Professional Development Opportunities
Acquisitions/Collections
Fundamentals of Acquisitions 2022 - Session 5.0 (ALA Core)
This six-week online course is a basic primer for library acquisitions concepts common to all library material formats. It covers: goals and methods of acquiring monographs and serials in all formats; theoretical foundations and workflows of basic acquisitions functions; financial management of library collections budgets; relationships among acquisitions librarians, library booksellers, subscription agents, and publishers. This course provides a broad overview of the operations involved in acquiring materials after the selection decision is made. In FOA, we distinguish between collection development, which involves the selection of materials for the library; and acquisitions, which orders, receives, and pays for those materials. In many libraries, selecting and acquiring materials may be done in the same department—in the smallest libraries perhaps even by the same person. In larger libraries, selection may be done by a collection development department and/or designated subject specialists, while a separate department acquires the selected materials. In essence, acquisitions is the business operation, bringing materials into the library and licensing access to library collections and resources.
October 3 – November 11
$224.10 (ALA member)/$249 (Non-member)
Fundamentals of Collection Assessment 2022 - Session 5.0 (ALA Core)
This six-week online course introduces the fundamental aspects of collection assessment in libraries. The course is designed for those who are responsible for or interested in collection assessment in all types and sizes of libraries. The course will introduce key concepts in collection assessment including: the definition of collection assessment; techniques and tools; assessment of print and electronic collections; project design and management.
October 10 – November 18
$224.10 (ALA member)/$249 (Non-member)
Fundamentals of Collection Development and Management 2022 - Session 5.0 (ALA Core)
This four-week online course addresses the basic components of collection development and management (CDM) in libraries. Complete definition of collection development and collection management: collections policies and budgets as part of library planning; collection development (selecting for and building collections); collection management (evaluating and making decisions about existing collections, including decisions about withdrawal, transfer, preservation); collection analysis—why and how to do it; outreach, liaison, and marketing; trends and some suggestions about the future for collection development and management.
October 17 – November 11
$188.10 (ALA member)/$209 (Non-member)
Fundamentals of Electronic Resources Acquisitions 2022 - Session 5.0 (ALA Core)
This four-week online course provides an overview of acquiring, providing access to, administering, supporting, and monitoring access to electronic resources. The course offers a basic background in electronic resource acquisitions including: product trials; licensing; purchasing methods; pricing models. An overview of the sometimes complex relationships between vendors, publishers, platform providers, and libraries is also provided.
October 17 – November 11
$188.10 (ALA member)/$209 (Non-member)
Cataloging/Metadata
Authority Control: Creating and Maintaining Consistency (Amigos Library Services)
Course Description: Authority control, the process of ensuring that all access points in a library catalog are used consistently, requires a great deal of maintenance to be effective. This session will cover the principles of authority control. It will demonstrate how to clean-up inconsistencies in your authority records and how to maintain consistency. Learning objectives for this session include: learn what authority control is and why it is important; understand how to maintain consistency in authority records; learn how to develop an authority record workflow.
September 1
$90 (Amigos Member)/$180 (Non-member)
LRM: A New Foundation for RDA & the RDA Toolkit (Library Juice Academy)
This course focuses on learning the new Library Reference Model (LRM) which is the foundation for the R3 (RDA Toolkit revision) and BIBFRAME 2.0. The LRM is an evolving model that merges the RDA foundational frameworks of RDA, FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records), FRAD (Functional Requirements for Authority Data), and FRSAD (Functional Requirements of Subject Authority Data). The LRM focuses on aligning terminologies with larger data communities of practice, refining the FRBR User Tasks, eliminating inconsistencies between the three models, and embracing linked data practices. This new model brings significant changes in how we think about data, to the RDA Toolkit, and to BIBFRAME.
September 5 – October 2
$200
Introduction to Cataloging (Library Juice Academy)
Are you a librarian who has suddenly been given the responsibility of cataloging for your library, but you know little to nothing about how to do it? Or do you feel that a quick course on cataloging will simply make you a better librarian? Or perhaps it has been a long time since you did cataloging work and you need a refresher. This four-week course will introduce the tools and techniques of the trade, including descriptive cataloging (RDA), subject cataloging (classification and subject headings), and an introduction to Machine Readable Cataloging (MARC). The course promises to provide practical, hands-on training for non-catalogers, including sample workflows, an introduction to copy cataloging, and guides to make the job of cataloging easier.
