As the New Year gets underway, many of us are looking back on what we did and where we want to go next. At WebJunction, that reflection has a practical purpose: helping us plan for what comes next. We looked at what learning content you engaged with most—what topics seemed most urgent, where we saw the highest enrollment, and which webinars sparked the most interest. Together, this tells us what’s top of mind for you across the library field and help guide how we shape learning opportunities in the year ahead.

We also hope that these insights will be useful to you. Seeing what your colleagues are learning can spark ideas, identify shared challenges, or surface resources you may have missed. So, let’s take a look at what 2025 taught us about library staff learning priorities and what that might mean as you plan your own professional development for the coming year. Thank you for being part of our journey over the past year, and we hope that we’ve been able to provide meaningful support for yours.

If you’d like to keep up with new learning opportunities throughout the year, you can subscribe to Crossroads, WebJunction’s monthly newsletter.

Course Catalog 

We’ll start with WebJunction’s bread and butter—our on-demand learning in the course catalog. Enrollment patterns here help us understand where library staff are choosing to invest their time and energy. And with over 75,000 enrollments and 27,600 unique learners in our catalog last year—both numbers up from the previous year—it’s safe to say that library staff were eager to learn across the field.

The most popular topics point to a mix of core skills and emerging needs. Foundational training topics, customer service, neurodiversity, and programming ideas rose to the top, suggesting that learners were balancing time spent on day-to-day operational skills with an interest in better supporting the unique needs of their communities and colleagues.

Top 10 catalog course and recorded webinar enrollments

1. Shelving with Dewey
2. Dealing with Difficult Situations
3. Embracing neurodiversity: Cultivating an inclusive workplace for neurodivergent staff
4. De-escalation Strategies for Libraries, Archives, and Museum Staff
5. LiFT: Introduction to Library Collections
6. AI and Public Libraries: Panel and Discussion
7. Empowering Teens: Enhancing Information Literacy through Games and Interactive Programming
8. Supercharged Storytimes
9. LiFT: Public Library Fundamentals
10. Libraries Foster Social Connection: Responding to the Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation 

If you haven’t explored our catalog before, it’s easy to create a free account and get started.

Browse the catalog

Live webinars 

Webinars continue to be a popular way to learn from peers and subject-matter experts, connecting with colleagues from libraries of all sizes and types. In 2025, WebJunction hosted live webinars on a wide range of topics, attracting more than 12,500 registrations. Webinar chats are always lively, underscoring the value of shared learning and real-time conversations. Topics of particular interest were supporting neurodivergent library staff, programming—from teens, to older adults, to strategies for community building—and the role of AI in public libraries.  

Top 10 live webinar registrations

1. Embracing neurodiversity: Cultivating an inclusive workplace for neurodivergent staff
2. Building community through craft programs
3. Empowering teens: Enhancing information literacy through games and interactive programming
4. AI in public libraries: Panel and discussion
5. Don't manage change—Embrace it
6. Resources and strategies to protect older adults from fraud and scams
7. Elevating core skills with new Library Foundational Training (LiFT) courses 
8. Turn strategy into action with Theory of Change
9. Supporting communities impacted by incarceration through library services
10. Meaningful library gatherings: Bringing purpose to every meeting and event

Register for upcoming webinars

Looking ahead 

Taken together, 2025’s learning trends tell a clear story. Library staff are seeking practical, foundational skills they can apply immediately, while also exploring how libraries can be more inclusive, more connected to their communities, and better prepared for change. These priorities reflect the realities of library work today, and they help shape what WebJunction will focus on next.

As you plan your own learning for the year ahead, we hope this snapshot inspires ideas and helps you find resources that support your goals, whether you’re strengthening core skills, trying something new, or helping your team grow together. Thank you for learning with us in 2025. We look forward to continuing the journey alongside you in the year ahead.