How Participatory Service Helps Increase Inclusivity in Libraries
Libraries are for everyone, but do all libraries provide spaces where everyone can feel comfortable and welcome?
The answer to this question varies depending on the library’s location, but that shouldn’t stop libraries from finding ways to improve. For libraries to be inclusive, it is important to focus on all the patrons they serve. Understanding the community is a great way to know what services to provide and what collections to expand. Some ways that libraries are doing this are through surveys and community feedback.
My local library, for example, has signs with QR codes and a link for patrons to provide feedback on ways that the library can improve the experience of remote workers in the library. During a recent meeting, Michael Casey, the Director of Customer Experience for the Gwinnett County Public Library in metropolitan Atlanta, recommended surveying patrons every three years. The data collected in these surveys can be used in budget meetings to request more funding or in planning meetings when brainstorming new services to try. They also help by letting the library know what isn’t working and what could be replaced.
I recently interviewed Allison De Geus, the Media Center librarian at Stanford University’s Cecil H. Green Library, and she shared some of the services the Media Center provides for faculty and students. While it is important to have a collection of films, music, and video games for research, she explained that all the items in the media center were for recreational use as well. Her goal is to make the Media Center a place for students to have fun and engage with one another. De Geus said that the library is more than just a place to study and research, it is also a third space for everyone to feel like they can relax away from school/work and home.
One of the newest installments to the Green Library Media Center will be a tabletop gaming collection. De Geus shared that the idea came after activities like table tennis and card games became so popular. This expansion is a great example of how “the collections grow and thrive via user involvement” (Serials Review, 2007).
Having an inclusive library means more than just providing services that patrons request or need. It also means having a collection that reflects all different types of people and creating spaces that are accessible.
An article from librarian Karen Jensen shares three “P’s” to focus on for making a library more welcoming. They are Policies, Practices, and Patrons. Jensen explains in the practices section that a great way to make sure a collection is inclusive is to do periodic diversity audits. She adds that these should also be done with book order lists to increase the number of books by marginalized voices. This is so important for every library, not just those in more diverse communities.
Isabel Gonzalez-Smith, Undergraduate Experience Librarian at the University of Illinois, said it best when she said, “Diversity matters because we all play a part in the messages we disseminate, regardless of how we identify.”
In the Patrons section, Jensen’s only focus is to create a welcoming environment. Some ways to do this is to “build inclusive collections and present inclusive services” and then allow patrons to use them “in the ways that are best for them.” By giving patrons freedom to explore (in ways that keep all patrons physically safe) the library becomes a place of innovation and inclusivity. This is what all libraries should strive to be.
References
https://teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2018/05/01/the-3ps-of-creating-a-welcoming-library/
Stephens, M., M. Collins, 2007. Web 2.0, Library 2.0, and the Hyperlinked Library. Serials Review 33(4): 253-256.