September 5 – October 2
$200
Assigning Library of Congress Call Numbers (MCLS)
This workshop provides practical experience in assigning Library of Congress Subject Headings as part of the cataloging process. Participants will learn how to perform a technical reading of an item and how to choose appropriate subject headings based on the principles of subject heading assignment put forth by the Library of Congress. Participants will also learn how to verify headings they have assigned against the Library of Congress subject headings. The structure and interpretation of online LC subject authority records in the OCLC subject authority file will be covered as well as the structure of bibliographic tools such as the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) and Library of Congress Subject Cataloging Manual: Subject Headings. Participants will perform a number of exercises in assigning subject headings to bibliographic works.
September 6 – September 8
$100 (Member)/$200 (Non-member)
Copy Descriptive Cataloging of Digital Resources Using RDA (MCLS)
Here is your chance to work with RDA (Resource Description and Access) as applied to the copy cataloging of digital resources. This hands-on workshop teaches participants how to catalog digital resources using such tools as the RDA toolkit and the Library of Congress-Program for Cooperative Cataloging Policy Statements. All forms of digital resources, as well as physical media, including video games, CD-ROMs and other computer disks will be discussed. The class will address copy cataloging in the MARC format. Among the topics covered will be the chief source of information, physical description, primary access point, and the choice of additional access points. Assignment of subject headings, classification and access point control will also be discussed.
September 6 – September 8
$100 (Member)/$200 (Non-member)
Fundamentals of Cataloging 2022 - Session 5.1 (ALA Core)
The Fundamentals of Cataloging (FOC) is a six-week online course that provides an introduction to the principles, policies and practices of cataloging in libraries. It is designed for librarians and library support staff new to cataloging; librarians and library support staff from other units who want to know more about cataloging; LSSC candidates pursuing certification in the Cataloging and Classification competency set; and experienced cataloging librarians and support staff seeking continuing education and networking opportunities. Course components: introduction to catalogs and cataloging, including an exploration into the principles behind the development and evolution of cataloging codes and rules; introduction to descriptive cataloging, including bibliographic description and descriptive access points with AACR2 and RDA; introduction to subject analysis and classification, with a focus on Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH), Library of Congress Classification (LCC) and Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC); introduction to reading and understanding MARC 21 formats for bibliographic and authority data; exploration of the history of cooperative cataloging, current trends and some suggestions about the future for cataloging and bibliographic management.
September 12 – October 21
$224.10 (ALA member)/$249 (Non-member)
Library of Congress Classification: The Basics (Amigos Library Services)
This class will provide an overview of the structure of Library of Congress Classification, with detailed exploration of some schedules, along with short homework assignments to help you practice your learning. Topics covered also include number building, Cutter numbers, and interpreting instructions found in the classification schedules. Learning objectives for this session include: learn the structure of Library of Congress Classification through an examination of the classification schedules; understand number building and the use of cutter numbers; build Library of Congress Classification numbers for a variety of resources.
September 13-14
$180 (Amigos Member)/$360 (Non-member)
Cataloging Rare Materials with the Official Toolkit and DCRMR (ALA eLearning)
The official RDA Toolkit introduces new elements and a new structure from the original Toolkit. To facilitate adoption of the official Toolkit, in 2022 the Rare Books and Manuscripts Section’s Bibliographic Standards Committee published Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials: RDA Edition (DCRMR), an RDA-aligned standard. This 90-minute webinar will present practical guidance on cataloging rare materials with RDA. The webinar will walk participants through cataloging rare books with the official Toolkit and DCRMR using concrete, step-by-step instructions. At the end of the webinar, attendees will be prepared to begin creating records for rare materials using DCRMR and RDA. After attending the webinar, attendees will: understand the relationship between DCRMR and the official RDA Toolkit; be able to navigate DCRMR and find related instructions in the official Toolkit; understand rare material transcription standards and how they differ from RDA normalized transcription; be prepared to create catalog records for rare materials using the official Toolkit and DCRMR.
September 21
$71.10 (ALA member)/$79 (Non-member)
Fundamentals of Metadata 2022 - Session 5.0 (ALA Core)
This six-week course is an introduction to fundamental concepts of metadata, including: similarities and differences between cataloging and metadata; descriptive, technical, and administrative metadata schema; content standards and controlled vocabularies; approaches to metadata creation and transformation; metadata project design.
