Getting closer to the trifecta
A while back I wrote a post about the library programming trifecta: have a program, tie it to materials, and give it online presence (preferably a social, participatory web presence rather than a static one). I try to practice what I preach, so I want to share with PLA Blog readers a couple of programs I’m doing at the Bushwick Branch of Brooklyn Public Library. Neither of them has really completely reached the point where I can say “trifecta achieved!” but I do think both are striving toward that goal. Both programs also have the potential to be replicated in any other community: so please, if you dig what you read here give it a try at your library!
In both instances I encouraged friends and partners from the community to think of this as THEIR program- not the LIBRARY’s. This is an important component if you want serious, lasting buy-in from the community. The library building is public space that the community can use for whatever they want, provided it fits within the mission and scope of your library. The librarian is the connector; the one who enables flexibility, organizes the space and provides the information resources to support the program. Looking at things this way- essentially turning the librarian role into that of a production coordinator- allows you to have self-sustaining programs and it keeps you from going crazy pouring energy into topics and themes that you might not even understand.
Here’s what I’ve been up to, with the assistance of some very talented and motivated Brooklynites:
1) The Bushwick Reading Series
The Bushwick Reading Series takes place in the basement of the Bushwick Library on the second Saturday of every month from 3:00 to 5:00 PM.
The Series is co-curated by Bushwick residents Niina Pollari and Parker Phillips. The series features local writers of poetry, fiction, and non-ficiton while it creates an evolving book list for the Bushwick library. Every month, the readers share five book titles that they’ve loved or found influential and the library offers those books for checkout at the event. The library also maintains a semi-permanent shelf for these materials so that fans of the reading series can find them and share them.
2) The Past, Present, and Future of Food: Bushwick, Brooklyn
A (n Urban) (Farm) Salon
What is this place, Bushwick, Brooklyn? At one point it was all farmland, and (with a little help from Queens) farmers raised enough food to feed the metropolis that New York City was already in the 18th and 19th century. There were farms everywhere. But today? There are trees here and there, maybe a couple of gardens in the middle of buildings, you can see dirt some places, but food is not made here. Food can be bought – anything you can imagine from around the world can be found here – but grown?
On March 7, as part of the Arts in Bushwick SITE Festival, we will explore how Brooklyn and Bushwick in particular went from being so rich an agricultural community to the desert it is today, and we’ll talk about what people can and ARE doing to grow food here. How did it happen that all the land was developed? What kind of food can you get to eat here now? What’s made here? Is it good for you in any way, shape, or form? Do Twinkies count as food? How about Cup-O-Noodles? Is ketchup a vegetable?
How about it public librarians? Are you ready to act as production coordinators, tying together your community’s ideas and energy, your library media and resources, and the seemingly boundless connectivity the internet offers? I’m pretty sure it is the future of public librarianship…
