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Ocean County Library Diversity Mission Statement |
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| The Ocean County Library is a truly multicultural
institution. We respect, honor, and celebrate
individual and cultural differences. Our collections,
programming, outreach, policies and personnel
practices reflect this commitment. We are inclusive
and understanding of our co-workers and of the
communities we serve, and we seek out others
to join us on this journey.
Revised and adopted: December 2004
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DIVERSITY COMMITTEE MISSION STATEMENT |
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| Committee members provide active leadership
for the Ocean County Library System in fostering
an understanding of diversity issues and in
assuring a welcoming environment to all customers
and staff members regardless of age, class,
gender, ethnicity, mental/physical ability,
race, religion, or sexual orientation. We are
committed to promoting library services for
all of the county's diverse populations. We
are accomplishing this through the creation
of guidelines, staff training, outreach to our
communities, the development of programs and
exhibits, and the recruitment and retention
of qualified and diverse library personnel.
Our goal is to have a positive and lasting effect
on every individual who deals with the Ocean
County Library by reflecting our values outwards
to staff and customers and enabling them to expand
their horizons in an atmosphere of safe exploration.
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A BRIEF HISTORY |
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| Ocean County has grown by approximately 150
% in the past thirty years. The Ocean County
Library System has expanded its service from
a small, almost homogeneous public to a population
that is growing not only in size, but also in
diversity of ethnic, religious and economic
backgrounds. There is growing diversity in personal
interests, lifestyles, age groups, and political
concerns. There are broader educational and
job needs. With all of these changes, there
is also a vast range of openness and bias, comfort
and discomfort, interest and insularity.
The Ocean County Library’s Diversity
Committee formed in February 1997 to develop
a diversity training program based on the
Library’s Strategic Plan and Mission
to "connect people of all ages, backgrounds,
lifestyles and cultures to the information
and materials that best suit their needs".
The Committee, which is comprised of interested
staff members from a variety of perspectives,
decided that long-term, effective diversity
training would best be achieved by hiring
an outside consulting firm that specialized
in multicultural training.
Based on the recommendations of the Diversity
Committee, on June 16, 1998 the Library Commission
approved the appointment of Mountaintop Ventures
Inc., a highly recommended firm with many
successes, to help plan and execute a comprehensive
diversity training program. With this approval,
the Ocean County Library System embarked on
a long-term project that included staff and
administration at all levels as well as system
outreach and interaction with our communities.
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THE PROCESS |
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| Mountaintop Ventures proposed a three-phase
process that focuses on "Valuing Differences"
and embodies collaboration throughout the Ocean
County Library System. Quoting from the proposal:
"Long-range objectives include the creation
of a process that will be self-sustaining
within the Ocean County Library System so
that the valuing of differences becomes integrated
into its culture. The long-range goal is to
have a positive impact on peer relations among
the staff, supervisor-employee relations,
customer relations, community relations, and
decisions concerning collections and programs
– to move Ocean County Library System
to the forefront among library systems."
The staff and staff issues reflect or relate
directly to countywide changes. For this reason
Mountaintop Ventures has defined "differences
and diversity in the broadest possible sense
to include differences of race, gender, sexual
preference, age, physical ability, religion
and personality differences. Within this broad
definition, workshop training is designed
to foster a deeper understanding of the meaning
and the value of human differences."
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THE PLAN |
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| Valuing Differences – Diversity Training
Project was designed in three phases.
Phase One: Environmental Scan began with
a system wide scan on September 14-15, 1998,
when eighty-one volunteers from the general
staff, the library’s Administration
team and Library Commission participated in
affinity focus groups. Focus groups for representatives
from community groups and organizations actively
concerned with diversity issues were held
in April 1999 at the Toms River and Lakewood
Branches.
Phase Two: Diversity Workshops included training
for four groups: the Diversity Committee,
the Administration team, Supervisors and Support
Staff. Phase Two was completed by the end
of 2000.
