LILRC Webinar: Conflict Management - Part Two, Putting It Into Action: Connection through Conflict
2025-03-21 10:00 - 12:00 (America/New_York) | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
In Part 2 of this interactive program, we will explore specific methods for working through conflict in a productive manner. We will discuss methods for employing and adapting specific strategies for a variety of relationship types (e.g. supervisors to supervisees, supervisees to supervisors, peers and patrons). Please be prepared for active discussion and experiential activities. This workshop will build upon the skills taught in Part 1.
Topics covered in Part 2 will be:

Employing Behavioral Strategies to Work Through Conflict
Managing Expectations
Understanding our Own and Others’ Assumptions/Expectations
Collaborative Goal Setting
Assertiveness Training
Naming boundaries

Presenter:
Dr. Samuel M. Colbert, PhD is a counseling psychologist, licensed in the state of Pennsylvania. He earned his PhD at Ball State University and completed his pre-doctoral clinical internship at University of Pennsylvania’s (UPenn’s) counseling center. He received his Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Ball State University and his Bachelor of Arts at SUNY Geneseo, Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa.
Dr. Colbert is a clinician, consultant, educator, and researcher. He practices couples and individual therapy at Philadelphia Couples Therapy, a private group practice in Philadelphia, PA. He has also taught multiple undergraduate courses, including: The Psychology of Sexuality, Multicultural Counseling and Fundamentals of Counseling Skills. He has presented hundreds of LGBTQ+ Skill Building Workshops, with varied audiences including, psychologists at the Annual American Psychological Convention, National Rehabilitation Psychological Conference, and fellows at John’s Hopkins. Informed from his teaching, training, and clinical experiences, Dr. Colbert has co-authored a chapter in Navigating Difficult Teaching Moments in Teaching Diversity and Social Justice published by the American Psychological Association. His research includes exploring factors leading to the health and well-being of gender and sexual minority people possessing intersecting identities.
Sam is honored to continue to share his passion for learning, teaching, and training with the Long Island Library Resources Council!

SCRLC Webinar: African American Subject Funnel Project
2025-03-25 10:00 - 11:00 | South Central Regional Library Council, 1300 Dryden Rd., Ithaca, NY, 14850, United States
Have you ever wondered how Library of Congress Subject Headings are created? How they’re changed? Who can participate in this process? Additionally, in recent years, the library community has recognized the need to make our libraries more equitable and representative of the diverse groups we serve. This has inspired initiatives to reexamine library spaces, collections and systems. This presentation examines one such effort, the African American Subject Funnel Project. This cross-institutional, collaborative group works to improve catalog records by adding or amending Library of Congress Subject headings related to the African American experience. By exploring these topics, panelists will demonstrate how the library community can work together to improve our catalogs and by extension better facilitate research.
*Participants will be introduced to the work of the African American Funnel Project in order to understand how Library of Congress Subject Headings are added and amended.
*Participants will learn about the structure and operation of one collaborative, reparative cataloging project so that they might organize similar initiatives in their areas of expertise.
*Participants will leave with an appreciation of the complexities of working with the Library of Congress and the need for both technical and subject expertise in order to successfully advocate for additions and changes to the vocabulary.
This webinar will not be recorded.

CDLC Webinar: ReciteMe - Vendor Demo
2025-03-25 13:00 - 14:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
We hope you can join us as we host a product demo of ReciteMe, whose suite of accessibility solutions helps create inclusive web experiences.
This session will revolve around the 2024 Federal mandate on web accessibility for public-sector websites. As the vast majority of libraries receive public funding, they must adhere to the updated standards for their digital properties. Our focus will be on your websites, what rules govern them, and what steps to take in making them compliant, followed by a brief demo of accessibility solutions.
Presenter: Dillon O’Doherty is a Business Development Executive at Recite Me who, for four years, has been assisting libraries and nonprofits with attaining their accessibility goals.

LILRC Webinar: Researching Government Information with Shikha G. Joseph
2025-03-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
This seminar will provide information on how to find free United States government information on a variety of topics including congressional bills, laws, regulations, presidential documents, studies, reports and more. There will also be a brief overview on how to find government information for New York State materials.
Shikha Gupta Joseph is the Emerging Technologies Librarian and Assistant Professor at Nassau Community College’s A. Holly Patterson Library. Her duties involve working with both Research & Instruction and Resource Management Units. Shikha received her MLS from CUNY Queens College Graduate School of Library and Information Science in 2009 and joined NCC Library in 2019. Prior to working at NCC, she worked for the New York State Supreme Court, law libraries, and as an attorney.

