Staff Training grant renewed for FY 2026

We are happy to share that the Maryland State Library Agency's federal award, through the Library Services and Technology Act, has been level-funded and certified by the Institute for Museum and Library Services for fiscal year 2026.

SD&T will receive the same funding as last year, which will help with program and conference registration for all staff.  As always, we'll use the funding for a variety of activities and events as outlined in the grant regulations.  

Thanks to MSLA and the IMLS for this assistance.  

Online learning from MLSA continues for another year!

Grant funding for the Maryland Statewide Webinars Project has been renewed with no interruption to service. Thanks to support from both the Maryland State Library Agency (MSLA) and Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds administered by IMLS, we will be continuing our partnerships and expanding our offerings.

• PCI Webinars will remain available to all library staff across the state.
• Dr. Steve Albrecht’s Safety Series from Library 2.0 will also continue uninterrupted. We’re excited to share that Dr. Albrecht plans to broaden his focus with additional sessions on organizational development and leadership in the coming months.
• We are adding statewide access to the Library 2.0 Wellness Series and the AI Series. These will be available both as live sessions and on-demand recordings.
• Once these new series are active and integrated into the Niche Academy archive, we will send out another update with registration and access details.

As always, we encourage you to take full advantage of these professional development opportunities—and to advocate for IMLS support. These resources are made possible through ongoing federal and state investment in library development and staff learning. Your voices matter in helping to preserve and grow this support.

Google Workspace to Microsoft 365 End User Survey

Using the link below, please complete the "Enoch Pratt – Workspace to Microsoft 365 End User Survey" no later than Friday, June 20th, 2025. The survey includes space for you to share your questions and concerns about this project so far. Your responses will help guide the training development.

Also, it is CRITICAL that anyone who is the owner of a Google Form to complete this survey, as this will verify who in our organization has forms that will need additional support to ensure their availability in Microsoft. Failure to do so will significantly delay the availability of your form after the migration.

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=nLqEdZHdRUebfrTenaO-e3FXZvT_0ypAqXkxP8VOwtZURVo2M1FWVjFUVUczQlpaREhSWU01Vk5QUS4u

Mike Brown

Chief of Networks and Engineering | Information Systems

Reminder: EPFL Staff Forum for June 10

 All staff are invited to participate in the Staff Forum, scheduled for 6/9/25 at 9 a.m.  

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81974530529?pwd=8BVffMda0H3XOk9vXcVNJEgIQJeuiZ.1

Meeting ID: 819 7453 0529
Passcode: 495064

From the 2025 MLA/DLA Conference - Intentionality

Intentionality

 

/inˌten(t)SHəˈnalədē/

Noun

 

1. the fact or quality of being done on purpose or with intent:

The author’s choice here may not have been intentionally racially charged, but discrimination and prejudice are often not rooted in intentionality.

2. an attitude of purposefulness, with a commitment to deliberate action:

“Active hope” is a practice that does not require optimism; instead, it requires intentionality.

 

My strongest “take away”from the MLA/DLA 2025 Annual Conference was the importance of Intentionality, being mindful and intentional when completing library tasks and performing library duties. It can be difficult when things get hectic, but if you can slow down, take a breath, and think about what you are doing, then you can better incorporate best practices into your daily routine.

 

Maybe that means being aware that marginalized people feel the greatest loss of digital privacy and incorporating equity into privacy programming or anonymizing data when possible. Or it could mean something as simple as making ready-to-print resources available such as How Secure Is My Password? flyers.

 

With digital resources it may be as complex as revising metadata to ensure attribution and increase accessibility or as simple as spreading the word about databases that document lesser-known history such as Blacks of the Chesapeake. When working with displays and marketing, it means being intentional not just about diversity & ethnic representation, but also being intentional about diversity of format, diversity of lived experience, and diversity of tone.  Intentionality means focusing on materials that are positive in tone, books where members of the group accomplish something, not just materials relating what was done to them. (Though of course some of the latter are necessary for education purposes, they should always be balanced with some of the former.)

 

Intentionality means consciously incorporating balance, equity, diversity, and accessibility. Like any practice, it may be difficult at first, but as you practice and build the habit of intentionality, it will become an inherent feature of your librarianship.

 

Dorothy Reed

Adult Services

 

Urban Libraries Council resources available to EPFL staff

 EPFL is a member of the Urban Library Council, so all staff members can participate in ULC's programming.

Anyone who wants to take a course or participate in a webinar can request an account by clicking this link:   https://tools.urbanlibraries.org/library/selfadd.php .  Select Enoch Pratt as your library and you can create an account.  It takes a few moments to verify your information, but you'll receive an email when your account is active, which will provide you with login information.

Once you have an account, you can start getting involved through the ULC Member Hub.  Here you can explore events and the Knowledge Exchange, and find member communities that might interest you.  

Conference mileage/tolls reimbursement

There are two ways to get reimbursed for mileage/tolls for local conferences like MLA, CIL, and local ALA conference locations  These are available on the Vine:  https://sites.google.com/prattlibrary.org/workday/expense-reports

If you successfully completed an expense report prior to October 2023 (when the city changed how Workday handles expense reports) you can continue to submit your own expense reports in Workday. If you did not submit a report prior to October 2023, then you have to use Pathway B listed on the website.  This sends a request to the business office which submits the request on your behalf.

Either way,  if there were tolls or parking involved you must submit receipts.  Copies of EZ pass statements that show the charge information (e.g. date and location) can be used.