All Grown Up?
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Grownups 20/30s Programming Series at the Thomas Crane Public Library (Quincy, MA) Presentation at the Massachusetts Library Association Conference Tuesday, May 22, 2018
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All Grown Up?
- 1. All Grown Up? Grownups 20/30s Programming Series at the Thomas Crane Public Library Presenter: Eileen Fontenot, Adult Services Librarian Massachusetts Library Association Conference Tuesday, May 22, 2018
- 2. “Our Goal … … is to facilitate interesting, enlightening, and inclusive events that help you feel engaged with and excited about books, the world around us, and especially the people of Quincy. If you’re in your 20/30s and want to meet like-minded people your age, you’ve come to the right place.”
- 3. Our Intentions ● Welcome youngish adults to the area ● Foster a feeling of community within this group ● Spark imagination and learning ● Promote library usage via fun activities
- 4. Who We’re Seeing Now ● Ages range from mid 20s to late 30s ● Unmarried or couples with no children ● Mix of longtime residents and new arrivals ● Many educated professionals
- 5. What We’re Currently Hosting ● Video Game Night at Main ● Hearthstone Fireside Gatherings at Main and North Quincy Branch ● Fine Liquorature Book Club (off-site) ● Let’s Eat Quincy (off-site)
- 6. Series Components ● Five librarians who share duties along with support from other staffers ● Multiple and single programs ● Department meetings to brainstorm and assess ● Utilize local talent and resources
- 7. What’s Worked ● Group activities ● Meet off-site ● Give them some ownership ● Education with a fun twist
- 8. What Hasn’t Worked ● Offer something they can easily get elsewhere ● No opportunities to meet others ● Lack of refreshments - especially alcohol
- 9. Program Statistics ● 328 Meetup followers ● FY17 stats - 35 programs, 428 participants ● FY18 stats through April - 39 programs, 343 participants ● Most popular: Video Game Night with 133 people in FY17 and 184 in FY18 through April ● Second most popular: Book Club with 88 people in FY17 and 91 in FY18 through April
- 10. Most Popular: Video Game Night ● Originally Retro Game Night ● Added newer games and systems on the advice of patrons ● Average between 20-25 people ● Expanded to Fireside Gatherings
- 11. Runner-Up: Fine Liquorature Book Club ● Average between 8-12 people ● Meet at a local bar/restaurant ● Read a variety of genres ● Add field trips when possible
- 12. The Newcomer: Let’s Eat Quincy ● Started as a “culture club” ● Limited engagement series ● Discuss suggested topics ● Eat all the food!
- 13. Getting the Word Out ● Meetup.com ● Social Media - Your page(s) and elsewhere ● Fliers in local complexes, businesses and colleges ● Word of Mouth ● Local Access Television
- 14. Challenges and Pitfalls ● Turn 40 and you’re out? ● Let’s all make friends ● Overbearing participants
- 15. Ideas and Tips ● Get out of the library ● Don’t be stuffy ● Offer food and drink ● Be prepared to fail - then try again!
Editor's Notes
- Thank you and good morning, everyone. My name is Eileen Fontenot, and I’m an adult services librarian at Thomas Crane Public Library in Quincy. I’m here to talk about our Grownups 20/30s programming series, which we have offered to millennials in our city for a little more than two years now.
- During this time, we’ve tried a variety of series and single programs to attempt to capture this elusive demographic. Our staff has tried crafting, trivia nights, food and drink series, a book club, gaming and more, some of which I will discuss in-depth later in this presentation. I consider the Grownups series a work in progress - some things have caught on, others have not - and we’re continually thinking of new ways to engage these patrons. Several librarians on staff work together to come up with programs we think will be of interest - but also affordable and easy to create, since we don’t have a dedicated programming librarian in the adult services department. The quote here is from our Meetup page, which is the primary way we stay in contact with these patrons and promote the programs. This is part of a message we send to welcome new members to our Meetup group because we believe it conveys the spirit of what we’re trying to do and hope that it’s welcoming and inclusive to anyone who wants to attend our events.
