The State Library of Kansas is offering financial assistance to library support staff applying for certification in the American Library Association’s Library Support Staff Certification (LSSC) Program. The LSSC Program offers library employees a new career path in the library profession and the opportunity to achieve recognition for their experience, enhance library service, and increase skills and knowledge in areas like the foundations of librarianship, technology, and communication.
The LSSC Program is funded by a grant to ALA from the federal Institute for Museum and Library Services, and managed by the ALA-Allied Professional Association.
The State Library of Kansas will be offering up to 10 Registration Assistance Awards this spring. The Awards are for $175, one-half of the LSSC registration/application fee. Successful award recipients will be asked to pay the remainder of the registration fee with their own funds or funds obtained from other sources. There are also charges for the approved courses that vary from course provider to course provider.
Library Support Staff Certification (LSSC) provides a path to recognition and awareness of the critical role that library support staff play in the delivery of quality library service. To achieve certification, support staff must achieve six of ten competency sets either through development of an online portfolio or taking approved courses. The competency sets are: Foundation of Library Service; Technology; Communication and Teamwork; Access Services, Adult Readers’ Advisory Services; Cataloging and Classification; Collection Management; Reference and Information Services; Supervision and Management; and Youth Services.
The Application Form is on the State Library of Kansas website on the Librarians page and may be accesses at:
LSSC Registration Assistance Award
Please save a copy of the form, complete it, and email it to Shannon.Roy@library.ks.gov
Please put Registration Assistance Award in the subject line of your email.
The application window for the Assistance Awards is from April 1 through May 15. Support staff members from all types of libraries are invited to apply. Please contact Shannon Roy with questions at: Shannon.Roy@library.ks.gov
The recipients of the Award will be chosen by a random drawing on May 20.
Nancy Bolt, Co-Project Director of LSSC commented “LSSC is really pleased that the State Library of Kansas is participating in the Registration Assistance Awards. We are confident that support staff will find certification to be helpful and we are thankful for this grant from IMLS.”
To be eligible to participate in LSSC and thus receive a Registration Assistance Award, applicants must have a high school degree or its equivalent and have worked for the equivalent of one year (1820 hours) as a library staff member or volunteer within the last five years.
Detailed additional information on LSSC is available on the LSSC website: http://www.ala-apa.org/lssc