All attendees, speakers, collaborators, and users of this site are required to agree with the Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race Code of Conduct.
Your cooperation ensures a safe environment for everybody– we’re so glad you’re here!
Upcoming Workshops & Webinars
In-Person Workshops, “Navigating the Terrain of Change with Dr. Alonzo Kelly“
- April 25, 2024, 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., East Branch, Brown County Library (2255 Main St, Green Bay)
- May 9, 2024, 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Wintergreen Conference Center (60 Gasser Rd, Wisconsin Dells)
Travel assistance is available– see registration form.
The key concepts of this session include 1) Creating a sense of urgency, 2) Creating a ‘culture of accountability’ and 3) Crucial Conversations; High Stakes/Strong Emotions/Opposing Opinions. Participants should expect a day of critical thinking, active participation, personal reflection, group discussions, and FUN!
Day-of Schedule:
Registration & Refreshments 9 – 9:30 a.m.
Morning session: 9:30 – 12 p.m.
Lunch: 12 – 1 p.m. (off site) or bring your own*
Afternoon session: 1 – 3:30 p.m.
Learning Objectives:
- Applying Critical Thinking to Change Management
- Creating and Sustaining Cultures of Accountability,
- Demonstrated Mastery of the Elements of Thought and Key Questions For Clarity
Presenter:
Alonzo Kelly has gained international and global attention as a premier consultant and strategist. Alonzo is recognized as one the nation’s leading experts on leadership development, strategic thinking, planning, and acting which results in individual and organizational goal achievement. He has appeared on America’s Premier Experts which airs on major networks across the country including ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX. Alonzo has served over 1,000 individuals through personal and professional development, delivered training to a plethora of Fortune 500 Companies, College and Universities, Foreign Countries (Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Guam), nonprofit organizations, and is consistently retained to be the keynote speaker at large and small events across the country.
He holds a bachelor’s in Accounting, three master’s degrees (Public Administration, Human Resource & Labor Relations, Business Administration), and an Honorary PhD in Business & Entrepreneurship. He is currently in the process of earning his second Doctorate in Business Administration.
He serves on the National Board of Directors for the ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) representing the State of Wisconsin, the Fire and Police Commission for the City of Howard, and Board of Directors for Family Services of Brown County.
Find more at www.alonzokelly.com
Past Workshops & Webinars
Identity, Burnout, and Vocational Awe
(From February 29, 2024)
It has been 4 years since the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated just how far employers and vocational awe were willing to push workers— past the edge and beyond. And in our rush back to normalcy, vocational awe has been weaponized against even more library workers. If anything, the pressure to be seen and always available has gotten worse since before the pandemic! And those from marginalized groups bear the brunt of this pressure. How can we as library workers stay sane and prevent the burnout from unrealistic expectations from our library administrators, boards, colleagues, community, and even ourselves? Come and learn from the librarian-scholar who coined the term vocational awe about how to maintain your authentic self at work, while preventing burnout and a total subsumption of self.
View Archived Webinar Here (Login Required– Click “Register” to create a free account.)
Presenter:
Fobazi M. Ettarh has worked in school and academic libraries, and is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign as well as working as a consultant and independent scholar for library organizations. In 2018, Fobazi M. Ettarh coined the term and defined the concept of ‘Vocational awe,” which describe “the set of ideas, values, and assumptions librarians have about themselves and the profession that result in beliefs that libraries as institutions are inherently good and sacred, and therefore beyond critique.” Her critical work on libraries, labor, and identity has been published in a variety of locations and she has been a keynote presenter at national conferences and summits.
Moving from Allyship to Leadership: Agency, Accountability, and Emotional Intelligence
(From January 11, 2024)
As organizations continue to build practical knowledge around addressing microaggressions, minimizing implicit bias, and developing allies, it won’t be enough to just create as many allies and champions as possible. Changing entrenched, biased systems and practices requires leadership at every level of an organization. And leadership around diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) will require more than management skills. As DEI leaders (whatever our organizational role may be), we will be required to build agency for social change among our colleagues and model how to hold ourselves – and others – accountable. This can feel challenging when we are among friends, but even more daunting in a work setting. Using a frame of Emotional Intelligence (EQ), we identify how we’re already showing up as allies – and how we can develop as relational and brave DEI leaders. With an interactive focus, participants will practice having the challenging – and necessary – conversations that mark DEI work.
View Archived Webinar and Slides Here (Login Required– Click “Register” to create a free account.)
Understanding and Challenging Implicit Bias in Decision Making
(From December 7, 2023)
Scholars and researchers continue to demonstrate that we all carry implicit bias involving social identities like race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, class, and religion, among others. This unconscious bias can work against an organization’s stated diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals, affecting everything from hiring and promotion decisions to how staff work with patrons, the larger community, and each other. This workshop addresses what we’ve learned, and how we can use this knowledge to challenge implicit bias in all our decisions.
View Archived Webinar and Slides Here (Login Required– Click “Register” to create a free account.)
In-Person Workshop, “Becoming an Active Ally”
- June 15, 2023; Waunakee Public Library
- June 16, 2023, L.E. Phillips Memorial Library in Eau Claire
This training highlighted practices and the role of allyship in racial and LGBTQIA2S+ justice movements. Participants of all identities had opportunities to reflect and learn how to enact allyship to create change personally and professionally.
Build Skills & Take Action to Stand Up for Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
(From May 17, 2023)
Description: With a foundational understanding of implicit bias, historical and institutionalized inequities, and how our own social identities impact our positionality in diverse environments, it is time to apply the practical tools that will shift our allyship into action. Upstanders use Emotional Intelligence (EQ) and communication skills to interact, interpret, and navigate uncomfortable and potentially distressing situations where microaggressions and bullying take place. In this skill-building workshop, we practice applying the frameworks and best practices to proactively recognize bias, assess situations for safety risks, and interrupt marginalization in its tracks.