Phase Three: Follow-up Support provides consultation
days and support for on-going planning and
commitments.
Recognizing the key role of the Administration
team and Diversity Committee members and the
necessity of their full commitment to diversity
issues, two and a half-day in-depth training
retreats were scheduled for each of these
groups with Mountaintop Ventures in 1999.
At the February 1999 meeting the Committee
decided to appeal to male staff members interested
in diversity issues to consider joining the
committee, so that they could participate
in the training session. The committee was
therefore able to add three men, of whom two
remain actively involved: both now as a full
members of the committee. Following these
retreats, held in March 1999, the Administration
team and the Diversity Committee met together
with Mountaintop Ventures to share their experiences
and visions. This began what has become a
close working relationship, with some members
of Administration attending many of the full
committee meetings and participating in joint
planning and presentations. The Committee
created a Library Diversity Mission Statement
(see below) during their retreat in March
1999, which was presented by Elaine McConnell,
Library Director, as part of her outstanding
Key Note talk on Ocean County Library System
diversity issues during Staff Development
Day 1999.
During the summer of 1999, the Diversity
Committee planned the Supervisory and Support
Staff training sessions. Impressed by the
impact of both the Diversity Committee’s
and Administration team’s intensive
training with Mountaintop Ventures, the Supervisory
and Support Staff training sessions were offered
as full day sessions to gain the full benefit
of the training exercises. To ensure that
the largest percent of staff members possible
would be able to attend, three Supervisory
sessions and five Support Staff sessions were
offered between September and November 1999.
Additional Support Staff sessions were held
in the Spring and Fall of 2000. Careful documentation
and reports provided by Mountaintop Ventures
have followed each phase of the project and
have been used to evaluate and plan for the
next phase. After the Supervisory Staff training,
Diversity Committee members attended regional
meetings held by branch managers, circulation
supervisors and other departmental supervisors.
At these sessions a panel of Diversity Committee
members presented a history of the committee,
its mission, the subcommittees and their activities,
and future goals and directions of the committee.
Panel members asked the supervisors for their
reactions to the training sessions and for
their suggestions in planning for support
staff workshops. Additional training with
Mountaintop Ventures was held in October,
2001 for current Diversity Committee members,
the Administrative Team (one day) and branch
supervisory staff (three days).
The Diversity Committee is currently making
arrangements to offer training to a variety
of Library workgroups, including Youth Services
providers, Public Relations teams and more.
It is also working to develop more in-depth
diversity training for its Supervisory Staff,
the Committee itself and members from the
Administrative Team (who have now become an
integral part of the Committee). Staff have
also been invited to attend Cultural Awareness
sessions related to Latinos, Orthodox Jews,
African Americans, and Muslims.
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Diversity Committee Subcommittees |
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| After completing the environmental scan and
reviewing Mountaintop Venture’s report,
the Administration team developed the major
goals which encompass the areas of Collections,
Programming and Outreach, later adding "Orientation
and Training" as part of Outreach. The
Diversity Committee formed related subcommittees
to develop objectives, and in the Fall of 1999,
during Supervisory and Support Staff training,
membership in subcommittees was opened to all
staff and several new volunteers were added.
General staff has shown interest in working
on these subcommittees, and other new members
have been added periodically. The goals and
objectives presented in this Diversity Plan
are the culmination of the work of these subcommittees.
Having completed Phase Two of our sessions
with Mountaintop Ventures, and having adopted
this Ocean County Library Diversity Plan,
the Diversity Committee members look forward
to full system involvement in creating a multicultural
environment that reaches out to all members
of our communities. This will require looking
honestly at one’s feelings and actions
and being willing to change. The skillful
support of the Mountaintop Ventures team and
mutual support of all involved have enabled
us to begin working together on these issues
that we believe are essential for the continuing
excellence of the Ocean County Library System.
