Better Responses for Patrons Dealing with Homelessness: An Empathy-Driven Understanding
[2023 UPDATED VERSION]
Part of the Library 2.0 Service, Safety, and Security Series with Dr. Steve Albrecht
OVERVIEW:
This webinar will help all library staff better understand and address the nature and levels of homelessness in and around out libraries. This includes changing legal issues; environmental hazards; employee safety issues; at-risk homeless populations like women and children; empathic communication tools and skills; firm, fair, consistent, assertive, and reasonable treatment; the small population of predatory homeless people; and providing library services to homeless people in need with dignity, empathy, and patience.
Being homeless is a complex social problem that impacts the quality of life in our communities. There are no easy solutions. Much of it is created by shortages of affordable housing, chronic unemployment, mental illness, substance abuse, and changes in our mental health laws that have made the concept of being “gravely disabled” difficult to interpret.
Most individuals who become homeless for the long term have either created or been victimized by a large number of failed relationships, including family members, their children, friends, their employers, landlords, healthcare and social services agencies, and medical providers.
The individuals dealing with homelessness who seem to cause the most problems with their behaviors are often discovered to have serious mental health and substance abuse issues. This means that they can be rude and confrontational, over and over, during frequent encounters with library staff, because they can’t or won’t learn the necessary social cues to comply with our Code of Conduct.
All library staff should be mindful of their safety and security when dealing with certain parts of this challenging, changing, and growing population.
LEARNING AGENDA:
- Knowing the three types of homeless patrons can help you serve them better and safely.
- Security concerns with certain “Triple-A” homeless patrons.
- Setting better boundaries, early, and striving for “Negotiated Behavioral Agreements” with problematic homeless patrons.
- Creating a team-based approach to providing resources to homeless patrons.
This 60-minute training webinar is presented by Library 2.0 and hosted by ALA author and library service, safety, and security expert, Dr. Steve Albrecht. A handout copy of the presentation slides will be available to all who participate. This is an updated version of this webinar for 2023.
DATE: Thursday, June 29th, 2023, at 2:00 pm US - Eastern Time
COST:
- $99/person - includes any-time access to the recording and the presentation slides and receiving a participation certificate. To arrange group discounts (see below), to submit a purchase order, or for any registration difficulties or questions, email admin@library20.com.
- FREE for those on individual or group all-access passes (see below).
TO REGISTER:
Click above to register and pay. You can pay by credit card, and will receive an email within a day with information on how to attend the webinar live and how you access the permanent webinar recording. If you are paying for someone else to attend, you'll be prompted to send an email to admin@library20.com with the name and email address of the actual attendee.
If you have any trouble registering for a webinar, if you need to be invoiced or pay by check, or if you have any questions, please email admin@library20.com.
NOTE: please check your spam folder if you don't receive your confirmation email within a day.
SPECIAL GROUP RATES (email admin@library20.com to arrange):
- Multiple individual log-ins and access from the same organization paid together: $75 each for 3+ registrations, $65 each for 5+ registrations. Unlimited and non-expiring access for those log-ins.
- The ability to show the webinar (live or recorded) to a group located in the same physical location or in the same virtual meeting from one log-in: $299.
- Large-scale institutional access for viewing with individual login capability: $499 (hosted either at Library 2.0 or in Niche Academy). Unlimited and non-expiring access for those log-ins.
ALL-ACCESS PASSES:
- All-access annual passes include unlimited access to the recordings of all of Dr. Albrecht's previous Library 2.0 webinars, plus live and recorded access to his new webinars for one year. These are hosted either at Library 2.0 or Niche Academy (if preferred).
- For a $499 individual all-access annual pass to all of Dr. Albrecht's live webinars and recordings for one year, please click here.
- Inquiries for all-access organizational contracts should be directed to admin@library20.com.
Since 2000, Dr. Steve Albrecht has trained thousands of library employees in 28+ states, live and online, in service, safety, and security. His programs are fast, entertaining, and provide tools that can be put to use immediately in the library workspace with all types of patrons.
In 2015, the ALA published his book, Library Security: Better Communication, Safer Facilities. His new book, The Safe Library: Keeping Users, Staff, and Collections Secure, was just published by Rowman & Littlefield.
Steve holds a doctoral degree in Business Administration (D.B.A.), an M.A. in Security Management, a B.A. in English, and a B.S. in Psychology. He is board-certified in HR, security management, employee coaching, and threat assessment.
He has written 25 books on business, security, and leadership topics. He lives in Springfield, Missouri, with six dogs and two cats.
His professional website is http://www.drstevealbrecht.com.
