St. Jerome Public LibraryOutreach – Strategic Plan

2011-2013

Transforming our Community one

Reader at a Time

Overview In St. Jerome. Mississippi

On Gulf Coast, post Katrina

Provide community cohesiveness

11 Branches – Population still underserved

Shift in demographics

Current initiatives – African American, Yes, Teen

Proposed initiatives – Hispanic, Elderly

Vision Statement

St. Jerome Public Library Outreach Department: Reaching out, helping

people connect to the world.

Mission Statement

We reach out to individuals and groups within the community to

enhance connectivity to the world and enrich lives through collaborative learning.

Guiding Values

1. Community2. Access3. Democracy4. Diversity 5. Education 6. Sustainability7. Service

Organization

Planning Team and Factors Avoid homogenous group,

seek diversity

Avoid “Group Think”

Deciding which populations to focus on

Amber Ovsak, St. Jerome Public Library Director

Patty Miles, Outreach Department Manager

Lori Levine, Adult Services Manager

Kristina Jacobs, Library Board Member

Betty White, Strategic Planning Specialist, specializes in libraries

S.W.O.T Analysis

Internal Strengths

Print Resources available

Identified Need

Database of Volunteers

Non-hierarchical

Ethnic diversity of staff

Internal Weaknesses

Shortage of local funds

Dependence on volunteers

S.W.O.T Analysis

External OpportunitiesCommunity Partnerships

Delivery by Meals on Wheels

Donations of goods and supplies

Government funds

External Threats Fear of Government

Lack of Understanding of the Process

Lack of Partner follow-through

Difficulty in contacting target populations

Gap Analysis

Programming and Patron Statistics

Currently: Program attendance among the Hispanic population is 1.9%

Goal: Our goal is to bring up attendance to 6%

Implementation Strategies

Marketing programming specifically for the Hispanic population of St Jerome. Making sure that advertisements are in the Spanish language and are distributed in areas and retailers that are heavily frequented by the Hispanic population ensures market saturation.

Gap Analysis

Programming and Patron Statistics

Currently: While we have a good patron base among our elderly citizens, circulation by these patrons is low at 9%

Goal: Our goal is to see circulation rise to 12%

Implementation Strategies

Initiative 1: Deliver books, audiobooks, dvds, cds, etc. to homebound individuals.

Initiative 2: Deliver books to nursing homes, senior centers, and hospitals.

Initiative 3: Develop weekly programs at the St. Jerome Senior Center.

Service to the Elderly

Deliver to homebound individuals

Meals on Wheels

Volunteer Delivery – 5 Zones

Deliver to nursing homes & senior centers

Monthly cart delivery

Permanent contact individual

Service to the ElderlyDevelop weekly programs at St. Jerome

Senior Center

Week 1: Travelogues

Week 2: Memoires

Week 3: Games

Week 4: Informational

Week 5 (when applicable): Seasonal

Hispanic Services

Literacy Programs in Spanish

Programs for Early Literacy in Spanish

Spanish Book Clubs

Book Locker

Hispanic Services Continued…

Painting Your Vision Mural Project

Designed for Hispanic youth ages 12 – 18

Partner with Art Council, Wal-Mart, Ace Hardware, and Sherwin Williams

Pregnancy and Childcare Lecture Series in Spanish

Educating teens on the importance of prenatal care

Partner with Community Health Center.

Performance MeasurementAll programs will be evaluated by the Outreach

Department Manager and Library Director at the end of each year.

Each program will be evaluated throughout the year by the appropriate librarian.

Changes/adjustments will be made throughout the year to improve programs. These changes will be documented

Attendance will be recorded for every program.

Performance Measurement Deliver books to home-bound individuals

Evaluated quarterly

How many people being served and new participants

Survey volunteers, Meals-on-Wheels staff and volunteers, 10 participants

Deliver books to nursing homes, hospitals, and senior center

Evaluated every 6 months

Number and types of materials being checked out at each site

Appropriate personnel at site surveyed

Weekly programs at St. Jerome Senior Center

Evaluated with appropriate staff member quarterly

Attendance

Participant surveys throughout the year and after every informational session

Programs for Early Literacy in Spanish

Evaluated at end of each 8-week session

Attendance and number of children that attended all or most

Parents will be asked to provide feedback

Performance Measurement Spanish book clubs

Evaluated monthly Participants, staff, and volunteers will be surveyed and/or feedback will be

recorded Attendance and Participation

Book delivery to Hispanic Community Center Evaluated every 6 months Number and type of materials being checked out Appropriate personnel surveyed

Paint Your Vision Mural Project City officials, local artists, partners, and teen participants will be surveyed Community feedback

Pregnancy and Child Care Lecture series in Spanish Staff, volunteers, and participants will evaluate the program at the end of the

series Attendance

Implementation Timeline

January-June 2011 Elderly Services

Hire a part-time Elderly Services Librarian

Contact sites about monthly delivery

Create procedures and routes Begin delivery

Hispanic Services Hire a part-time Hispanic

Programming Librarian Contact Community Center

about delivery Create procedures Begin delivery

July-December 2011 Elderly Services

Request approval from Senior Center for weekly programs

Find volunteers and plan weekly programs

Hispanic Services Request approval to

implement new programs at Community Center

Plan weekly sessions for Programs for Early Literacy in Spanish

Implementation Timeline

January-June 2012 Elderly Services

Turn Elderly Services Librarian position into a full-time position

Begin weekly programs at St. Jerome Senior Center

Set up procedures for home-delivery

Hispanic Services Turn Hispanic Programming

Librarian position into a full-time position

Begin Programs for Early Literacy in Spanish

Set up, advertise, and registration for Paint Your Vision Mural Project

July-December 2012 Elderly Services

Set up procedures with Meals-on-Wheels

Create home-delivery routes Advertise and begin sign-up

for home-delivery

Hispanic Services Implement Paint Your Vision

Mural Project Survey patrons for Spanish

book club Select books for book club

Implementation Timeline

January-June 2013 Hire a full-time librarian to

answer phone calls

Elderly Services Home-delivery begins Meals-on-Wheels delivery

begins

Hispanic Services Begin Spanish book club Set up Pregnancy and Child

Care Lecture series in Spanish with Health Center

Implement Lecture series

Budget

ContingenciesElderly Services

Change in St. Jerome Senior Center Director Convince new director to allow programs Highlight the added services at no additional cost

Meals-on-Wheels unable to participate Re-do routes to include all home-bound patrons

Hispanic Services Hispanic Community Center not allowing any

programs at center Highlight benefits Find other venues

Conclusion

This Strategic Plan offers a blueprint for initiatives that will bring much needed services, and increase usage and readership in the Hispanic and Elderly communities.

Group Process summary

Forming

Getting Acquainted

Impressions of scope and content of the project

Focus of the plan

Group Name

Leadership/group dynamics

Communication process agreed upon

Storming

Physical setting decided

Initiatives agreed upon

Norming

Responsibilities and deadlines assigned

Volunteer partnerships developed

Group Process summary

Performing Adjourning

Verifying completion of the project

Closure concerning the team process

Knowledge that our efforts may enhance the quality of lives

New communications channels agreed upon

Completed drafts to be posted on the Wiki

Process for sharing and verifying defined