Hunger, Homelessness & Poverty Task Force – SRRT/ALA
Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library Association
LEAD Elementary School Librarian Shannon McGovern said, “The [kids] are so excited about getting all of the new books, they’ve been talking about it since the first day I told them.”
More than 40 volunteers from Team Teal and SAP joined nonprofit Access Books Bay Area to refurbish the library at LEAD Elementary school in San Mateo. Volunteers prepared 1,170 books by stamping, alphabetizing, applying bar codes, wrapping, and shelving them.
Cost of building affordable single-family homes would be subsidized, deadline to apply is Sept. 30.
The Community Planning and Development office at HUD disburses more than $3.6 billion in federal funding for rental assistance, mental health and substance use treatment, and outreach to try and get those living outside into shelter or housing.
“We are humbled by Ms. Parton’s incredible act of generosity,” Nashville Public Library Foundation President Shawn Bakker said. “Not only has The Dollywood Foundation given all the books necessary to fulfill a key pillar of the program, but the historic financial contribution will enable the Library to accelerate [the] launch of this program within the fiscal year.”
Maurice Broaddus was a writer by trade and became a middle school librarian by accident.
The award-winning Afrofuturist and sci-fi author once filled in at The Oaks Academy middle school, where he was also a teacher, for the librarian going on maternity leave. The librarian never came back.
“No librarian wants to cut hours, we want to expand libraries if we could,” said Interim City Librarian Bridget Esqueda.
“A rebuilt branch of the Brooklyn Public Library is opening with a new feature: on the seven floors right above the library, there will be 49 affordable housing units. Michelle de la Uz, executive director of Fifth Avenue Committee, a nonprofit that builds affordable housing and which partnered with the Brooklyn Public Library on the project, said she’s excited to see how those tenants engage with the library, and that the branch’s programming and resources could help people feel less isolated.
Linda Johnson, president and CEO of the Brooklyn Public Library, and de la Uz hope to see it replicated, throughout New York and beyond. “There’s an urgent need for affordable housing, and there are a lot of underutilized libraries that need modernization anyway,” de la Uz says. ‘Why not kill two birds with one stone?'”
Date: Thursday, August 11, 2022 Time:2:00PM – 3:30PM ET
Description:
As we have witnessed the social, financial, and mental health challenges of our patrons escalate during the COVID-19 pandemic, libraries must connect and build relationships with local providers focused on these needs so that we may serve our communities as effectively as possible. This session will explore why it is imperative that libraries connect with social service providers in their communities, how to cultivate these connections, and tips to make sure the agencies you work with are effective, ethical partners.
This webinar will be recorded.
“A sociologist named Patrick Sharkey coined the term, ‘collective efficacy,’ to describe how the institutions work together to create community. In that regard, [Director] Shaker said, ‘Our library team feels stupendously lucky to be operating in a community that has organizations and village staff who are so open to collaboration and idea sharing. It really makes Forest Park a great place to work in.'”
