We continue the Social Library series with more examples of the innovative ways libraries connect with their communities. This edition includes a video series with professionals presenting on their careers, passive programming for families, celebrating milestones with partners at meal pick up sites, Medicare counseling appointments, and a community music and art project celebrating the Hmong community. If you'd like your library to be featured in an upcoming edition of the Social Library, let us know via social@webjunction.org or find us on Facebook.

Los Angeles Public Library in California, has been hosting weekly online sessions with professionals discussing their... Read more

As we look beyond the first year of living in the time of COVID, libraries and their communities continue to move through uncharted territory. Fortunately, the field is committed to sharing what's being learned through multiple online platforms. Take a look at this month's list of over 90 free webinars, symposia, festivals, workshops, and forums, covering 22 different topic areas, from advocacy to volunteers. Thank you to the Wyoming State Library for collecting this list of learning opportunities! It's updated monthly on the Free Training page, where you can also view the offerings by topic.

For additional training, check... Read more

As libraries continue to look for ways to create meaningful community connections during the pandemic, it was exciting to see this wonderful idea shared in the Programming Librarian Interest Group on Facebook. Thank you to Paula Wagner, Reference Services Manager at the Barberton Public Library in Ohio, for outlining how she implemented a collaborative puzzle art project.
 
Like many of the ideas gathered from the Programming Librarian Interest Group on Facebook, I had previously seen someone else post (thank you to that person!) about a successful puzzle project at their library. It seemed like the perfect program to engage... Read more

In the spring of 2020, the 15 small and rural libraries participating in WebJunction’s Small Libraries Create Smart Spaces project were on the verge of activating their newly transformed smart spaces with collaborative community programming; then the COVID-19 pandemic changed everything. Libraries closed their physical doors and the smart space efforts froze in time. With months of planning now on hold, participants engaged with the project in an unanticipated way: they turned to each other for support through the cohort discussion forums and virtual live sessions, first to share their realities and emotions, and then to begin to reimagine what... Read more