For immediate release | February 17, 2011

ASCLA seeks proposals for online professional development offerings

CHICAGO — The Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA) invites interested instructors and presenters to submit proposals for online professional development courses and webinars.

Topics for online learning proposals might include but are not limited to assistive technology; the fundamentals of serving special populations, including those with autism and spectrum disorders, the deaf and hard of hearing, those with developmental disabilities, mental disabilities, mental illnesses, learning disabilities, physical disabilities or vision disabilities; children or young adults with disabilities; managing volunteers with disabilities, what trustees need to know about accessibility; the fundamentals of prison/correction facilities librarianship; independent librarianship and consulting; Web accessibility tools; tips for creating accessible websites; and consortial approaches to e-books.

A complete list of criteria is available in the Online Course section of the ASCLA website. In summary, successful proposals will:

  • Include a description, main topic outline and an estimate of length of the proposed course, webinar or webinar series.
  • Outline the audiences who will be interested in this topic, including job titles as appropriate.
  • Address the direct competition for this course/topic that already exists in the online professional development marketplace.
  • Provide a description of the instructor/presenter and their relevant experience, e.g. education, job history, that illustrates their expertise in the proposed topic area.
  • Include a writing sample if the proposal is for an online course.

Proposals should be submitted via e-mail to ascla@ala.org as MSWord or PDF attachments. Presenters for accepted proposals will receive compensation for their time and will also receive training for the software used to deliver the online learning experience. Questions can be directed to Liz Markel, ASCLA marketing specialist or Susan Hornung, ASCLA executive director, at lmarkel@ala.org and shornung@ala.org, respectively.

ASCLA, a division of the American Library Association (ALA), is a diverse organization of librarians and support staff who work in academic and public libraries, state agencies, specialized libraries and multi-type cooperatives, as well as those who are self-employed. Not an ASCLA member, but interested in discounted registration rates on conference, ASCLA preconferences and other ASCLA events? Join, renew or add ASCLA to your ALA membership by calling 1 (800) 545-2433, option 5 or visiting www.ala.org/membership.

Contact:

Elizabeth Markel