Free Online Education Opportunities for July 2012

Listed below are FREE programs American Management Association, Booklist, Colorado State Library, Georgia Library Association, Grantspace, Infopeople, Library Journal, National Library of Medicine, Nebraska Library Commission, Nonprofit Webinars, TechSoup, and WebJunction will be webcasting during July.

In the event that you aren’t available during those times, or you would like to check out past webinars, here are the links to archived events:

Booklist
Common Knowledge
EDUCAUSE Live! archives
eSchool News Webinars
Grant Space
Infopeople
Library Journal
OPAL Webinar Archives
School Library Journal
Tech Soup
Texas State Library and Archives Commission
TL Virtual Café
WebJunction

July 10 (2-3 pm)
Nancy Pearl Presents Book Lust Rediscoveries
(Booklist)

Join esteemed Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl in conversation with two authors from her new book series, Book Lust Rediscoveries, a publishing program devoted to reintroducing some of the best (and now out of print) novels originally published between 1960-2000. Each new edition is personally selected by Nancy Pearl and includes an introduction by her, discussion questions for book groups, and a list of recommended further reading. She will be joined by Rhian Ellis, author of After Life, and Frederick G. Dillen, author of Fool, to discuss the series, as well as their own favorite moments of discovering a wonderful book

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/MvAeyK

July 10 (3-4 pm)
Identifying and Acquiring New Skills: The Key to Career Growth and Advancement
(Infopeople)

This webinar offers practical advice for library staff seeking to expand their existing skill sets and develop new areas of expertise to broaden their career potential, maximize their earnings in their current position or gain that competitive edge for landing their next job. The presenters will identify and discuss more than 30 of the hottest skills in greatest demand in the library world.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://infopeople.org/training/identifying-and-acquiring-new-skills

July 10 (3-4 pm)
Introduction to Fundraising Planning
(Grantspace)

A successful nonprofit organization has diversified funding streams. If your organization has never developed a fundraising plan or calendar, this session is for you. It provides an overview of the process of strategically thinking through the components of a fundraising plan. You’ll learn how to: Conduct an assets inventory, Develop a case statement, Identify funding partners, and Prepare a fundraising plan and calendar.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://grantspace.org/Classroom/Training-Calendar/Live-Webinars/Introduction-to-Fundraising-Planning-2012-07-10-Webinar

July 11 (1-2 pm)
Grant Writing for Libraries Serving Children
(WebJunction)

Grant funding is one way to find resources to support innovative programming and services for children. In this webinar, the presenters share advice about finding, writing, and submitting grant opportunities. Information will also be shared about specific grants that focus on diversity, literacy and libraries and are relevant for school and public libraries. Participants will be provided with an opportunity to ask questions and share related experiences. This webinar is presented in collaboration with the Darden College of Education, Old Dominion University and made possible through the LUCY (Librarianship Upgrades for Children and Youth) grant from IMLS.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/LAbzDG

July 11 (12-1 pm)
Finding Diamonds in the Rough: Proven Methods for Hiring High-Potentials
(American Management Association)

Employers are more dogmatic than ever about wanting to hire nothing but “A” players.

So the hunt is constantly on for candidates with great pedigrees and unbroken records of success in prior jobs. Yet as many as 40% of these all-stars end up failing in their new assignments. What’s missing? It’s time to take a fresh look at “soft skills” such as resilience, ingenuity, growth potential, creativity and the ability to accomplish a lot with skimpy resources. During this webcast, you’ll discover how world-class organizations have mastered ways to size up candidates along these dimensions.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://www.amanet.org/training/webcasts/Finding-Diamonds-in-the-Rough.aspx

July 11 (1-2 pm)
Structuring Effective Meetings in Contentious Settings
(Nonprofit Webinars)

We all have to lead contentious meetings from time to time. Either the topic or participants pose a challenge to a thoughtful exchange of ideas. There seems to be little hope of arriving at decisions that all will support. The usual prescriptions for such meetings emphasize changing behavior or using some set of meeting rules. Both are difficult.  There is another approach, one that relies on choosing structures that will influence the conduct of the meeting. The structural choices a leader makes, even if unseen/unrecognized by participants, can greatly improve the civility and productivity of these meetings. In this webinar I will help you see some of these structures (the naked meeting) and introduce choices you can make in planning, conducting or achieving results given a (potentially) contentious meeting.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/717536617

July 12 (1-2 pm)
Introduction to Finding Funders
(Grantspace)

