Training Media

Library trustees have a critical role in developing quality public library service in Wisconsin. Trustees must be knowledgeable and skilled in a number of areas to do their jobs well. Fortunately, there are several good resources available to help make the task more manageable.

• Wisconsin Library Trustee Resource Page  The Division for Libraries, Technology and Community Learning trustee page includes a wealth of important information for trustees.
• Trustee Essentials  Wisconsin’s trustee manual is a great place for any new trustee to learn about being a trustee as well as a valuable source of answers for challenges facing library boards.
• The Successful Library Trustee Handbook, by Mary Y. Moore
  This resource will help maximize the experience of serving on a board and addresses the critical questions every board member needs to understand.
• Powers and Duties of the Public Library Board  The League of Wisconsin Municipalities has created a helpful outline of the powers and duties of public library boards under Wisconsin law.
• WebJunction Friends and Trustees  Resources on organizing a Friends group, offering training to trustees, and best practices for working with these groups.
• “Trustee Trouble: the Misadventures of a New Library Board Member,” a series of 10 video presentations produced by the Wyoming Library Association

Trustee Newsletter Sources

Trustee Tale Archive

Written and distributed by the Winnefox Library System and the Outagamie Waupaca Library System.

Library Service Guidelines

Library Accessibility Trustees help assure that the library meets the needs of users. “Library Accessibility –What Trustees Need to Know” covers access issues that include but are not limited to patrons who have cognitive, mental, or emotional illnesses; learning and/or developmental disabilities; physical disabilities; service animals; and patrons needing assistive technologies. The toolkit is provided by the Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA).

The Wisconsin Public Library Standards are based on the premise that all Wisconsin residents need and deserve at least a basic level of library service, and are intended to guide the budget and long-range planning efforts to provide the highest level of service possible.

Organizations

Wisconsin Library Trustees and Friends  Open to library trustees, friends and advocates interested in improving library service in Wisconsin. A division of the Wisconsin Library Association.

Association for Library Trustees, Advocates Friends and Foundations  The Association of Library Trustees, Advocates, Friends and Foundations (ALTAFF) is a division of the American Library Association (ALA) with approximately 5,000 Friends of Library, Trustee, Foundation and individual members and affiliates representing hundreds of thousands of library supporters. Begun in early 2009 with the merger of Friends of Libraries U.S.A. (FOLUSA) and ALTA, the new division brings together Trustees and Friends into a partnership that unites the voices of citizens who support libraries to create a powerful force for libraries in the 21st Century.