Change is Coming: MT Library Certification Program Update Darlene Staffeldt, Sue Jackson, Tracy Cook, Anne Kish, Liz Babbitt, Honore Bray, and Jean Nielsen

AGENDA  Purpose and goals  Process for recommendations  Recommendations from Focus Group  MSL’s role in helping librarians and staff  Input from MT librarians, library support staff, and trustees  Brainstorming

Focus Group Members  Liz Babbitt – MSU Libraries  Honore Bray – Missoula Public Library  Mary Anne George – UM – Helena COT  Holly Harper – Jefferson County Libraries  Cherie Heser – Rosebud County Library  Anne Kish – UM - Western

Focus Group Members (cont.)  Alice Meister – Bozeman Public Library  Kathy Mora – Great Falls Public Library  Jean Nielsen – Miles City Public Library  Sami Pierson – Lincoln County Public Library  Anita Scheetz – Ft. Peck Community College

Goals for the Update  Promote continuing education and its impact for quality library services  Bring the Montana Library Certification Program into line with more recent competencies and certification programs such as Western Council and ALA

Goals for the Update (cont).  Improve recognition for librarians who participate and libraries that encourage staff to continue learning. Do this by improving how we recognize certified librarians – make it a bigger deal than it is differentiating between minimum and extraordinary number of credits making the MLCP certificate a real tool for library leaders for hiring and promoting

Goals for the Update (cont.)  Develop a track for Library Directors that requires continuing education for all library directors (MLIS, too) is more meaningful for what they need to know  Develop a voluntary track for trustees and/or library boards  Clarify ambiguous sections of the program.

Definitions  CE or Continuing Education – the classes you take. Everyone in this audience is taking part in CE  Certification – taking a series of courses (CE) in order to obtain a certificate

Categories & Competencies  Certification is based on competencies that Western Council and ALA recommended for librarians  The training categories for certification attempt to address these competencies.

Process for Forming Recommendations  Formation of volunteer focus group  Study of other states, regional, and national certification programs  Worked through a list of questions and engaged in a day long discussion about certification  Formed recommendations for update  Developed survey and considered other ways to get input from Montana library personnel

Recommendations from Focus Group  3 Tracks Library Administrators Track (required for all public library directors) Voluntary Library Staff Track Voluntary Library Trustee Track  No longer have levels based on education

First Time Enrollees  Library Administrators Track (required for all public library directors)  60 credits in 3 years  25 credits in Library Administration, 10 credits in Library Services to the Public, Collection Management & Technical Services, and Technology; balance of credits can be in any category

First Time Enrollees  Library Staff Track 60 credits in 3 years  10 credits in Library Administration, Library Services to the Public, Collection Management and Technical Services, and Technology; balance can be earned in any of the 4 categories

Renewals  Library Administrator Track (required for all public library directors) 45 credits in 3 years  20 credits in Library Administration; 5 credits in other 3 categories; balance of credits in any category

Renewals  Library Staff Track 45 credits in 3 years  10 credits in each of the 4 categories; balance of credits can be earned in any category

College Degrees and Classes  Degrees in Library Science (includes MLS, MLIS, etc.) awarded within 3 years equals certificate  Older degrees equals taking required number of courses.  College classes can be used towards certification.

Specializations  No levels based on education  Instead For initial certificate a specialization requires 25 credits in a particular category For renewal a specialization requires 20 credits in a particular category

Library Trustee Track  Voluntary  Proposal is 15 CE credits earned in 3 years

How will this work? - Enrollment  Enrolled in 2006 you will meet the requirements of the current program and receive a certificate from the current program  Apply by 12/31/09, meet current requirements, receive current certificate Don’t apply by 12/31/09, meet update requirements, receive certificate from updated program

How will this work? -Renewal  The deadline for renewals of current certificates is 5 years after issuance. If your current certificate was: issued in 2005, the renewal deadline is December 31, 2010 issued in 2006, the renewal deadline is December 31, 2011 issued in 2007, the renewal deadline is December 31, 2012

How will this work? -Renewals  If your certificate was: issued in 2008, the renewal deadline is December 31, 2013 issued in 2009, the renewal deadline is December 31, 2014  All credits for the renewal must be earned within a 5-year period prior to the deadline date.

What happens next?  Continue collecting input and answering questions  Analyze and use survey to prepare final recommendations  Present input and recommendations to the State Library Commission for review and discussion  Commission takes final action on recommendations  Updated program begins January 2010

Survey & FAQs  Please fill out the survey. It is linked from the MSL “For Librarians” page.  Please check out the FAQs at

Let’s Keep Talking  What forum is best for continuing the discussion? Wired-MT? FAQs? Blog? Wiki? Other?

How will MSL help?  Promote CE and certification  Encourage management to support and provide incentives Raises, Bonus, Gift, Promotion, Other?  Provide/approve quality CE F2F and online  Offer CE often and statewide

How will MSL help? (cont)  Recommending no certification fee  Developing online enrollment and application forms  Online Manual

Recognition – Celebrate Successes  Notification will be sent to Library Management Library Boards Local government officials Press Release

Time for us to listen  What questions/comments do you have?

Brainstorming  How would you like to be recognized for earning a certificate?  How can MSL make the paperwork and/or process of being certified easier?  What can MSL do to help?

Final Thoughts and Questions?  THANKS FOR YOUR TIME TODAY