Gale Geek was your weekly half-hour webinar featuring topics, subjects, and scandals associated with libraries across all markets. While the series has ended, we’ve archived most of the webinars. Listen and download past Gale Geeks below!
Archived Webinars
April 24: Special Feature: Librarian of the Year 2015
Siobhan Reardon, director of the Free Library of Philadelphia, was recently honored as Librarian of the Year 2015 by Library Journal for awe-inspiring success in the face of difficult budgetary circumstances. After less than a month on the job, Reardon and FLP were faced with a 20% budget cut and reduced branch hours. Out of this, Reardon launched a new, innovative model for library service based on a clustering model. Don’t miss this interview with Reardon to hear more about the struggles, the successes, and what this award-winning library is up to next.
April 17: Databases and Google Apps in the Classroom
Looking for new, creative ways to encourage classroom use of library resources? Look no further! In this session, you will hear from Sara Swenson, Media Specialist at Edina High School (MN), on her latest practices for integrating the library into the classroom: using databases and Google Apps to build curricular packets for teachers to use in instruction.
April 10: UX for the People: Empowering Patrons and Front-line Staff through a User-centered Culture
Featured at ACRL, and now available via webinar for librarians across the country, you’ll hear from Courtney Greene McDonald, Head of Discovery & Research Services at Indiana University Libraries, and Heidi Steiner Burkhardt, Head of Digital Services at Norwich University! Other people live in the world and come to the library, but until recently, librarians have often lived in the library and only occasionally escaped to the world. Patron expectations today are shaped by myriad external factors, and libraries are responding through developing a user experience (UX) culture. Come and be inspired to intentionally integrate sustainable UX practices into your day-to-day, and discover tangible actions to implement in your library’s virtual and physical environments.
March 27: Teaching 21st Century Learning and Digital Citizenship
In this session you will hear from Joanna McNally, School Librarian at Orange High School (Ohio) about the Digital Citizenship course she has created in her high school. From topics of building a positive digital footprint, to respecting boundaries, this session will teach you how to build a similar program and help to ensure students become responsible digital citizens
March 20: Partnering with the University Writing Center: Boot Camps
Join Mandy Havert, Graduate Outreach Services and Education Librarian at Notre Dame University, to hear about their success in growing student relationships at Notre Dame through a partnership with the University Writing Center. The resulting dissertation and thesis boot camp provides the support needed to keep graduate students focused on their research. In return, the Libraries and Writing Center can glean from students’ information about their needs at various stages of their work. Join us to learn how to do something similar at your institution!
March 13: What is Gale Doing About Discovery?
Students are busy with class, with work, with parties and with searching. Millennials conduct more than 68 billion Google searches every month (Digital Marketing Ramblings, April 2014). In the midst of this hurricane of information, how can you reach your students? How do discovery services fit in? Join us for a discussion led by Karen McKeown, Director of Discovery and Analytics at Gale, to hear about what Gale is doing to get to students’ natural use paths and reinventing the definition of discovery.
February 27: Kid, Teen, & Tween Spaces: 21st Century Edition
Downtown Chattanooga Public Library’s new frontier for kids, tweens, and teens, features a 3D Printer Station, 2nd Floor Arcade, Button Maker Station, Music Station, Record Player, Photo Booth, Art Station, and much more. Join us as we talk to Justin Heinle, Coordinator of Teen Services, to learn how they got started, what they’ve learned, and what they’re up to next!
February 20: The Way Forward
Spend some time with Joe Janes thinking and talking about how to think and talk about the future of libraries. Joseph Janes, associate professor and chair of the MLIS program at the University of Washington Information School and 2016-2017 ALA Presidential candidate, will be joining us for a conversation on what comes next in libraries.
February 13: Professional Associations: Requirements, Pathways (with and without $!) and Extreme Benefits
One of the tenets of professionalism is association membership and activity. Although most of us are not fully or even partially funded, association membership AND activity can yield great rewards both for individuals and their organizations. Join Julie Todaro, ALA Presidential candidate for 2016-2017, author of Mentoring A to Z (2015) and Library Management for the Digital Age (2014), as she outlines how all library professionals can benefit from associations. Attendees will get a firsthand account of the 30+ web documents Todaro has made available from her Presidential website.
February 6: Libraries as Agents of Change
Librarians have always had the ability to change lives and at the dawn of the 21st century, we can transform whole communities – and the publishing marketplace itself. Join Jamie LaRue, director of the Douglas County Libraries and ALA 2016-17 Presidential candidate, as he discusses how your library can be an agent of change.
January 30: Are Textbooks History?
