Library Website: https://www.cityofhomer-ak.gov/library
Citation for Article from American Libraries:
Furbee, B. (2021). Old-School Outreach: Libraries find new value in offline engagement amid COVID-19. American Libraries, 52(6), 14–15.
Why was I drawn to this library?
The library I selected is the Homer Public Library (HPL), opened in 2006 in the small town of Homer, Alaska, which has a population of 5,313 (City of Homer, n.d.). While indigenous people have populated the town since 6000 BC, today’s town was not founded until 1964. It is located “in south-central Alaska, 227 road miles from Anchorage (Alaska’s largest city), near the southern tip of the Kenai Peninsula” (City of Homer, n.d.) and is known for its beauty, its art scene, and its environmentalism. As an avid fan of Public Broadcasting Service’s children’s show Molly of Denali, I was drawn to this library because it is in rural Alaska, and I knew this library would be imperative to the town. Even on Molly of Denali, the library is almost a character. Moreover, as a “city girl,” I wanted to get out of my comfort zone, and the idea of a small, rural hamlet that faces challenges due to the cold climate was really intriguing. I also was drawn to the library because the librarians creatively sought ways to reach patrons who did not have access to technology, and since Covid has highlighted the utter necessity of technology to stay connected and also the technology gap in vulnerable populations, the library faced an especially challenging situation: a small community in a state that was hit especially hard with Covid and patrons who did not have reliable internet access (or even reliable transportation in, about, and out of town). So the library utilized local radio to connect with patrons, which I felt was a clever offline response, and an example of librarians seeking to stay connected with patrons “where they are.”
The library’s website is connected to the city’s website, and this reflects the importance of the library to the town. From the library’s website, you can access the Alaska Digital Library, which “is a free service, provided by libraries around the state, that lets you borrow digital books and audiobooks from an online collection. Homer Public Library often buys additional copies of popular titles to reduce wait times” From HPL site, you can also borrow from another library, contact staff, reserve the meeting room, suggest a purchase, get a library card, and view the calendar.
Online Resources:
- Homework Help Live
- Online list of quality websites related to Alaskan topics, such as Native and Indigenous People, News and Weather, History, etc.
- School Resources, ranging from elementary to college level
- 65 Databases
- Alaska’s Digital Archives, including 16 special collections Alaska Historical Collections, Alaska State Museums, Sitka Tribe of Alaska and Historical Society, Kodiak Historical Society, Alaska Moving Image Preservation Society, and many others.
The library has a Twitter account with 179 followers; however, most of the tweets are dated, and there are no recent updates (https://twitter.com/homerlibraryak). The library also has a Youtube channel that has three subscribers, but the videos are scant and out-dated as well (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBLlaSOkQRoH9UHzlBYMbbA).
What programs and services are offered?
The library hosts many events that are specific to the community needs. For example, “the South Peninsula Amateur Radio Club (SPARC) meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 6:30 pm” although the meetings are currently virtual during COVID. It also has a knitting club, and monthly author talks. The library also hosted a webinar with prominent Inuit guests about “Learning Across Generations and Back” earlier this month. Two Saturdays each month the library hosts in-person “Tech Help” so that patrons can drop by for help with any computer or e-reader questions. Each Friday, the library offers “Storytime for Grown-ups,” which is also currently Zoomed due to the pandemic. Another community feature the library provides is exhibiting local art. The library also provides critical services for the community, such as computers, free wifi, low cost printing, economic and COVID assistance, and help with tax preparation. Patrons can also email or call the library for help; there is no live chat option on the website.
For school-age children Makers2Mentors is a series of programs that aims to help children “explore computational thinking and computer science in age friendly ways.” The program is virtual and features interesting and interactive topics, such as space food, indigenous people, pirate adventures, etc. The library also offers youth activities like slime-making, Lego lab, robot kits, and in person preschool story time each Wednesday and Thursday,
For teens, the library website offers access to a digital collection of ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines specifically designed for teenagers; Teens Learn, which connects to help for school, GED, SAT, and ASVAB prep; Teens Explore, which has apps, websites, and other digital media of interest to teens; and Teens Grow, which addresses digital citizenship.
How has HPL responded to COVID?
The library is offering curbside service and even home-delivery. Regardless of vaccination status, masks are required to enter. It is currently open, but operating for limited hours. Last summer, the library offered a “StoryWalk” Trail to allow an in-person but outdoor experience for patrons. Many of the programs that would occur in-person at the library have shifted to virtual as noted in the descriptions of programs, but an interesting program was the library’s virtual story hour, which aired every Thursday at 10 am on an AM radio station and featured an hour of stories, dance breaks, and a call-in time for kids. I tried to listen to a current episode, but it looks like the radio shows have ceased as the library has opened back up for in-person storytelling. The last aired episode was April 19, 2021.
Evaluation of Website
The website is highly functional, but not “glossy.” It reflects the pragmatic atmosphere of a frontier town, but I also felt that it successfully straddled populations varying in age and culture. I found that it had great access to online resources, but also that it was streamlined in a way that made it easy to navigate regardless of tech savviness. The website does not accommodate any disabilities, but the library itself offers specific services for hearing, visual, physical impairments, and the homebound services that can be critical to such populations. The town serves rural dwellers and indigenous people, so the population is diverse in very specific ways. It did an excellent job differentiating among age groups: it was simple to find programs and resources for children, families, teens, seniors, etc. Finally, because the community is so small and tightly knit, it really made sense that the library was connected to the city website. It is easy to see a resident easily finding library services alongside public works, police, fire, and other city services.
References:
City of Homer Alaska. (n.d.) Library. https://www.cityofhomer-ak.gov/library
“Storytime for Grownups” what a great idea, literally have never heard of this, but I guess you can think of it along the same vein as a book reading by an author. It is nice to see another library offer home delivery, the library I investigated did as well.