- Why are we focusing on this group of people at all? Well, Quincy is growing - according to 2016 data, Quincy currently has more than 93,000 residents, up from 88,000 - which was what was recorded in the 2000 census. 2010 census data has shown us that there are 23,435 20-34 year olds in Quincy. This is up from 22,864 in 2000. Further estimates, which are derived primarily from 2010 and 2014 U.S. Census Data and the Quincy Planning Department, put the total adults in their 20s and 30s at 28,000. Our objective is to get 600 of these adults to participate in library-sponsored activities during a fiscal year. These youngish adults are coming to Quincy because it’s cheaper to live here than say, Somerville or Cambridge, and still have easy access to the T and their jobs in the city. There has been media coverage in the Globe within the last three years that crowns Quincy as the South Shore city “with the highest concentration of 20- to 34-year-olds, who make up 27 percent of its nearly 93,000 residents.” That same year, 2015, we began to see more condos and apartment buildings constructed in the city. According to the Patriot Ledger at that time, at least 15 high-end residences had just been constructed, were in the process of construction, or were about to begin building. This growth makes it difficult to ignore the need for this specialized kind of programming for this age group. Around 2015, new adult services staff members were hired (including myself), and administration sought to capitalize on the aforementioned trend by seeking out these new residents with a program series. In 2017, as we were creating our 2018-22 Strategic Plan, we reaffirmed our commitment to engaging this age group with one of our goals: “Younger Adults and New Residents will have fun and engaging activities, and comfortable spaces, that foster social networks and community connections.”
- Who are generally the types of patrons we’re seeing now? While we have had Grownups who were very young - about 20 - to early 40s, they do tend to be in their mid 20s to late 30s. We’ve found that through getting to know many of them, they are single or couples with no children who are looking to meet people their own age with similar interests. In the case of the couples, I’ve observed that they often attend programs together. We provide these couples with free or cheap entertainment - which is a big plus when money gets tight. They tend to be professionals, and many own homes and cars. I’ve noticed a lot of IT, science, and education workers attending these events. In the programs I personally have led, I’ve noticed patrons new to Quincy from other parts of Massachusetts and new to the state and the country - although there are usually a few who are Quincy born and bred.
- I want to give you a general idea of the series we’re currently offering. We have found that competitive and cooperative video gaming is immensely popular and has worked well for us these two years, so our Video Game Night has been held continuously since the start of Grownups. Piggybacking on that programming juggernaut, Hearthstone Fireside Gatherings seem to be a perfect fit with libraries because they are meant to be held in public areas. For those unaware (as I was until recently), Hearthstone is a free-to-play online collectible card video game in the World of Warcraft universe. The game pits two opponents against each other. Both players use a deck of cards from their collection with the goal to reduce the opponent's health to zero. This meetup has been so successful it’s been expanded to our North Quincy branch during the last few months. Besides video gaming, our book club has been the most popular series we’ve done so far. I host the Fine Liquorature Book Club at a local restaurant every second Monday of the month. We read a variety of genres and have our regulars and new folks who rotate in and out. We start out by discussing the month’s book, but I’m a pretty relaxed host - if I sense conversation going off topic, I’m OK with that. Book discussions often lead to other cultural topics, which is part of the goal of fostering fun yet intellectual stimulation. Last month, I began hosting Let’s Eat Quincy, a dining club. Quincy has a lot of great restaurants - many of them opening during the recent and ongoing revitalization of Quincy Center. While entertainment is the primary goal during this series, I compile a list of readings to start conversation and add an educational aspect. And we definitely talk about food!
- There are five of us with varying interests and ages within the demographic who are contributing to Grownups programs. We have a coordinator who keeps the other four of us on task. She has years of programming experience and knowledge of the budget we’re working with, so she is uniquely equipped to help us make decisions on what types of programs will likely work and which ones won’t. We’ve tried both series and single programs, depending on what we think will be popular with patrons, the time and monetary resources we have or can obtain, and presenters who are available (if needed). We’ve had lectures on cultural topics, like the creepypasta online horror phenomenon and the history of comic books, but we haven’t committed to a long series of lectures because we find that socializing is more popular with the Grownups crowd - and more cost effective. The adult services department, along with our assistant director who does our general adult programming, meets quarterly to report on planned programs. We discuss the statistics of recent programs and review the qualitative successes and failures of the ongoing programs. Then we brainstorm the next few months’ programs and volunteer to lead those we’re interested in. We have several staff members who are Quincy locals and they have thankfully given us great leads on presenters and locations for our offsite meetups. We make efforts to keep meetups held outside the library within the City of Quincy, even though Boston is a fairly short distance away, to emphasize local community and culture.
