Raise your hand if you’re a data nerd!
Many of us in library land see the value in good data. It can help us better understand our library communities and make thoughtful decisions about how we use our resources. CALL’s 2026 needs assessment showed that California library workers want to build their skills in using data to inform their work.
With this in mind, we’re rolling out 12 Months to Better Library Data, a year-long series based on the original 2024 webinars from the Regional Institute for Public Libraries (RIPL). We’re inviting the original presenters back to talk with CALL learners about each topic. For each session, you’ll watch a recording first, then join the presenter and other library workers for a conversation about what you learned and what it might look like in your own library.
Watch, Discuss, and Apply
For each topic, participants will watch a one-hour recording on their own schedule, then join the original trainer at a scheduled date and time for a one-hour facilitated discussion with other California library workers.
The discussion gives participants a chance to consider how the ideas in the recording might apply to the realities of their own work. It’s an opportunity to ask questions, share challenges, hear how other libraries are approaching similar situations, and consider how better understanding data could help with a project or decision.
A Year of Data Topics
The series covers a wide range of data topics, from developing a data plan and designing better surveys to data visualization, storytelling, privacy, artificial intelligence, and using data for decision-making.
You can choose the topics that are most useful to you or participate in the full series. Each topic stands on its own, while the series as a whole offers opportunities to make connections across different dimensions of data and consider how they relate to library work.
The 12 Months to Better Library Data schedule includes:
- October 22, 2026: Begin With a Strong Foundation: A Facilitated Discussion About Developing a Data Plan.
Facilitators: Sharon Morris and Linda Hofschire - November 12, 2026: Outcomes and Beyond: A Facilitated Discussion on Evaluating Program Success. Facilitators: Linda Hofschire and Rebecca Teasdale
- December 17, 2026: Creative Survey Design: A Facilitated Discussion About Crafting Surveys to Meet Your Library’s Needs.
Facilitator: Dr. Kawanna Bright - January 14, 2027: Building Bridges: A Facilitated Discussion About Collecting Culturally Relevant Data. Facilitator: Dr. Andrea Girón Mathern
- February 25, 2027: Exploring Public Libraries Survey Data for Peer Comparisons.
Facilitators: Marisa Pelczar and Dan Hensley
Coming soon:
- March 2027: Elements of Data Visualization and Design
- April 2027: Ethical Artificial Intelligence: Bridging Technology with Credible Evaluation Practices
- May 2027: Inspire, Advocate, Communicate: Library Data Storytelling
- June 2027: What Counts: Finding Meaningful Metrics
- July 2027: Library Customer Data: Privacy vs. Personalization
- August 2027: From Insight to Action: Using Public Library Data for Decision-Making, Strategic Planning, and Advocacy
Data can be intimidating, but no one needs to be a data expert or a self-proclaimed data nerd to take part in these conversations. 12 Months to Better Library Data is an opportunity to learn, ask questions, and get more comfortable thinking about the ways data can support our work in libraries.