CE Validation at OWLS

Library directors are responsible for maintaining their own continuing education records and applying for recertification every five (5) years. Public library systems designate continuing education validators. Validators review and accept or reject member directors' Activity Report forms and Annual Summation forms. Annual Summation forms must be validated by the system before they can be submitted to DPI with your application for recertification. This is the preferred process:

  1. The library director participates in continuing education activities and completes an Activity Report form for each activity. Keep those forms in your files.
  2. At year end, the library director completes the Annual Summation form, attaches completed Activity Reports, and sends them to the system CE validator.
  3. The system CE validator reviews the documents, validates hours, signs the Annual Summation form, and returns it and the Activity Reports to the library director. The system CE validator will keep a copy of the Annual Summation form only. The library director should keep the originals.
  4. Every five years, DPI will send a letter to the library director informing them that their certification renewal is due. A copy of this letter is sent to the system CE validator. If your renewal happens mid-year, you may need to submit a partial Annual Summation form to the system for validation.
  5. The library director completes the Application for Public Librarian Certification. Send the application, validated Annual Summation forms, and payment to DPI. Do not send Activity Reports to DPI.
  6. DPI will notify the library director and the system CE validator in writing when your renewal is approved. 

If you have any questions about this process, or about continuing education requirements, please contact the OWLS CE validator, Bradley Shipps.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I find partially completed Activity Reports for OWLS' past CE events?

Activity Reports for 2019 going forward can be found here: https://newilibraries.org/past-events
Activity Reports for 2018 and earlier events can be downloaded here: https://www.owlsnet.org/ce/past

Where can I find blank Activity Report and Annual Summation forms?

All of the CE forms mentioned above can be downloaded from DPI here: http://dpi.wi.gov/pld/certification#cert-forms

How do I report conference attendance?

There are two ways you can do this. You can do one Activity Report for the entire conference, and just list a few sessions you attended. You count 6 hours for each full day of attendance and 3 hours for each half day of attendance. If you choose this route, and you are claiming Tech CE, be sure to specify which technology related sessions you attended.
If you think you attended more hours of programming than the rule above allows, then you can choose the second option, which is to create a separate Activity Report for each session, and record the actual time spent in them -- minimum of 1 hour per activity, rounding up to the nearest quarter hour. 

Is my CE activity category A, B, or C?

If you received college credit, it's category A.

If it was a non-credit workshop, or a webinar attended in real time so that you can participate in discussion, it's category B.

If it was an archived webinar, it's category C. Other types of self-directed CE require prior approval by the system validator. You may only submit 30 hours of category C credits every 5 years.

For more detailed descriptions, see: https://dpi.wi.gov/pld/certification/recertce#CatA

What happens if I don't submit an Annual Summation form every year?

Nothing. As stated above, library directors are responsible for maintaining their own continuing education records. OWLS does not supervise the process. However, if you don't submit CE paperwork for validation annually, you will still have to complete it before your certification expires and have it validated by the system before the deadline. Reconstructing 5 years of continuing education activity can be difficult. Submitting paperwork annually also helps you track whether you are on pace to complete the 100 hours required for recertification.

Did I submit an Annual Summation last year? 

Call or email Bradley, and I will check your file.