2019 Joint Conference ILA/NLA/NSLA

You've hired a new staff person and now you need to train them. You spend a couple hours talking to your new employee, showing them around, going over the ins and outs of their job. They need to hear everything they need to know as quickly as possible so they can be on the service desk, right? But are they as ready as you hoped? Or could there be a better way? New staff don't need to learn everything on day one, but how can you help them learn it when they DO need it. This presentation will describe how one library transformed the good, the bad, and the ugly of training new staff into a consistent on-boarding process, with useful tools and timely information.

We will share at least 20 different programming ideas that can be replicated in libraries large and small without being a budget buster! Sharing what worked, and what we would do different if we held it again. We know budgets can be tight, and sometimes you just need some inspiration to try something new and different. We will share where to find the best ideas, and where we get our inspiration when we want to try something new. Participants will be allowed to share their programming hits and misses at the end of the session, because we all know, library staff have the best ideas! Finally, we'll share how we turned our after school programming from boring and predictable to fresh and exciting, and increased attendance numbers.

Developing and maintaining library services in a world where trends are changing at a break-neck pace requires leaders who understand that one-size fits all formulas don’t cut it. How do we find these leaders? Better yet, how do we cultivate them? This session will discuss mentorship, networking and ethics through the lens of library industry best practices as well as other industries’ organizational techniques. Yes, theory plays a part in this, but this theory will be supported with tangible ways that participants can immediately begin cultivating leadership. This program makes the case to consider a cultural shift within libraries in order to create and embed leaders at every level of our organizations. We will discuss how the framework of Appreciative Inquiry can inspire dynamic service design, greater productivity, and healthy organizational culture. Our work calls for leaders at every level, with all kinds of distinctive personalities and skills. Let's talk about how we help every librarian achieve their potential.

I will present ideas and tips that helped me "survive" my first year. I will talk about activities that I tried with students and staff to improve library awareness in my buildings. Attendees will learn practical ideas to add to their library tool kits.

Students have limited experience with using primacy source data sets to support a thesis. Our objective in this activity is to introduce them to one method of drawing conclusions and presenting it in an easily digested format - the infographic. We use Census Bureau data through American FactFinder and a free infographic generator Infogram to help students visualize surprising connections between multiple data points. Students leave with an additional tool they can use to support their arguments in academic and professional work. The presenters will discuss direct application to the ACRL Framework concepts.

Bring your questions after the Keynote Presentation to have an open discussion with Jaime.

This fun paced, hands on session will show many ways you can make books come alive in your library. Murder Mysteries-Who Dun It, Blind-Dates with a Book, Book Tastings, Virtual Field Trips, Escape Rooms in the Library, Trivia Night, Breakout EDU with books, Green screens, these are just a few of the ways to get them into your libraries and engaged in books. The ideas I will share with you can easily be replicated with minimal cost, mostly with resources you already have at your fingertips. You will leave this session with a list of ideas that will work for your tiny-tot patrons to the more seasoned reader and everyone in-between.

Learn how to use office software (such as Access and Excel) to access data stored in the OCLC Connexion Client database files. These tools are a gateway to data that helps technical services, collection development, and liaison accomplish tasks without requiring manual review of individual records. After a batch search is performed in Connexion, the database file will contain a plethora of data that can be used in these collection development and technical services workflow decisions.

Attendees will learn how to navigate the difficult patron behavior situations and learn how applying empathy and understanding will build patron relationships and connections.

To ensure technology advancements in the library, staff must put tech training at the forefront of needed skills. But have library boards shown a similar interest in technology—are your trustees tech savvy? Because the more that trustees are familiar with digital products and terminology, even modest computer users will become better advocates for the library’s technology needs.

Gear up for a couple of audience participation games in this session and take home some fun ways to inspire more tech savvy trustees. You don’t need a board of IT specialists--start simply with a board that is moving the needle in their techie comfort level.