Professional Development Alliance
Related product Professional Development

Professional Development Alliance

CARLI has partnered with *eleven other library consortia to create the Professional Development Alliance. The PDA is a group of library consortia dedicated to sharing free, online professional development opportunities with other alliance members. 

Sessions cover a broad array of topics of interest to library professionals. This cooperative initiative multiplies the number and variety of online professional development opportunities available to the member libraries of each participating consortium.

PDA offerings including registration information (converted into Central Time Zone) will be added to the CARLI events calendar and will also be announced to CARLI email lists. The CARLI calendar will direct participants to the host consortium to register; events will be held using the host's preferred delivery platform. 

This initiative aligns closely with CARLI's stated strategic priority to "explore opportunities to collaborate with other states or academic library affiliated organizations". The PDA also provides a unique opportunity to enrich our awareness of the diversity of library staff across the nation, bringing us added perspectives and increasing our understanding of contexts beyond our own. 

We want to hear from you! If you have a topic you would like to see as a continuing education program, send your idea to .         

*Professional Development Alliance (PDA) participating consortia are:

ASERL: Association of Southeastern Research Libraries
Atla: American Theological Library Association
BLC: Boston Library Consortium
Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries
CARLI: Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois
Florida Virtual Campus
LibraryLink NJ
LOUIS: Louisiana Library Network
Minitex: Consortia in Minnesota including North Dakota and South Dakota
NC LIVE: North Carolina's statewide library cooperative
SCELC: Southern California Electric Library Consortium
SEFLIN: Southeast Florida Library Information Network

Webinars

Key Findings and Student Reflections from the "Illinois Course Materials Survey: Student Perspective"

March 5, 2024

The Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois (CARLI) conducted the 2023 “Illinois Course Materials Survey: Student Perspective” in order to identify Illinois students’ needs regarding affordable course materials and interest in Open Educational Resources or other affordable course material options. CARLI staff Nicole Swanson, Elizabeth Clarage, and Michele Leigh report key findings from the survey and a student panel including Alejandro Bottia-Forero, Franklin Ocaña II, Ayesha Shafiuddin, Lauren Stec, and Claudia Zarycki reflected on these results. Christina Norton moderated this student panel.

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Intercultural Awareness & Microaggressions: Keys to Understanding Power and Privilege

February 6, 2024

In this session, Alejandro Gómez introduced participants to three very important topics - intercultural competency, microaggressions, and power and privilege. Participants gained a better understanding and appreciation for their own experiences and how their own actions and words can have a profound impact on others. Also discussed was how to create more open dialogue at work with co-workers and library patrons, and how to sustain a more inclusive environment.

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  • Slides
  • This session was not recorded.

A Gentle Introduction to ChatGPT

December 5, 2023

Dr. Mary Borgo Ton shares a technobabble-free introduction to generative AI. Mary discusses what’s happening behind-the-scenes, identifies common issues when working with GPT-generated text, including hallucinated citations, and considers the current state of copyright for AI-generated works. 

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The FIERCEST Framework

October 31, 2023

Erin Tarr shares her FIERCEST Framework to give you the tools to create a life you wake up EXCITED to live each day of your life! 

Resources:

  • Template for FIERCEST Life Assessment (have a red, yellow, and green marker, highlighter, or colored pencil handy when filling out this assessment) 
  • List of resources shared during the presentation
  • Recording

Giving a Hand Up: Why Mentorship Matters

October 17, 2023

Susan Howell and Tammie Busch discuss the benefits of mentorship, how one finds a mentor, and how to be a mentor.

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Academic Librarians' Opinions on Social Justice Advocacy

October 11, 2023

Dr. Judith Brink Drescher reveals the results of 113 academic librarians surveyed regarding their views on social justice advocacy. As part of a mixed-methods exploration, both quantitative and qualitative elements ar explored, as well as the implications for practice. Drescher also introduces the follow-up survey "Exploring Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity, and Expression in Academic Libraries" and shares preliminary results. 

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  • Slides
  • This program was not recorded.

Let Freedom Read: How to Take a Stand for Intellectual Freedom and Support Fellow Library Workers in Illinois and Across the Nation

September 26, 2023

Dr. Janice Del Negro and Betsy Gomez share the current state of the nation regarding intellectual freedom in libraries and reflect on the progress happening in Illinois with new legislation HB2789. They discuss ways your institutions and you personally can take a stand for intellectual freedom and ways to respond to challenges. They share how to build community support for your library, and the importance of self care.

