Professional Development Workshops Subcommittee Annual Report 2022

submitted by Kristi Bergland, Laura Williams

Current Roster

  • Anna Schmidt, 2026
  • Elizabeth Berndt, 2026
  • Lauren Bennati, 2026
  • Margaret Corby, ex-officio, 2026
  • Liza Weisbrod, 2025
  • James Mason, 2025
  • Paula Hickner, 2025
  • Grover Baker, 2025
  • Laura Williams, co-chair, 2025
  • Kristi Bergland, co-chair, 2025

List of Previous Goals and Progress Made

  1. Establish new subcommittee
    • Draft and acceptance of group charge.
    • Recruited subcommittee membership.
  2. Programming
    • REI Groundwater training, November 10, 2021, hosted by Sara Beutter Manus and Matthew Vest.

List of Future Goals

  1. Assemble Professional Development Workshops Planning handbook.
    • Goal Area 4: Strengthen communication, refine and improve intraorganizational communication. Objective 3.5: Prioritizing accessibility at all MLA events.
    • Documentation for proposing and assessing workshops has been inconsistent and inaccessible. Gathering and refining these processes and presenting them in accessible formats will reduce barriers to participation.
    • Ensuring accessibility is a priority in all steps of event planning, rather than an afterthought.
  2. Facilitating 1-2 Professional Development Workshops.
    • Goal Area 2: Develop and retain membership by enhancing support for career development at all levels and career stages. Objective 3.5: Prioritizing accessibility at all MLA events.
    • Support member-proposed workshops which provide maximum flexibility in content and format.
    • Increasing accessibility and minimizing costs through online events.