“In digital classrooms, textbooks are history!” Join us as Bio-Med Science Academy (OH) STEM+M and textbook-free curriculum instructors, Annette Lang, Lindsey McLaughlin, and Candace Hisey share tips on project-based learning, a dynamic classroom approach in which students actively investigate and respond to real-world problems and challenges.
January 23: Teaching Advanced Research Skills to Generation Z Students
Tech-savvy Gen Z students are using natural search language in databases expecting to find the same results they would when using Google, which leads to unrealistic expectations and poor search results. Join Katy Koskela, Media Specialist at Mercy High School (MI), as she shares her tips on teaching Gen Z students how to search databases to find exactly what they need with minimal clicks.
January 16: Connecting Digital Products to Physical Programming
Amy Calhoun, Virtual Branch Coordinator at Sacramento Public Library, is a guru at connecting outreach with promoting digital resources. Hear about techniques and successes that include Classics by the Capitol (including this phenomenal video), online book hangouts, library trading cards, and much more!
December 19: Library Leadership At All Levels
Library leadership can come from the bottom, middle, and top. Join JP Porcaro, ALA Presidential candidate for 2016-17 and founder of the ALA Think Tank, in this fun and engaging webinar on bringing a Make It Happen attitude to our patrons, coworkers, and personal circles.
December 12: Developing a Social Media Strategy
Natalie Burclaff & Catherine Johnson from the University of Baltimore will join us for this week’s Gale Geek on developing a social media strategy. Call in to learn how you can rekindle the social media flames in your library awareness and usage campaigns.
December 5: “Be Lazy, Use Databases”
Join this week’s Gale Geek as Hayes High School Librarian, Sarah Ressler, shares the ways she motivates students to use database resources that help even the most reluctant learner pick Gale over Google.
November 21: The Librarian as Teacher
Overcoming common misconceptions about librarians, Kathleen L. Roy, Library Media Center Director at Cretin-Derham Hall School in St. Paul, will be sharing with us ways in which she operates day-to-day as a teacher. With advocacy for her students at the center of her mission, Kathleen will touch on how she works collaboratively with her teachers, administration, and parents to provide a successful learning environment in her library and beyond.
November 14: Data Visualization, Smithsonian Institution, and the Public Humanities
We are honored to say that we will be joined this week by Professor Steven Lubar, director of Brown University’s John Nicholas Brown Center for Public Humanities and Cultural Heritage, Professor of American Studies, and former Chair of the Division of the History of Technology at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Dr. Lubar will be joining us to discuss new innovations and philosophies around data visualization and analysis, what, exactly, they offer the public humanities, and what exact “digital humanities” means. Don’t miss it!
November 7: Library Marketing On A Shoestrings
Most libraries agree that high usage and foot traffic in their library is important; however, not every library has a large budget to market their services and resources. Sally Dewey, Electronic Resources Manager from Arlington Public Library, will speak on her library’s “marketing on a shoestring” tactic; listen to this week’s Gale Geek to hear her tips, tricks, solutions, and best practices.
October 31: Calling All Patrons: Perfecting Community Outreach
Effectively reaching out to your community can be tricky. Join us this Friday as Laura Damon-Moore, Co-Founder of the Libraries as Incubators Project, shares her expertise on community outreach. We’ll be discussing different strategies and how Analytics On Demand can help the cause.
October 24: The Power of Visuals: High School Library-Classroom Collaboration
Mary Seligman, teacher librarian, and Michal Cohan, English teacher at Port Washington High School discuss one of their many successful collaboration projects, one that now spans grades and departments: a visual image project, useful for students from English language learners in the 9th grade to AP U.S. History students. Learn how they use this and other projects to teach students critical thinking, research, and writing skills.
October 17: Stable Library Models
Vailey Oehlke Director of Libraries at Multnomah County Library in Portland, Oregon; was honored today as a special mention for Library of the Year. Come to learn about how Multnomah developed a stable model for their library, and how you can implement these best practices at your own library.
October 10: Stats Don’t Lie: Libraries Make Big Impacts
Small libraries are making BIG impacts. Amy Dodson, Director of Pine River Public Library, will be speaking to us about the importance of statistics; specifically, making the pitch for quality over quantity when considering statistics. Come learn about what made Library Journal call her library “The Best Small Library in America” for 2014.
October 3: Keep Your Faculty in the Loop
Jennifer Smathers, Head of Technical Services, is passionate about coordinated collection development, marketing, and connecting with user needs. Come learn about how she has practically implemented this passion at SUNY Brockport and how you can steal these best practices for your own library.