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Successful Workplace Communications Series, Part 1: Navigating Difficult Conversations

July 25, 2023

Ben Mead-Harvey explains how to effectively navigate difficult conversations. He opens with a discussion of the fight-or-flight response, which leads to ineffective behaviors in tense conversations. He follows with specific strategies you can use in-the-moment to guide the conversation to an effective conclusion. The session finishes with long-term strategies to implement that will help keep things amicable when difficult conversations arise.

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Successful Workplace Communications Series, Part 2: Assume Positive Intent

September 12, 2023

Ben Mead Harvey presents the case that others' intentions are irrelevant in deciding how to handle situations. Further, he proposes that you always assume they are acting with good intentions, even when there is evidence to the contrary. Ben discusses techniques that encourage you to assume positive intent and explore the effectiveness of those strategies. 

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Shared Spaces Series, Part 1: Tales of Sharing Spaces

May 9, 2023

In this webinar moderated by Stephanie Davis Kahl, presenters Michelle Boule Smith and Carolyn Ciesla share two separate presentations describing their experiences and advice on sharing academic library space with other campus units. 

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Shared Spaces Series, Part 2: Getting to a Commons Goal: Designing the New Library Commons at the University of Illinois Springfield

May 16, 2023

In this webinar moderated by Stephanie Davis Kahl, presenters Pattie Piotrowski and Sarah Sagmoen describe their experiences with shared spaces, concentrating on the planning for the University of Illinois Springfield's new Library Commons.

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Intentionally Recruiting for Diversity in Librarianship: Reflections on a Year Later

April 4, 2023

Tammie Busch, Calvin Carson, Lora Del Rio, Jacob Del Rio, Elizabeth Kamper, Shelly McDavid, and Simone Williams reflect on how year two of the Diverse Librarianship Career Training and Education Program is going and highlight the work that has been completed on the forthcoming toolkit. 

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Choosing Happiness

March 22, 2023

Paula Jenkins along with Gicela Nufio share how to be intentional about choosing happiness. She challenges us to look at various aspects of our lives that impact our happiness. Learn the importance of self-care when focusing on happiness. Learn how various relationships impact our happiness long term. 

The 30 day period this recording was available has concluded.

Open Education Week 2023

Making Sense of "Affordable" Course Materials Models

March 8, 2023

Nicole Allen and Katie Steen-James, SPARC, outline the facts and characteristics of common models to make course materials more affordable and untangle some of the arguments that come up in meetings with outside vendors. They share questions we should be asking about affordable models and ways we can be thinking beyond procurement.

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OER in Practice: A Faculty Panel Discussion

March 8, 2023

Professors Nicholas Hackett, Moraine Valley Community College; Jeanne Petrolle, Columbia College Chicago; and Joel Quam, College of DuPage share their experiences implementing Open Educational Resources in their courses. 

Get to Know the New, Upcoming Illinois SCOERs OER

Program 1

March 6, 2023

Dr. Diana Zaleski from the University of Illinois Springfield speaks about the upcoming open textbook The Psychology of Exceptional Children and Dr. Karen Vuckovic, Amy Hoang, Delilah Przybyla, and Hannah Koffman from the University of Illinois Chicago speak about their work on upcoming OER textbook and illustrations Essentials of Pharmacology. 

Program 2

March 7, 2023

Dr. Lonetta Oliver, Justin Leuba, and Daniel Fuertges, Illinois Central College discuss the development of Nurse Assistant Training.

Health Sciences Librarian Amber Burtis together with Professor Tim Davis from Southern Illinois University Carbondale outline Davis’ open textbook Anatomy and Physiology for Allied Health Professions. 

Dr. Jacqueline Samuel from National Louis University discusses her upcoming open textbook Cultural Humility in Public Administration.

Program 3

March 9, 2023

Dr. Barbara Anderson, the Head of the Instruction/Learning Library at Roosevelt University, elaborates on a collaborative project between Roosevelt University, De Paul University, and Harper College entitled Development and Implementation of Open-Access Problems and Activities for Health-Focused Chemistry Courses. 

Professor Juhelia Thompson from Morton College elaborates on her work on the open textbook Diverse Approaches to Language Development. 

Dr. Samar Hegazy, Carle Illinois College of Medicine and Professor Judith Thorn, Associate Dean for Curriculum and Assessment at Knox College share their development of the open textbook The Female Reproductive System and Women’s Health Through a Multidisciplinary Lens. This is a collaborative project between Carle Illinois College of Medicine/ the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Knox College. 

