Serving Diverse Communities

Purpose of Course: The purpose of this course is to create a heightened awareness of the various segments of library populations and their diverse needs. The course engages demographics and needs assessments to develop skills to analyze, plan and implement services to meet the library community’s diverse needs. With particular attention to multiculturalism, topics explored include programming, facilities, marketing, technology, collection development, and staffing and recruitment.

Note: This course is designed to help participants create real time change in their libraries services. The course is therefore geared towards people who have engaged experience working in the library field, and may be more beneficial for people in decision-making managerial/supervisory roles.

If you are not yet working in a library setting or have limited experience and you still have interest in this course, reach out and let us know as we may have a pre-requisite offering to help prepare you for this course.

Scope and length: The course consists of six weeks of asynchronous learning with each week running from 12AM on Monday to 11:59PM on Sunday. A different topic will be addressed each week as participants engage with materials in various formats that may include videos, powerpoint presentations, lectures, polls, quizzes, assignments, readings, and discussion boards. Participants should plan to dedicate at least 5-6 contact hours weekly to effectively complete the course requirement. Required readings will be provided by the instructor.