Presenter:
Anne Phibbs, PhD (she/her/hers), Founder and President of Strategic Diversity Initiatives. Anne brings over 25 years’ experience helping organizations advance their diversity, equity & inclusion goals. She is adept at assessing an organization’s strengths and challenges and tailoring her approach to its context, culture, and goals. With extensive experience in training, teaching, curriculum development, and training of trainers, Anne has delivered hundreds of workshops and classes for thousands of participants in corporate, government, higher education, non-profit, healthcare, small business and faith community settings. Anne earned her PhD in Philosophy and Feminist Studies from the University of Minnesota and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Alicia Treviño-Murphy
Charles Payne
How to Move Past Midwest Nice and Towards Safety and Belonging
(From May 4, 2023)
In this one-hour webinar, you will learn:
- What is Midwest nice and how can it obstruct safety and belonging at work?
- Why bystander intervention is vital in public libraries.
- Concrete strategies, including example scripts, for how to respond to harmful behavior from patrons, community stakeholders, or staff.
- Reporting and how to address harm after it happens.
Presenters:
Alicia Treviño-Murphy is a professional social worker specializing in justice, diversity, equity and inclusion, organizational change, group facilitation and education. She has experience as a restorative justice facilitator and trainer in schools and youth justice settings, as well as coordinating programs and equity work in public libraries. Alicia is a long-term lecturer at the UW-Madison Sandra Rosenbaum School of Social Work.
Charles Payne is a DEI consultant, certified teacher, and self-taught social artist from Michigan. Payne is the 2023 Resident Shop One Artist/Educator and a 2022 TMT New Play Development Playwright for their play ‘Da Classroom Ain’t Enuf,’ an American Players Theatre New Voices: Creating the Classics of Tomorrow semi-finalist and a Wisconsin Wrights 2022 New Play Development project finalist.
Beyond Diversity 101: Micro-inequities, Implicit Bias, and Moving toward Equity
(From April 18, 2023)
Description: Many of us have been involved with diversity training that focuses on cultural difference and respecting all perspectives. While this is a good start, we cannot move toward true equity in our workplaces, organizations, and personal relationships until we address historical and institutional inequality. In order to address the myriad ways that certain people are marginalized based on social identities such as race, gender, disability, religion, class, sexual orientation, etc., every one of us needs to understand our own identities, how we all demonstrate bias that is often unconscious, and how we are all capable of moving toward equity.
Presenter:
Anne Phibbs, PhD (she/her/hers), Founder and President of Strategic Diversity Initiatives. Anne brings over 25 years’ experience helping organizations advance their diversity, equity & inclusion goals. She is adept at assessing an organization’s strengths and challenges and tailoring her approach to its context, culture, and goals. With extensive experience in training, teaching, curriculum development, and training of trainers, Anne has delivered hundreds of workshops and classes for thousands of participants in corporate, government, higher education, non-profit, healthcare, small business and faith community settings. Anne earned her PhD in Philosophy and Feminist Studies from the University of Minnesota and lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Understanding Why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Matter in Majority White Spaces
(From April 14, 2022)
This session presents the foundational understanding and importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion in conjunction with the core values and behavior standards. Participants will learn a common language and receive an overview of diversity, equity, and inclusion using discussion along with interactive knowledge checks to gauge understanding. They will discover how their own values, culture, and experiences affect interactions with colleagues, attitudes about work, and understanding of workplace values.
Participants will:
• Explore Trends in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
• Learn The Language of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
• Discuss The Case for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
• Learn The Impact of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion on Team Performance
View Archived Webinar Here (Login Required– Click “Register” to create a free account.)
Engaging in Sensitive Conversations & Handling Pushback
(From March 9, 2022)
Engaging in uncomfortable conversations can be difficult. According to McKinsey & Company on barriers to inclusive workplaces, four out of ten racial- or ethnic-minority employees were at least slightly uncomfortable discussing identity-related issues at work. Employees were uncertain about how colleagues would respond and concerned about being seen as different. To be truly inclusive, organizations should prioritize the psychological safety of all employees by facilitating opportunities to build inclusive conversation skills that allow respectful and effective engagement in the sometimes sensitive conversations around race, equity, inclusion, and diversity and handling the pushback that sometimes occurs in these conversations. We’ll explore the importance of vision casting and listening for understanding about others’ viewpoints. We will help participants see their place and role in moving an organization closer to anti-racist, diversity, inclusion, and equity goals.
Participants in this session will:
• Discuss the importance of connecting organizational and personal values as the guide to why these conversations are important
• Learn steps to creating a safe space for open dialogue
• Strategies for having difficult or uncomfortable discussions race
Let’s Talk About Race At Work
(From February 15, 2022)
Workplace conversations on race can be challenging. Even with the best intentions and sincere willingness to listen and understand, talking about racism can be uncomfortable. Rather than avoiding the necessary discussions and exchanges, we can learn how to productively talk about race. We can have conversations about race, racism and racial equity. We can create brave, bold and safe spaces to ask questions, share experiences, make commitments, co-create solutions, hold ourselves accountable and creating authentic, measurable and lasting impact.
Participants in this session will:
• Understand the importance of establishing guidelines for having conversations about race
• Learn a framework for having organizational or one-on-one conversations about race
• Terminology to understand when talking about race
• Questions and discussion starters for conversations on race in the workplace
View Archived Webinar Here (Login Required– Click “Register” to create a free account.)