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carli counts curriculum release party!

February 23, 2023

Debbie Campbell, Anne Craig, and Lisa Hinchliffe share the great OERs available from the CARLI Counts project, funded by IMLS.

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Honest Conversations: Over-Servicing at your Library at the Expense of a Healthy Life Balance

February 14, 2023

As librarians we are also activists, representatives and direct caregivers to our service communities. In this webinar, Angelique Carson leads a frank discussion on how vocational awe informs sacrifices to the self care and mental health of those that assist these communities, usually while working within organizations where they are often marginalized themselves. Discussed are what we can we do to acknowledge, hold organizations accountable, and understand how to best provide support.

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Hiring Library Staff: Best Practices for the Interviewer

February 2, 2023

In this webinar, Ben Mead-Harvey discusses several aspects of the interview process. The importance of interview question design including how to create questions that elicit meaningful information from your candidates and the concept of bias and how it prevents us from making effective hiring decisions are discussed. Several other interview design considerations discussed include: training the hiring panel, what information to send to candidates in advance, making the hiring decision, and the impact of company culture.

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De-escalation: A Crucial Tool in Libraries for Promoting Intellectual Freedom

January 24, 2023

Librarians have heard and experienced the trend of increased materials challenges and irate patrons. Yet every day library staff members respond to materials challenges in ways that lead to non-events. It is the confrontations and protests that are featured in the news, but dedicated library staff consistently lower the temperature and prevent conflicts. Moderators Betsy Mahoney and Julia Nephew with presenters Janice Del Negro, Joyce McIntosh, and Steven Ward will explore the training, skills, and best practices that help library staff de-escalate tense encounters with library users.

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Watch Party: Open Illinois: Advancing Statewide OER Efforts

December 12, 2022

Nicole Swanson, Elizabeth Clarage, and Michele Leigh share a recording of their October 20, 2022 Open Education Conference presentation "Open Illinois: Advancing Statewide OER Efforts" in which they provide strategies and methods utilized by the Consortium of Academic and Research Libraries in Illinois (CARLI) to advance OER efforts across diverse academic institutions. 

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PDA E-Resources Learning Series: Addressing Accessibility in E-Resources Licensing

November 10, 2022

Jenny Taylor identifies why accessibility is important and what we should be expecting from vendors to make our e-resources accessible.

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PDA E-Resources Learning Series: The Link Didn't Work, Now What? Troubleshooting Patron Reports of E-Resources Linking Problems

November 1, 2022

Denise Green shares the basics of investigating, solving, and reducing article linking errors, whether from link resolvers, the library catalog/discovery platform, or a vendor's interface. 

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Accessibility Series, Part 1: Social Media Accessibility Basics

October 27, 2022

Mark McCarthy shares several facets of social media accessibility, including learning a little about disability itself, a brief overview of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, why social media access matters, and more!

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Managing Difficult Conversations

October 12, 2022

Joellen M. Austin and Garry Sanders discuss the nature of and challenges in holding difficult conversations, and strategies to overcome those challenges and increase the likelihood of success.

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Building a Successful Budget

September 13, 2022

Ben Mead-Harvey provides a high-level overview of budgeting in libraries. Ben examines nuances of the word “budget” and what that implies about how we discuss budgets with various departments within the organization, share similarities and differences in the budget process across organizations, and discuss long-term strategies for weathering budget cuts. Ben finishes by demonstrating how human bias impacts budgetary decision-making.

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Deconstructing the CASE Act: Libraries, Users, and Copyright Small Claims

August 24, 2022

Sara R. Benson, Carla S. Myers, and Timothy Vollmer share background on how the CASE Act was passed and why it is important to libraries, key considerations for the CASE Act board process, and ways to communicate with staff/patrons about the CASE Act.

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The Power of presentation: Enhancing Your Slides for Engagement

June 21, 2022

Jamie Nelson shares how to communicate your message most succinctly in PowerPoint, what visuals will best captivate and inform your audience, and other techniques that will leave a lasting impression. 

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CARLI Directors' Institute Series:

Recruiting and Retaining BIPOC Library Staff

May 4, 2022

Victor Jones, Jr. (he/him) discusses trends in recruiting and retaining BIPOC library staff in today’s climate.  He uses reflections from his past experiences as well as the latest literature and findings to shape the conversation.