Valerie Bell and Jean Vogrin, Original Diversity
Committee Co-Chairs
Updated 10/2001 AND 8/2002 by Cathi Finnen
and Deborah Blackwell, current Diversity Committee
Co-Chairs
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SUBCOMMITTEE
GOALS |
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- Diversity Collection
Subcommittee Goals |
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- Diversity Programming
Subcommittee Goals |
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- Diversity Outreach
Subcommittee Goals |
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- Diversity Orientation
and Training Goals |
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Diversity
Collection Subcommittee Goals |
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Select and provide library materials that
reflect the languages and cultures of the
communities we serve
Continuously revise the Collections Policy to
reflect the Diversity Initiative
Write annual Collections Plans that outlines
what collections will be sought, the amount
of money allocated and how the materials will
be marketed (if applicable)
Provide selectors with vendor catalogs and alternative
review sources, including reviews from popular
ethnic magazines and web sites of multicultural
award winning materials and alternative review
resources.
Integrate diversity lists into the Collections
calendar
Communicate with system selectors for all ages
and formats about diversity needs via Dynix
mailboxes and have at least one face to face
meeting during the year
Purchase professional materials to assist all
levels of OCL staff to achieve diversity goals
Obtain input from branch staff and community
members about diversity needs
Include customers in the ongoing assessment
and evolution of language materials and collections
that support diversity
Make onsite visits to libraries serving diverse
populations (e.g., Queensborough Public Library,
Newark Public Library) and to diverse bookstores
and book fairs in our general area (Harlem Book
Fair)
Apply for grants for special collections to
augment regular library monies, i.e. NJSL Special
Populations Grant
Try to send a librarian to the Guadalajara Book
Fair in Mexico with ALA grant money on an annual
basis
Annually send a staff member to the American
Booksellers Convention
Provide easy access to Spanish language and
other diverse materials used by
our communities
Catalog foreign language materials so that customers
can find them
Evaluate the placement of Latino and/or Spanish
language materials and other diverse collections
for the native-speaking and English-speaking
communities being separated from the main collections
(as in Lakewood, Brick and Toms River) to be
accessed more easily by browsing.
Change subject headings to reflect a more inclusive
outlook. For example, the library has changed
the subject heading “Foreign language
materials—Spanish” to “Spanish
language materials”
Work with the subject headings committee and
cataloging staff to establish good bibliographic
access – consult with Multimac to compare
our records
Help publicize and market collections that reflect
and support diversity materials
Work with the Outreach Subcommittee to market
the Spanish-language collections, “Good
for the Soul: African American Book & Film
Discussion Series”, and other additions
to our collections of multicultural materials
to the community and provide awareness of these
collections and instructions for use to staff.
Utilize Multimac and the services of bilingual
staff to translate promotional brochures
Work with the Outreach Subcommittee to market
diversity collections internally to OCL Staff
via the Dynix Bulletin Board, Intranet , OCL
Insider, and Staff Development Day programs
and displays
Work with the Outreach Subcommittee to market
diversity collections externally to the public
Use Multimac and the services of bilingual staff
to help translate in-house signage in the language
of the collection
Provide adequate shelving space to promote browsing
and material display
Work with the Outreach Subcommittee to keep
them aware of new materials, databases, WebPages,
displays, etc.
Educate staff about accessing foreign language
materials via the Library’s online catalog
and the shelving of collections (i.e. Spanish
language) separate from rest of collection
Use the resource–sharing networks to meet
customer needs beyond the scope of the Library’s
collections
Inter-Library Loan
Multimac Bulk Loans |
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Diversity
Programming Subcommittee Goals |
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Design programs to celebrate differences
and to stimulate and satisfy curiosity about
other beliefs, cultures and lifestyles
Plan a variety of programs that highlight various
cultures and beliefs and
offer these to branches at a reduced cost
Provide branches with a list of alternative
holidays/events from various cultures
Continuously update the Programming Subcommittee’s
OceanNet list of programs, exhibits, contacts,
materials and festivals
Plan programs that bring people of different
ages, beliefs, cultures and lifestyles together,
to encourage dialogue among different groups
of people
Explore new ideas, beliefs and lifestyles through
interactive programming
Design programs in which people discuss their
culture/lifestyle with others
Use a festival or celebration to bring people
together to learn about a different culture
Engage different community groups in the development
and presentation of programs about a particular
culture, belief, lifestyle, or event
Bring various groups together to cosponsor and
plan diverse events.
