CE NEWS

March 8, 2021

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Daylight saving time occurs on Sunday, March 14^th at 2:00 am

Table of Contents

• 2021 AkLA Virtual Conference
• Workforce Basics Training Graduates
• Native American Library Services Basic Grants

2021 AkLA Virtual Conference

The Alaska Library Association Conference Committee has pulled out all the stops for the March 18-20,2021, Your Library Has Left the Building: the 2021 AkLA Virtual Conference with over 50 poster sessions, programs, and meetings.  Believe me, you don’t want to miss this amazing, and amazingly affordable professional development opportunity!

Spread the word!

Library directors encourage and support your staff (full-time, part-time, or on-call) in attending this conference. It has been a grueling year, and everyone is in need professional camaraderie and inspiration. Invite members of your library board or Friends of the Library group to attend the conference. They will gain information on best practices, library trends and how to be successful advocates.  Finally, consider sharing information about the 2021 AkLA Virtual Conference with local community partners. In addition to having their staff attend the conference, they may want to sponsor an event or share information about their organization as a vendor.

To see the entire list of scheduled sessions or to register visit https://akla.org/2021/

2021 Virtual Conference speakers include:

• Dr. Debbie Reese
• Jad Abumrad
• Mahogany L. Browne
• Jill Baron
• Oscar Cornejo Casares
• Julie Renee Moore
• Gerie Ventura

Workforce Basics Training Graduates

Congratulations to the following librarians who have successfully completed the Workforce Basics Training. Some of these graduates are now making plans to share what they learned with other library staff members and implementing new programs and services to assist job seekers in their communities. 

Delta Community Library

• Tiki Levinson
• Andrea McCarrick
• Shona Hilton

Gustavus Public Library

• Jen Gardner

Kenai Community Library

• Hannah Meyer

Kodiak Public Library

• Agnes Sanjoyo
• Ani Thomas

Talkeetna Public Library

• Geraldine Denkewalter
• Cassidy Owen

Native American Library Services Basic Grants

The following information was shared in an IMLS news release on March 1, 2021. 

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is now accepting applications for Native American Library Services Basic grants through April 16, 2021.

Native American Library Services Basic grants are noncompetitive one-year grants of $6,000 to $10,000, which can include up to $3,000 in eligible education and assessment activities or travel. The grants are available to federally recognized Native American tribes and Native Alaskan villages, corporations, and regional corporations and are designed to support existing operations and maintain core services of tribal and Native village libraries.

Grants may be used to buy library materials, fund salaries and training, provide internet connectivity and computers, or develop public and private partnerships with other agencies and community-based organizations, for example.

Libraries may request up to $3,000 for staff to attend library courses or training workshops; attend or present at conferences related to library services; or hire consultants for onsite professional library assessments.

Application materials can be found on the grant program page. For more information, please visit the IMLS website.