Also, digital divide during a pandemic, Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Grants, free TechSoup Talks on digital voter engagement and digital disinformation, and library tech newsbytes
It's National Library Card Sign-Up Month and also back-to-school time! And a pretty weird back-to-school time at that. Libraries are critical to families coping with so many schools opting for online classes. In this issue, we cover the current state of online bullying and what library workers can do about it. We also offer some great tips on how to better include communities of color, individuals with disabilities, and senior citizens in your online programs.
We also feature info on how you can apply for a Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Grant, a free TechSoup Talk on digital voter engagement, and your insightful back-to-school library tech newsbytes for September.
As kids go back to school — either online or in-person — we can expect them to have to deal with more cyberbullying than ever on social media. We explain how it all works and what library workers can do about it.
The pandemic has revealed how deep the digital divide is in our country. Libraries play a vital role in advocating for individuals excluded by the digital divide. In this post, we offer you resources for accessible tools and some great tips on how to better include communities of color, individuals with disabilities, and senior citizens in your online programs.
OK. To be frank, back-to-school time this fall is a lot like last spring, so this month we're all about distance learning resources that we hope you'll find useful.
We explain why there's a huge laptop shortage throughout the country and how you can help patrons find computers for home. There's news about hotspot lending in Southern Oklahoma, learning hubs in New Orleans, and at-home online resources for teens.
We also offer a nice new batch of virtual maker and STEM resources for 2020 and the surprising news that even amidst closures, Americans have increased their use of libraries during the pandemic. How can that be? We reveal all in your library tech newsbytes for September.
Help us get the word out! If you're an Alabama-based library worker or know someone who is, the good news is that all Alabama low-income households with children who qualify for free or reduced-price school meals can also get free broadband. The bad news is that they need to find out about this and sign up. Please direct Alabama parents and households to call the ABC for Students call line at 1-888-212-4998. Find all outreach materials here.
Avast offers libraries an array of super-affordable online security services. They protect your IT against all forms of malware and other cyberthreats coming from email, websites, or the Internet. Avast CloudCare consists of four services delivered through a single cloud-based console. Take a look at our Avast offers to learn more.
September 16, 10 a.m. Pacific time: Libraries often promote equity in our democracy and ensure the communities we serve are actively participating and voting. In this conversation with Nonprofit VOTE, an organization dedicated to engaging America's nonprofits in elections, we'll talk about digital tools to find unregistered voters, how to help voters with registration, and tools for educating voters about the process and their ballot.
To watch these TechSoup Talks events, like TechSoup's Facebook page and we'll notify you when we go live.
September 17, 11 a.m. Pacific time: Join the Tapp Network team for a discussion on how you can expand your digital marketing reach with mobile apps. They'll talk about how to choose the best type of app for your library's budget. From fundraising, engaging volunteers, or executing a unique event experience, learn how apps can transform your marketing strategy.
September 24, 11 a.m. Pacific time: Join Adobe product managers Sirr Less and Jessica Nunez for a quick, instructional webinar showing attendees how to bring new life to their library's content using the Adobe Rush app. Through very simple video editing, learn how to repurpose existing video footage, photos, and audio from your phone and computer to create new media to deliver impactful video communication to your supporters and donors.
September 29, 10 a.m. Pacific time: Civil society organizations have a vital role to play in helping their communities identify mis/disinformation. This session will help you have educated conversations with your organization about what qualifies as mis/disinformation, how it spreads, and what we can do to expose it.
Featuring mis/disinformation experts from First Draft News and CNET, this session is a great baseline for understanding our current state of information disorder and how we can become effective allies for truth and facts.
Missed any of our most popular webinars? No problem. They're all recorded and available to watch for free on demand. Check out all our archived webinars.