NNYLN Webinar: Cardholder Signup Policies - Access in Practice
2025-03-27 11:00 - 12:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
In 2023, with funding from the Mellon Foundation, Brooklyn Public Library launched a research project to collect and study cardholder signup policies from public libraries across the nation. Using these findings, BPL has convened a diverse working group of public library leaders to develop a policy framework of guiding principles and best practices for cardholder registration. The overall goal is to provide public library staff, leaders, boards and community stakeholders with the tools to have informed conversations about cardholder signup policies that align with the library profession’s stated values of access and intellectual freedom.
Join Amy Mikel, Director of Customer Experience at Brooklyn Public Library, to learn and ask questions about the project’s findings and the policy framework under development, as well as receive a set of actionable steps to analyze one’s own library’s policies around cardholder signup through the lens of access.
Participants may request a certificate of attendance for one contact hour following the event. Free to all who are interested. This webinar will be recorded.

ESLN Webinar: AI On the (GLAM) Job - An Ask the HR Expert Webinar
2025-03-28 10:00 - 11:30 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
A review of how the law impacts use of AI at work in libraries, museums, and other cultural institutions. Written material: guidance and template language for Personnel Manuals and policies (both for using, and for barring use of, AI).
This is the third event in our 4-part “Ask the HR Expert” series.
About the presenter: Stephanie “Cole” Adams is an attorney who represents libraries, educators, students, and creative professionals. Cole provides the Ask the Lawyer service that New York State’s nine library resource councils provide to each library in the state. She is a member of the ALA Lawyers for Libraries faculty, the Vice Chair of the Erie County Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Committee, and served as the General Counsel of Niagara University for over ten years. Cole is a proud graduate of SUNY Buffalo School of Law and Hampshire College.
We invite you to submit a question for the presenter – there will be a place to do that during the registration process. The deadline to submit questions is Friday, March 14, 2025.
Free to ESLN Members. Registration is required. This webinar will be recorded.
This session is sponsored by Empire State Library Network.

LILRC Webinar: Recent Developments in Labor & Employment Law
2025-03-28 11:00 - 13:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Local, State and Federal jurisdictions continue legislate and regulate labor & employment at an unprecedented rate. It is challenging for the most diligent practitioner to remain current on all the recent developments. This program will bring you up to date on the important updates in labor & employment law along with our predictions for the upcoming year.
Presented by: Joshua Bienstock, JD., LLM, Associate Professor of Business Law, New York Institute of Technology, School of Management

ESLN Academic Leadership Series: Impactful Mentorship
2025-04-09 13:00 - 14:30 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
This series of six 90-minute panel discussions will feature academic library leaders from across New York State discussing various topics relevant to new and emerging leaders. Panelists represent a wide variety of academic institutions and provide a diverse set of experiences. As part of each session, participants will have opportunities to network with other new and emerging leaders through breakout rooms and small group discussions in addition to the larger panel discussion. These sessions will not be recorded.
Join us for the next event in this series, Impactful Mentoring! Many librarians can point to a mentor who significantly impacted their careers. Sometimes these are found through formal mentor programs or through other strategies. This session will focus on the goals of mentorship and how to create effective mentor/mentee relationships.
Topics discussed may include:
– Goals of the mentorship relationship: professional/organizational acclimation, career development, leadership development, etc.
– How to build a successful mentoring relationship.
– Types of external support needed for a successful mentoring relationship.
– How to find a good mentor
– How to know when it is time to end a mentorship.
Panelists: Melissa Jadlos (St. John Fisher University); Curtis Kendrick (Binghamton University); Carol-Anne Germain (University at Albany)
Facilitator: Carey Hatch (University at Albany)

Webinar: 15 Ways Libraries Can Use Generative AI
2025-04-10 10:00 - 11:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Webinar Description:
Explore the transformative power of AI in libraries with this engaging webinar. This essential session is designed for librarians, information specialists, and enthusiasts eager to harness the latest in AI technology. Highlights include:

Basics of Generative AI: A straightforward primer on generative AI and its relevance today.
Key AI Tools: Explore ten cutting-edge generative AI tools and how they stand to benefit library environments.
15 Practical Uses of AI in Libraries: Learn how generative AI can be applied in various library functions, including research assistance, instructional design, language learning, library programming design, automating grant writing, professional development, enhancing metadata, and much more.
Navigating AI Challenges: Insights into the challenges and ethical considerations of using AI, with strategies for effective management.
Skill Building: Tips for writing effective AI prompts and an introduction to the most useful ChatGPT plugins for libraries.

