Python Intro for Libraries

University of North Texas - Willis Library

July 17, 2026

9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. CST

Instructors: Trey Clark, Maristella Feustle

Helpers: Sarah Lynn Fisher

The Carpentries

The Carpentries project comprises the Data Carpentry, High Performance Computing Carpentry, Library Carpentry, and Software Carpentry communities of Instructors, Trainers, Maintainers, helpers, and supporters who share a mission to teach foundational computational and data science skills to researchers.

Library Carpentry is made by people working in library- and information-related roles to help you:

  • automate repetitive, boring, error-prone tasks
  • create, maintain and analyze sustainable and reusable data
  • work effectively with IT and systems colleagues
  • better understand the use of software in research
  • and much more...

Library Carpentry introduces you to the fundamentals of computing and provides you with a platform for further self-directed learning. For more information on what we teach and why, please see our paper "Library Carpentry: software skills training for library professionals".

Carpentries Clippings

Want to learn more and stay engaged with The Carpentries?

Carpentries Clippings is The Carpentries' biweekly newsletter, where we share community news, community job postings, and more.

Code of Conduct

Everyone who participates in Carpentries activities is required to conform to the Code of Conduct, which also outlines how to report an incident if needed.

Workshop Logistics
Who

The course is for people working in library- and information-related roles. You don't need to have any previous knowledge of the tools that will be presented at the workshop.

Where
1506 W Highland St, Denton, TX 76203, Room 250H. Get directions with OpenStreetMap or Google Maps.
When

July 17, 2026; 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. CST Add to your Google Calendar.

Requirements

Participants must bring a laptop with a Mac, Linux, or Windows operating system (not a tablet, Chromebook, etc.) that they have administrative privileges on. They should have a few specific software packages installed (listed below).

Accessibility

We are committed to making this workshop accessible to everybody. The workshop organizers have checked that:

  • The room is wheelchair / scooter accessible.
  • Accessible restrooms are available.

We are dedicated to providing a positive and accessible learning environment for all. We do not require participants to provide documentation of disabilities or disclose any unnecessary personal information. However, we do want to help create an inclusive, accessible experience for all participants. We encourage you to share any information that would be helpful to make your Carpentries experience accessible. To request accessibility support for this workshop, please fill out the accessibility support request form. If you have questions or need assistance with the accessibility support form please email us.

Glosario is a multilingual glossary for computing and data science terms. The glossary helps learners attend workshops and use our lessons to make sense of computational and programming jargon written in English by offering it in their native language. Translating data science terms also provides a teaching tool for Carpentries Instructors to reduce barriers for their learners.

Workshop Recordings

Carpentries workshops are designed to be interactive rather than lecture-based, with lessons that build upon one another. To foster a positive online learning environment, we strongly recommend that participants join in real time. As a result, workshop recordings are not recommended and may not be available to learners.

Contact

Please email maristella.feustle@unt.edu or sarahlynn.fisher@unt.edu for more information.

Workshop FAQ

For answers to frequently asked questions about workshops, refer to the Carpentries Workshop FAQ.

Registration

Register for this workshop via the UNT Library Calendar Event Page

Surveys
Pre-Workshop Survey

Please fill out this survey before attending the workshop.

Fill Out the Pre-Workshop Survey
Post-Workshop Survey

Please fill out this survey before you leave the workshop.

Fill Out the Post-Workshop Survey
Schedule
Day 1
Before Starting Pre-workshop survey
09:00 Python Intro for Libraries
10:30 Morning break
12:00 Lunch break
13:00 Python Intro for Libraries Continued
14:30 Afternoon break
16:30 Wrap-up
17:00 END

Setup

To participate in a Library Carpentry workshop, you will need access to software as described below. In addition, you will need an up-to-date web browser.

We maintain a list of common issues that occur during installation as a reference for instructors that may be useful on the Configuration Problems and Solutions wiki page.

Python

Python is a popular language for scientific computing, and great for general-purpose programming as well. For this workshop we use Python version 3.x. Installing all of its scientific packages individually can be a bit difficult, so we provide an environment file to help you take care of them all together. We will use the Miniforge distribution of Python. Please refer to the Python section of the workshop website for installation instructions..

JupyterLab

We will teach Python using JupyterLab, a part of a family of Jupyter tools that includes Jupyter Notebook and JupyterLab, both of which provide interactive web environments where you can write and run Python code. If you followed the instructions linked above, JupyterLab is installed on your system. Alternatively, you can install JupyterLabinstall JupyterLab on its own using conda, pip, or other popular package managers.

Download the Data

Please visit this link to download the data needed for this lesson.