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Effective Ways to Onboard New Employees

May 11, 2022

Ben Mead-Harvey discusses his recommendations for the most effective way to onboard new employees, broken into three categories: welcome elements, training with the team, and check-in meetings. He gives a detailed breakdown of each element and spends time explaining the basis for each recommendation.

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Intentionally Recruiting for Diversity in Librarianship

April 12, 2022

Presenters Tammie Busch, Lora Del Rio, Shelly McDavid, Lamonta Swarm, and Simone Williams from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville share the Diverse Librarianship Career Training and Education Program, a call to action in response to the serious lack of diverse representation in library and information science professions. This grant project aims to create a pathway model for breaking down barriers in recruitment and retention of diverse librarians by introducing high school seniors to librarianship. Through collaboration and innovation, libraries can ensure their espoused DEIA values are values in action. 

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Open Pedagogy in OER Series

Workshop 1: Introducing Open Pedagogy: From Open Resources to Equitable, Student-Centered Practices

March 8, 2022

In this workshop Will Cross introduces open pedagogy, an access-oriented commitment to learner driven education. Just as open educational resources can remove financial barriers for students, open pedagogy empowers faculty and students to build courses that reflect and connect out to the world in which they live. This workshop introduces the core values of open pedagogy and walks you through successful models for putting open pedagogy into practice.

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Workshop 2: Implementing Open Pedagogy: Outreach and Advocacy for Developing Faculty Partnerships 

March 15, 2022

In this workshop Will Cross explores strategies for making open pedagogy work at your institution. Building on the Introducing Open Pedagogy workshop, Will Cross explores strategies for developing a team to support open pedagogy and develop a tailored action plan for connecting with faculty instructors. Because this session is focused on outreach and team building, attendees are encouraged to invite colleagues from across campus including instructional designers, learning technology experts and, of course, faculty instructors. 

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Intellectual Freedom and Social Justice: Core Values of Librarianship

March 1, 2022

Presenter Emily Knox's statement: Throughout my work, I argue that intellectual freedom leads to social justice. A quick review of the 2020 American Library Association’s Office for Intellectual Freedom’s (2020) Most Challenged Books list demonstrates that the majority of the books on the list are focused on diverse topics including race and gender expression. Without support for intellectual freedom, the voices of people who are marginalized would not be heard. However, the discourse continues to focus on how support for intellectual freedom leads to the proliferation of hate speech and other harmful expression and is against the core value of social justice/social responsibility. I believe this is because the field of library and information science has not sufficiently integrated Kimberle Crenshaw’s (1989) concept of intersectionality into our core philosophical foundations. Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality argues that individual progress and development, social space, and group identity are all equally important for human flourishing.

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Working with Fire Professionals

January 25, 2022

Chief John High, Sr. at the Illinois Fire Service Institute identifies fire hazards, how to prevent them, and how the fire department will respond to the call. Learn how everyday items can help start a fire and how fast a fire can develop. Firefighters face a variety of hazards as they battle a burning building besides the heat and smoke. There are collapses of ceilings and walls, holes burned through the floors and live electrical and gas lines. When a fire occurs, the results are often devastating.

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The Before and After: Returning to Work with COVID Restrictions Still in Place

January 19, 2022

While it was challenging to work from home for 18 months, many feel returning to work with COVID restrictions still in place to be even more difficult.  In this session, Joan Schuitema explores some of the reasons for this such as continued isolation, the loss of workplace traditions and rituals, and grief associated with the loss of colleagues, friends, and family members.  Also identified are ways to address these issues so as to improve our workplace experience.

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The ACRL Academic Library Trends and Statistics Survey

December 15, 2021

Devin Savage, Janine A. Kuntz, and Jeannette E. Pierce present selected results from the 2020 survey by looking at how the data can be used with the Standards for Libraries in Higher Education. ACRL has recently migrated the survey to the new platform, Benchmark: Library Metrics and Trends, which provides comparative data.  Presenters also shared responses to common questions from those who completed the survey, discussed recent changes to the survey, and demonstrated how librarians can access and use the data.

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The Application of 3D Printing Services in the Academic Library Series

Presented by Elisandro Cabada on October 6 and 20, 2021.

Driven to democratize access to emerging technologies and the knowledge it affords, the Academic Library is well positioned to provide access to 3D Printing services to support the design learning pedagogy in higher education. Rapid prototyping technologies allow you to design, 3D print, and test your designs in real time. In this 2-part series, learn about 3D Printing and develop an understanding for how the technologies can be implemented in the Academic Library.