This webinar is your gateway to integrating generative AI into your library’s offerings, improving efficiency, and engaging your community in new and exciting ways.
About the Presenter:
Ellyssa Valenti Kroski is the Director of Innovation & Engagement at the New York Law Institute as well as an award-winning editor and author of 75 books. She is a librarian, an adjunct faculty member at San Jose State University, and an international conference speaker. She can be found at: http://www.amazon.com/author/ellyssa.
Live captioning will be provided.
This webinar will be recorded and a recording will be shared with all registrants afterward.

**All participants will have the option to request a certificate of attendance for one contact hour.**
All CLRC events are open to CLRC members and members of the Empire State Library Network.
All Attendees are expected to follow CLRC’s Code of Conduct

LILRC Webinar: NDIA's Digital Navigator Model
2025-04-10 13:00 - 14:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Informational session about the digital navigator program model, tools, and communities of practice. Discover best practices, critical aptitudes, program workflow processes, and outreach strategies learned from a wide community of digital navigator programs across the nation. We’ll explore ways in which the digital navigator model has been adapted for specific audiences, client success stories, and the actionable tools that can help you build or expand your digital navigator program.
Session Outcomes:
● Understand the digital navigator program model and how it can be implemented and/or expanded in libraries.
● Learn about community-based best practices and outreach strategies in the digital navigator model.
● Hear about strategies of successful digital navigator programs and stories of how digital inclusion barriers were removed for community members.

LILRC Webinar: Developing Micro Assessments for Your Library Marketing Plans
2025-04-11 11:00 - 12:30 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Library marketing activities should always be informed with user data. When conducting market research, you don’t need a large sample to see the “big” picture. Developing scalable micro assessments such as mini surveys, usability studies, interviews, and focus groups with only a few questions can add value to your library’s marketing and outreach efforts. With quantitative research, you are expected to have a large sample. However, that is not the case when conducting market research. In this presentation, micro assessments will be shown to be more effective, easier to manage, and garners more responses than more lengthier surveys.
Presenter: Mark Aaron Polger (they/them)
Mark Aaron Polger is an academic librarian and information literacy instructor who has been working in libraries since 1992. They received their MLIS degree in 2000 from the University of Western Ontario (London, Ontario, Canada) and has worked as a librarian in public, hospital, and academic libraries. Currently, Mark is the Coordinator of Library Outreach at the College of Staten Island, City University of New York (CUNY). They have written about library marketing in journals and other publications and has presented nationally at library conferences.
Mark is the author of 3 books; Engaging Diverse Learners: Teaching Strategies for Academic Librarians, co-authored with Scott Sheidlower (2017, Libraries Unlimited), Library Marketing Basics (2019, Rowman and Littlefield), and Library Signage and Wayfinding Design: Communicating Effectively with Your Users (2021, ALA Editions) Their research interests include library marketing, outreach, and UX (user experience) design. Currently, Mark is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the open-access, peer reviewed journal Marketing Libraries Journal, which was launched in Fall 2017. Their next book project will be on Library Marketing Post-COVID.

LILRC Webinar: Guide to Crafting and Promulgating the Library Employee Handbook
2025-04-11 13:00 - 15:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
The process of crafting a legally compliant employee handbook can be a daunting task. this program will cover critical issues such as identifying the purpose of the handbook, preparing to draft the handbook, including a review all existing policies and drafting an outline, exploring the contents of the handbook, common drafting mistakes to be avoided, how to disseminate the handbook and updating and revising the handbook.
Presented by: Joshua Bienstock, JD., LLM, Associate Professor of Business Law, New York Institute of Technology, School of Management

LILRC Webinar: Starting a GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance)
2025-04-17 13:00 - 14:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Having a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) available for members of the LGBTQ+ community is essential. This program helps participants learn how to successfully start up, and further develop, their own GSA. Specific items to be addressed include:

Understanding the need for a GSA
Gaining the support of administrators/leaders
Recruiting members & spreading awareness of your GSA to the community
Planning inclusive meetings & events
Developing a safe space and exploring considerations for members’ confidentiality, safety, and well-being
Addressing difficult topics or challenges within your GSA
Learning of outside organizations & resources to support and educate your GSA
Carefully balancing advocacy, education, and community building in your GSA

Dan Martinez is the advisor of the Newfield High School GSA in the Middle Country Central School District. While in this role, he has made it his priority to provide a safe, supportive, and positive environment for his students. He collaborates regularly with the LGBT Network, recently winning a mini-grant for his school’s GSA. In 2023, he helped to establish Suffolk County’s first Pride PTSA in the Middle Country Central School District. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education & Viola Performance from Ithaca College, as well as a Master’s degree in Liberal Studies from Stony Brook University. Besides acting as a GSA advisor, he currently serves as Newfield High School’s Director of Orchestras and Producer of Theatre Arts, with years of experience also teaching elementary and middle school orchestra, general music, and chorus. In his spare time, he maintains an active performance career with various classical and non-classical ensembles.

LILRC Webinar: YA Author Deb Caletti - True Life in Uncanny Valley
2025-04-22 14:00 - 15:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Join LILRC as we welcome award-winning Young Adult author Deb Caletti to speak on her latest novel, True Life in Uncanny Valley.
From the acclaimed author of A Heart in a Body in the World comes the gripping story of a girl living a lie in order to find the truth about her family and herself.
Eleanor, like so many others, is used to watching her famous father from afar. To the world, Hugo Harrison is the brilliant and charismatic tech genius whose AI inventions seem to create a new, better reality. But to Eleanor, whose mother had an affair with Hugo years ago, he is something even more intriguing, and dangerous—a secret.
When Eleanor’s spying leads her to a posting for a live-in summer nanny job for Hugo’s young son—her half-brother—she knows she has to apply. This is finally her chance to learn about her father, his family, and the life that could have been hers. She only has to do one thing: become someone else. With just a few well-placed lies, Eleanor is catapulted into an unfamiliar, intoxicating whirlwind of money and ego, and into a new romance with a cute boy who works for Hugo. But in a place where image is everything and reality can be rewritten, is anything real—even the Harrisons themselves?
Caught between her own secrets and the ones she’s uncovering about her father and his latest invention, Eleanor faces a question that technology can’t answer: what is your true self, and how do you know when you find her?
Deb Caletti is the award-winning and critically acclaimed author of over twenty books for adults and young adults, including Honey, Baby, Sweetheart, a finalist for the National Book Award; A Heart in a Body in the World, a Michael L. Printz Honor Book; Girl, Unframed; and One Great Lie. Her books have also won the Josette Frank Award for Fiction, the Washington State Book Award, and numerous other state awards and honors, and she was a finalist for the PEN USA Award. She lives with her family in Seattle.

LILRC Webinar: Social Media in Healthcare Information
2025-04-23 11:00 - 12:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Since the advent of smartphones, and their subsequent development into pocket-sized computers, PDAs, and virtual assistants, it has become possible to harness the power of the internet to communicate from almost anywhere. As the hardware has developed, so too have the ways in which we communicate; and what we call social media has now been an integral part of life for over 20 years now. In that timeframe, it has revolutionized so many aspects of our lives that it is now difficult to imagine a world without social media in some form.
As smartphone technology has matured and users have grown more sophisticated in their use of various social media platforms, concerns about privacy, ethics, censorship, and misinformation have raised their heads.
This program, Social Media in Healthcare Information, provides an overview of current and recent developments in social media, concentrating on the most influential and well-established platforms. In addition to drawing together some of the most recent published scholarship in this area, this presentation also includes practical tips and consideration of how the platforms can be used to support knowledge and library service provision in healthcare settings.
Paula Younger is a UK Chartered Librarian with several years of experience in NHS, academic, and government libraries and information services. Her interests include the use of technology, health literacy, and healthcare information in languages other than English. Since the 1990s, she has published several articles, which have appeared in several professional LIS and nursing journals as well as on international websites. In 2010, she co-edited Using Web 2.0 for Health Information with Peter Morgan of Cambridge University.