September 26 – November 4
$224.10 (ALA member)/$249 (Non-member)
Subject Analysis and Subject Representation (Library Juice Academy)
This course focuses on the analysis of the intellectual content of information resources/objects and the representation of content in information retrieval systems, specifically library systems. The analysis of intellectual content has long been a traditional mechanization for retrieval of and access to information resources in libraries. Representing the content of information resources involves a number of critical ideas and distinctions that the cataloger must contend with if the process of resource subject representation is to be done with any efficiency and wisdom. This course will explore the core of that process. This involves exploring the idea of content, including the idea of a subject, and the corresponding possibilities of how to indicate or express that content. We can call the overall process subject analysis but simply saying that it centers on determining the “subject” (or “subjects”) of a resource has to be expanded. As a widely accepted activity, it has gained a variety of names—for example, subject indexing, document analysis, and subject heading determination.
October 3 – October 30
$200
Serials Cataloging (New!) (MCSL)
This course provides the basic principles of original and copy cataloging of print serials with a focus on the elements contained in the CONSER standard record (CSR), including appropriate MARC 21 tagging, as well as problem-solving and decision-making relative to serials cataloging. The specific goals of the course are to: understand the concept of continuing resources; identify serials and distinguish them from monographs and integrating resources; apply RDA instructions for the description of serials; understand the RDA CONSER standard record (CSR); become familiar with MARC tags used for serials; create original serials cataloging records; identify appropriate serial copy and needed edits; become familiar with current serials cataloging conventions and practices.
October 24 – October 26
$100 (Member)/$200 (Non-member)
Digital Collections
Fundamentals of Digital Library Projects 2022 - Session 5.0 (ALA Core)
This six-week online course introduces students to the breadth of considerations, standards and skills needed to successfully launch and manage a digital library program. The course will provide opportunity for hands-on activities to develop critical thinking and decision-making skills within the context of a digital library. Participants of this course will: Gain an understanding of the types of expertise and skills needed to successfully manage a digital library: such as digitization and types of digital objects, metadata, indexing/search/retrieval/, storage/architecture, user interface & interaction, preservation; learn about the common platforms used by libraries to manage digital objects and make them discoverable; and discover the role of planning, documentation, and assessment.
September 26 – November 4
$224.10 (ALA member)/$249 (Non-member)
Digital Repository Fundamentals and Design (Library Juice Academy)
Digital repositories allow libraries, archives and museums to disseminate and create access to unique digital collections related to institutional academic output or digital special collections. Digital repository options vary widely, from proprietary to open source; and platforms specialized for specific use cases, such as institutional academic production, audiovisual materials, cultural heritage collections, and community and tribal collections. This course is designed to give the student the fundamentals of selecting, designing and implementing the digital repository solution that is right for their particular institutional, academic or personal project. This course can be taken as one of six courses needed to earn our Certificate in Digital Curation, but can be taken as a stand-alone course as well.
October 3 – October 30
$200
Fundamentals of Digital Curation in Libraries, Archives and Museums (Library Juice Academy)
This course is designed to give the student an overview of the fundamentals of digital curation theory and best practices in libraries, archives and museums. On completion of the course, the student will have a working knowledge of theory, best practices for establishing and maintaining digital curation programs and initiatives, and feedback on work on digital curation projects in the students’ own workplace or area of interest and study. This course can be taken as one of six courses needed to earn our Certificate in Digital Curation, but can be taken as a stand-alone course as well.
October 3 – October 30
$200
Leadership/Management
Charting a Course for the Future through Strategic Planning (Library Juice Academy)
Strategic planning is another element of leadership and management about which much has been written. In this course, you will explore strategic development from a user and empathy design perspective that engages all stakeholders in identifying challenges and participating in constructing a vision for the future. In addition, you will examine futures thinking as a strategy to help set a course for goals that are just within reach but which also help stretch existing notions of where the organization is headed.
September 5 – October 2
$200
Technology/Coding
Transforming and Querying XML with XSLT and XQuery (Library Juice Academy)
This course will provide an introduction to the XSL Transformation language (XSLT) and the XML Query language (XQuery) including hands-on basic coding in both XSLT and XQuery. The goal of this course is to introduce students to some basic XML tools for manipulating XML documents and data.
September 5 – October 2
$200
Querying Wikidata: All the Knowledge in the World (DCMI) (ASIS&T)
Knowledge Graphs have become a common asset for representing world knowledge in data driven models and applications. Wikidata is one of the largest crowdsourced Knowledge Graphs, with over 90 million entities and 1.5 billion edges. In this webinar, participants will learn how heterogeneous facts are represented in Wikidata, and how to retrieve them by using standard query languages and tools designed by the Wikidata community. The audience will learn about: 1) The Wikidata data model, 2) The features of the Wikidata SPARQL endpoint and tooling; and 3) Query examples to retrieve qualifiers, references, rankings and deprecated statements in Wikidata.
September 15
$25