Or: How Do I Find a Good Partner?
There is no widely accepted definition of community engagement, and the meaning can vary in different contexts. The following are some definitions of community engagement, mainly in the context of vertical community engagement and planning and decision-making.
Community engagement is a process enabling a public library to:
- Proactively seek out community values, concerns, and aspirations
- Incorporate those values, concerns, and aspirations into a decision-making process or processes
- Establish an ongoing partnership with the community to ensure that the community’s priorities and values continue to shape services and the service system
Community engagement is an ongoing commitment that all public library directors and library board members should consider incorporating into their workflow. What it will look like will depend on you, your library, and your community.
Basic Tips
- Identify a long-term, broad vision for your community. Remember that the library is a part of the community. The vision should be about the role the library can play to support a healthy community.
- Identify who in your community should be involved in the conversation. Who is interested in building a healthy, strong community?
- Review the resources listed below and others as well. Pick one that best fits your situation. Or use parts from all resources that apply.
- Make a commitment as director to maintain the activities of community engagement as an ongoing part of your responsibility as a library director. Make sure your board understands the importance of community building and supports the library’s efforts in in this area.
- Think big, but realistically. What relationships can you build and successfully maintain? Keeping the conversation going is important so individuals can be heard and contribute.
- Use your library community connections to discover what other communities are doing. Learn from your colleagues. Or better yet, if your communities are close geographically, work together.
Today’s world of information is changing quickly. It is a tough road to go alone. Here are some reasons why community building makes the easier for all concerned:
- Building collaborative partnerships with other like-minded organizations in your community can maximize the impact of your library’s long-term vision. If you are a one-person library, you may not be working 40 hours a week at this position. Therefore, you need help.
- Engaging others in the community can help the director and the library board keep the library relevant.
- Community engagement builds strong communities that in turn impact the use and viability of the local public library.
Resources
- Community Heart & Soul: Revitalizing Small U.S. Cities and Towns
- A resident-driven process that engages the entire population of a town in identifying what they love most about their community, what future they want for it, and how to achieve it.
- Developed and field-tested over a decade in partnership with over 90 small cities and towns across America.
- Turning Outward Resources for Libraries
- Tools from the American Library Association to help libraries strengthen their role as community leaders and bring about positive change in their communities.
- The Aspen Institute Forum for Community Solutions
- Envisions a future where communities create their own vibrant and lasting solutions to the social and economic problems they face.