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Seven Wisconsin Libraries Selected for BEBS 2025 Cohort


The Library Services Team at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction selected seven Wisconsin public libraries to participate in the Building Equity Based Summers (BEBS) 2025 Cohort.

The libraries chosen are Aram Public Library (Delavan), Delafield Public Library, Hammond Community Library, La Crosse County Library, Neenah Public Library, Waupaca Public Library, and Wauwatosa Public Library.

2025 “Wild Wisconsin” Conference Registration Open

Tuesday, December 10, 2024

Registration is now open for the 13th Annual Wild Wisconsin Winter Web Conference, a two-day series of webinars that will be held on January 22-23, 2025. Fourteen sessions will be available in four different tracks, including Management, Internal Communications, Reference and Reader's Advisory, and Small Libraries.

The 2025 conference features a lineup of such renowned speakers as Cassy Leeport (Director, TLAM Program, UW-Madison), Brandi Cummings (Interim Director, Kenosha Public Library), Jim Robinson (Instructor, University of Minnesota), Carol Hassler (Access Services Librarian, Wisconsin State Law Library), Jamie LaRue (Director, Garfield County Public Library District), and many more. 

WVLS Education Consultant and Conference Coordinator Jamie Matczak said this year’s conference offers something for everyone. 

“We’re excited to bring back the “Small Libraries” track,” she said. “The Conference Planning Committee took a break from it for a few years and felt it was time to include it because Wisconsin is made up of many small and rural libraries.” 

All fourteen conference sessions will be captioned and recorded if people are unable to attend the live webinars. Each webinar is worth 1 contact hour of continuing education for Wisconsin public librarian certification.

There is no cost to attend! Thanks to support from our sponsors, registration for this conference is free. 

The Wild Wisconsin Winter Web Conference is sponsored by all 15 library systems in Wisconsin. The conference is also supported by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), Library Services Team, with funding support from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Wisconsin Public Library Systems logo   Institute for Museum and Library Services    Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction

For more information about the conference, contact Jamie Matczak at jmatczak@wvls.org.

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For questions about this information, contact Teresa Schmidt (608) 224-6167

Feedback Needed: WPLC's Data Dashboard Pilot


In partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) and WiLS, Wisconsin Public Consortium's (WPLC) Data Dashboard Pilot continues through December and we need your help. Your feedback regarding the Data Dashboard Pilot is very important. In particular, we are interested in participant experiences, perceptions of a tool such as this dashboard, suggestions for additional content and functionality, and opportunities for improvement.

Revised Librarian Certification Manual now available

Wednesday, November 13, 2024


A new edition of the Certification Manual for Wisconsin Public Library Directors is now available. New information has also been added to the DLT website for library directors, which provides additional information and resources for certification and library administration.

Certification Manual for Wisconsin Public Library DirectorsThe latest edition revises the existing Certification Manual, last updated in 2017, and is intended to be a shorter and easier to understand guide for those seeking librarian certification. It includes a summary of the two facets of certification – Grade and status – and provides a description of the initial application process, renewal process, and continuing education (CE) requirements to maintain certification in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin statutes and administrative codes require that all directors of public libraries and public library systems be certified by the Division for Libraries and Technology. Public librarian certification has been part of Wisconsin law since 1921, when the legislature passed the first law to assure a high level of professional management and administration of Wisconsin’s library resources, programs, and services.

The process of librarian certification has not significantly changed since the last edition of the manual. One item of note, however, is a new requirement for librarians who are interested in completing self-directed, Category C continuing education activities to obtain pre-approval from their library system CE validators before completing the activity. This requirement will begin with activities completed after January 1, 2025. Any category C activities completed in 2024 will be handled as previously instructed by public library system CE validators.

Additional documents to support librarian certification, including the certification application form, continuing education reporting forms, a summary of certification requirements, and a summary of CE requirements for renewal, are also included on the DLT website.

For more information about the new manual or Wisconsin librarian certification, join Public Library Administration Consultant Teresa Schmidt for a free webinar at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, December 4. The event will include a brief overview of the new manual and plenty of time for other questions about certification. The webinar will be recorded and shared at a later date. Register for the Teams webinar here.

Many thanks to the participants of the Certification Manual Revision Workgroup who made this revised manual possible, including Laurie Freund, Bridges Library System; Meredith Lowe, UW-Madison iSchool; Joy Schwartz, Winnefox Library System (retired); Tracy Vreeke, Nicolet Federated Library System; and Shannon Schultz, South Central Library System and former DLT Public Library Administration Consultant and Certification Coordinator.

For more information, contact Teresa Schmidt, 608-266-7270.

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For questions about this information, contact Teresa Schmidt (608) 224-6167

Applications Being Accepted for Building Equity Based Summers Cohort


Wisconsin libraries have the opportunity to be part of a national initiative to develop equitable summer services.

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) Library Services Team is looking for six libraries to participate in the 2025 Building Equity Based Summers (BEBS) Cohort. The BEBS initiative is funded and made possible in part through an Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant.

CCBC Starred Review Days


Guest post by the Cooperative Children's Book Center

This fall, the Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) will be holding CCBC Starred Review Days November 18-22. During the week, the CCBC sets up all of the Copyright 2024 books they have received to-date, which received a starred review in one more professional journals, in the CCBC conference room for easy hands-on book examination.

Starred Review Days Schedule:

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