RRLC Webinar: Mastering the Art of Difficult Conversations
2025-04-23 14:00 - 15:30 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
In this webinar, we examine the elements of difficult conversations and why we struggle to communicate. We’ll discuss methods you can use to prepare yourself for having a difficult conversation to increase the likelihood of a positive outcome. We’ll also touch on difficult conversations in the workplace like how to have difficult conversations with your boss or people you manage and how to receive a difficult message.
Learning Objectives
Attendees will walk away with concrete strategies they can employ before and during difficult conversations to build confidence and create meaningful change in your organization through effective communication.
Presenters: Amanda Johnson and Lauren Clossey are the owners of Alliance Research and Training, LLC. Amanda Johnson started her journey in libraries 12 years ago and has since worked in academic, public, and state government environments. Lauren Clossey has worked in libraries for 17 years in academic, public, and school libraries. Together, Amanda and Lauren have developed trainings for the Association for Rural and Small Libraries, Public Library Association, Niche Academy, The People Connect Institute, New Jersey State Library, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Georgia Public Library Services, and more.

CLRC Networking Night @ The Oneida County History Center
2025-04-23 17:00 - 19:00 | Oneida County History Center, 1608 Genesee Street, Utica, 13502-5425, United States
Join CLRC staff and members for a night of light refreshments and hors d’ouevres at the Oneida County History Center!
We invite you to drop in and network with your colleagues from the CLRC community. We’ve made arrangements for behind-the-scenes” tours of OCHC’s facilities and collections.
We hope to see you there!
**Registration will close on April 18 at 5 p.m.**
If you can’t respond via Google Forms, please email Fran Dingle, fdingle@clrc.org.

CDLC In Person - A Beginner's Guide to Failure
2025-04-24 10:00 - 14:00 | Capital District Library Council, 800 Troy-Schenectady Rd, Latham, NY, 12110, United States
A Beginner’s Guide to Failure

Please Note: This is an in-person program that includes both a presentation and discussion. It will held in the CDLC building in Latham. Lunch is included. The program is free, but registration is required.
A Beginner’s Guide to Failure teaches library workers how to embrace and even celebrate failure. Instead of viewing failure as evidence of something lacking, this short course endeavors to help individuals better integrate failure as part of being fully human, taking creative risks, and growing critical skills and mindsets for learning organizations. In other words, despite the common misconception, failure is the rule, not the exception, and more failure actually leads to better ideas, creative solutions, and more productive workplaces! This workshop draws on teachings in emotional intelligence, psychology, philosophy, and culture. The goals and objectives for this workshop are to:

Encourage critical engagement and exploration of the concept of failure in our lives, especially, but not exclusively, our work lives
Experiment with new ways of failing productively, including design-thinking and prototyping approaches
Explore stories of failure in library settings, normalizing the experience of failure
Help workers orient themselves and develop connections to fellow workers in a shared spirit of celebrating failure

About the Instructor: A.M. Alpin is the Head of Digital Scholarship Services and Assistant Coordinator of Faculty Affairs at New York University. She holds an MFA in Film and Media Arts from Temple University and an MS in Information Sciences from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She teaches workshops at NYU, the Made in NY Media Lab, and other institutions. In addition to producing countless failures, she is the past recipient of the Sundance Institute’s Sheila C. Johnson Creative Producing Fellowship, the American Library Association’s Advocacy & Innovation in Library History Award, and the Association of College & Research Libraries’ Outstanding Professional Development Award. Her creative work has been supported by the Sundance Institute, the Independent Filmmaker Project, the Austin Film Society, the Southern Humanities Media Fund, and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

SCRLC Lunch & Learn: Occupational Stress
2025-04-24 12:00 - 13:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
This webinar deals with how people and workplaces are affected by occupational stress, both acute and chronic. Dealing with stress can offer two options: change the stressor or teach the affected person to develop coping skills. A good stress reduction program incorporates both options so that attendees can appreciate that some stressors can be changed and some cannot; where stressors cannot be changed, good self-care and coping skills can help people to maintain their health and performance.

