Collaborative Communication Project

Background
I work in the reference department at a suburban public library outside Chicago, where I
help patrons with a wide range of reference inquiries, create non-fiction displays and reading
lists, and design and teach computer classes for adults. Although the main roster of workshops
generally includes Microsoft Word, !cel, and Internet "earching, I ha#e been successful in
creating many new courses, such as $interest, %logging %asics, &acebook, and others. 'hese are
generally well-attended, mainly by seniors in the area who are looking to learn more about
popular technology. $atrons who take the computer workshops often ha#e a lot of questions and
the range of skill sets is #ery broad. I wanted to create a program that would help our patrons
learn skills in a one-on-one setting.
At this library, we also ha#e a (olun'een program that pro#ides opportunities for
teenagers to help out and gain ser#ice hours. In the past, our 'een )ibrarian has mentioned that
this program is underutili*ed, and it seems that students were mainly gi#en clerical or
organi*ational work to do. $art of this pro+ect came from my desire to use #olunteers in more
meaningful ways that also do not supersede the need for paid employees.
Vision
In order to better ser#e adults who wish to learn social networking skills, the ,eference
-epartment will partner with the 'een )ibrarian in ,eaders "er#ices and the Communications
-epartment to create an indi#iduali*ed social media coaching program facilitated by teen
#olunteers under my guidance. 'his intergenerational program will be ongoing, happening once
a quarter on a "aturday morning. $atrons will be able to sign up for an appointment with a
#olunteer wherein they can ask questions, set up accounts, or. 'een #olunteers will recei#e
training both in the use and instruction of different social networking sites, including &acebook,
'witter, and $interest, before participating in sessions with patrons. 'he main goals of this
program are to increase digital literacy of our adult patrons, and to pro#ide meaningful #olunteer
opportunities that will connect teenagers to their community. %oth the #olunteers and students
will gain e!posure to different age groups and members of their community, ideally learning
from each other through their shared e!perience.
Plan of Action
As in any plan that in#ol#es multiple indi#iduals, the first step was to pitch the idea to my
super#isor as well as a few members of other departments. %ecause it was fairly simple to
organi*e, would largely be my responsibility, and would pro#ide a great ser#ice to patrons,
e#eryone seemed #ery e!cited about it. With staff buy-in, I was able to create a more formali*ed
definition of the pro+ect to route around the department, a description to send to potential
#olunteers, as well as the copy for ad#ertising it in the newsletter. All of these communications
needed to be clear, precise, and targeted to their specific audiences. %re#ity was also key to
ensure that people read all the information. As part of this process, I partnered with the 'een
)ibrarian to inquire about #olunteers from the local high school as well as teenagers who are
already part of the (olun'een program at the library.
With #olunteer recruitment and internal.community ad#ertisement underway, I was free
to set up a system for patrons to sign up, create handouts and training materials, and educate staff
members on the procedures for the program. I then fielded questions from staff, prospecti#e
students, and communicated with our interested #olunteers.
Results Thus Far
/n 0une 12, the first set of appointments took place. 'his was the pilot for the program,
entitled 3&acebook Indi#idual Appointments.4 Although not the +a**iest program name, it was
descripti#e and did the +ob. "ign-ups were slow for this program, potentially because of its
weekend time slot, or because of the need to call for an appointment. It was unclear why this
program wasn5t selling out quickly, but by the day of, there were 6 patrons signed up for half-
hour sessions with the two #olunteers and myself. /ur ma!imum was 17 patrons, so this was not
a bad figure.
/ne of the #olunteers was #ery eager and confident in the role of tutor, but the other was
a little slower to warm up to it. 'he latter teen needed a little more help and guidance, which was
fine, and it made me think that the role of the staff person should be more organi*ational and
o#erseeing. 'here is definitely a need for more #olunteers in order to free up the staff member to
handle logistics, trouble shooting, etc.
&eedback from patrons and #olunteers was positi#e. "ome students were a little confused
by the young age of their coaches, but they adapted well and learned from the teens. A few
quotes from patrons include, 3I made a new friend,4 3I learned a lot,4 3It would be e#en better if
it were an hour,4 and 38our generation knows about all this stuff.4 'he #olunteers e!pressed
interest in returning for another program.
Goals for the Future
In the short term, for this pilot of the pro+ect, my goals centered around attendance and
communication. 'he main thrust was to make sure that we ser#ed a good number of patrons, that
reference librarians communicated the appropriate information to patrons, and that #olunteers
were e!perienced with social media and reliable.
I decided to change the name of the program to 3"ocial Media Mentoring,4 for future
sessions in order to make it more appealing and catchier. 'his is also part of my goal to e!pand
these sessions to other social networking sites besides &acebook. Although many of the students
are interested in that site, I want to ser#e a wider range of patrons and e!pand people5s hori*ons.
In the future, I would like to focus more efforts on recruitment and training for future
sessions. While I was happy for any #olunteers for the pilot, I want to focus more on de#eloping
a reliable roster of engaged young people who are knowledgeable about social networking and
en+oy working with older adults. In terms of training, this kind of program could benefit from
discussions about how best to e!plain tricky topics, what words to use, and how to understand
the patron5s perspecti#e and needs.
With more lead time, I hope to in#ol#e more staff members in the collaborati#e process.
/ur library is a little late in the game to utili*e social media professionally, but we are
de#eloping a facebook page presently. I plain to enlist our Communication director will to use
this program as a way to reach out to more patrons #ia social media. I am looking to increase this
program5s #isibility in the community with flyers, press releases, and a greater web presence.
'his is the kind of story people lo#e hearing about, and I hope publici*ing it will not only mean
more patrons signing up for the program, but an increased public opinion about the library and
its programming.