Proving Your Library Matters

AFTER YOU COMPLETE THIS COURSE, YOU’LL BE ABLE TO:

• Clearly articulate why your library exists and how its work connects to what your community or institution actually cares about.
• Stop collecting data “just in case” and focus on the numbers and stories that truly demonstrate impact.
• Turn statistics, surveys, and anecdotes into messages that resonate with boards, administrators, voters, and partners.
• Align programs, partnerships, and outreach with your strategic priorities so your work reinforces your message.
• Create visuals and presentations that make your library’s value easy to understand at a glance.
• Walk into funding, renewal, or advocacy conversations prepared, grounded, and ready to make your case.

You’ll leave knowing exactly how to show not just that your library is busy, but that it is essential.

WHO THIS COURSE IS FOR

This course is for library professionals who are responsible for demonstrating value, shaping strategy, or communicating impact within their institution or community.

• You are preparing for budget conversations, renewals, or increased scrutiny and want stronger evidence to support your case.
• You collect data but are not sure how to translate it into a story that resonates with decision-makers.
• You recently completed a strategic plan and need clearer ways to measure and communicate progress.
• You are working to improve outreach, partnerships, or stakeholder engagement and want to align those efforts with measurable outcomes.
• You want to advocate for your library with confidence in conversations about funding, impact, and long-term sustainability.

This course is especially relevant for: Library directors, department heads, district or system leaders, school library media specialists, academic librarians, communications or marketing staff, and anyone tasked with demonstrating library impact to boards, administrators, or community stakeholders.

THIS COURSE CONSISTS OF 4 ON-DEMAND MODULES:

Module 1: Defining and Refining Your Library's Identity

This module focuses on understanding your library's core identity, a crucial first step in demonstrating its impact. You’ll explore your library’s mission, vision, and values to articulate its unique purpose and character, as well as identify stakeholder values and points of alignment. By the end of this module, you’ll have a clear, cohesive understanding of what makes your library distinctive, where refinement may be needed, and how to connect that identity across diverse stakeholders to showcase your library’s essential contributions to your community.

Module 2: Communicating Impact Through Data

This module teaches you how to leverage your library’s data to highlight value and impact. You’ll learn how to identify and gather relevant data—such as program attendance, resource usage, and outcome achievements—and match that data to specific messages you want to communicate. You’ll also explore visual tools and techniques for presenting data in engaging ways, including impactful social media posts and compelling infographics.

Module 3: Crafting Compelling Library Stories

This module focuses on telling your library’s story in ways that clearly demonstrate its impact. You’ll learn how to transform data into compelling narratives and tailor your message for different audiences so your story resonates with stakeholders. By the end of this module, you’ll be equipped to articulate your library’s contributions through engaging, data-backed storytelling.

Module 4: Building Collaborative Partnerships

This final module brings together everything you’ve learned to demonstrate your library’s impact through meaningful collaborations. You’ll explore how to leverage your library’s identity, data, and stories to build partnerships, and hear from expert librarians across public, school, and academic settings who share real-world examples of successful collaboration. You’ll conclude the course by applying these strategies in a practical assignment that prepares you to initiate a new partnership with a stakeholder of your choosing.

COURSE ADVISOR

Jen Park, Library Advocacy Consultant

Jen Park is an advocacy consultant who assists libraries with advocacy, legislation, and information execution. In addition to her current role at a public library system, Jen has experience working in public libraries and as a faculty librarian at an academic library. She has presented regionally and nationally on topics ranging from grassroots advocacy to effective communication with stakeholders and has published articles on marketing and collaboration. Named a 2025 Library Journal Mover & Shaker, Jen also serves as President of her public library’s Board of Trustees.

COURSE INSTRUCTORS

Deborah Hakes, Director of Marketing and Communications, Georgia Public Library Service

Deborah Hakes is a communications leader with expertise in storytelling and brand-building for nonprofits and libraries. She leads marketing and communications for Georgia Public Library Service, named Library Journal’s 2020 Marketer of the Year, and serves as vice president of the national Library Marketing Communications Group board. Her career spans state, national, and globally focused nonprofits, including The Carter Center and Welcoming America, where she built communications teams from the ground up.

James Allen, Library Media Specialist

James Allen is the Statewide School Library Lead for the Kentucky Department of Education’s Office of Education Technology. Previously, he served as a public K–12 teacher librarian for sixteen years. James is a Google for Education Certified Innovator, ISTE Community Leader, member of the Future Ready Schools Librarians Advisory Team, past president of the Kentucky Association of School Librarians, and a member of the American Association of School Librarians National Conference and Professional Learning Committees.

Maria Atilano, Student Engagement Librarian, University of North Florida

Maria Atilano is the Student Engagement Librarian at the University of North Florida’s Thomas G. Carpenter Library. She began working in academic libraries in 2002 as a student employee at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and later held staff roles in public services and special collections at UNF. Maria earned her MLIS from Florida State University in 2012. Her research interests include social media, library marketing and outreach, and student programming.

WHO SHOULD TAKE THIS COURSE

This course is designed for librarians and library leaders in public, school, and academic settings who are responsible for communicating value, shaping strategy, or reporting outcomes.

SESSIONS AND PRICING

GROUP OPTIONS

Training a team? Choose the setup that matches how you want to plan and pay :

Group course enrollment: Enroll 3+ staff in this course and save.

Bulk course credits: Prepay once, get the highest per-seat discount on every course, and assign seats later.

Unlimited annual licensing: System-wide access for a year with no per-course approvals.

Request Discounted Group Pricing

Questions? Email groupsales@libraryjournal.com.

COURSE FORMAT

This is a fully self-paced, asynchronous online course consisting of 4 modules. Each module includes video instruction, slides, readings, and reflective exercises designed to connect concepts directly to your daily work.

EXPECTED TIME COMMITMENT

Each module is designed to take approximately 4 hours to complete, for a total of 16 professional development hours. You may move through the course at your own pace and on your own schedule.

ALL THE DETAILS

Demonstrating impact requires more than collecting statistics. It requires clarity about who you are, what you do, and why it matters within your specific community.

In this course, you will work through a structured process for defining and refining your library’s identity, aligning services with mission, and identifying the outcomes that genuinely reflect your impact. You will examine how to move beyond counting programs and circulation toward communicating meaningful community impact.

You will learn how to collect relevant data without overwhelming your staff, frame that data in ways stakeholders understand, and craft narratives that connect your work to strategic priorities. The course also explores collaboration and internal alignment, helping your team communicate consistently about purpose and results.

While the core framework applies across library types, you will also have access to tailored resources, assignments, and cohort discussions for public, school, and academic libraries so you can apply each concept within your own institutional context.

ON-DEMAND ACCESS

You will have access to all course materials for six months from the material unlock date.

CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION

Complete all modules to earn 16 professional development credit hours and a Library Journal certificate of completion. Certificates are emailed upon completion.

ACCESSIBILITY

All video recordings feature auto-captioning. If you require accommodations, please email course-support@libraryjournal.com upon registration and we will make our best efforts to support your needs.

SUPPORT

For technical or course-related support, please contact course-support@libraryjournal.com.