The older adult population is a diverse and fast-growing population in the United States, with a range of interests and levels of engagement. Older adults are often a driving force behind support and participation with the public library and library staff can design programs and services with older adults in mind. Discover what older adults want from their local library. Explore programs and resources for older adults. And consider the possible challenges inherent in serving older adults.

Soft skills, such as communication, teamwork, and interpersonal skills, play a critical role in virtual and in-person library services. Explore new ways to support staff’s development in these areas by understanding soft skills, developing personal improvement goals and implementing training plans.

Canva is a popular platform for creating flyers, posters, presentations and more. Join us to learn some quick and easy tips for utilizing the best new content from Canva. Get ideas for making graphics for your programs, websites, emails and social media marketing.

If your library struggles to get the right messages to the right people and show those people how valuable the library is to help them solve their problems, a solid marketing plan can make all the difference. By performing an analysis of the environment in your library and service area (also known as a SWOT analysis), and selecting the right channels for your messages, you'll define your target audience, understand what that audience wants and needs, and develop a messaging strategy that resonates with them.

Collaboration with faculty is a key component of librarians' jobs. Working with faculty on assignment design, instruction, student, support, programming initiatives, and research projects are a few of the ways in which librarians and faculty partner for student success. In this session, attendees will be introduced to best practices for working with faculty. Dr. Lauren Hays will share practical examples of how to approach collaboration and how to keep the momentum for collaborative projects.

Successful library signage brings new patrons into the library and assists them in finding needed information. Unsuccessful library signage is often unclear, cluttered, or ineffective. Improve patrons' experiences with guidance for evaluating library signage from the context of user experience and customer service.

Effective communications are vital for the success of libraries. Since most libraries have limited staff and financial capacity for communications efforts, it is critical to deploy these resources as strategically as possible. The concepts and skills covered in this course will help libraries approach communications in a way that builds commitment to their organization’s mission, strategic initiatives and outreach activities.

Whether a conference, awards gala, or fundraising dinner, event planning can be a monumental task. However, setting goals and planning well in advance are keys to pulling off a successful event. Uncover the roles and mindset of the event planner and the planning process, everything from event management to budgeting, evaluation, and how to be prepared for when things go wrong.

Does your library have a social media policy that explains how your library uses social media, provide parameters for staff use of social media at work, and how to respond to positive and negative comments from the public? Take the first step toward a stronger, safer online presence, with this course, you will learn how to mitigate your library's social media with the development of a robust social media policy that can align social media practices with your library's mission.

Whether it is creating flyers, posters, social media graphics, or even designing the library's website, graphic design skills are essential for librarians to effectively communicate their message. Learn graphic design's fundamental principles and elements, including color theory, typography, and layout. Explore how to use Canva to produce professional-looking print and electronic designs.