It's so easy to lose connections as people change positions or organizations, folks get busy or distracted, priorities change, and major events, such as COVID-19, may separate and isolate us from each other. First, know that you're not alone! All libraries struggle to maintain critical community connections. Second, see this post-COVID period as a time of renewal and reconnection - a time to reevaluate practice and become more intentional about how and with whom the library establishes connections. Third, create best practices around building not just connections but lasting relationships that positively impact your community.
The library's purpose is not just to serve the community. It is to act a responsible member of the community, contributing, listening and growing alongside it. This project asks libraries to reimagine itself as a member of the community. To think carefully about groups or individual that aren't typical library users or partners and perform organizational self-reflection into why that might be. To discuss, with internal and external stakeholders, how the library can function as a vibrant, thoughtful, evolving member of the community, not just a service or space provided to the community.
Library staff is creating connections on behalf of the library. The connection can be between the staff and the community, but it needs to be around the library so that if the staff member leaves/is no longer going out, the connection stays strong.
"Human communities may have intent, belief, resources, preferences, needs, and risks in common, affecting the identity of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness "
First step is making the library visible to all members of the community. This can be accomplished in several ways. The most common connections are with the local schools and community organizations, but not everyone in community is connected to schools or other organizations, so how do you reach these people? Reaching out to local retirement/group homes, apartment complexes, anywhere you can reach groups of people, bringing library information to them. Any time there is a community wide event the library should try and have a presence, farmers markets, national night outs, Halloween trunk or treats, park events, anything that is open to the public in the community the library should be a part of. This forms a connection not only between the people/organizations hosting the event, but allows the library to shine.
The Library belongs in all aspects of the community, but in a somewhat different way because the library has an opportunity that not all community members have. The library has the ability to provide more services to the community than other community members. The library can assess the needs the community has and the risks it faces, and do something about it. By becoming an active member of the community, the library will have a unique opportunity to learn directly from the population of the community.
When the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in San Jose - the main library for both San Jose State University and San Jose Public Library - closed its doors on March 16, 2021, most believed it would be for only a few weeks. When our physical building reopened 18 months later it held a very different organization. Employees were concerned for their health and safety while serving a community feeling anxious, isolated, and unsure of the future.
Many of our partners on campus and within the community had changed, as well. Some expanded as they stepped up to help populations in need, while others disappeared due to upheaval and loss. And many were hesitant about reaching out, planning programs and events - because who know what would happen? Things could be shut down again, people may not want to participate, participants might become positive cases.
However, one common thread was the desire to support the emotional well being of our communities. Communities struggling with the impact of COVID, the economic challenge of inflation and unemployment, and the continued fight against racial injustice so many of our community members face. As we've reopened, we've focused on partnerships that emotionally support the populations we serve while centering the library as a responsive, empathetic member of the community. This includes:
Collecting individual stories about our community members' COVID experiences and hosting them in a digital archive
Connecting with local health organizations to provide information and services
Providing space for campus counseling groups
Hosting conversations between the community and law enforcement
Exhibiting artists exploring racist police shooting and activities
Some lessons learned:
Identify the needs of the most vulnerable populations in your community through conversation and understanding what people within those groups are asking for.
Ask to partner with them, combining resources to further their successful work and start programs or practices that community wants - not what you think they want!
Check in with your partners frequently to make sure the partnership is mutually beneficial and to keep good communication flowing.
Show appreciation to your partners through recognition.
As we all are aware, the pandemic has affected basic everyday tasks from grocery shopping to visiting loved ones. For libraries, doors were shut for months, and for some, they are still shut.
The challenges that followed these shutdowns affected not only businesses, but the lives of their employees. Both employer and employees have had to continuously reassess and adjust to constant changes amid fear, health and safety concerns, economic challenges and political events occurring throughout the pandemic. But we as organizations and as individuals can only take on so much.
So how do we rebuild? How do we move forward from this fork in the road?
We have to rethink. Rethink the way we approach, the way we present, and the way we serve.
Here at Sacramento Public Library, we are in the process of reconnecting with our local communities. They are who we serve, they are who we present to, and they are who we should base our approaches on. Some of the library branches with a longer history of rapport with local community-based organizations are fortunate to have kept their connection and have made plans to restart and continue services, increasing interactions as the restrictions from the pandemic ease. Some other library branches were unable to hold onto their connections, due to organizations being lost to the pandemic, or due to a lack of staff retention.
What I have seen at Sacramento Public Library to be most beneficial is rethinking our approach. Focusing on intentionality, and hearing from system-level administration that this is a learning process for us all, has been quite a relief. Even those at the top agree that intentionality takes time. We are now in a stage of collecting data, input, and answers from the community with Cortico questions. Cortico is a non-profit organization that uses a community-first approach and centers the voices of those unheard in their community. By implementing Cortico questions, we can generate an idea of what the community is in need of and center the community in the library's planning. We are turning to established members of the community, from our frontline staff such as shelvers and library assistants, to our regular patrons. We are here to listen and meet the community where it is at.
We follow along the mission of Sacramento's movement to Farm to Fork, recognizing what cultures have always been in our community, and bringing to the forefront what is desired by them.
