Continuing Education Fund

How to Apply

  1. Identify which course, class, or workshop you’d like to use Continuing Education Funds for.

  2. Complete and submit the Continuing Education Fund application to ContinuingEd-PSA@bpl.org. Please submit this form through your BPL work email.

  3. Register, attend, and complete the course, class, or workshop.

  4. Submit your (1) receipt/invoice, (2) Bank statement showing that the bank/credit card used to pay for the course is in your name, and (3) certificate of completion/documentation of passing grade to ContinuingEd-PSA@bpl.org. You must submit all three documents for the committee to submit your paperwork to accounting for reimbursement.

Click here to download the application

If you haven't heard from the BLU Continuing Education reps for over a month after submission, shoot a Teams message to Nikki Kline and Elizabeth Grab. DO NOT send documents to anything other than the ContinuingEd-PSA@bpl.org email. 

Previously funded courses/classes include:

  • Language learning: American Sign Language (ASL), Irish, Italian, Russian, Spanish

  • Program Evaluation

  • Early Literacy

  • User Experience (UX) Research

  • Collection Development

  • Intro to Cataloging

  • Intro to Interlibrary Loan

  • Visual Materials Evaluation & Cataloging

  • Video Surveillence 101

For additional information on how these funds are governed and disbursed, see Article XX (22), Section 14 of our CBA.

  • The Continuing Education Fund Committee is comprised of 2 BLU members and 2 exempt managers from the Library. This Committee accepts and reviews requests for use of the Continuing Education Fund. The City allocates $30,000 to the fund each July 1 with the intention of half of the funds being distributed July-December and the remaining funds being distributed January-June.

  • Please note that the Continuing Education Fund provides tuition reimbursement. The member must cover the cost of the class or professional development opportunity up front and then submit to the Committee for reimbursement.

  • BLU members are eligible to be reimbursed up to $2,000 per year based on available funding. Where not all funding has been allocated, the Committee may, at their discretion, award a member more than $2,000.

  • Funds may be used to further a member’s specific job duties or to expand their librarianship (and related) skills. All payment, or reimbursement for a course will be approved with a “2.0” grade or better, a “C” or better, or a “Pass” grade depending on the grading method. Payment or reimbursement will be made for courses taken from accredited Colleges or Universities as well as other programs approved by the Committee.