Voluntary Public Librarian Certification Program

To meet the needs of Maine’s library staff for ongoing training so they may provide dynamic, professional library service, the Maine State Library has developed a three level voluntary certification program comprised of online courses and archived webinars. Workshops and special institutes can also be counted towards electives at all levels of the program.

Library directors and personnel who do not have formal training in library science should start with Basic Certification which includes introductory coursework in core areas: Fundamentals of Librarianship, Collection Development, Organization of Materials, Management, Programming/Services and Technology. All the courses fit into the American Library Association (ALA) Core Competencies and the 21st Century Skills matrices.

Intermediate and Advanced Certification build on the work done at the basic level and allow the librarian to explore these topic areas in more depth. Once a certification level is achieved, the librarian is required to attend or complete 5 classes, webinars or workshops each year to maintain that level. School Library Media Specialists and Ed Techs can use these courses toward recertification.

If you have any questions, please contact Jared Leadbetter via the Contact Us page.