Libraries are in a unique position to aid communities during times of adversity, and this comprehensive handbook’s practical tools and expert guidance will help ensure that your library is thoroughly prepared for emergency response and recovery.

Your library is a vital information hub and resource provider every single day, and that’s doubly true when calamity strikes. In fact, your library’s role as an “essential community function” during disasters is now encoded in U.S. law. Engaging as a partner in planning and preparedness will build much-needed community support should disaster strike, and even a basic plan will also save you time and stress later on. No matter where your library is in the disaster planning cycle, this handbook will make the process clearer and less daunting. You’ll get tools, activities, easy-to-adapt templates, and hands-on guidance on such topics as

• the six phases of disaster response;
• 15 first-hand accounts of library disaster planning or responses, helping you identify the library services most needed during a disaster;
• three essential factors that will shape the form of your disaster plan;
• preparing for hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, floods, and earthquakes;
• ideas for connecting with your community’s emergency response teams; 
• federal government planning resources;
• pointers on working with state and local governments;
• a sample Memorandum of Understanding to outline mutual support for a speedier recovery;
• recommended courses and training, many of which are free;
• targeted advice for archives and special collections;
• sample building inspection checklists; and
• recommended games to help children and families prepare.

Outcome-based planning and evaluation (OBPE), with its straightforward approach built on a flexible framework, is the perfect model to enable youth services professionals to deliver effective services regardless of uncertainties. An outcome-based approach can help youth services stay grounded in producing desired outcomes with and for youth through responsive programs, services, and processes that can adapt to changing conditions. Clarifying the relationship between planning, program development, and evaluation, the five simple steps outlined in this book will help youth services staff conduct solid community assessments and integrate OBPE into their work. Inside its pages you will learn

• a short history of OBPE and its evolution;
• why it is crucially important to involve youth in all stages of program development, with guidance on navigating challenges;
• how to think about planning as the need to react quickly, whether due to natural or human-made disasters, changing demographics, or economic swings;
• the five steps of OBPE, from gathering information about your community and determining the outcomes that will serve your community to crafting accurate outcome statements, developing an evaluation plan, and maximizing the results of successful outcome-based programs; 
• how to visualize the steps needed to successfully plan, implement, and evaluate an outcome-based program, using the template included in the book;
• ways to share your data to let people know the library’s important role in the community; and
• additional useful tools to bolster your work, including environmental scan forms and ideas for creating relevant family storytimes.

Libraries are not exempt from the financial costs of data breaches or leaks, no matter the size. Whether from a library worker unwittingly sharing a patron’s address with a perpetrator of domestic violence to leaving sensitive patron data unprotected, patrons can also pay a hefty price when libraries fail to manage patron data securely and ethically. In this guide, readers will learn concrete action steps for putting the ethical management of data into practice, following two common public and academic library cumulative case studies. The authors explore such key topics as

• succinct summaries of major U.S. laws and other regulations and standards governing patron data management;
• information security practices to protect patrons and libraries from common threats;
• how to navigate barriers in organizational culture when implementing data privacy measures;
• sources for publicly available, customizable privacy training material for library workers;
• the data life cycle from planning and collecting to disposal;
• how to conduct a data inventory;
• understanding the associated privacy risks of different types of library data;
• why the current popular model of library assessment can become a huge privacy invasion;
• addressing key topics while keeping your privacy policy clear and understandable to patrons; and
• data privacy and security provisions to look for in vendor contracts.

Strategic Planning for Public Libraries is a complete planning toolkit. This book provides a framework that any library, whether it serves urban, suburban, or rural communities, can use as a basis for its strategic planning.

Supported by research conducted across more than 200 public library professionals and in-depth interviews with more than twenty library directors and leaders throughout the country, this book addresses some of the key areas of strategic planning that librarians care about most:

• Engaging the community
• Measuring progress against the plan
• Reaching non-users
• Creating a living document that can be continually updated
• How to conduct a community assessment
• Engaging staff

Whether it’s navigating a crisis or witnessing a community member struggling with tough times, coming face to face with trauma and adversity can be uncomfortable. But in striving to learn more about challenging behaviors, and how we can better interact with library patrons and our coworkers, we can come to see that people are complex and not simply “problems.” This workbook from the PLA Social Worker Task Force (SWTF) provides a collection of powerful tools to add to your customer service toolbox. It’s filled with prompts, exercises, and best practices that shed light on how trauma can affect people, helping you build confidence in your ability to support your library’s patrons. You will
 

• delve into what trauma is and how it impacts library work;
• be introduced to a framework for utilizing a trauma-informed lens in your interactions;
• practice exercises to spur personal reflection on common concerns bound up with library work and the policies relating to these issues; and
• gain hand-on tools and techniques, including strategies for de-escalation and guidance on the impacts of involving law-enforcement and banning patrons.

 
You will also explore various scenarios which provide the opportunity to integrate what you’ve learned and practice responding through a trauma-informed lens, including
 

• Mental Health Challenges
• Sleeping at the Library
• Strong Personal Odor
• Personal Belongings
• Suspected Intoxication/Under the Influence
• Substance Use
• Threatening Verbal and Nonverbal Behavior
• Unsheltered Teens
• Adult Self-Neglect
• Child Abuse or Assault
• Solicitation or Panhandling
• Stealing
• Child Unattended After Closing