This session provides an introduction to the Foundation Center’s comprehensive online database, Foundation Directory Online Professional. Learn how to create customized searches to develop targeted lists of foundations that will match your nonprofit organization’s funding needs. We will spend time exploring Power Search, which allows you to search across nine Foundation Center databases – grantmakers, grants, companies, 990s, news, jobs, RFPs, nonprofit literature, and PubHub reports. The webinar assumes no previous experience with Foundation Directory Online Professional.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/McZiee

July 12 (2-3 pm)
Book Battle II: This Time It’s Personal
(Booklist)

If you missed those legendary book brawlers, Cutie and Tiger (a.k.a. Chris Vaccari from Sterling Publishing and Talia Sherer from Macmillan), mixing it up at recent ALA conferences, now’s your chance to get a ringside seat—right in front of your own computer! The book battle is going virtual. Some critics charge that Cutie and Tiger have been a bit too nice to one another in their earlier exchanges. No matter. This time they assure us the gloves are coming off. When they climb out of the ring at the end of the hour, they will have left nothing behind—except, of course, for dozens of terrific new-book recommendations. Don’t miss this hour-long, free Booklist webinar moderator by Adult Books editor Brad Hooper.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/MXo148

July 12 (2-3 pm)
Making the Most of TechSoup.org
(TechSoup)

Interested in finding more about what TechSoup has to offer? Check out our webinar on Thursday, July 12 at 11 a.m. Pacific time, Making the Most of TechSoup.org.

During this webinar we will be hearing from TechSoup staff members Lara Franklin and Shala Harris on the different aspects of the TechSoup website, our software donation programs, resources, and more.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: https://cc.readytalk.com/cc/s/showReg?udc=fp7sie67pksm

July 12 (3-4 pm)
Fine-tuning Facebook for Libraries
(Infopeople)

Sure, it’s incredibly simple for your library to set up a Facebook presence. But, then what? How can you really make it useful for visitors? Learn the do’s and don’ts of managing your library’s Facebook account and what you can do to attract more fans. Get the lowdown on using Facebook Insights, the built-in metrics application. See real examples of libraries that showcase the good, the bad, and the ugly. Get ready to make your library’s presence on Facebook a whole lot better!

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://infopeople.org/training/fine-tuning-facebook-libraries

July 18 (11-12 pm)
NCompass Live: Library in a Dash
(Nebraska Library Commission)

Joyce Neujahr; Director of Patron Services & Emily Kesten; Patron Services Assistant, from the University of Nebraska – Omaha Criss Library, will show how by means of an information dashboard, you can cultivate library data to visually connect departments within your library and the wider community.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://nlc.nebraska.gov/scripts/calendar/eventreg.asp?ProgID=11399

July 18 (12-1 pm)
Breezing Along with the RML (National Library of Medicine)

NN/LM MCR Coordinators present updates on Regional Medical Library activities relevant to librarians, be they public or health sciences.

To log in, visit https://webmeeting.nih.gov/mcr . Enter as a guest. Sign in with your first and last names. Follow the instructions in the meeting room to have the Adobe Acrobat Connect system call you on your telephone.

July 18 (1-2 pm)
Organizational Drama: A Leadership Perspective on Conflict
(Nonprofit Webinars)

Some nonprofit organizations experience frequent conflict. The characters and plot-lines may change, but the persistence of some kind of drama is constant. In this webinar, we will take a realistic and practical look at how an organization’s leaders can promote a culture of constructive conflict resolution. We will consider the key leadership challenges of: recognizing patterns; assessing causes of organizational conflict; interrupting negative cycles; coping with fear in the workplace; and fostering a climate of respect and dialogue. I will share real-life case studies; tips and tools; and resources for further learning.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/755966168

July 18 (2-3 pm)
Emerging Technologies: Tips and Strategies for Success in Libraries
(Georgia Library Association)

Emerging technologies have become an ever-present part of our academic lives. From communicating with library supporters to providing resources for distance learners, educators must think about the tools we use and how we use them. What do we use? How? Why? These are some of the questions that constantly present themselves as we wade through the pool of emerging technologies. For libraries that do not have staff dedicated to digital initiatives, deciding on which tools to use and how to effectively use them can be challenging. This session aims to provide practical insight into understanding emerging technologies and tips for identifying and implementing relevant tools and services.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/MKP6nG

July 18 (2:30-3:30 pm)
Public Library Trends in Colorado
(Colorado State Library)

Join the conversation! Learn about trends that are emerging in Colorado libraries and share what’s happening in your own libraries. What innovative strategies are you taking to create the future of libraries?

