assessments;
• Conducting a formal evaluation of the regional institute program periodically;
• Monitoring developments in library management and alternative
  program delivery technologies, and reporting the potential
  programming implications for LAMA to the Board of Directors;
• Monitoring the activities and, when appropriate, establishing
  links with other professional associations and agencies involved in similar kinds of educational programming;
• Assuring compliance with established ALA/LAMA policies and
  procedures, including those relating to budget and financial matters.  (LAMA staff assists in the areas of policy, procedure and
  budget compliance.)

CE programs developed by a LAMA section must be reviewed and
approved by the appropriate LAMA Section Executive Committee before they can be submitted to the Continuing Education Committee.

The LAMA Board of Directors has final responsibility for review,
approval and discontinuance of all CE programs.

The LAMA office is responsible for administering CE programs.  This includes contracts, local arrangements, registration, instructional technology support, on-site management and financial reporting.

The LAMA Marketing Communications Committee will assist in marketing CE.

Budget and Financial Accountability

Financial accountability for LAMA's funds rests with the Board of
Directors and the LAMA Executive Director.  No contracts may be
entered into for ALA, LAMA or any of its units without the
signature of the LAMA Executive Director.

The LAMA Executive Director prepares the budget for each CE program proposal in consultation with the program planner.  The Board may consider the financial structure of CE program during its consideration of the program proposal.  Neither the CE Program Committee nor the Board is involved in approving budgets for individual presentations of the CE programs.

The following principles will be applied in developing the budgetfor a LAMA CE program:

CE programs will always be budgeted on a cost-recovery basis; thus, the fees for these programs shall be set at levels sufficient to recover both direct and indirect costs, including development costs where appropriate.

Although it is not primarily LAMA's objective to show a profit on
CE programs, such activities will not be held under conditions which will create deficits, unless the LAMA Executive Committee grants specific permission to do so in unusual circumstances.

Staff costs required to support CE programs should be considered necessary and recoverable expenses when budgets are prepared. 

Whenever co-sponsors are involved, LAMA allows shared financial responsibilities and benefits with co-sponsors.  Such sharing must
be negotiated with the co-sponsor by the LAMA Executive Director.

Consultants

LAMA remains flexible in entertaining proposals from different sources and under a variety of conditions. In some instances a program may be conceived by a LAMA committee which recognizes an important need.  It is generally preferred to have committees identify one or two presenters to develop a full proposal rather than delegate such development to a LAMA ad hoc or special committee.  In other instances, LAMA may contract with consultants to present programs that they themselves have developed. Paid consultants or trainers can be asked to develop and present CE programs, as governed by the LAMA Policy on Honoraria and Reimbursement.

Factors which should be considered in determining specific compensation to presenters should include comparisons of current rates paid by other ALA entities and library organizations for similar programs, and LAMA's desire to present quality programming at an affordable price.  A one-time development fee may be offered in conjunction with the pilot presentation and a set honorarium paid for all presentations thereafter.  Final compensation is determined in consultation with the LAMA Executive Director.

In all instances LAMA will be fair to all qualified and potential presenters, will adhere to the stipulations of ALA policies in this area (including Affirmative Action policies), and to principles contained in the LAMA Policy on Honoraria and Reimbursement.

Co-Sponsors

Co-sponsors provide valuable and, in some cases, essential support
for LAMA CE programs.

LAMA markets CE to individual libraries and to groups such as COLA, state and regional library associations, library networks and consortia.  Formal agreements with potential co-sponsors must be signed by the LAMA Executive Director.

LAMA seeks to work cooperatively in accommodating a program's content, it’s financing and its administration to local practices and requirements when planning CE programs as joint ventures with local, state, or regional co-sponsors.  Co-sponsorship options include partnership arrangements in which LAMA assumes complete or shared responsibility for advertising and managing an presentation and receives some or all of the net revenue (or loss), as well as flat fee arrangements in which the host licenses the CE program for a single presentation.

The LAMA Board is not involved in approving co-sponsors or the
agreements reached with them. The LAMA Executive Director negotiates with potential cosponsors, making reasonable adjustments to meet individual needs.

Dates and Locations

The recommendations on date and location(s) for presentations of a CE program require joint discussion and agreement by the program planner, presenter(s), the LAMA Executive
Director, and the co-sponsor.

Evaluation Forms

The LAMA office shall provide an evaluation form to be included in
the handout package for completion by participants at each institute presentation.  These evaluation forms and procedures will
be reviewed by the CE Committee periodically for needed revisions.