June 6: Channels of Campus Communication
Join us to hear from Expert Donald Dyal, Dean of Libraries at Texas Tech University, who established a Department of Communications and Marketing when he arrived at Texas Tech in 2001. Since that time, Dyal and his staff have focused on studying the channels of campus communication and gaining an understanding on the best way to communicate with students. His philosophy? “[Make students] aware of things they need to know, when they need to know them.” Interested? Register and log in on 6/6 to hear more!
May 30: The Future of the Academic Library: 2013 Ithaka S+R Library Survey Results
Roger Schonfeld, Program Director for Libraries, Users, and Scholarly Practices at Ithaka S+R, will be speaking about the 2013 Ithaka S+R U.S. Library Survey, which tracks the strategic direction and leadership dynamics of academic library leaders. Join us to learn about the findings from this survey, which serve the higher education community as it confronts the changing role of the library in service of the information needs of researchers, instructors, and students.
May 16: Blogging & Public Libraries
Lauren Stokes, Librarian at the IMLS award-winning Las Vegas Clark County Library, will be sharing her expertise and blog, The Librarians Brain, as well as best practices for other bloggers. Her blog contains info about homework tutors, how-to videos, lesson plans, games, tips, as well as explanations for each of the databases that the Las Vegas Clark County Library contains. Join us as we share best practices and ideas for what you can do to promote the library in your community!
May 9: How to Socialize with Patrons Online
Corvallis-Benton County Public Library is called out in ALA publication Successful Social Networking in Public Library as a “Library to Follow” on social networks. Lindy Brown, Reference Librarian at Corvallis-Benton County Public Library, manages the library’s social media strategy to interact with her community; join us to learn how you can be successful @ social!
May 2: Making Digital Connections with Patrons
Join Naomi Bates, Librarian at Northwest High School in Texas, as she shares her expertise in making digital connections with patrons, including social media, collaborative tools, online books shelves, newsletters and emails, and collaborating with the public and school library!
April 25: @PublicLibraries: Making Social Media Work for You
Social media plays a crucial role in many aspects of our lives, but what about the public library? Come join us this week as Haley Hennes, from Douglas County, CO, discusses social media and the public library. We’d love for you to geek out with us as she talks about how to use social media to help your library thrive.
April 18: Making it Engaging: Utilizing Maker Spaces and Innovation to Engage with Teens
This week’s Expert, Matt Jensen, CyberNavigator at Chicago Public Library, will be sharing his tips and tricks for integrating a teen maker space and other innovative ideas to engage teens in the library. Come discover some strategies that can help your library be a “cool” place to hang out.
April 11: The Best Way to Find Your Roots
Learning about your history may not be as daunting as it seems. This week, Experts Joe Garonzik and Mike Tepper from Genealogical.com will be speaking to the genealogy geek in all of us. They’ll be explaining how to complete successful genealogy research using GenConnect and how your patrons can track their own family’s history!
April 4: Let’s Get Digital, Digital: Making the Case for Online Resources
Are digital resources really better than print? Join us this week as Camille Sullivan, high school librarian in Friendswood, TX, makes the case for digital. She will explain how strategic usage tracking and out-of-the-box thinking has helped her drive GVRL usage, win grants, and make waves in her library.
March 28: Educating the Associated Press
Valerie Komor, Director of AP Corporate Archives, international speaker and author, will be the expert on this week’s show! Valerie will be joining us as our special guest to discuss her experience in setting up the first corporate archive at the Associated Press, educating journalists and other AP employees on the many uses of archives, and promoting her department within a complex and competitive organization.
March 21: What Are You Doing for National Library Week?
Wondering what to do for National Library Week this year and next? Joshua Schu, Head of Adult Services at Farmington Community Library in Michigan, will be joining us on this week’s show as an expert on fantastic programming and curriculum for National Library Week. He’s got activities planned for teens, outreach, educational classes, and more—come hear how he plans to partner with his community and get the word out to make it a success!
March 14: What’s It Like Working with Gale?
The development of Air & Space and Smithsonian Magazine Archive, the first collection to launch within Smithsonian Collections Online, was a fairly straightforward process. Building and digitizing the archives that are launching this spring and in future years are not so straightforward. Nancy Gwinn, Director of the Smithsonian Institution Libraries, joins the Gale Geek as this week’s expert to share what it’s like working with a publisher like Gale, what internal hurdles need to be overcome, how content is managed, and the role that conservation assessment and repair work play in digitizing these collections onsite at the Smithsonian.
March 7: Innovation and Creativity in Promotion
Join us this week to hear from Barbara Westrick, MA/MIBOA Program Chair with Ross Education LLC, who has some of the best usage on GVRL in the country. Wondering how the magic happens? Barb will be talking about their efforts to partner with other departments at their medical education center, why faculty value their digital library, and the innovative and creative ways that they promote resources with students.