ESLN Webinar: Open Ask HR - An Ask the HR Expert Webinar
2025-04-25 10:00 - 11:30 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
This seminar is a chance to pose your “What ifs” “Whys” and “Howabouts” for employment practices in the future. Stephanie “Cole” Adams will answer your questions about HR-related issues in this session designed by you!
This is the fourth event in our 4-part “Ask the HR Expert” series.
About the presenter: Stephanie “Cole” Adams is an attorney who represents libraries, educators, students, and creative professionals. Cole provides the Ask the Lawyer service that New York State’s nine library resource councils provide to each library in the state. She is a member of the ALA Lawyers for Libraries faculty, the Vice Chair of the Erie County Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Law Committee, and served as the General Counsel of Niagara University for over ten years. Cole is a proud graduate of SUNY Buffalo School of Law and Hampshire College.
We invite you to submit a question for the presenter – there will be a place to do that during the registration process. The deadline to submit questions is Friday, April 11, 2025.
Free to ESLN Members. Registration is required. This webinar will be recorded.
This session is sponsored by Empire State Library Network.

LILRC Webinar: Using AI in your Library: Panel Discussion
2025-04-29 10:00 - 17:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
This programs features three panelists from public libraries and academics to discuss issues related to implementing AI in your library. They will be talking about the kinds of applications available as well as the important issues that have to be considered when looking at AI.
The panelists include:

Nick Tanzi, Assistant Director, South Huntington Public Library
James Hunter, Assistant Director, Port Washington Public Library
Jessica Koos, Interim Head of the Health Sciences Library, Stony Brook University

LILRC Webinar: Archival Security for Beginners
2025-04-29 13:00 - 14:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Cultural institutions seek to find the balance between public access and securing valuable objects and archives. This program will address the internal and external security threats faced by public and private collections. Topics include risk assessment, security systems, and effectively responding to incidents such as theft or vandalism. The program also emphasizes the importance of collaboration between security professionals and cultural institutions.
This is a continuation of the series explaining the steps of archival management. This introduction is appropriate for those new to working as an archivist or are responsible for the safety of an archival repository or collection.
Presented by:
Nicole Menchise, LILRC Digitization and Archives Coordinator

Meet the NYLA President (In Person @ CLRC)
2025-04-30 10:00 - 12:00 | CLRC, 5710 Commons Park Drive, East Syracuse, NY, 13057, United States
This is an opportunity to meet with Tim Spindler (NYLA President) to discuss anything related to NYLA and ask questions about advocacy.
We’ll have light refreshments for attendees.

WNYLRC Webinar: How to Start a Seed Library
2025-05-01 10:30 - 11:30 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Description:
This professional development session will walk attendees through the process of how to launch and maintain a seed library at their own library branch.
Many librarians would like to begin seed libraries, but a lack of time, money, and people-power can prove daunting. However, even with very little initial capital, any librarian can make a successful start and streamline the maintenance of their own seed library very affordably from year to year. It is our hope that this talk will provide you with the cheat-codes and life-hacks to save money, time, and labor while still providing a fully-functional and often necessary resource to your community.
This talk is designed to be exhaustive, but not exhausting! Aspects of the process covered will include: soliciting donations from seed companies, the basic hardware that you will need, proper storage techniques, spreadsheet statistics, partnering with local community organizations and volunteers, the differing seed needs of urban and rural communities, promotional materials and social media outreach, programming tie-ins, and even pest control! A 15-minute Q&A will follow the presentation.

LILRC Webinar: Creating Community Through Art - A Talk with Shinnecock Artist Jeremy Dennis
2025-05-07 14:00 - 15:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Join Shinnecock artist Jeremy Dennis for an engaging Zoom talk where he delves into his dynamic art practice and the inspiring story behind Ma’s House & BIPOC Art Studio, Inc. Jeremy will share insights into his artistic journey, discuss the cultural narratives that shape his work, and explore how Ma’s House serves as a vibrant hub for Indigenous and BIPOC artists. This is a unique opportunity to learn about the intersection of art, community, and social impact from a visionary leader and creator.
Presenter:
Jeremy Dennis is a contemporary fine art photographer and a member of the Shinnecock Indian Nation in Southampton, NY. His work explores Indigenous identity, cultural heritage, and the narratives of his ancestors. In 2020, Jeremy founded Ma’s House & BIPOC Art Studio, Inc., a communal art space and residency program dedicated to supporting underrepresented artists. His innovative projects have earned him recognition for fostering cultural dialogue and community-building through art.