Guidelines and Criteria for Establishment and Assessment of LAMA CE Programs

The LAMA CE program must meet the highest quality
and effectiveness standards possible.  To achieve these standards,
topics, presenters, instructional materials, and instructional
techniques, and technology are carefully assessed and routinely reviewed by the Continuing Education Committee. This evaluative process yields important information about how well the CE programs are satisfying the needs of LAMA members and other attendees and supplies the Committee with information on emerging needs that might be met by the continuing education program.

Assessment follows a three-fold path:  needs assessment, assessment
of proposed CE program, and evaluation of established CE programs.

Needs Assessment

The Continuing Education Committee will undertake a LAMA-wide needs assessment periodically, ideally every three years.  This process will include a survey of LAMA members (and/or focus groups as needed) and will aim to discover the most pressing continuing education needs of members.  Needs assessment will also consider such factors as location, technologies, materials, and instructional style.

Needs assessment should address the following questions:

1. What are the most pressing continuing education needs of the
   potential audience?  Are they being met by any other educational bodies?
2. Do the needs expressed by the respondents relate directly to the
   stated mission and goals of LAMA?
3. How can the expressed needs be met most effectively?

Assessment of Proposed CE Programs

Proposals for CE programs with fully developed content are encouraged.  Ideas which require content development may also be submitted, although LAMA may not support developmental costs. The Chair of the LAMA CE Committee may appoint a liaison to work with a program planner when a proposal or idea is submitted. 

Each CE program being proposed will be evaluated using specific criteria to ensure that the topic has relevance and that the presenter, materials, instructional technology and style suit the needs of the intended audience.  Program planners should consider each of these questions as they formulate their ideas and complete their proposals.

Topic

• Is the topic one of current importance and popular demand?
• Is the program required at a particular time because the topic is
  related to an event of current significance?
• Has this topic been presented before? If so, what is the amount of new information?  Is there sustained demand sufficient to warrant another program?
• Does the topic address one or more ALA or LAMA strategic goals or objectives?
• Is this program likely to compete successfully with programs
  addressing this same topic offered by other institutions?

Target Audience

• What is the target audience?
• Is the target audience clearly defined?
• Is the target audience large enough to support multiple
  presentations of the program?

Learning Objectives

1. Are goals and learning objectives clearly defined by the presenter?
2. Are the objectives appropriate to meet the expressed needs of the target audience?
3. Are current theories regarding adult learning incorporated in the
   design and presentation of the institute?
4. Are the objectives reasonable and attainable in a delivery mode specified?
5. Do the objectives specify the expected outcomes for the individual in terms of knowledge and/or skills to be acquired?
6. Does the proposal address the issue of evaluation and present a
   valid method for measuring skill transfer?

Learning Plan
Presenters should supply a coherent learning plan that states all
activities sequentially and delineates the overall organization of
the learning event.

1. Has the planner incorporated a variety of learning activities
   (lecture, facilitated discussion, small group breakouts, etc.)?
    
2. Are learning activities appropriate to the stated objectives?
    
3. Are the sequence and pace of the activities organized to build
   effectively on each other?
    
4. Is the time allotted to each activity adequate?
    
5. Is the ratio of large group to small group activities appropriate
   to the topic and to the plan as a whole?

Instructional Materials
Instructional materials used in the CE programs are an integral part of the learning experience and, as such, should be looked at carefully during the assessment process.

1.  Is the material clearly printed/and or graphically well designed?
    
2. Are handouts connected to the learning objectives and segments of
   the learning event?
    
3.  Is the level of instructional materials appropriate for the
   intended audience?
    
4. Can the presenter clearly articulate the reasons for the choice
   of type of materials or technologies?
    
5. Are different types of media used to accommodate different
   learning styles?
    
6. Are materials up to date?
    
7. Do materials reflect the increasingly diverse workplace?
    
8. Are materials relatively free of jargon and/or is a glossary
   provided?

Budgetary Issues
The LAMA Office shall review the budget for each proposed CE program and should alert the Committee as to any costs which may make the program either unmarketable or unprofitable for LAMA to pursue. The following issues should be considered:

• Presenter's acceptance of standard honoraria 
• Presenter's travel, lodging and meal expenditures 
• Audio-visual, hardware, software, and technology support needs
• Cost of required handout and materials.

Evaluation of Established Institutes

Each institute shall be reviewed periodically, ideally on a three-year calendar basis.

The Committee may ask the presenter, or a representative, to attend a Continuing Education Committee meeting.  Before this review meeting, the presenter shall send the Committee chair the following for distribution to the Committee:

Updated handouts
The presenter should have updated, either completely or in part,
all of the handouts used in the institute.  They should be easily
connected to the elements of the program.  Any bibliography (or
bibliographies) should contain citations for articles or monographs
published within the last five years.

