Find upcoming training opportunities from LM for Michigan library staff and trustees, including live webinar content and in-person opportunities, viewable by date or month with links to registration.
Available anytime (self-paced) - The Library of Michigan’s Niche Academy provides self-paced learning opportunities for Michigan library staff created by LM and other organizations. These resources are made available in part with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. These resources are available for:
Setting Up Niche Academy Account:
You can request access to LM’s Niche Academy at this link. You will be prompted to set up your own unique account and password for Niche Academy. If you have a library email address, please use it to set up your Niche Academy account. If you do not have a library email address, you may use a personal email address and we will respond via email to confirm your affiliation with a Michigan library before approving your access to the Niche Academy resources. Please allow up to 2 business days for your account to be activated.
United for Libraries is the American Library Association (ALA) division supporting library trustees, friends, foundations, and advocates. Members of the Michigan library community are provided with membership courtesy of the Library of Michigan. To create your own account, visit the site and follow the path for "Statewide Access-Find Your State" to use the member resources. This project is made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Self-paced, available year-round: WebJunction provides online training on a variety of library-related topics. Certificates of completion of provided with self-paced courses and webinar archives are available. This project was made possible in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Archived (recorded) webinars - not live sessions -Provided by Library of Michigan staff on a variety of topics. These are available to you 24/7 for your convenience. Updated periodically as new recordings are added.
A monthly listing of dozens of free, online sessions on a variety of library-related topics that can support the increase of your knowledge, skills and abilities to help move your library forward and connect with your community.
The Library of Michigan’s Beginning Workshop Pathway is an online, self-paced course intended for Michigan library staff without a master’s degree in library science. For Michigan library staff new to libraries, Beginning Workshop covers foundational library knowledge that will be helpful in your new role. For those seeking an initial Level 3 or Level 4 library staff certification from the Library of Michigan, completion of the Beginning Workshop pathway is obligatory. For more information on Library of Michigan's certification program visit the Library Staff Certification page. The course is supported with funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
For a library to be eligible for State Aid payments necessary staff must complete this online pathway within one year of being appointed director. Completion of the self-paced, online course is open to anyone but is necessary for director certification as part of the qualification criteria for State Aid to Public Libraries. The New Director Pathway is made possible in part with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
For a library to be eligible for State Aid payments necessary staff must complete the Advanced Director online pathway. Completion of the self-paced, online course is open to anyone but is necessary for director certification for those staff serving as a director administering Class 4, 5 and 6 libraries as part of the qualification criteria for State Aid to Public Libraries. The Advanced Director Pathway is made possible in part with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The Library of Michigan regularly offers cohort-style training opportunities meant to increase Michigan library staff capacity in targeted areas of continuing education, while building relationships with each other. Cohorts are typically a longer-term commitment and are offered virtually, in-person, or as hybrid training. The following cohorts have been offered through LM in recent years. When new cohorts of these opportunities are open for applications, LM will promote the opportunity via MichLib-L and other appropriate communications. If you have questions about a previous or current cohort, please contact Andrea Vernola at VernolaA@michigan.gov.
The Library of Michigan works to provide library specific administrative training for public library staff. As part of this goal, LM worked with Andrew Sanderbeck/PCI Webinars to provide an in-depth Public Library Management cohort of up to 60 public library staff members, 30 in a Middle Management track and 30 in New Supervisors track. This project was made possible by grant funds from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) administered by the State of Michigan through the Library of Michigan.
Conversations are at the heart of everything we do in libraries. They are key to effective communications, leadership, strategy, high performance, strong relationships, and the health of our organizations and communities. This training is aimed at public and academic library directors, managers and supervisors who are interested in learning how to fuel more meaningful, and productive, conversations. This project is made possible in part with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Library of Michigan worked with The Galecia Group to provide an interactive capacity building series on AI for up to 24 public library staff members. Participants are library staff who are interested in gaining hands-on experience in AI technologies in topics of particular interest to public libraries. This project was made possible by grant funds from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) administered by the State of Michigan through the Library of Michigan.
This public library training cohort is aimed at staff interested in improving their financial management skills. LM is working with the University of Georgia's Carl Vinson Institute of Government to provide a 9 month public library financial management certificate program for a cohort of 30 Michigan public library staff members. This project is made possible in part with funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
The Library of Michigan strives to support libraries’ efforts to provide quality services and programming to their communities. A major element of excellent service is empowering library staff to learn and implement new skills and best practices. The Library Continuing Education Stipend program helps by providing financial support for library staff continuing education.
Michigan Training Connect (MiTC) is the state’s official eligible training provider list for individuals qualifying for an Individual Training Account under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. Also find resources that may be helpful to you as you explore work and educational possibilities.
Library professionals have long been community problem-solvers. The Civic Librarian Project, created by faculty at the University of Michigan School of Information, builds on this tradition by equipping public librarians with the tools and resources to address civic challenges using 21st century technology.
Library Learning Online has self-paced training for library staff available any time they need it. Formerly known as SABLE, Library Learning Online is being expanded to include more topics reflecting the wide scope of skills and knowledge required in today’s libraries.
Infopeople is part of the Califa Group, a nonprofit consortium of more than 230 libraries committed to unleashing the impact of libraries. Infopeople provides library staff quality continuing education opportunities that are tailored to library needs and developed by experienced library professionals. Training formats include 2-6 week asynchronous online courses, as well as free one-hour webinars. InfoPeople offers a limited number of scholarships for their online courses to ARSL members.
The LiFT courses are intended to address the training needs of predominantly non-degreed library staff who are new to their current position, or new to working in libraries. They were created by WebJunction and the Idaho Commission for Libraries (ICfL) to replace and update the Alternative Basic Library Education (ABLE) courses created and maintained by ICFL for over 25 years.
These courses are designed to introduce the learner to various aspects of the practice, values, and mission of library work, with special focus on small and medium sized public libraries. These courses do not, and cannot replace specific, detailed task and workflow training on the particular systems, policies, and procedures of individual libraries.
Provides an introduction to the many and unique facets of public library directorship. This series of four on-demand recordings provides a broad overview that both informs and inspires.
Training on a variety of topics for library staff.
Each academic term, the UW-Madison SLIS is offering a selection of moderated online courses for a fee on library continuing education topics.
The Library of Michigan’s refund policy is as follows:
