Blog Archive Gadget

I added a "Blog Archive" search gadget to our page. Posts are organized by month, and can be viewed by using the drop down bar. This is another way to peruse the blog and find certain grouping of posts easier. I tested it out and it gets a thumbs up 😊

Libraries as Social Hubs

Since their inception, libraries have been ever-evolving social hubs. They serve as gathering places, elevating life in the communities they serve by fostering involvement and interconnectedness. Libraries act as social hubs not only due to the programs they offer, but simply because of their existence as a welcoming space. Public libraries are producers of trust and social capital because "they offer universal access to information services, treat all patrons equally, and provide a meeting place available to everyone" (Varheim, 259).

Locally, through the San Diego Public Library system, the "Do Your Homework at the Library" program is one way San Diego libraries serve as a social hub for connecting the community. Through this program, volunteers can help students, K-8, with their homework. Students can gather and work together with tutors to learn and get access to digital resources and other school materials they may need. These sorts of programs absolutely help to reinforce libraries as social hubs for learning and community engagement.

New Vision for San Diego Public Libraries -- The City of San Diego

Works Cited: 

Vårheim, Andreas. “Trust in Libraries and Trust in Most People: Social Capital Creation in the Public Library.” The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy, vol. 84, no. 3, 2014, pp. 258–277. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/676487. Accessed 29 Apr. 2020.

"Social Role of the Library." Social Role of the Library: Libraries Matter, http://www.ala.org/tools/research/librariesmatter/category/social-role-library. Accessed 29 Apr. 2020.

Libraries and the Homeless

Here in San Diego, like in many other cities, libraries and the homeless community often intersect. A library can be one of the few places the homeless can go and feel welcome. But sometimes the needs of the homeless can overwhelm library staff, especially when they don't feel able to provide the services and resources individuals may need. In addition, it can also be a challenge to ensure they are creating a welcoming space for all while still keeping the safety and comfort of their staff and other patrons at the forefront. At the Central Library in downtown San Diego, more or less the epicenter of the homeless and mental health crisis in San Diego, the library has teamed up with San Diego County Health and Human Services to open a department on the third floor where those who need help can access information to resources and referrals. The services offered by this program include emergency housing referrals, referrals to doctors, and food distribution referrals. Creating partnerships with local programs that help the homeless can be very beneficial to a library and help take some of the burden off the shoulders of staff. For example, in 2008, the San Francisco Public Library became the first in the nation to hire its own full time psychiatric social worker (Ruhlmann, 43). The intersection of homelessness and libraries can be a complex issue, but creating awareness, proper training of staff, and providing access to much-needed resources are a few small ways to help those in need.

                      San Diego's Downtown Library Keeps Homeless Warm and Dry -- KPBS


Works Cited:
Ruhlmann, Ellyn. “A HOME to the HOMELESS.” American Libraries, vol. 45, no. 11/12, 2014, pp. 40–44., www.jstor.org/stable/24603545. Accessed 28 Apr. 2020.

Libraries and Student Success

Libraries are integral to student success. When schools and libraries have a strong relationship, children benefit the most. By supporting school curriculum, having a wide variety of engaging books at different levels, programs that promote reading, and good technology resources, there are numerous ways libraries can help promote the education of children. "Research has shown a positive relationship between investment in school libraries and student achievement in reading and writing." Simply having access to print materials can improve attitudes towards reading, how long and how often a child reads, and their reading performance (Bleidt, 68). In addition, when libraries are well staffed so that children can receive proper instruction in research and retrieving items, these skills can serve them well going forward in their academic and personal lives, too.

                                    Children in Reading Room, Santa Fe Public Library, 1957
                                     http://www.palaceofthegovernors.org/photoarchives.html


Works Cited:
Bleidt, Shirley A. “How Students Utilize and Perceive Their School Library.” American Secondary Education, vol. 39, no. 3, 2011, pp. 67–85. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/23100424. Accessed 21 Apr. 2020.

Social Networking and Libraries

Now more than ever, social networking plays an enormous role in our world, both personally and professionally. Libraries are no different. Social networking has opened up entirely new opportunities in terms of information sharing and interconnectedness-- two things (among many others) that are fundamental to our libraries and fostering their prosperity.

There are a number of benefits a library can find in social networking: cultivating community engagement (and potentially widening what and who their community is by reaching out to more readers), sharing information about upcoming events and programs of all kinds, and, in short, promoting all the library has to offer. Johannes Neuer, the associate director of marketing for the New York Public Library in 2013, says "he believes that using social media is a low budget practice that any-sized library can take on" and that it is possible for it to be done "in house" (Dankowski, 39).

Social networking is a tool full of potential. Personally, it has allowed me to connect to one of my favorite libraries, The Rosenberg Library, even though it is more than 1,200 miles away in Galveston, Texas. Through the Rosenberg Library's use of social networking on their Instagram account, I can still learn about their latest virtual adult book club that meets via zoom at the end of this month due to COVID-19, as well as participate in guessing the original use of one of their many strange, archaic Victorian Era tools from their museum collection that they also share information about through Instagram. Social networking is an effective way to truly help patrons get the most out of their libraries.


Works Cited:
Dankowski, Terra. “How Libraries Are Using Social Media.” American Libraries, vol. 44, no. 5, 2013, pp. 38–41. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/24602212. Accessed 20 Apr. 2020.