In 1827, the town of Lexington, Massachusetts, appointed a three-person committee to start a library. The committee suggested that “it is expedient to raise sixty dollars, by a tax, to purchase books for said library.” The precursor of the Cary Library, one of the nation’s oldest, was thus established.
Ask anyone who works with teens, inside or outside the library, and they might tell you that 13- to 18-year-olds are a tough crowd to reach.
What can you do to ensure that your hybrid programs become standouts in your programming lineup? Try covering these three bases: promotion, delivery and evaluation.
Jeff Zeh and James Hutter of Port Washington (N.Y.) Public Library reflect on the last two years of successes and failures they met while planning hybrid programs.
Watch the full webinar recording to learn more or read some of Zeh and Hutter's tips below.Â
What can you do to make your hybrid programs more interactive and engaging for people, both in-person at your library and at home?
Watch the webinar recording to learn more or read some of Melissa A. Wong's simple guidelines and tips for selecting the right tools and activities below.
As we have seen thus far in our hybrid programming webinar series, hosting hybrid programs may look different at different institutions.
Mackenzee Grzesiak, reference librarian at Alpha Park Public Library in Illinois, was watching HBO’s "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver" when she connected her work on the library’s podcast to the episode’s coverage of America’s current mental health crisis.
Alyssa Denneler has been hosting hybrid events for more than four years as an assistant librarian at Indiana University Bloomington. During that time, she has learned that, although planning hybrid programs comes with some extra steps, the outcomes are usually worth the effort.
Last spring, Indiana University Bloomington launched a virtual exhibit that was accompanied by an in-person program and exhibition. Naturally, attendees of online and in-person events had different experiences; that's to be expected, Denneler says.
Many of us feel confident hosting events in person, and after these last few years, some of us feel confident running virtual events as well. But it can feel a bit more intimidating to think of doing both formats at once in a hybrid event.
Are virtual and hybrid programs worth the investment now that in-person programs have returned? Do they have a life beyond the pandemic?
Boston Public Library employs more than 500 staff members and presents more than 4,500 programs per year. To help these programs run smoothly, many different staff participate in their creation and execution — and that is doubly true for hybrid programs.
Hybrid programming can help libraries a wide range of community members, from people who are wary of COVID exposure to patrons with child care or transportation issues. Hybrid programs can also allow for larger attendance caps and a smoother pivot to a fully virtual program in case of an emergency.
The Illinois Fire Service Institute Library (IFSI Library) in Champaign, Illinois, provides fire and emergency library and information assistance to the Fire Institute’s instructional staff, students and over 1,000 Illinois fire departments and 42,000 Illinois firefighters. Founded in 1990 by Head Librarian Lian Ruan, the library provides unique resources to a highly specialized community.
During the pandemic, online programming allowed libraries to reach new audiences — including, in some cases, people who had never come in person to the library before. But virtual programming fell short in meeting the needs of patrons without a reliable internet connection.
ALA invites libraries to apply for funding through its American Rescue Plan: Humanities Grants for Libraries opportunity, a grantmaking program to deliver relief to libraries recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.
ALA invites libraries to apply for funding through its American Rescue Plan: Humanities Grants for Libraries opportunity, a grantmaking program to deliver relief to libraries recovering from the coronavirus pandemic.
In “Going Virtual: Programs and Insights from a Time of Crisis” (ALA Editions, 2021) ALA’s Public Programs Office (PPO) presents a handpicked cross-section of successful programs from library workers who met a host of challenges in the wake of COVID-19. Join us for this free webinar to learn about five of the programs featured in the “Going Virtual” book.
The beginning of 2021 is packed with great state humanities council events! You may be surprised at the range of virtual options, whether you’re looking for a smart lecture to while away a quiet afternoon or an engaging event to share with your patrons on social media.
Below is a selection of virtual events just from the week of January 11, 2021. Find your state humanities council here.
For many library workers, 2020 has been a crash course in learning to reach patrons in new ways. But if your pandemic response has included more online programs, you may inadvertently be leaving some people out. One in four Americans has some type of disability.
Join us for a free webinar presentation and panel discussion from Pennsylvania Humanities Council members and library practitioners.
For the past four years, Monique Sugimoto has commuted to her job at the Palos Verdes Library District on an electric bike — a scenic ride along the cliffs in her coastal California town. As she rode, her librarian brain was hard at work.
“When I came across historic locations, I would devise these little tours in my head,” Sugimoto says. “When the pandemic struck, I thought, how great would it be if I could bring these tours out of my head and into people’s homes?” And that is exactly what she did.
