The New York Public Library (NYPL) is committed to engaging everyday New Yorkers from across neighborhoods. To position library staff as community conveners, NYPL and Cortico established and trained a cohort of branch librarians that have gathered LVN conversations both in-person and, with the outbreak of the pandemic, online.
Cortico supported individual branches in neighborhood-specific outreach and partnership strategies, including partnering with other local community-based organizations to host conversations about issues faced by residents. Along the way, Cortico provided additional training in how to curate and amplify voices gathered in the conversations, and continues to work closely with NYPL on how to implement LVN as a self-sustaining program that can continue to connect branches to their communities.
The NYPL partnership served as a flagship for other library partnerships, including the Boston Public Library, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, and more.
One of the most exciting things about building this program has been the spirit of experimentation we’ve all had. Branch staff have really embraced figuring out what their intended audience is for this program and getting to know their community in the process.
Erica Parker, Associate Manager of Adult Programming
In one of a series of conversations across NYPL branches on the topic of resistance and resilience, Esuna shared her appreciation for the library holding space for people’s voices to be heard.
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