Fobazi M. Ettarh Webinar

Fobazi M. Ettarh, who coined the term "vocational awe" will be presenting a webinar as part of Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race project.

Identity, Burnout, and Vocational Awe

February 29, 2024,       1-2 pm

It has been 4 years since the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated just how far employers and vocational awe were willing to push workers— past the edge and beyond. And in our rush back to normalcy, vocational awe has been weaponized against even more library workers. If anything, the pressure to be seen and always available has gotten worse since before the pandemic! And those from marginalized groups bear the brunt of this pressure. How can we as library workers stay sane and prevent the burnout from unrealistic expectations from our library administrators, boards, colleagues, community, and even ourselves? Come and learn from the librarian-scholar who coined the term vocational awe about how to maintain your authentic self at work, while preventing burnout and a total subsumption of self.

Register here  

Presenter: 

Fobazi M. Ettarh has worked in school and academic libraries, and is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign as well as working as a consultant and independent scholar for library organizations. In 2018, Fobazi M. Ettarh coined the term and defined the concept of ‘Vocational awe,” which describe “the set of ideas, values, and assumptions librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries as institutions are inherently good and sacred, and therefore beyond critique.” Her critical work on libraries, labor, and identity has been published in a variety of locations and she has been a keynote presenter at national conferences and summits.

Save the Dates: Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race

How can you better position your library, the heart of your community, as a place where diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are celebrated?

In a 2020 survey, library workers statewide (and from libraries of all sizes) identified “the ability to communicate about topics related to race” as one skill they needed to better lead DEI efforts big and small in their libraries and communities.

The IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, & Equity in Action) Team invites public library staff from throughout Wisconsin to participate in the 2022 Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA)-funded project, Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race. This project is a continuing education series for Wisconsin library staff members interested in devoting more time to learning about diversity, equity, and inclusion and ways to bring DEI to their libraries and communities.

There are three ways to participate, based on your learning style and schedule in 2022:

1. Group education
   Participate in one, two, or three one-hour webinars delivered once “live” virtually and recorded for later playback.
   February 15th, 10 a.m. - Let's Talk About Race At Work [Register HERE]
   March 9th, 10 a.m. - Engaging in Sensitive Conversations & Handling Pushback [Register HERE]
   April 14th, 1 p.m. - Understanding Why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Matter in Majority White Spaces [Register HERE]
   
   
2. Group discussion
   Explore the content of each webinar in online discussions made up of no more than 10 participants from across the state. Sessions will be offered virtually to allow for maximum accessibility and will be facilitated by trained library staff facilitators. Dates are forthcoming in 2022.
   
   
3. Independent study and exploration
   Independently explore the content provided in each Webinar, with materials provided by the People Company. Prompts will be provided for participants, in order to practice essential competencies explored in the webinars. Materials will be accessible through the Wisconsin IDEA Team, and are forthcoming in 2022.

For questions, updates, or to contact an IDEA Team member, please visit the Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race website, https://www.wislibidea.com.

This project was coordinated by the Wisconsin IDEA Team and made possible by the Wisconsin Department of Instruction (DPI) Public Library Development Team, with funding support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Education Series—"Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race"

Check out below the recent promotional piece from Wisconsin's IDEA Team (Inclusion, Diversity, & Equity in Action) about the chance to participate in an education series called Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race. 

Photo from Unsplash.com

How can you better position your library (the heart of your community) as a place where diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are celebrated? 

In a 2020 survey, library workers statewide (and from libraries of all sizes) identified “the ability to communicate about topics related to race” as one skill they needed to better lead DEI efforts big and small in their libraries and communities. 

The IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, & Equity in Action) Team invites public library staff from throughout Wisconsin to participate in the 2022 LSTA-funded project, Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race. This project is a continuing education series for Wisconsin library staff members interested in devoting more time to learning about diversity, equity, and inclusion and ways to bring DEI to their libraries and communities. 

There are three ways to participate, based on your learning style and schedule in 2022. 

 

1. Group education  

Participate in one, two, or three one-hour webinars delivered once “live” virtually and recorded for later playback. 

• February 15th, 10am - Let's Talk About Race At Work [Register HERE]
• March 9th, 10am - Engaging in Sensitive Conversations & Handling Pushback [Register HERE]
• April 14th, 1pm - Understanding Why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Matter in Majority White Spaces [Register HERE]

2. Group discussion

Explore the content of each webinar in discussion forums made up of no more than 10 participants from across the state. Sessions will be offered virtually to allow for maximum accessibility and will be facilitated by trained library staff facilitators. Dates are forthcoming in 2022. 

 

3. Independent study and exploration 

Independently explore the content provided in each webinar, with materials provided by the People Company. Prompts will be provided for participants, in order to practice essential competencies explored in the webinars. Materials will be accessible through the Wisconsin IDEA Team and are forthcoming in 2022. 

For questions and updates, please visit the Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race website, or contact a member of the IDEA Team https://www.wislibidea.com/. 

This project was coordinated by the Wisconsin IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity in Action) Team and made possible by the Wisconsin Department of Instruction (DPI) Public Library Development Team, with funding support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Are You Ready for Project READY?

Project READY is a free online curriculum for library staff covering topics of race, equity, and access. 

The Library Team is excited to offer public library youth services and school library staff in Wisconsin the opportunity to participate in Project READY virtual learning cohorts. 

For full details, view the information session (8 min), online application form, and Are You Ready for Project READY? blog post. The deadline is October 31, 2020.

The Problem with Diversity Labeling

In a thoughtful post on publisher Lee and Low's The Open Book blog, librarian Alexandria Brown explores why labeling books as diverse reinforces white supremacy. She sheds light on this issue and also suggests the many other ways libraries can support and highlight books by BIPOC creators.

She writes: " If you plan to use labels with the words “multicultural,” “diverse,” or “POC” on them, are you using those terms correctly? How narrowly will you define multicultural? Will you include books by white authors and/or about white characters? If not, why not? Whiteness is a racial affinity and cultural identity. Before you even get to the labeling stage, how will you determine whether or not a book is “multicultural,” “diverse,” or “POC?” Who will do the physical labor of creating the relevant criteria? Who will evaluate, pull, label, reshelve, and update the catalogue?"

You can read the entire post here.

Talking with Kids about Race and Racism at Oakland Public Library

Panelists at Oakland PL

Miriam Medow of Oakland Public Library just hosted a fabulous panel discussion on talking with kids about race and racism.  Might this be of interest in your own community?
Read more about it here!