Small, rural and tribal library staff invited to attend media literacy workshop at 2019 ALA Annual Conference at a reduced rate with support from Knight Foundation

Employees of libraries that serve small, rural or tribal communities are invited to participate in a one-day media literacy training at the 2019 ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., for a significantly reduced rate. Registration for the training is open now.

The reduced rate, made possible by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, will allow a limited number of staff from small and rural libraries to attend “Media Literacy at Your Library Training” for $20 per person. The regular ALA member rate begins at $150. (Participants need not be ALA members to get the reduced rate.)

“Media Literacy at Your Library Training” will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, June 21, 2019, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The preconference workshop is offered as part of the 2019 ALA Annual Conference (June 20 to 25).

In this intensive one-day preconference, participants will:

• Be trained in the media literacy curriculum developed by Stony Brook University’s Center for News Literacy
• Learn how they can empower patrons to recognize fake news
• Work with other libraries to brainstorm and develop program ideas
• Develop a media literacy program plan for their library using Human-Centered Design methods
• Receive a certificate of completion

This preconference is suited for any library employee who works with adult patrons.

Registration instructions are available under conference Ticketed Events page under “PPO (Public Programs Office)” or add Event Code “PPO1” to your conference registration bundle. To take advantage of the reduced rate, enter discount code ”MEDIA20”.

The Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) defines a rural community as one that is more than, or equal to, five miles from an urbanized area and a small library as an institution with a legal service area population of 25,000 or less. Reduced-rate recipients must fit one of these criteria.

Participants may register for the workshop as part of their conference registration or as a single session. For assistance with registering for the workshop, contact the ALA Public Programs Office at 312-280-5045 or publicprograms@ala.org.

ALA and the Center for News Literacy at Stony Brook University previously partnered on Media Literacy at Your Library, a pilot program that trained library workers to help adults become better news consumers. To stay up-to-date on future media literacy programming offerings, sign up for ALA’s Programming Librarian e-newsletter.

About the American Library Association

The American Library Association (ALA) is the foremost national organization providing resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. For more than 140 years, the ALA has been the trusted voice for academic, public, school, government and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library’s role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit ala.org.