Intentional Programming Rooted in Patron Experience

***BEFORE YOU REGISTER FOR THIS WEBINAR PLEASE REVIEW IMPORTANT REGISTRATION INFORMATION BELOW***

Public libraries are increasingly expected to create learning environments that help patrons build confidence, gain practical skills, and navigate systems that affect daily life. This webinar will explore how intentional, inclusive programming can strengthen the patron experience by meeting community needs through language access, business support, and digital literacy.

Using the New York Public Library’s Thomas Yoseloff Business Center as a case study, this webinar will highlight bilingual and multilingual programs that support Spanish-speaking patrons and English-speaking learners alike. Examples will include conversation-based language programs, business and financial literacy instruction, branding and marketing support, and technology classes. The presentation will also examine how libraries can connect these programs to business and language-learning databases, allowing patrons to extend learning beyond the classroom and into everyday life.

A key focus of the webinar will be asset-based programming: designing services that honor patrons’ lived experiences, prior knowledge, and autonomy rather than approaching communities from a deficit perspective. Participants will leave with practical strategies for creating programs that are welcoming, responsive, and adaptable across languages and skill levels.

Learning Outcomes

At the conclusion of this webinar, participants will be able to:

• Identify strategies for designing intentional library programs that support inclusion, access, and patron engagement;
• Describe ways to connect live instruction, library databases, and digital tools to create practical learning experiences; and
• Apply asset-based programming approaches that strengthen confidence, autonomy, and community connection.

Who Should Attend

This webinar is intended for all public library staff.

Panelist

Joan D. Delgado (he/him) is a business librarian at the New York Public Library’s Thomas Yoseloff Business Center, where he provides advanced research, reference, and instructional support for entrepreneurs, job seekers, students, and community members. He designs and teaches workshops on business planning, market research, branding, technology, and emerging tools such as AI, with a focus on equitable access for Spanish-speaking, immigrant, and minority and women-owned business enterprise (MWBE) communities. Joan brings a multidisciplinary background in library and information science, data analysis, public service, and digital engagement, along with experience in bilingual programming, social media, and community-centered instruction. He holds an MLIS from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and is fluent in Spanish.

 

Important Registration Information

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An ALA eLearning account is required to register. Don’t have an account? Create one for free by going to the “Log in” menu located at the top right corner of your screen. No membership is required to create the account. If you encounter any issues registering for this webinar, then please email ce@ala.org for assistance.

Redeem your signup code to complete your registration

Once you’ve registered for this webinar, a signup code will be added to your ALA eLearning account and emailed to you. Find the signup code on your signup code page, then redeem it on your account’s dashboard to complete your enrollment in this live webinar.

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Accommodations

This live webinar will be captioned in English (United States). Zoom desktop client or mobile app is required to access captions.

Attendees using screen readers are advised to turn off speech prior to joining the Zoom event because PLA webinars make extensive use of chat functionality. Attendees who find chat distracting may wish to disable it in the Zoom event, as PLA moderators will verbally highlight important topics raised in chat and chat transcripts will be provided post-webinar.

If you have a physical or communication need that may affect your participation in this webinar, please contact us at plawebinars@ala.org or 800-545-2433 ext. 5PLA (5752) at least two weeks prior to the webinar. Without prior notification of need, we may not be able to provide appropriate accommodations for the live event.

Attendees are prohibited from using any artificial intelligence, machine learning, large language model, automated decision-making tool, or any other software or tools to record this event and from using this event to train, develop, or improve any artificial intelligence system, machine learning model, or similar automated technology. This does not preclude attendees' personal use of AI notetaking tools for accessibility purposes.

Archived Recording

If you're unable to attend this live webinar, an archived recording will be available to all registrants typically within 1–3 business of the live event. Access to closed captions will be provided in the webinar recording.

Tech Requirements

This webinar will be presented using the Zoom platform. Please review Zoom technical requirements and support information, and test your connection.

Once you've joined the webinar, there are two ways to connect your audio: via computer (VoIP) or via telephone. No microphone is required. PLA works with its webinar platform provider to assure the highest quality audio is being delivered to attendees. However, variables over which PLA has no control—such as the speed of your Internet connection or traffic on your local network—can affect the end quality of the webinar audio delivered by your computer. Each webinar’s audio is also available by telephone via a toll number, so we recommend you have access to a long-distance enabled phone as a backup in case you experience audio issues with VoIP. If you do encounter any problems during the webinar, you will receive a link to its archived recording within a week of the live event and can review anything you missed.

Contact

This webinar is presented by the Public Library Association (PLA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).

Questions about this webinar? Please contact us at plawebinars@ala.org or 800-545-2433 ext. 5PLA (5752).