- What’s worked for us? Bring your patrons together - get them talking! It doesn’t have to be about the library or the program, but that’s a good lead off. I’ve been lucky - the types of folks who come to my events are usually great at starting conversations. I once held a Speed Friending event (like speed dating but without the romantic aspect) and a patron who knew how to play UNO better than I did took the reins on that activity - thankfully so! So he became a sort of host for this particular group activity. I’m not too shy about asking for help from patrons to help facilitate in these casual situations. Get them out of the library! While it’s great to get bodies through the doors, those programming stats still count when you’re away on “outreach.” If you can get that desk coverage and meet at a local bar or restaurant, do it. Call up the manager and introduce yourself, saying you’ll need a reservation every X day of the month if it’s a series you’re planning. I’ve had great response from local restaurant owners who are happy to accomodate us - they’re getting a reservation of at least eight each month for our book club! Listen to your patrons and give them more of a say in what you’re planning for them, especially if it’s a regular group. Our Grownups patrons have had great ideas about additional events that enhance the existing programs we offer. For example, in our book club, once we read a book, then saw the author speak in Boston. Every July, we read the Shakespeare play that is being performed in the Common and then go and see the play. Also, video gaming patrons had the idea to start the Hearthstone Fireside Gatherings. The lectures we’ve offered for this age group have been fairly popular because we’ve focused on pop culture and food and drink. The common thread of all these successes is fun and socialization! Our greatest food and drink series success was LIB/ations, led by one of my talented coworkers. These were fun and educational programs involving alcohol. We applied for one day liquor licenses through the city for each of these events. They waived the usual fee since we're a city department. For the first event, we had a beer tasting and partnered with Craft Beer Cellar to provide samples and educate people about beer (such as its history and how to pair it with food). We decided to cap this program at $100, so they brought that much beer and only charged us for what they poured. It worked so well that we had them back again. For one session, we focused on domestic brews, and international for the other. Then we partnered with Bin Ends, a wine store in Braintree. The owner connected us with one of his employees who had recently written a book about wine and cheese pairings. He donated the wine, and we paid for the cost of the cheese. We also allowed him to plug his book and sell copies. The last LIB/ations program was about mead (also known as honey wine). We knew of a local beekeeper in the area who produced many varieties of mead with the honey his bees produced. He put together a super informative and interesting presentation about the mead making process and provided samples. This program drew a big crowd, and people still ask if we're going to have him back! He also just wanted to educate people, so he didn't charge us for anything, which was a huge bonus!
- What hasn’t worked? Generally speaking, I can say that programmers should not provide experiences that can be easily gotten elsewhere. This age demographic is particularly tech and media savvy, so they are likely to have Netflix and other streaming video platforms. I learned the hard way that showing films wouldn’t work for us when we first started the Grownups series. At first, we thought movies would be an easy and fairly cheap way to beef up our lineup of programs. I wanted to start a retro film series, showing movies from the 1930s through the 70s. I thought it would attract young film aficionados who may have not seen many classic movies. I was wrong! We did draw a crowd at first, but older patrons were more interested than younger ones. So, we decided to change the focus of the series to movies that would spark nostalgia in this age group - movies from the 90s and 2000s. This also didn’t work, perhaps because we held them on Saturday afternoons, when these patrons were out and about doing other activities or still relaxing at home. We started a crafting series over a year ago called Crafterdark. The first three or four programs were well attended, then we experienced a large drop off. It’s possible that after recent winter weather, patrons were having trouble getting back out of their homes and into the library. We soldiered on for a few more months, hoping for a turn around, but eventually decided to discontinue Crafterdark because of the amount of money we were spending on supplies, with very little return on that investment. We tried a board gaming series as well, but that after initial interest, attendance began to slide. There are now two different board gaming shops that also encourage group play in Quincy Center, so trying this again isn’t high on our to-do list. Our in-house trivia series fizzled out fairly quickly because, I believe, there are so many local bars that host trivia nights. And yes - you are sensing a theme - we didn’t have food or alcoholic beverages at the library for these particular programs. Which is likely a reason we didn’t get a lot of return patrons.
- Now for the numbers! We’re aiming high for this age group. As I mentioned before, our objective for the goal “Younger Adults and New Residents will have fun and engaging activities, and comfortable spaces, that foster social networks and community connections” is 600 adults in FY18. At 343 by April, we haven’t reached that goal yet. But we’re considering future programs that could bring in this demographic - like Night Out at the Library, an after hours socializing series that Medford has tried; a learn to dance series; and mini golf in the library, which Brookline has done.
