Community engagement meeting on May 4th @ Princeville Library

The Lillie M. Evans Library in Princeville is planning a community engagement meeting on Tuesday, May 4th at 7pm at the library. LME Library recently was awarded a grant from the American Library Association (ALA) to help establish a Library of Things. A Library of Things is any collection of objects that are outside the traditional items loaned by libraries. Objects can include items such as electronics, science kits, craft supplies, and equipment.

The meeting on May 4^th will be an opportunity to discuss the circulation of equipment we already own as well as consider items that the LME Library can purchase that could assist local residents, businesses, and organizations. We would like as many local organizational representatives as possible to attend this event. The grant discussion will allow us to better engage our community and execute our plan.

 

The Library of Things movement has expanded in the last decade and it makes sense to base it at the public library. Our library has established hours convenient to our community and is a safe and reliable place to pick up and drop off items. We have a powerful circulation system in place that can be adapted to circulate equipment and we have the ability to track a variety of statistics. People are familiar with borrowing materials from libraries so a Library of Things has the advantage of being both innovative and familiar at the same time.

The grant from the American Library Association (ALA) is part of the association’s Libraries Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries initiative. Since 2014, ALA’s Libraries Transforming Communities initiative has re-imagined the role libraries play in supporting communities. Our award includes facilitator training and $3,000 in grant funds. The initiative is part of ALA’s longtime commitment to preparing library workers for the expanding role of libraries.

“Through community engagement, libraries are continuing their important work on literacy and access, while also working to fill gaps in other areas that may not have fallen to libraries in the past,” said ALA President Julius C. Jefferson. “We are excited to provide the resources for hundreds of libraries to take on new challenges in their communities and look forward to seeing the great things they accomplish.”

Libraries Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries is offered in partnership with the Association for Rural & Small Libraries (ARSL). Please contact the LME Library at 385-4540 for more information or visit our website at lmelibrary.org.