Before the pandemic closed the physical doors of the Los Angeles Public Library, my team and I were setting up 3 brand new outreach vehicles. We prepared a mission statement and came up with a name for our outreach vehicles: LAPL Street Fleet. As we developed a plan to reach Angelenos of all ages, we prepared to launch our new vehicles in March 2020, right when the pandemic hit a high causing many organizations to stop in-person services.
The Safer at Home order issued by the Mayor was challenging, but we pivoted and found we were able to maintain some of our contacts. Many were still figuring out ways to serve the community while trying to stay safe and healthy. It was challenge to adapt our methods of outreach, but were fortunate. We were able to get out into the community to continue limited services and even connect.
Being part of a big organization comes with it's highs and lows when it comes to community contacts during the pandemic. Despite the challenges, we were able to still make connections. As a city department, we were able to connect with other departments creating projects to provide services to Angelenos*. We sent postcards through the Department of Aging and helped Recreation and Parks by delivering courtesy Library cards and books to engage their temporary residents set up in the community rooms.
Currently, connections I was not aware that we had lost are beginning to resurface, reaching out to me and my colleagues. It's a bit overwhelming trying to keep up with all the requests for meetings and services.
Some lessons learned:
Track community organizations and partners that the organization has worked with.
Maintain relationships with community partners and organizations.
Re-evaluate intentions of partnerships.
*Term used to describe natives / inhabitants of Los Angeles, CA
In March of 2020 the library shut down for what we thought would be for a few weeks, instead we were closed to the public for a year. Staff worked from home for the most part and had to adjust to this new life. In May 2020 we started offering curbside pick up for library materials, however it was difficult to spread the word. When the closure was extended again most of our part-time staff was laid off, and a children’s librarian made the decision to retire. This cut our staff of about 40 people, down to less than 20 staff members. Then over the summer two librarians were laid off, including myself, due to increasing budget cuts. Over the next six months two other staff members made the decision to quit or retire, which allowed the two librarians that were laid off to return in the spring of 2021, right after the library reopened its doors. As staff tried to adjust to the ever-changing rules, community partnerships continued to not be prioritized as we were just trying to provide the services we could to our community. By August one of our two division managers quit, our last part time library technical assistant quit and by the end of the year we had lost our other division manager and a full time library technical assistant, leaving about 15 staff spread over the 4 floors of the library. The children’s department, who had been responsible for most of the library outreach, was down to two staff members.
At the beginning of the closure everyone was just trying to figure out how to deal with the new world we were living. No one expected it would continue for as long as it did. In the beginning we reached out, but probably did not focus on reaching out as much as could. By the time we realized that this was going to be more long term we had lost so many staff members that it was hard to find the time with all the other duties we had. We tried zoom programs, but we found most of our patrons were zoomed out, with school and work being on zoom, they did not want to spend anymore time doing Zoom programs. With restrictions in place there were rules preventing us from going out too much in the community, or having schools visit the library, the community centers were closed, farmer's markets weren't happening, all of our normal outreach weren't available. Then in losing our Children’s Division manager we lost our biggest connection to our community. She not only had been a librarian at the Fullerton library for over 30 years, she grew up in Fullerton. She knew the elementary school because that’s where she went when she was a child. She knew the community better than anyone else on staff. Since most places hadn't really fully opened back up there was no opportunity for a warm hand off, or even really to let everyone know that she was retiring. Now we are trying to rebuild the connections we had before Covid with a third of the staff we had before. We don't have enough staff to go out into the community regularly, or even have groups come into the library. We are now trying to figure out how we can rebuild the connections with the current staff we have.
The Daly City Public Library struggled with community engagement pre-pandemic, and after closing to the public for 3 weeks before resuming any services, our struggles throughout the pandemic and during our reopening last May made that even more obvious. From a general lack of reach regarding library services, to curbside patrons being unaware about virtual programming, we could not reach our residents. We worked with local food distribution centers at the mall, community centers, and schools, got our messages out on electronic billboards, but even now, community members are surprised by the library being open. The library made major changes since reopening, including expanding hours for the first time in about 5 years as well as going fine-free. Community partnerships with fellow city departments, our friends group, local schools, and shopping centers have helped us to remain active in the community, but not enough to bring patrons back to the library. Most of our current regulars were regulars before and during the pandemic that utilized our holds-by-mail, curbside, and limited reopening services. The library's struggle to get new patrons into the library reflects its need to engage with its community.
Despite the struggles the library has continued to face, I am hopeful that we are turning a corner in terms of community engagement. New staff members and the resumption of in-person programming have revitalized our outreach efforts. For the past month, our librarians have been hard at work with multiple class visits weekly. They've also attended community events such as a local high school's centennial celebration and the senior center's "Welcome Back to Programs." We've also utilized community partners with two virtual/in-person program series: Book to Action with the Peninsula Humane Society and a poetry series with the San Mateo County Poet Laureate. With funding and support from community partners, the library's offerings can only continue to improve, with additional technology for our maker spaces and new circulating items like the state parks passes and bicycle locks hopefully drawing in new library users.
Keithley Hale, Fullerton Public Library • Christina Mune, San Jose State University
Luog Saepharn, Sacramento Public Library • Jennifer Siron, jsiron@lapl.org, Los Angeles Public Library
& Celina Tirona, tirona@plsinfo.org, Daly City Public Library