A Future Virtual Community
I would like to help build a virtual community for patrons that are unable to come to the library. Whether they are incarcerated, or have mobility, medical or transportation issues, I would like to be able to create a space where specific groups could meet. It would be nice to set up several virtual groups through a Zoom meeting that could talk about books and different topics each week. Helping people who are isolated and unable to get out and make connections, share stories and find support is one positive aspect of creating virtual communities. The recent few months have been anxiety provoking, in fact online anxiety self screening tests on the Mental Health America website increased by 19% just in the month of February. A benefit to creating virtual groups for people that are isolated can help our ability to feel less stressed and using social media networks can be essential to overall mental wellness. (Wiederhold, 2020) Another benefit to creating social media communities is it is a way to communicate to a large group of people important messages that may need to be sent out in a quick manner and it cheap or free to use. The negatives for this type of initiative is that establishing and retaining a dedicated virtual community can be difficult to get started and it takes time.
Now that our library is instituting limited usage of our computer labs, I would also like to network and reach out to employment specialists and head hunters that could volunteer their time and help patrons find jobs. Establishing a group of professionals through social media would be helpful because we would be more likely to find more people to help if they were not limited to our local area. The virtual community of employment volunteers would be available by appointment and assigned to a patron that is looking for work. Our community was hit particularly hard by employer layoffs because of the Covid 19 quarantine and there are many patrons needing help finding jobs. We anticipate opening in mid-August, and the people who have depended on using our computer labs for sending out job applications have not been able to do so for over four months. In addition, our small business center has been closed which helps give assistance to young entrepreneurs. Now that our library will only allow brief computer usage once we open, applying for jobs in our computer lab would be very difficult. Patrons seeking employment could be paired with a volunteer or librarian that could help assess the person's abilities, skills and aptitudes to give resources, make recommendations and help them locate potential opportunities through Linked in. If a patron does not have access to the internet, but has a phone, they can be paired and communicate through text about potential opportunities. Programs through the library could help patrons develop a career plan, long term and short term goals. Also, helping patrons develop a resume and establish other employment documentation could make it more efficient and less time consuming in the long run to find the right opportunity. The positive aspects of this would be that the patron would be getting assistance and expertise that normally would not be available for free and it would benefit the patrons and the community. A negative aspect of this would be that it would take time and work to find people to volunteer to help.
Libraries have a trusted position in communities whether they are in the virtual or the physical world. Our guiding principles can be found in the ALA Mission Statement, the Library Bill of Rights and the Freedom to Read statement. We have clear guidelines and values that inform our general professional practice and daily work. These values are information access, confidentiality and privacy, democracy, diversity, education, lifelong learning, intellectual freedom, preservation, the public good, professionalism, service, social responsibility, and sustainability. Libraries have the responsibility to balance the current and future trends of social media with these values. If libraries and librarians are always mindful of these principles, then no matter what the current or future trend is, the library will continue to perpetuate the mission and purpose of the library in online communities.