The Learning Curve: Free Education Using Rotary's Online Learning Center

 

 

When Kimberly Kouame was feeling the fatigue of the pandemic, she turned to a resiliency course in the Learning Center, Rotary’s online training platform, and found affirmation, direction, and relief.

 

The Learning Center provides courses on club and district leadership, fundraising, membership, professional development, public image, and more in over 20 languages. Through the platform, you can see how another club uses technology to support hybrid meetings, learn about new recruitment tactics, and find out how to align with the current Rotary brand standards.

 

Kouame has been with Rotary for 16 years, including eight years as manager of learning resources. As so much of Rotary life has turned online, the Learning Center has seen significant user growth, she says. “It’s a great way for you to keep up with how Rotary is changing,” she says.

 

Here are her suggestions for how to use the Learning Center to get more out of your membership experience.

 

Know what’s new and what’s for you.
The Learning Center offers members a custom experience, showing you the newest courses and topics on its homepage. To access the center, first set up an account by going to “learning and reference” in the My Rotary site’s menu, then click on “Learning Center” in the dropdown list. Members need to use the email address on file at their club so they will have full access. Club members are encouraged to log in at least once so that when you click on links from Rotary, you’ll be taken directly to the page you need.

 

Make stronger connections with social-learning features.
These capabilities allow you to share resources and interact with other users. You can have robust conversations in the site’s “questions and answers” section, and find the “learning topics” menu option to curate and share helpful content from the internet. Members can upload their latest presentations, rate content, and give feedback.

 

Learn the lingo directly from the source.
“What’s great about the Learning Center is that Rotary strategic messaging is part of these courses,” Kouame says. By staying up to date on training, Rotarians will absorb accurate and flexible language that matches up with Rotary’s current standards and goals.

 

Embrace differences across cultures and borders.
As Rotary becomes increasingly responsive to its broad membership base, policies about harassment and diversity, equity, and inclusion are evolving regularly to ensure all Rotarians and community members feel welcomed and respected.

 

Improve your community and organization.
Member groups that have used the Learning Center have found innovative ways to organize their clubs and districts. You will find the most current grant application details there, as well as guides for carrying out Rotary service projects. You can also use the portal to learn how best to propose items to the Council on Legislation and Council on Resolutions.

 

Boost your career prospects.
Through the Learning Center, members have the chance to use professional development tools to build new skills. For instance, you can take a course on giving a speech, then give your talk at a Rotary event and receive feedback from other members.

 

5 reasons to use the Learning Center on its 10th anniversary
Rotary’s online Learning Center launched in 2012. It started with a few interactive courses about a new grant model and has grown to hold almost a thousand courses in 23 languages. Its e-learning modules offer a convenient way to take courses when you want to and where you want to. Here are five reasons to encourage club members to visit the Learning Center:

Ask members to take a course, and then follow up with a discussion at your next club meeting. To begin, go to rotary.org/learn and sign in to your My Rotary account

--