ALA Public Programs Office presents new ideas for library programming at Annual Conference

CHICAGO — The American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office will present a diverse offering of programs at the 2012 ALA Annual Conference in Anaheim, open to all attendees who are interested in learning how to make their library a community center for lifelong learning and civic engagement through arts and humanities programs.

These events will include discussions on marketing and promotion, audience development, community partnerships and a variety of programming formats that can be applied to all types and sizes of libraries. Speakers will introduce topics with exciting possibilities for public programming in libraries, including models for civic engagement, discussions of literature and films, literacy outreach and demonstrations of science and technology.

The six programs offered by the ALA Public Programs Office at the ALA Annual Conference are:

• Libraries at the Crossroads: Programming for Civic Engagement
  
  Saturday, June 23, 8 – 10 a.m.
  
  Anaheim Convention Center, Room 207A
  
  Learn how libraries are serving as safe and neutral places to promote engagement and civic discourse. Nancy Kranich, chair of the American Library Association's Center for Civic Life Advisory Board, presents an overview of civic engagement programs taking place in libraries today. Librarians from across the field will share specific examples of different types of successful civic engagement programming that can work for you.
• Making Sense of the Civil War: Reading and Discussion Program Opportunities
  
  Saturday, June 23, 10:30 a.m. – noon
  
  Anaheim Convention Center, Room 202B
  
  In collaboration with ALA and 37 state humanities councils, National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) has supported development of a discussion program for libraries that probes the meanings of the American Civil War during its sesquicentennial. Following the popular “Let’s Talk About It” model, the program engages participants in discussion of related texts selected by Civil War historian Edward Ayers. Attend this session for how-to information on hosting the series, an overview of the discussion model and details about funding opportunities for this and other programs about the Civil War.
• Muslim Journeys: Collection Development and Programming Grants
  
  Sunday, June 24, 10:30 a.m. – noon
  
  Anaheim Convention Center, Room 202B
  
  Representatives from NEH and ALA will present information about the “Muslim Journeys” Bookshelf, a program of NEH’s Bridging Cultures initiative. The program seeks to foster understanding and appreciation of the pluralism of cultural forms and traditions within the Muslim world by providing libraries with a valuable new set of resources. Librarians who hosted pilot “Muslim Journeys” programs will share their experiences and best practices. Attend this session to learn more about applying for the collection and developing related community programs.
• Discover Tech: How to Present Exciting Engineering Programs in Your Library
  
  Saturday, June 23, 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.
  
  Anaheim Convention Center, Room 210C
  
  Many libraries want to introduce STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) into their programming to attract new audiences and help stimulate children’s interest in science and technology. Discover Tech is a new traveling exhibit for public libraries from the National Center for Interactive Learning/Space Science Institute. Find out about the exhibit, Engineers Without Borders, the Grand Challenges of Engineering and programs in robotics and green energy that will encourage aspiring young engineers and delight adults. The program will also discuss a new STEM Community of Practice for librarians and other helpful ideas and resources for engineering programs in libraries.
• Discover Earth: How to Present Programs About Earth Sciences in Your Library
  
  Sunday, June 24, 1:30 – 3:30 p.m.
  
  Anaheim Convention Center, Room 201B
  
  Many libraries want to introduce STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) into their programming to attract new audiences and help stimulate children’s interest in science and technology. Discover Earth is a traveling exhibit for public libraries that showcases earth science topics such as weather, climate and polar ecosystems and pulls together many effective resources to help librarians. Hear from public library exhibit hosts and learn about a Community of Practice for librarians and scientists who want to create innovative STEM programs in libraries.
• PRIME TIME Preschool: A Primer for the Humanities
  
  Monday, June 25, 10:30 a.m. – noon
  
  Anaheim Convention Center, Room 208B
  
  PRIME TIME FAMILY READING, the national award-winning humanities-based family literacy program continues to expand and evolve. Now, families with preschool age children will have the same opportunity to bond as a family around the act of reading and discussing humanities themes together as those with school age children have had for the past 20 years. Join our panel discussion and explore PRIME TIME Preschool, an early childhood development model, and other new PRIME TIME initiatives.

For more information, including full descriptions and speaker lists for the above programs, visit the ALA Public Programs Office website. For more program planning tips and ideas, visit www.ProgrammingLibrarian.org, or sign up for the monthly Programming Librarian e-newsletter. For more information on the ALA Annual Conference, including registration and housing information, visit www.alaannual.org.

The ALA Public Programs Office promotes cultural and community programming as an essential part of library service in all types and sizes of libraries. Successful library programming initiatives have included the Let’s Talk About It reading and discussion series, traveling exhibitions, film discussion programs, LIVE! @ your library and more. Recently, the ALA Public Programs Office developed www.ProgrammingLibrarian.org, an online resource center bringing librarians timely and valuable information to support them in the creation of high-quality cultural programs for their communities. For more information on the ALA Public Programs Office, visit www.ala.org/publicprograms.