February 28: The Library as the Center of Education: High School Edition
This week’s expert is Klaudia Janek, Teacher Librarian at the International Academy in Bloomfield Hills, MI, who will be joining us to talk about her best practices for connecting with students and faculty and positioning the library as the center of the school!
February 21: From Offsite Warehouse to Online: Digitizing Primary Sources
Have you ever wondered how boxes of books, manuscripts, and other primary sources get turned into digital archives? Ray Bankoski, VP of Electronic Asset Management for Gale, will be joining us as the expert on this week’s show to talk about how the magic happens: how papers from the world’s leading historical archives get from warehouses and basements to your computer!
February 14: Reaching Your Local Business Community
Elizabeth Malafi, co-author of Small Business and the Public Library: Strategies for a Successful Partnership, Coordinator of Adult Services and the Miller Business Resource Center at Middle Country Public Library in New York, will be our expert on this week’s show! Join us to talk about how your library can partner with the local business community to address the needs of job seekers, assist those starting or operating their own businesses, and have an impact on the economic climate.
February 7: #LibraryProblems: Successfully Socializing the Library though Social Media
Join Leslie Morgan (@LadyLibrarianND), First Year Experience Librarian at the University of Notre Dame, is an expert in engaging students and changing their perception of the library through social media! Bring your questions and share your social media best practices with the group.
January 31: Changing lives through Career Online High School: New for Public Libraries
40,000,000 adults in the U.S. do not have a high school diploma. Howard Liebman, Superintendent of Career Online High School, the worlds first fully accredited private school district and only career-based online high school completion program, joins us on this week’s show to share how your public library can change the lives of those adults living in your community by awarding them the opportunity to earn a credentialed career certificate AND an accredited high school diploma.
January 24: Question Everything: LibGuides, Research, and Online Learning
On this week’s show, we’ll be joined by Brenda Boyer, teacher librarian at Kutztown Senior High School in Kutztown, PA. She has been a school librarian since 1986 and is currently a doctoral researcher at Capella University in the field of Instructional Design for Online Learning. She is a LibGuides expert and will be sharing her website, best practices, and expertise at the group; she’ll also be available to answer any questions, so bring many.
January 17: The Missing Piece: Common Core Connections with National Geographic
Anne Marie Houppert, National Geographic Product Manager, will be joining the Gale Geek for a special National Geographic edition! In this week’s show, we’ll talk about the amazing National Geographic Virtual Library and uncover tools specifically developed by the National Geographic Society for aligning NGVL with Common Core and other initiatives!
January 10: The Right Mix: Connecting Students to Library Resources
The Gale Geek will be interviewing one of our illustrious partners in academic education, Carol Ann Germain from the University of Albany, to hear about their successes in spreading the library throughout their campus with social media. Hear best practices, things NOT to do, and share your success with the group!
December 13: The Power of Digitization
Join us for an exciting session with Roger Strong, Director of Strategic Accounts, as he talks to the Gale Geek about what’s happening at the largest academic institutions in terms of digitizing previously localized content to significantly expand the digital humanities. Learn about the collections that have made Harvard, Yale, and others famous; ask our resident expert about how Gale is making these accessible to institutions across the country!
December 6: Hiding in Plain Sight: Making Your Library Stand Out
We will be joined in this week’s installment of #GaleGeek by Harmony Faust, Gale’s Director of Marketing for Public Libraries, who has recently returned from a whirlwind of inspiration at the Library Journal’s 2013 Directors’ Summit. Harmony will be sharing with the Geek all about the amazing libraries that she encountered and the game-changing ideas for libraries that were presented by leaders across the country.
November 22: Best Practices for Reaching Students and Faculty
Tune in hear the Gale Geek interview our academic advisory panel, made up of academic librarian superstars from across the United States, about their best practices in reaching their students and faculty and integrating the library into their workflow.
November 15: Are Your Resources Common-Core Aligned?
Jan Snyder, District Media Specialist at Oregon City Schools, will be joining us live from AASL to share her view on the changes that are occurring as a result of Common Core in collection development. We’ll also discuss the use of online tools. Our interview will also explore tips and tricks for pairing texts to meet Common Core State Standards at each grade level!
November 8: Remaining Relevant in the 21st Century
On this week’s show, we’re joined by experts Chris Michela and Scott Steward, Managers of Technical Services for Gale, as we explore ways to optimize the success of your library online. During our interview, we’ll also discuss how you can partner with Gale to improve your website and reach your patrons in new and exciting ways!
November 1: eReference: The Evolutionary Truth
Tune in to our first ever Gale Geek webinar to learn about how your library can increase their Gale Virtual Reference Library usage…and about our new most-flexible-ever usage-driven GVRL purchase model.