Cooperate with the Outreach Subcommittee to
seek and establish partnerships with community
organizations
Set aside funds to cosponsor a variety of high-level
diverse programs annually
Encourage various community groups and organizations
to share their ideas with other participants
and work together in the library to plan a program/event
Participate along with the Outreach Subcommittee
in community events that celebrate diversity
and suggest the use of the library for the celebration
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Diversity Outreach
Subcommittee Goals |
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Seek and establish partnerships with organizations
comprised of and/or serving diverse and minority
populations
Identify these community-based organizations
and attend their functions
Request to be on the mailing list for these
organizations
Join and participate in organizations within
the community whose activities and philosophy
of service is in accordance with the Ocean County
Library’s Diversity Mission
Identify and participate in community events
that celebrate diversity, e.g. "Juneteenth"
events and encourage appropriate participation
at the Branch level
Establish a Community Advisory Board comprised
of representatives of diverse populations
Enlist the aid of community members who participated
in the February 1999 environmental scan and
others interested in the library’s diversity
initiative (i.e. using Diversity Survey)
Enlist the aid of Mountaintop Ventures diversity
consultants to establish norms, focus and priorities
for the advisory board
Work with Diversity Branch Liaisons to identify
community contacts willing to support the library's
diversity initiatives
Identify diverse candidates for appointment
to the Library Commission and to broaden community
representation in Friends of the Library groups
Conduct a "Friends Function" which
focuses on Ocean County Library’s Diversity
initiative and promotes the Diversity Plan
Enlist the aid of Branch Managers and staff
to identify local candidates
Actively market the Ocean County Library system
to Ocean County’s diverse populations
Provide library literature and forms in various
languages and distribute literature to diverse
community organizations
Make diversity and multiculturalism a recurring
theme for "Focus on Friends" and the
Library’s newsletters for staff and the
public
Create press releases and radio (media) spots
targeting Ocean County Library’s African
American, Spanish speaking, and other minority
communities
Broadcast the Library’s diversity commercial
on cable’s BET network, Spanish language
channels, and other channels
Advertise all programs so that everyone feels
invited and welcome, regardless of language,
beliefs, ethnic background or lifestyle
Work with Printing and Graphics to produce specially
designed and worded posters, flyers, monthly
brochures and calendars which strive to reflect
multicultural groups andattract minority populations
Expand the scope of where to publicize to include
businesses, organizations, and government offices
that serve our diverse populations
Work with Public Relations to arrange for funds
to augment marketing costs using identified
ethnic publications
Offer programs that provide orientation, help
and coping skills for new immigrants
Learn from community groups and organizations
what immigrants’ needs are and how the
library can help provide assistance to immigrant
customers when they come into the library, starting
with signing up for a library card
Partner with organizations engaged in serving
new immigrants with the offer of computer lab
space and/or meeting room space (i.e. ESL classes)
Host conversation groups for immigrants who
wish to improve their English skills.
Continuously promote focus collections to the
public (i.e. Good for the Soul: African American
Film & Book Discussion Series; ¡Libros
y Más para Todos!) via community group
interaction and media spots. |
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Diversity Orientation
and Training Goals |
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All new employees will be familiar with the
Library’s Diversity Plan and goals
Make the Library’s diversity initiative
a standard component of the orientation process
All employees will be expected to contribute
to the Library’s success in meeting its
multicultural goals
Actively and continually provide opportunities
for staff input, participation and creativity
in meeting these goals
Encourage staff participation and reward success
Publicly keep the diversity initiative as a
focus on a continuos basis
The Library’s diversity initiative will
be incorporated into the interviewing and hiring
process for all positions being filled
Establish an interview and application screening
committee which is fully versed and understanding
of the Library’s diversity initiatives
All librarian trainees are required to implement
a project related to the library’s diversity
initiative before they graduate with their MLS.
