On-Demand Webinars

PLA is excited to announce a new feature available in Project Outcome for public libraries! Beginning in March 2023, users are able to link their program surveys to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This on-demand webinar shares how libraries have applied the SDGs. Learn about the SDGs and how your library can leverage Project Outcome to capture and share your library’s impact in its community and the impact of libraries worldwide.

Public libraries are increasingly responding to violent and inflammatory speech and targeted attacks on their buildings, workers, and patrons. Over the last two weeks of September, libraries in five cities faced bomb or shooting threats that resulted in canceled events and closures. These incidents also come directly on the heels of widespread intimidation related to censorship in the past year. Thankfully, no one was hurt in these recent threats, but the stress and disruption of service take a toll on library workers and the communities they serve.

An overview of the results of the 2021 annual survey on Public Library Staff and Diversity. The results provide new and updated information related to beginning librarian and library director salaries; staff roles; hiring and retention efforts; and equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) goals and activities. This webinar will highlight how the data suggests both opportunities and challenges for the future of public libraries. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and learn how to engage in PLA’s on-going data-related initiatives.

Every day community members who lack basic computer knowledge and skills access their local public libraries hoping to complete life tasks many of us take for granted. The Public Library Association (PLA) is proud to partner with AT&T to expand upon its work helping libraries and their communities close the digital divide through new and improved DigitalLearn.org courses and training materials.

Fresh Start @ Your Library began locally at the Long Branch (NJ) Public Library, providing community reentry support to individuals returning to communities after serving time in prison or jail. In the fall of 2019, the New Jersey State Library, with grant funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and in partnership with the New Jersey State Parole Board, New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Long Branch Public Library, and Free Library of Philadelphia (PA), embarked on a project to scale up Fresh Start @ Your Library.

Benchmark: Library Metrics and Trends is the latest evolution in PLA’s data-driven initiatives and tools for libraries. It features a range of interactive data visualizations that allow libraries to easily make peer comparisons across a wide range of metrics related to library programs, services, and operations. Learn how Benchmark can support your library in everyday decision making, such as establishing baselines and identifying opportunities to improve.

The Census is an essential source for discovering and reconstructing local and family history. Rich data about communities, neighborhoods, and families document local demographics, immigration and naturalization information, ancestral family names, relationships, birth years, and birthplaces. Although the U.S. government has conducted a Census every ten years since 1790, the categories of data collected and the details provided in the Census records vary. Learn how categories for race, ethnicity, and other demographics have changed over time and how that impacts research.

What are the unique needs and opportunities for youth in the current workforce landscape and how can libraries help? The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly impacted the workforce readiness track and educational path for today’s young adults. In the past, many young people have pursued part-time employment and the development of skills and interests in anticipation of college or career readiness.

Nearly one in three US workers lack foundational digital skills—with 13% having no digital skills and 18% with very limited skills, according to the National Skills Coalition’s New Landscape of Digital Literacy report released in May 2020. Digital divides have persisted for decades, but COVID threw it into stark, unavoidable relief. By some accounts, the pandemic accelerated ten years of planned technological change in workplaces in less than a year.

During this on-demand webinar—the third in the Public Libraries: Partners in Workforce Development series—hear from a panel of experts who have made sense of the maze of available learning opportunities to connect workers to high-quality non-degree credentials (NDCs) that lead to in-demand jobs and career pathways. Learn about nationally recognized, “stackable,” and portable credentials, and how library staff are supporting patrons to secure them to boost their employability and career mobility.