BHAG 3.0 What's Next?! Sustained Library Advocacy

You know the problem. People "love their library" but don't vote for it, or don't make it a priority for existing funds.

What can YOU do? Answer: decide that you'll work to change that. How? Make 2012 your Year of Library Advocacy. You, personally, whether board member, staff member, or citizen. Here’s the plan:

1. Keep hitting these four messages:
Libraries change lives. How? Through our passionate advocacy for literacy and lifelong learning.
Libraries build community. How? By providing public space and encouraging citizen engagement.
Libraries mean business. How? By helping people find jobs, and helping entrepreneurs create them.
Libraries are a smart investment. How? We are a cooperative purchasing agreement that has a great return on the investment.

2. Adopt an advocacy calendar. Here's one.

January-March - Libraries Mean Business (beginning of year up to tax season)

April-June - Libraries Are A Smart Investment (emphasize the savings and cooperative purchasing angle of the library)

July-September - Libraries Change Lives (summer reading and back to school)

October-December - Libraries Build Community (emphasize social capital, human connection, tying into elections and culminating in shared holidays)

3. Do something on this advocacy checklist, a minimum of one a month.

[] Give a talk at a local civic club. (The BHAG talk, to the right, is a good one!)
[] Pay for a 1/4 page ad in the local newspaper.
[] Volunteer to write a column for the paper.
[] Team up for a PSA or interview on local radio.
[] Write a letter of library support to your local town council member.
[] March in the local parade.
[] Buy or bake an apple pie, and present it to the mayor.
[] Hand out library card applications at your local PTO/PTA.
[] Host a Volunteer Appreciation Day.

(Please feel free to add to this list in the comment section of this post!)

And stay tuned for the next big thing: a coordinated statewide library campaign. But for now, why not blog about, tweet, email, or hand out a copy of this posting?

When is the time to library advocacy? NOW.

1 comments:

Unknown said...

LOL love Libraries also.,, :)

- Tailor Colorado Springs

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