by Ben Trickey, Marketing & Communications Specialist, feat. Theresa Bird, Information Services Assistant
Looking to expand your skills, explore niche interests, and find professional development opportunities? LinkedIn Learning is a free resource available to all library cardholders with thousands of online courses for beginner, intermediate, and advanced learners.
From taking great photos with your phone to active listening in leadership communication to using AI to build an image captioning tool for visually impaired users, LinkedIn Learning’s course catalog offers a wide variety of business, technology, and creative interests.
Patrons can search the catalog by course topic or use curated playlists of related courses called “learning paths.” Users will also get personalized recommendations based on the interests they select during their first login.
Lifelong Learning at the Library
Theresa Bird, Information Services Assistant, used LinkedIn Learning to improve her graphic design skills to better serve library patrons. “It was really for our flyers and posters. We use Canva quite a bit, and I wanted to create graphics that were interesting to patrons without appearing too busy.”
As part of the Information Services team, Bird promotes and seeks out new learning opportunities every day. “I remember when I first started working, I created a sign for the payphone, and it was just funny because it was so bad. I knew the colors were off, but I didn't know how to describe it,” Bird explained. “I saw a gap in my knowledge at work, and I knew the library had this great resource that's free and easy to access.”
With the time and effort it can take to learn a new skill, Bird appreciated the flexibility of LinkedIn Learning’s format and note-taking tools. “The whole course was about three hours, but each particular topic was only like five minutes, which was nice because you could focus for five minutes on that topic and then step away as needed,” Bird said. “You can also take notes within the program, create bookmarks like you can do with ebooks and audiobooks, refer to your notes later, and even print them out.”
Reliable Information, Expertise, and Certificates
LinkedIn Learning also offers professional certificate courses developed by brands like Microsoft, Adobe, Github, Zendesk, and more. Once a user completes their certification assessment, they can share their newly earned credentials directly to their LinkedIn profiles.
Regardless of experience, Bird believes everyone can benefit from opportunities to learn and grow — herself included. “We're all on different paths of knowledge. Just because I'm behind the desk as a library staff member, doesn't mean I know everything about a given topic.”
Alongside resources like LinkedIn Learning, the Information Services team aspires to empower patrons to build on their knowledge every day. “Our goal is to remove barriers and provide reliable information,” Bird said. “My hope is that people feel comfortable approaching the desk to ask any question.”
About Lawrence Public Library
Lawrence Public Library (LPL for short) is a community hub that believes in the power of connecting with each other through shared knowledge and resources. Located in the heart of Downtown Lawrence, Kansas, we are committed to providing a space where our community can learn, connect, create, and grow through access to our vast collections, resources, services, programs, and knowledgeable staff. The library is supported by tax dollars, record-breaking book sales and philanthropic efforts by the LPL Friends & Foundation, and the dedicated efforts of more than 300 volunteers. All are welcome.