- I’m now going to go a bit more in depth with the programs we’re currently offering - Competitive and co-operative video gaming has consistently been the most popular Grownups program series we’ve held. Our current Video Game Night originally started as "Retro Game Night." At that time, we focused only on supplying the "classics," so video games from the early ‘80s to early 2000s. Our Nintendo 64 and "007 GoldenEye" game, in particular, really attracted a broad audience. When we bought a PS4 and XBox One, and began supplying newer multiplayer games, we realized that "Retro Game Night" was no longer fitting, so we rebranded it as "20/30's Video Game Night." We kept all the old games and systems, but added newer games. On the advice of some of our regular patrons to the program, we created a Blizzard account so we could host Hearthstone Fireside Gatherings. These gatherings have been highly successful - they give players a chance to connect with others and unlock special characters and cards that can only be acquired at official Fireside Gatherings. We have recently started a "PixelStation" craft corner, pictured here. Using Perler beads, attendees can create their favorite 8-bit gaming characters to take home with them. It has become a popular addition to the program! The Library itself owns a PS4, Xbox One, and a Nintendo Wii, and purchases videogames for these systems. The PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, NES, Super NES, an N64, and all games offered for those systems are owned by a staff member.
- For more than two years, I’ve kept the Fine Liquorature Book Club going through several incarnations. We’ve had five people stick with us that whole time, and thankfully, I’ve been able to attract new readers while losing others. I’ve never had more than 14 people participate at once, which works for me because having a conversation with a group too large can be difficult. If you have the staffing to allow a librarian out of the building for the night, this is a great option because it cost us nothing to meet at a local restaurant. Participants pay for their own food and drink and can get louder than they can in the library! As I mentioned before, I’ve given a lot of leeway to these participants on what we should read and what extra activities we should do. We’ve read celebrity memoirs, graphic novels, popular science, sci-fi/fantasy, mysteries, classic literature, short stories, and more! I prepare for the meetings with my own questions and others I find online. Litlovers.com is a great resource for finding book club questions, and sometimes I even bring reviews or articles that may give them an extra trivia tidbit about the book or spark a new topic of conversation. They’ve come up with their own extras - like a Winter Reading Challenge for fun and bragging rights. The graphic designer librarian and I have come up with bingo cards, much like what I’ve seen teen librarians create for their patrons during summer reading programs. One of my favorite book club meetups is our annual holiday book exchange - In December, we discuss the book we read that month, but we also bring a book we love or even a book we haven’t read but on which we are interested in getting someone’s opinion. We do a Yankee swap, also known as white elephant, and get our book to read and report upon during the January meetup. It’s a fun way to get out of our comfort zone and read books we likely never would have picked for ourselves. And it gives everyone else ideas about more books to read and enjoy! This is one of the most fulfilling aspects of my job because I’ve seen so many friendships blossom at these meetings - and in one case - romance!
- This limited series started last month. Staff has been looking for a way to jumpstart the Grownups program after the winter and because a few series didn’t have staying power. I got the idea for a “culture club” from the Programming Librarian blog and thought it would be a good fit for our millennials. I initially wanted each event to focus on a different international cuisine and give participants readings about the country’s culture, art, history, literature, and food before the event so we’d have discussion topics. After one of the department’s brainstorming meetings, we simplified the scope by keeping the readings to a couple of articles that don’t necessarily have to cover as much ground and loosening the international cuisine rule - now we can choose any restaurant in Quincy. Administration decided upon a limited run of only four meetups to start with - more can be added if we get the numbers we’re hoping for. So far, we’ve started out slowly, but series often need a few events to get rolling. Again, the library is not spending money on this one either - all we needed is staff coverage to get a librarian out of the building for one night a month. Quincy has a wealth of Asian restaurants due in part to its population - 28 percent of Quincy residents are of Asian origin - so I decided to focus the limited series on Asian cuisine. Last month, we had Chinese dim sum at The China in the Wollaston neighborhood. Tomorrow, we’re having Vietnamese food, in June it’s Japanese food and in July we’re enjoying Indian food. I’ve provided three articles this month to get the conversational ball rolling, but participants are encouraged to bring their own topics of conversation. Like book club and video gaming, this new series supports the strategic plan goal of giving younger adults opportunity to foster social networks and community connections.