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://connect.enetcolorado.org/cslinsession/

July 18 (3-4 pm)
Hack Your Career: Dream Job FTW!
(Infopeople)

There is no denying that the job market is tough these days, but there are steps you can take to ensure that your next interviewer sees you as the best candidate for the job. And for those of you who are employed, there are steps you can take to ensure that the work that you do today could help land your dream job someday. In this one-hour webinar you will: Learn to approach the job search and interview process from the perspective of the person doing the hiring, Gain insight into how to think strategically about your current job, as well as about how to prepare to get the next one, Discover tips for navigating the often baffling world of the civil service application and interview, and Learn the things that hiring managers wish every job candidate knew.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://infopeople.org/training/hack-your-career

July 18 (3:15-4:15 pm)
Designing Vibrant Libraries: Using our Strengths to Create the Libraries of the Future
(Georgia Library Association)

Join Michael Porter as we take a thought-provoking stroll through library history, technology evolution and our shared humanity. We’ll examine what makes libraries work at the most basic levels, and how our jobs, right now, have the potential to create a foundation for a stunningly vibrant future for libraries and the communities they serve. Come ponder concepts like need, desire, human nature, society and technology and leave more inspired about your work and your life as an information professional.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/KxLlqm

July 25 (11 am-12 pm)
NCompass Live: Tech Talk with Michael Sauers: An interview with Andrew Blum
(Nebraska Library Commission)

In this month’s Tech Talk Michael interviews Andrew Blum, author of Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet. A narrative tour behind the scenes of our everyday lives to see the heart of the Internet itself. When your Internet cable leaves your living room where does it go? Almost everything about our day-to-day lives—and the broader scheme of human culture—can be found on the Internet. But what is it physically? And where is it really? Our mental map of the network is as blank as the map of the ocean that Columbus carried on his first voyages. The Internet, its material nuts and bolts, is an unexplored territory. Until now. In Tubes, journalist Andrew Blum goes inside the Internet’s physical infrastructure and flips on the lights, revealing an utterly fresh look at the online world we think we know. Tubes combines on-the-ground reporting and lucid explanation into an engaging, mind-bending narrative to help us understand the physical world that underlies our digital lives.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/NXCqyn

July 25 (2-3 pm)
Bridging the Digital Divide with Mobile Services
(WebJunction)

The exploding popularity of smartphones and other mobile devices provides a unique opportunity for libraries to help bridge the digital divide. These devices are often discussed in the context of affluent populations and academic libraries, yet the demographics of mobile internet users are much more diverse than this, and the potential for mobile library services is correspondingly broad. Join us for this webinar brought to you in collaboration with ALA TechSource, and presented by Andromeda Yelton, author of the January issue of Library Technology Reports on the topic of Bridging the Digital Divide with Mobile Services.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/NKzlhD

July 25 (3-4 pm)
Spotlight! on National Library of Medicine Resources (National Library of Medicine)

This Spotlight! session will focus on Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, Transgendered health information resources and will be presented by Dana Abbey, NN/LM MCR Health Information Literacy/Colorado Coordinator. Taking the one-hour class and completing the exercises and class evaluation makes you eligible to receive 1 Medical Library Association Continuing Education credit. This online training is FREE. Register online at http://tinyurl.com/mcrclasses (registration is not required but is appreciated).

URL: https://webmeeting.nih.gov/mcr Equipment: connection to the Internet and a phone, Login: as a guest with your first and last name. Instructions to connect to the audio will show up once you’ve logged in. Captioning will be provided.

July 26 (1-2 pm)
Your Board and Fundraising
(Grantspace)

This class helps you think through the process of getting your board involved with fundraising. What we will cover: The role of your board, Why board members may be reluctant to fundraise and how to overcome these concerns, Ways the board can participate in fundraising activities, and Tips for strengthening your fundraising board.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/Kl2sMx

July 31 (2-3 pm)
Managing Special Collections: Service, Security, Statistics
(Library Journal)

Special collections are the jewels of their institutions, yet they also present unique challenges. This program will explore three topics of prime concern to special collections managers and library administrators: enhancing services to researchers, improving collections security, and supporting assessment activities and data-driven management decisions.

For more information and to register for this program, visit: http://bit.ly/LJv9DP