A self-assessment document
The presenter should complete a self-assessment which relates the original learning objectives of the CE program to the actual performance of the participants and the presenter in general.  The presenter may set goals for improvement of the institute and should treat this document as a self-development instrument.

The learning plan or curriculum design document
The original learning plan may be presented; however, the presenter
should be prepared to comment on its continuing relevance and
rationale.  The presenter may wish to revise the design of the
institute and, if so, should supply the Committee with a fully
developed new design.  This should meet the criteria set forth
above (Criteria for Proposed Institutes).

Other Criteria for Committee Consideration

Human Resources
Evaluation forms shall be summarized by the LAMA office and used to
assess the presenter's skills, as well as the level of support
required of the LAMA Office to ensure success.

Does the presenter have the subject knowledge and expertise to
offer the program?
Does the presenter have the communication and facilitation skills
needed to present an optimal learning experience?
Is the presenter's schedule flexible enough to enable him/her to
accept all bookings and meet all commitments?
Can the LAMA office provide the staff support required to manage
and market the CE programs

Financial Assessment
The LAMA Deputy Executive Director may supply the Committee with
a brief document assessing the financial performance of the CE program being reviewed.  This should include the number of times the CE program has been presented, the total number of attendees, the total revenue and expenditures, and the number of co-sponsors that the CE program has drawn.  If a CE program is found to be financially not viable, the Continuing Education Committee may recommend to the LAMA Board that the CE program be removed from the current roster.

After the review meeting with the presenter, the Committee will
meet in closed session to formulate its recommendation regarding
the program in question.  The Committee chair will then present
this recommendation to the LAMA Board and will supply all relevant
documentation in support of the recommendation.

The Committee should make every effort to review the CE program in
a fair yet rigorous manner.  The topic and all available materials,
such as the handouts and learning plan, should be viewed as
representing LAMA and should clearly relate to LAMA objectives and
show continuing relevance to the profession.

If the Committee so chooses, it may recommend continuation of CE program pending changes it feels would strengthen it.  Should this occur, the presenter must submit the changes to the Committee before the next presentation of the program.

Program Planning Process

Proposals are normally reviewed by the Continuing Education Committee during the Annual Conference or Midwinter Meeting at the scheduled meeting of this committee.  The Continuing Education Committee may conduct some of their review via e-mail and conference calls.  In addition, the LAMA Executive Committee may be asked to give preliminary approval to a proposal at their spring or fall
meeting.

At least 30 days before the ALA Annual Conference/Midwinter
Meeting

The conference/program planner sends one (1) copy of the program
proposal form, with any necessary documentation, in electronic format, to the LAMA Executive Director.

The LAMA Executive Director acknowledges receipt of the proposal and forwards it to the LAMA Continuing Education Committee.  The Continuing Education Committee Chair notifies the program planner of the scheduled date and time for the proposal's review by the Continuing Education Committee at the Annual Conference/Midwinter Meeting.

At the ALA Annual Conference/Midwinter Meeting

The LAMA Section Executive Committee (where appropriate) reviews
and submits its recommendations to the LAMA Continuing Education Committee before the last scheduled meeting of the Continuing Education Committee.

The LAMA Continuing Education Committee reviews and makes
a recommendation to the LAMA Board of Directors.

Based on the above recommendations and their own review of the
proposal, the LAMA Board makes its decision.

The program planner is encouraged to attend all of these
review sessions, but must present the proposal in person to the
Continuing Education Committee.

After the ALA Annual Conference/Midwinter Meeting

The LAMA Executive Director promptly reports the LAMA Board of
Directors' action to the program planner.

Subsequent to approval from the LAMA Board of Directors, the program is marketed by the LAMA Marketing Communications Committee.

Promotion and Publicity

The LAMA office will:

·         Prepare ads, articles, and schedules for inclusion in LA&M and other LAMA communications.

·         Prepare news releases for distribution through the ALA Public Information Office.

·         Distribute announcements and releases electronically via
appropriate listservs and web sites.

·         Submit schedules to the American Libraries Datebook
section.

·         Distribute flyers and brochures for upcoming programs in the LAMA booth at the ALA Annual Conference, at appropriate LAMA programs and meetings, at other ALA Divisions' National Conferences, and other meetings.

LAMA members and officers will:

·         Solicit local interest and support for LAMA programs through contacts with state librarians, state library association officers and other such organizations/ individuals.  This is a critical promotional mechanism which needs to be developed and maintained.

·         Promote LAMA programs publicly at their annual conference programs and preconferences, and at state level conferences and meetings.  LAMA staff can assist by providing on request information and materials for this purpose.

·         Introduce news features, articles etc. in appropriate state and regional journals.