- We decided to advertise Grownups programs primarily through Meetup.com, because we felt that Meetup already had the right demographic of users we were looking for. It’s also valuable when we need to limit RSVPs for certain programs. We’ve also used social media, like Facebook (both our library’s page and posting to local Facebook groups), Twitter and Instagram, to get the word out. If your city has a calendar on their web site, ask if you can add your programs to it. I have also posted Grownups events on Next Door, the local Patch, the Boston Calendar and Boston.com events page. So many potential patrons don’t follow your social media accounts, so post where they are already likely to be looking for fun events in the area. You can’t beat hitting the streets to distribute fliers, like the one pictured. Our graphic designer librarian made this for Video Game Night. He took a video game cover and used its same font and colors but added in our promo language. Ask local apartment complexes if they have a bulletin board, post flyers in a laundromat and, if you have a local college, ask the friendly college librarian or bookstore workers if you can post a flyer. And definitely try Starbucks and other local coffee shops. The Starbucks near my library allows people to post free events on their bulletin board. You and your current patrons are some of the best marketers around. They make friends with folks and tell them about other programs we’re having and, in that way, momentum builds. I personally have told several potential patrons about these programs just out and about in Quincy, since I live here and am always on duty! We are also very lucky to share our building with Quincy Access Television, and the librarian who hosts the Video Game Nights also does work with QATV. He’s incredibly creative and resourceful and has been both the subject of interviews about Grownups series and the interviewer as well.
- Programming is not without its unique challenges! One of the ones we’ve struggled with is the age limitation. It’s easier when you’re programming for children and teens because adults with no children simply won’t be interested in attending these programs. The line becomes blurred when you’re an older adult who loves crafting and video games too! We make sure to include the Grownups 20/30s logo on all marketing materials and encourage people to RSVP on Meetup, so that we can be as sure as we can that we’re capture the demographic that we want. However, we’ve had several older adults who’ve shown up to these 20/30s meetups. Most have realized these programs are for adults in their 20/30s, but really wanted to participate in the book club, craft, or video gaming experience. I’ve allowed them to participate after explaining the situation, usually if there has been no money spent on the program. It’s a gray area that can be hard to enforce when you just want people to show up at your programs and have a good time. Should you make friends with your patrons? I’m not sure if I’m the only one who’s struggled with this one, but once I started meeting patrons at programs at bars and restaurants, it becomes difficult to have that line of “I’m doing this for work and I am a professional” instead of “we’re all friends here meeting up and having a good time.” For a while I tried to balance that fine line of being friendly yet have a line that cannot be crossed. But I’ve had some book club participants ask to hang out with me in other social occasions outside of library work. For a year or so, I’d decline, wanted to keep the professional barrier up, but the past few months, I’ve decided to accept and have subsequently made a lot of great friends through our programs too. So far there has been no ill effects. There seems to be at least one patron at a program who can be overbearing and a bit much. I had that experience in my book club for more than a year. This participant would dominate the conversation and not take social cues very well. It can be difficult to moderate a casual book club, but giving people like this a firm “OK, let’s hear what someone else thinks” goes a long way. If you’ve had difficulties with a patron during an outside event, you can’t just call your library’s security guard (if you have one) and ask them to leave. It’s best to negotiate carefully, but document any bad behavior to discuss with your boss or administration if the behavior in question escalates. You may need back up from your bosses to take the next step of asking the patron to no longer attend your programs.
- Leave the building! Explore your town or neighboring areas. This is all part of the cultural experience we are bringing to this demographic. They want to get out and about! Get a little wacky. Let your personality shine through. Don’t be afraid to bring up your favorite meme or act silly with these folks. I like to think of myself as a kind of late night talk show host. Like any program - have food and drink available. That’s a huge draw. Be prepared for disappointment when people don’t show up, even if they’ve RSVPed. Yes, it’s a bummer, but make contingency plans. I always have a bit of “patter” ready to fill any any overly long quiet moments. It also really helps to have have supportive bosses and administration. Be prepared with cost-effective ideas and persuade your bosses how this fits in with your vision or strategic plan of getting in millennials to your library and your programs.
- And finally, I couldn’t have presented this information to you without the help of my fellow librarians at Thomas Crane. Thank you to Therese, Theresa, Brian, Kerri and Paul! If you think of any questions or comments later, feel free to email me here! Thank you all very much and the other members of the panel and I can take your questions now.