Part 1

October 6, 2021

Learn about the hardware and software that drives 3D Printing and learn about what technologies are currently available.

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Part 2

October 20, 2021

Learn about the role of 3D Printing in the Academic Library, see examples from across the nation, and learn tips for how to implement your own 3D Printing service.

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Word Accessibility Basics

September 17, 2021

Mark McCarthy shares basic tips and tricks you can use to make your Word documents more accessible to people with disabilities! 

  • Learn about effective and efficient use of headings and styles;
  • Learn more about the difference between styling, formatting, and typesetting;
  • Learn how to effectively use images in your Word documents;
  • Spark your interest into more advanced topics!

Resources

Comfortable Access to Library Buildings by Users and Staff with Disabilities: Going Beyond the Americans with Disabilities Act Minimums

Presented by Dr. Fred Schlipf on July 14, 20, and 22, 2021

Despite the Americans with Disabilities Act and relevant state building codes, many library buildings fail to deal with a range of everyday disabilities among users and staff. This program reviews accessibility options and some possible solutions. Although by far the best time to deal with accessibility issues is before design and construction begin, many things can be done later.

Striving for Excellence, Achieving Perfection: What Went Wrong?

Presented by Garry Sanders on May 18, 2021

Leaders and team members aim to attain goals, to meet objectives, and please all of their stakeholders and employees along the way. This webinar focuses on a key leadership distinction: excellence versus perfection, and how a leader or team member’s overall effectiveness is influenced by how aware they are of their own inclination (and that of their team members) toward each dimension.

Fair Use Gameshow 

May 4, 2021

In this Fair Use Gameshow, Sara Benson, the Copyright Librarian at the University of Illinois asks fun, challenging fair use questions to the audience and our panel of esteemed copyright experts chime in with their opinions. View the fun as the panel including Melissa Ocepek, Assistant Professor at the iSchool, Pia Hunter, Access Librarian and Online Learning Consultant at the University of Illinois College of Law, and Barbara Kaplan, Faculty Outreach Librarian at the University of Illinois College of Law discuss the many nuances of fair use.

Incoming Library Collections: A Unified Approach to Newly Acquired Material

April 20, 2021

New collections come from a variety of sources. Whether a gift, donation, or acquisition, all incoming material present challenges to libraries. Tonia Grafakos shares how Northwestern University Libraries unified its process for incoming collections. Special attention is paid to preservation issues relating to incoming collections.

Undergraduate Research Webinar Series

Series Bibliography

Day 1 

March 25, 2021

At the Heart of Learning: The Library Research Scholars and Adobe Scholars Program 

In this first webinar of the series, Ava Brillat and Lauren Fraliger detail the structure of the University of Miami’s Library Research Scholars and Adobe Scholars Program, the mentoring process, and the incorporation of ACRL’s Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education.

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The Library's Synergy with Campus Coordinators of Undergraduate Research

In this second webinar of the series, Merinda Kaye Hensley at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign discusses several intersections between the Library and the Illinois Office of Undergraduate Research including a lively discussion on refining the definition of undergraduate research, why analyzing results from two campus-wide surveys of the undergraduate researcher experience isn't enough, and what happens when students do not own the data they want to publish in the institutional repository. 

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Day 2 

March 30, 2021

Partnering to Support Students in Remote Research Experiences

In this third webinar of the series, Rebecca Starkey at the University of Chicago Library discusses a new collaboration with the College Center for Research and Fellowships on a campus initiative to help undergraduates engage in remote research experiences. The resulting projects included a new website for mentors and students partnered in remote research, and a workshop to prepare undergraduates to conduct research online. Although arising from necessity, the collaboration provided a new way to highlight the library’s role in creating and sustaining meaningful undergraduate research experiences.

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Research Consultations as a Research Support in the Virtual Environment

In this fourth webinar of the series, Joanna Kolendo & Rosalind Fielder-Giscombe at Chicago State University Library describe how they migrated all reference and instruction services to an entirely virtual environment to continue to assist students with research papers and other academic projects in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. They describe the benefits and drawbacks of the cloud-based software long in use at their institution, compare appointment scheduling platforms and virtual meeting platforms, reflect on data collection and data trends, and share lessons learned. 

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Day 3

March 31, 2021

Inclusion and Equity through Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs)

In this fifth webinar of the series, Gina Hunter at Illinois State University offers a brief overview of Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) and provides examples from sciences, social sciences, and humanities. Hunter examines the value of CUREs for increasing diversity, equity and inclusion in undergraduate research programs, and suggests resources for further learning.

