LTC: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries Site Support Notebook - Additional Resources

Additional LTC Resources

The Libraries Transforming Communities eCourse and Facilitation Guide will give you all the basics you need to plan and lead your conversation. If you wish to go deeper, these additional ALA resources will help!

There are many ways to structure a conversation with a group of people, and ALA has curated a list of resources that have proven popular with libraries. ALA and its partners at the National Coalition for Dialogue & Deliberation (NCDD) identified two of these approaches — Conversation Café and Future Search — that may be a good starting point for small or rural libraries because of their focus on small groups. You are welcome to explore any and all of these approaches to see what fits your needs; they all have different strengths.

ALA has curated some of these resources on its Libraries Transforming Communities website (ala.org/LTC), where you will find free webinar recordings, printable resources and guidance about:

• Conversation Café: Useful when you want participants to learn more about themselves, their community or an issue, and/or discover innovative solutions to problems.
• Essential Partners: Useful when you need to resolve conflicts, encourage community healing after a crisis or trauma, or improve relations among groups in your community.
• Everyday Democracy: Useful when you need to empower community members to solve complicated problems and take responsibility for the solutions.
• Future Search: Useful in uncertain, fast-changing situations when it is important that everyone have the same large picture in order to act responsibly.
• Harwood Institute for Public Innovation: Useful when you want to identify and learn more about your community’s needs and desires.
• National Issues Forums: Useful when you want to encourage exploration of tough public problems in increase public knowledge of the issue, and/or you wish to influence public decisions and policy.
• World Café: Useful when you want to encourage exploration of a topic, exploration of participants’ own views and experiences as well as the experiences of others, and/or to explore and develop innovative ideas and solutions.

Programming Librarian

ALA’s Programming Librarian website includes articles, program ideas and resource recommendations on library programming topics.

Below is a selection of Programming Librarian content related to leading conversations, either live or in-person, written by library workers. You may find them helpful or interesting while planning your conversation. Stay up to date on future Programming Librarian articles by signing up for the free newsletter.

• "Tele-Conferencing 101" (March 8, 2021)
• "Interrupters, Mic Hogs & Meanies: Strategies for Dealing with Troublemakers" (February 19, 2021)
• "Ground Rules: How to Set Successful Guidelines for Your Conversation Programs" (January 21, 2021)
• “7 Ways to Make Your Virtual Programs More Accessible to Patrons with Disabilities” (December 18, 2020)
• “Leading a Virtual Film Discussion in 7 Steps” (October 21, 2020)
• “Tips for Facilitating a Virtual Group Conversation” (September 29, 2020)
• “Using Libraries to Ignite Voter and Community Agency” (September 16, 2020)
• “Small Gestures Matter: Tennessee Library Helps Community Recover from Loss” (August 4, 2020)
• “Wisconsin Deaf Storyslam: Q&A with the Libraries Transform Communities Engagement Grant Recipient” (June 24, 2020)
• “What I Tell People When They Ask about Latinx Engagement” (May 28, 2020)
• “Program Model: The 411 on 420” (January 31, 2020)
• “Program Model: Ben Franklin Circle” (December 9, 2019)
• “Virtual Programming Resource Round-up” (June 10, 2020)
• “The Power of Community Conversations: Denver Public Library and the Harwood Institute” (July 18, 2019)
• “Community Conversations: Dialogue about Health” (April 24, 2019)
• “Reaching Out to People with Disabilities: Sacramento Public Library and the Harwood Institute” (May 17, 2019)
• “Community Conversations: Engagement through Local History” (March 1, 2019)
• “Program Model: Civic Lab” (April 30, 2018)
• “American Muslims in Indiana: A Community Discussion” (October 21, 2016)

Additional Fundraising Information

If you wish to seek further support for community engagement projects, consider reaching out to the following organizations for additional funding:

Nonprofit sources:

• Friends of the library
• Health Science/History professional organizations
• University departments
• Local health science and history groups
• State and local arts councils
• Community college cultural advisory board, educational foundation, contracts and grants department
• Local/regional/state family foundations
• County historical societies
• Centers for the Book
• Women’s business organizations

For profit sources:

• Credit unions
• Computer networks and computer stores
• Department stores
• Banks
• Auto dealerships
• Supermarkets
• Hardware stores
• Newspapers
• Utility companies

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