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.