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JEDI Inspirations for Undergraduate Research:  Leveraging Library Connections to Diversify Student Research and Researchers

In this sixth webinar of the series, Roxane Pickens at the University of Miami addresses ways that college and university libraries can inspire a more diversified portfolio of undergraduate student research and researchers by critically and creatively engaging justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion (JEDI) principles, especially by leveraging strategic collaborations with library and other academic partners to pique student interest and support their processes of exploration and analysis.  

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Day 4

April 1, 2021

From Rookie to Researcher: Integrating Information Literacy into Undergraduate Research

In this seventh webinar of the series, Larissa Garcia, Dee Anna Phares, & Kimberly Shotick describe Northern Illinois University Library's collaboration with the university’s office of undergraduate research (OSEEL) and efforts to incorporate information literacy into its Research Rookies program. What began as an optional section of the library’s credit course that drew only a few students, evolved into a series of sessions for the entire program, and, ultimately, a required Blackboard course with assignments. Additionally, learn how they successfully advocated for integrating information literacy criteria into the Undergraduate Research and Artistry Day, the office’s spotlight annual event. 

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Building Relationships on Campus to Support Undergraduate Research

In this eighth webinar of the series, Jason Kruse describes how Northwestern University Libraries have developed long-time partnerships with programs that offer and support undergraduate research opportunities. Through these relationships, the Libraries have been able to promote and integrate their expertise, resources, and services into these student experiences, and be part of more robust support for undergraduate research across campus.

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Meet Harriet Tubman presented by Kathryn Harris

March 10, 2021

Kathryn Harris presents her first-person performance as "Harriet Tubman". Harriet Tubman is perhaps the most famous Conductor on the Underground Railroad and Ms. Harris tells her life story, including not only her own escape to freedom, but also the trips she made back South to free her family and others so that they could also experience the "sweet taste of freedom".

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Redefining Self-Care in the Midst of a Global Pandemic Series

Part 1

January 12, 2021

In this first psychoeducational webinar, Joan Schuitema and Lynn Gullickson Spencer discuss what is needed in addition to routine self-care during a global pandemic. 
Characteristics of different types of stress, including traumatic stress, are reviewed as well as the range of stress responses. The speakers propose additional self-care steps during the current health crisis and provide considerations for when professional help may be beneficial. 

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Part 2

January 19, 2021

This second webinar of the two-part series is experiential in nature and provides participants with the opportunity to confidentially identify common stressors. Joan Schuitema and Lynn Gullickson Spencer provide resources, tools, and support to manage unique challenges during the COVID-19 era.

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Communicating Value through Storytelling

December 16, 2020

Storytelling has been happening for over a century in libraries, but its applications are too often presumed to be narrowly focused on serving children. The skills involved in navigating a dynamic exchange between teller, audience, and story are applicable to the most pressing problems facing libraries and librarians in the 21st century, those of communicating our knowledge and value. Dr. McDowell features storytelling insights based on over 40 interviews from the Storytelling @ Work project, and combining insights from librarians with those from storytelling applications in advancement and fundraising. Participants leave with narrative structures for building informative and emotionally compelling stories from their own knowledge and experience to communicate their value.

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Restoring Our Attention

November 18, 2020

In this webinar, Beck Tench discusses the market forces that incentivize technology to distract and manipulate us, takes a look at the consequences of chronic distraction in the short and long term, across individuals and society as a whole, and looks to attention restoration theory (ART) for ideas about what to do differently. ART is a theory that helps us understand how our attention is depleted and restored.

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Assessment of Student Learning in Academic Libraries

October 14, 2020

Given the intensified attention to assessment and accountability issues in the higher education sector, academic libraries and librarians in the United States have felt increasingly compelled to demonstrate the value they bring to their colleges and universities. Opening with an introduction to assessment, in this session, Dr. Gianina Baker explores how academic libraries have approached assessment in recent years as well as current practices and future trends in assessing and documenting learning.

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Accessibility Benefits Everyone

September 23, 2020

Tim Offenstein, Campus Accessibility Liaison for the University of Illinois shared ideas on how to improve web accessibility to benefit all of your audiences including: 

  • Using good link text
  • Effective alternative text for images - when to use ALT and when not to
  • Information architecture - can your users easily find relevant information?
  • Simple usability tests to uncover hidden blind spots
  • Page structure - does your site have it?
  • Easy ways to test your site for accessibility
  • How does your website sound? Using screen readers 

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