LILRC Webinar: Reducing Stress, Improving Mental Health
2025-05-09 11:00 - 13:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
The world we live in is stressful. Reducing Stress, Improving Mental Health is an interactive workshop designed to teach various coping strategies to help improve one’s mental health inside and outside of the workplace. In this workshop, Dr. Sam Colbert teaches empirically informed skills (including mindfulness techniques and positive psychological practices) shown to decrease stress and improve mental health.
Topics will include:
Relationship Between Stress and Performance
Humans Co-Regulation of Each Other’s Nervous Systems
Relaxation/Experiential Activities
Self-Care Strategies
Presenter:
Dr. Samuel M. Colbert, PhD is a counseling psychologist, licensed in the state of Pennsylvania. He earned his PhD at Ball State University and completed his pre-doctoral clinical internship at University of Pennsylvania’s (UPenn’s) counseling center. He received his Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Ball State University and his Bachelor of Arts at SUNY Geneseo, Magna Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa.
Dr. Colbert is a clinician, consultant, educator, and researcher. He practices couples and individual therapy at Philadelphia Couples Therapy, a private group practice in Philadelphia, PA. He has also taught multiple undergraduate courses, including: The Psychology of Sexuality, Multicultural Counseling and Fundamentals of Counseling Skills. He has presented hundreds of LGBTQ+ Skill Building Workshops, with varied audiences including, psychologists at the Annual American Psychological Convention, National Rehabilitation Psychological Conference, and fellows at John’s Hopkins. Informed from his teaching, training, and clinical experiences, Dr. Colbert has co-authored a chapter in Navigating Difficult Teaching Moments in Teaching Diversity and Social Justice published by the American Psychological Association. His research includes exploring factors leading to the health and well-being of gender and sexual minority people possessing intersecting identities.
Sam is honored to continue to share his passion for learning, teaching, and training with the Long Island Library Resources Council!

RRLC Webinar: Rooting Out Dysfunction and Creating Successful Teams
2025-05-14 14:00 - 15:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
In this webinar, we discuss how to identify the pitfalls of dysfunctional teams and how to avoid those to create a communicative, motivated team. This training will touch on pitfalls that many teams fall prey to and how to avoid those as team leaders and team members. No matter the role
you play in your library’s team, we have information that any member of the team can implement.
Learning Objectives
Attendees will learn methods and activities they can immediately put into practice to improve communication and increase trust between team members.
Presenters: Amanda Johnson and Lauren Clossey are the owners of Alliance Research and Training, LLC. Amanda Johnson started her journey in libraries 12 years ago and has since worked in academic, public, and state government environments. Lauren Clossey has worked in libraries for 17 years in academic, public, and school libraries. Together, Amanda and Lauren have developed trainings for the Association for Rural and Small Libraries, Public Library Association, Niche Academy, The People Connect Institute, New Jersey State Library, Tennessee State Library and Archives, Georgia Public Library Services, and more.

SCRLC Webinar: Building Psychological Safety and Supportive Cultures in Teams
2025-05-15 08:00 - 17:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Description: This workshop focuses on the importance of psychological safety in fostering effective teamwork and creating a culture of care. Participants will learn strategies to build trust, encourage open communication, and support each other’s well-being, leading to enhanced collaboration and performance.
Learning Outcomes:
*Define psychological safety and its impact on team dynamics and performance
*Identify behaviors that promote or hinder psychological safety within teams
*Implement practices that support individual and collective well-being.

SCRLC Webinar: Finding Hidden Links in the Underground Railroad - Oneonta and Norwich, NY
2025-05-15 10:00 - 11:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
The aim of the webinar is to leave participants with an understanding of how diverse documents can solve the puzzle of identifying an Underground Railroad story.

SCLRC Webinar: Finding Hidden Links in the Underground Railroad: Oneonta and Norwich, NY
2025-05-15 10:00 - 11:00 | Online Via Zoom, NY, United States
Description: The aim of the webinar is to leave participants with an understanding of how diverse documents can solve the puzzle of identifying an Underground Railroad story.
Participants will learn:
*The Difference between the Underground Railroad and the Freedom Journey
*How the search can begin with a primary or secondary source
*Examples of facilities preserving a record that includes reference to the local community’s involvement with the Underground Railroad
