Greetings!
The Office of Commonwealth Libraries is excited to announce the purchase of a statewide subscription to Homeless Library Academy by Ryan Dowd! This resource provides all Pennsylvania libraries with empathy focused de-escalation and conflict resolution training. The Homeless Library Academy programs can be easily accessed through your PA Library Staff Academy log-in, found in the category titled “Homeless Library Academy.” We encourage you to share this resource widely with library staff, board members, and volunteers. Our ability to continue a statewide subscription relies on the robust use of this training platform, so please take advantage!
If you have never participated in a Homeless Library Academy training before, it’s recommended that you start with the Homeless De-Escalation Core Training, which will:
- Provide foundational lessons that will help reduce problem behaviors immediately.
- Establish core concepts and tools that all other trainings are built on.
In addition to the recorded content available in the PA Library Staff Academy, monthly live webinars will also be provided by Homeless Library Academy. Use this link to register to receive information about live webinars. All live webinars will be recorded and posted to PA Library Staff Academy within 5 days.
If you would like to hear more about how other libraries are using Homeless Library Academy to train staff in managing customer behavior, please join us for Integrating Homeless Library Academy and Resources into Staff Training and Development on Tuesday, July 30th at 11:00 AM. You can register for that session at this link. This session will be recorded and available in the PA Library Staff Academy afterward.
If your library currently subscribes to Homeless Library Academy and you have questions about how statewide membership will affect your subscription, please reach out Crystal Pecora at Homeless Training (crystalp@homelesstraining.org).
For all other questions, contact Julie Moore, Professional Development Advisor (julmoore@pa.gov).
The Bureau of Library Development (BLD) in the Office of Commonwealth Libraries supports libraries and library services for Pennsylvanians through the administration of state and federally funded programs and grant opportunities including LSTA (Library Services and Technology Act), Library Access, LAMP (Library of Accessible Media for Pennsylvanians), the Public Library Subsidy, and Keystone Grants for Public Library Facilities. BLD also provides advisory services, professional development, and continuing education for library staff and volunteer leadership at public, school, academic, and special libraries.
The Compendium is BLD’s primary communication channel. If you don’t already subscribe, please do so to ensure you receive the most up-to-date information.