Crafting Meeting Room Policies

Crafting Meeting Room Policies that Keep You In Charge and Out of Court
November 4, 2015 @ 2 pm EST

Legal advocacy groups are threatening legal action and filing lawsuits against public libraries whose meeting room policies exclude religious worship or meetings that include religious activities.

In the last year, these organizations have contacted multiple different libraries about lawsuits regarding meeting room policies; including Lawrence Library in Massachusetts (settlement) and Wake County in North Carolina.

Theresa Chmara, general counsel for the Freedom to Read Foundation, and Deborah Caldwell Stone, deputy director for ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, will discuss the First Amendment principles and legal precedents that underlie these lawsuits and provide practical guidance on crafting meeting room and other library policies that keep the library in charge of its meeting rooms while preserving users’ access and First Amendment rights.

Don’t wait until your library receives a lawsuit. Learn how to strengthen your policies now.

November 4th
2:00 PM EST — 1:00 PM CST — 12:00 PM MST — 11:00 AM PST
Register: http://www.ala.org/advocacy/meetingroomwebinar

Registration

Cost

ALA member: $20
Nonmember: $25
Group: $120*
Library System or Multiple Groups/Locations: Contact Kristin*

*For purposes of group registration, a group is defined as 6 or more people gathering in one room at one location to watch the webinar. We suggest that groups, especially larger groups, use a LCD/LED projector and speakers capable of amplifying the audio when viewing the webinar. If you’d like to purchase, this webinar for a library system please contact Kristin for pricing options.

Neither individual nor group registration includes permission to rebroadcast or redistribute this webinar. Thank you for your cooperation.

Using Door-to-Door Marketing for Library Card Sign-Ups: Free Webinar

“How did your library card sign-ups go this year? Join us at 12 p.m. eastern time on Wednesday, Oct. 21, for a free webinar to learn about a new and innovative way to increase library card sign-ups all year long, not just during Library Card Sign-up Month in September.

This webinar will offer marketing strategies for getting outside of your library to break down the barriers that keep people from opting in to a library card. Learn how to dramatically improve your library’s visibility in the community by taking a page from the best political campaigns and going door-to-door to sign people up. The webinar will also provide effective ways to bring this new idea of building awareness to your board and administrators. You will hear directly from librarians who’ve used these strategies successfully in their communities. Their door-to-door engagement tactics can be part of your library’s ongoing advocacy efforts.

Register now!

There is no cost to attend the webinar, but registration is required. Participation is limited to the first 100 participants who arrive in the virtual room prior to the start of the webinar, but the webinar will be archived and accessible to ALA members.

How to protect the freedom to read in your library: Free Webinar

Free Webinar: How to protect the freedom to read in your library

Tuesday, September 29 – 9 a.m. PT; 10 a.m. MT; 11 a.m. CT; 12 p.m. ET

What do you do when a patron or a parent finds a book in your library offensive and wants to take it off your shelves? How do you remain sensitive to the needs of all patrons while avoiding banning a title? How can you bring attention to the issue of book banning in an effective way? In this 1-hour webinar, three experienced voices will share personal experiences and tips for protecting and promoting the freedom to read.

Part I: How to use open communication to prevent book challenges

Kate Lechtenberg, teacher librarian at Iowa’s Ankeny Community School District, finds that conversations between librarians, teachers, students, and parents are a key way to creating a culture that understands and supports intellectual freedom. “The freedom to read is nothing without the freedom to discuss the ideas we find in books.”

Part II: How to handle a book challenge after it happens

Kristin Pekoll, assistant director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, will share her unique experiences facing several book challenges (and a potential book burning!) when she served as a young adult librarian. How did she address the needs of upset parents and community members while maintaining unrestricted access to information and keeping important books on her shelves?

Part III: How to bring attention to the issue of banned books

Why would a supporter of free speech and open learning purposely ban a book? Scott DiMarco, director of the North Hall Library at Mansfield University, reveals how he once banned a book to shed light on library censorship and what else he is doing to support the freedom to read on his Pennsylvania campus.

Following the three presentations, there will be some time for Q&A moderated by Vicky Baker, deputy editor of the London-basedIndex on Censorship magazine.

Register Now

Category Archives: ALA