[Libs-Or] Tuesday Topic: Intellectual Freedom staff training resources

[Roberta Richards]

 *Welcome to Tuesday Topics, a monthly series covering topics with
intellectual freedom implications for libraries of all types. Each message
is prepared by a member of OLA's Intellectual Freedom Committee or a guest
writer. Questions can be directed to the author of the topic or to the IFC
committee <http://www.olaweb.org/contact-ifc>.*



Intellectual Freedom Staff Training Resources


It’s easy to get complacent.  Maybe your library doesn’t offer Drag Queen
Story Time, and no controversial group ever seems to request to use your
meeting room.  But there are ample examples about how challenges to library
materials or services come out of the blue. For example, who in the library
community was not gobsmacked when the Salem Public Library had to issue a
full-throated defense of its weeding of old books and videos -- something
that all libraries do routinely.

Where to find time and money for staff training?

Regular staff training is essential for being prepared for a challenge.
Intellectual freedom training also helps nurture an environment where the
values that underlie library service can thrive.  Staff training does take
time, a scarce resource in many libraries -- there is no way around that
reality. The good news is that there are abundant free resources for
intellectual freedom staff training, including both resources for group
trainings and tools that can be used individually and asynchronously.  Some
of these actually don’t take much time at all.

Guide of intellectual freedom staff training resources

The OLA Intellectual Freedom Committee has compiled a collection of staff
training resources in the guide  OLA Intellectual Freedom Staff Training
Resources <https://guides.pcc.edu/OLA-IntellectualFreedomTraining>.  This
guide, which was introduced at the 2018 OLA conference, includes:

   -

   Video clips introducing various intellectual freedom values and concepts
   -

   Links to free recorded webinars on a range of topics
   -

   Handouts, checklists and scenarios to use in staff trainings
   -

   Presentation slides used by Multnomah County Library for intellectual
   freedom staff training
   -

   And more!

Intellectual freedom libguide for library student workers

The guide also includes links to the web-based training tools used for
library student workers at Portland Community College
<https://guides.pcc.edu/c.php?g=546391&p=3748167&preview=f95bf19b0f5ba1ec4c942c95b5df7321>
and Concordia University <https://libguides.cu-portland.edu/IFtraining> .
In academic libraries that employ students, intellectual freedom training
can help connect student workers to the library by inviting them to
understand and participate in the values at the core of its service. The
guides provide short videos introducing key library values such as
privacy/confidentiality and ‘freedom to read’, links to library policies,
and explanations of how these policies might apply in the types of
scenarios that student workers might encounter on the job.  An assessment
and feedback quiz used by Portland Community College student workers showed
that the students paid attention and came away with a basic understanding
and appreciation of intellectual freedom and its applications.
International students from cultures that are more tolerant of censorship
especially benefit from this training.

Hateful Conduct in Libraries: Supporting Library Workers and Patrons -- a
new training resource from ALA
The most recent addition to the OLA Intellectual Freedom Staff Training
Resources guide is a web document from ALA’s Office for Diversity,
Literacy, and Outreach Services and the Office of Intellectual Freedom that
provides tools for “proactive preparation” concerning hateful speech and
conduct.  This resource is described by Rebecca Hill in a Jan. 31 post to
the Intellectual Freedom blog:

"Applicable for all library types, their guide can be used to help initiate
conversations amongst staff and within local communities. In using this
guide, librarians can consider and implement steps to proactively prepare
<http://www.ala.org/advocacy/hatefulconduct/preparation> in the event of
hateful conduct. They can also identify the steps they can take to respond
to an incident <http://www.ala.org/advocacy/hatefulconduct/incident> of
hate speech or behavior. Finally, librarians may use the tool to help
assess community
needs <http://www.ala.org/advocacy/hatefulconduct/community> and balancing
all viewpoints to successfully resolve a hate speech or conduct issue. The
tool also defines the various terms that arise in these situations and
helps identify the unique aspects of each library setting which may impact
resolution and understanding. More importantly, this tool is designed for
librarians to bridge what we don’t know and what we know when it comes to
hate speech and conduct while giving us valuable insight on how to quell
its impact." (Read the full post <https://www.oif.ala.org/oif/?p=16902>)

This resource can be accessed directly from the ALA website:  w
ww.ala.org/advocacy/hatefulconduct

More resources from the OLA Intellectual Freedom Committee (IFC)
While the staff training guide focuses on professional development
resources, a toolkit of tips and tools on the whole range of intellectual
freedom topics is available on the OLA IFC website
<https://www.olaweb.org/if-home>.  This includes contact information to
connect to IFC members, and all library staff are welcome to contact the
IFC with questions or concerns.  Like any good librarian, members may not
know the answers, but they usually know the next steps to find those
answers.

Here again is the link to the OLA Intellectual Freedom Staff Training
Resources
<https://guides.pcc.edu/c.php?g=706218&p=5014727&preview=18a81be8fa3431a5d7528a8ebc491cfa>
guide. Please feel free to contact the OLA Committee with questions or
suggestions for additions to this guide.

-- 
Roberta Richards
(pronouns:  she/her/hers)
Portland Community College Faculty Reference Librarian
971-722-4962
rrichard at pcc.edu
Southeast Library Research Desk: 971-722-6289
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