VITAL TO VALUES
by Marylaine Block
When I interviewed him for his Mover and Shaker profile in 2003, Jose Aponte, then Executive Director of the Pikes Peak Library District, and now Director of the San Diego County Library System, said that librarians needed to understand what our communities value most, and make sure our libraries serve those values.
But all by itself, that wasn't enough, he said. We have to explain HOW our services support our communities' aspirations. And explain again, and explain some more. "What do most people care about?" he asked. "Public safety, employment, housing, and education —- and the library speaks to all of those needs.
"Crime? Libraries are a sanctuary for at-risk kids, on the loose after school lets out. Employment? Libraries offer help wanted ads and books and programming on job-hunting, résumé writing, computer literacy, and ESL. Housing? Libraries provide books and workshops on home remodeling, the home buying process, and financial planning. Education? Librarians teach children to love reading, provide homework help, and offer guidance on college planning, SATs, and financial aid." [See the complete profile at http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA281649?display=LJMS&pubdate=3%2F15%2F2003.]
That was good advice, from a man who understands both libraries and local government. In this year's crop of movers and shakers, I came across several other librarians who were applying the same principle.
What issue is of greater concern to parents right now than their children's educational success? PLA's Association for Library Service to Children has responded with an initiative called Every Child Ready To Read, in which librarians work with parents to teach them how to build the skills that will make their children not only ready but eager to read. While ALSC supplied the basic package of program materials and background information, the librarians who participated adapted and expanded the material to tailor it to their own communities.
Wendy Wilcox, Youth Services Coordinator at West Bloomfield Hills Township Public Library in Michigan, did a particularly spectacular job. First of all, she gave parents, teachers, and media specialists a preview of the program materials, invited their comments, and paid attention to them, modifying the materials accordingly. She put together a stylish, professional-looking package of background information, fingerplays and nursery rhymes, and recommended resources for parents, along with a poster full of 100 Best Books To Read in Kindergarten (with stickers that children could use to proudly mark off each one they'd read).
A new mother herself, Wilcox had learned the hard way that mothers rarely had time to sit down and read through an entire portfolio of materials, though. So she also came up with a Countdown to Kindergarten calendar; every day featured one brief activity or read-aloud which even the most stressed-out parent could fit in time to do.
And then, Wilcox promoted the program like crazy. The library distributes the packet at every likely venue: local playgroups, daycare centers, and preschools. The library distributes another packet, "Especially for Kindergarteners and Their Parents," to every kindergarten child. She also put most of the program materials online at http://www.growupreading.org/. The program has gotten rave reviews from parents, teachers, and media specialists, and has drawn an eager audience of children and parents to her library.
Michael Sullivan, director of Weeks Public Library [NH], has been drawing boys to all the libraries he has been in charge of, and has been showing librarians his techniques for making both books and libraries more appealing to boys. His book, Connecting Boys with Books [ALA, 2003], is a must-read for any librarians serving youth -- and for library directors who want those future taxpayers to support the library when they grow up.
Cynthia Fuerst, director of the Kankakee Public Library [IL}, knew that sheer economic survival was the most critical concern for her community after several major employers had departed. She worked with local government officials, lawyers, bankers, and developers to build a bigger, better library in the heart of downtown. That proved to be the spark needed to draw in additional development and revive the town.
But it's not just public libraries that are making themselves integral to the community they serve. Academic libraries are doing this in a number of ways. John Shanks, of Penn State Berks–Lehigh Valley College, is unusually well placed to encourage faculty to work with librarians because he directs the college's Technology Grant Curriculum program, manages its technology-enhanced curriculum initiative grants, and trains faculty in using the course management system. In the process of showing them that, he can introduce them to library databases and other resources they may not have been aware of. A further dividend is the respect librarians get once their technology savvy is recognized.
Since 1996, the University of Michigan Library has made an invaluable contribution to its faculty's scholarship through its Digital Library Production Service (DLPS), which provides the infrastructure for campus digital library collections. Not incidentally, the resources they have made available through the internet have been a boon to scholars worldwide. [For a list of their text and multimedia collections, see http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/c/collsize/collsize.]
Like many other academic librarians, Susan Gibbons, director of digital library initiatives at the University of Rochester River Campus Libraries, has been a prime mover in developing the university's institutional repository.
Laura Gordon-Murnane, Intranet Webmaster for the Bureau of National Affairs, created a weekly web feature, BNA Web Watch [http://www.bna.com/webwatch/]. Originally she created is as a backgrounder for her editors and reporters on current policy issues, but she turned it into a profit opportunity for her company. Now, each week's backgrounder supplies links to free 30-day trials of relevant BNA products.
These are just a few of the ways in which librarians have seized an opportunity to make their libraries known as key players who help their communities achieve their most treasured goals. Read more about them and other equally inspired librarians, at http://libraryjournal.com/index.asp?layout=LJMSTOC&pubdate=3/15/2005.
And then, spend a little time pondering this question: Do your users understand how your programs and services advance the values and aspirations they hold most dear?
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COOL QUOTE:
Another information provider referred to the advantage working with the library brings to their organization: “I think that one of the benefits of partnering with the library is that the library’s constituency is everyone. No one is left out. The library represents all points of view. It’s content neutral. All IPs want to appeal to the entire general-public, and being connected with the library makes this possible.”
"How Community Organizations Benefit from Community Information." http://www.si.umich.edu/helpseek/BestPractices/IP_Benefits.html
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Copyright, Marylaine Block, 1999-2005.
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