Ocean County Library supports all of its minority
staff members, whether minority is based on
ethnicity, gender, age, race, sexual preference,
religion, or physical or mental abilities
Staff will participate in associations and conferences
where networking and opportunities for interaction
among affinity groups will be fostered
Programs successfully utilized by other organizations
in order to increase retention of diverse staff
members will be studied and proposals for such
programs will be coordinated
In-service and continuing education opportunities
on diversity and multicultural issues will be
offered to all staff on a regular basis
The Diversity Committee will sponsor or conduct
diversity training and education workshops at
least twice a year
Conduct a minimum of one workshop with a multicultural
theme during Staff Development Day
In cooperation with the Staff Development Committee,
staff will be trained and encouraged to make
all customers feel welcome
Share program ideas with the Staff Development
Committee
Conduct series of Cultural Awareness seminars
for staff members
Develop a collection of staff development resources
on issues of diversity and multiculturalism,
and incorporate these materials into staff training
and staff meetings
Develop a Library work force reflective of the
diverse population we serve, at all levels and
titles
Develop a recruitment and retention plan and
program to be implemented by Summer 200
Expand the Intern and Library Trainee programs
to actively solicit and include minority candidates
to fill these positions
Seek minority candidates for MLS program who
are attending local community colleges
Work with the Ocean County College Multicultural
services program to find minority candidates
to fill Intern/Trainee positions
Increase high school outreach to identify and
recruit minority candidates for entry-level
positions
Strategically offer programs to local organizations,
on how to apply for jobs at the Library and
how to take Department of Personnel exams
Annually project Ocean County Library’s
personnel needs and when openings will be announced
Advertise available jobs and programs through
various ethnic media sources |
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MAJOR SUBCOMMITTEE
ACTIVITIES |
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| Collections
Subcommittee |
Members of the
Collections Subcommittee developed a
Diversity Collections Guideline document which
is available for staff viewing on the Library’s
intranet, OceanNet. The subcommittee has also
revised its Collection Policy to reflect the
library's diversity initiative and has written
annual Diversity Collections Plans which outline
what specific collection the subcommittee will
be focusing on for that year. They expended
$5,000 in 1999 for diversity and multicultural
collections including African American, Spanish
language, Hispanic, Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual, and
Jewish resources.
In 2000, another $5,000 was allotted for
this subcommittee, which was primarily spent
on Spanish language materials. They have assisted
in the administration of a Collections grant
valued at $10,000, designed to improve the
Spanish language collections of the Library.
A debut “fiesta“ of our new Spanish
language collection, named "!Libros y
Más para Todos!" took place in
March, 2001 and a “Spanish
Resources” page was added to
our web site.
$10,000 was allotted towards materials with
an African American focus in 2001. This focus,
called “Good
for the Soul” was promoted throughout
2002 and highlighted the Library’s improved
collections of African American fiction and
nonfiction (including African American Christian
fiction, Essence bestsellers and NAACP Image
Award winners), gospel, praise and worship
and contemporary Christian music, popular
music by African American artists, videos
and more. Titles from these new selections
were used during the yearlong presentation
of the “Good for the Soul: African American
Film & Book Discussion Series”.
Web sites containing Black
History and African American Resources
were also added to the Library’s web
page as part of a Library Trainee’s
Diversity Project.
A list of online alternative review sources
of diverse materials has been compiled and
added to our intranet for selectors to utilize.
Grant funding was received for a collection
of Jewish literature for children and young
adults by another Library trainee, who then
arranged for this collection to be purchased,
processed, placed and marketed to that specific
community during 2002.
In 2002 the subcommittee had a budget of
$15,000, which they spent on a variety of
diverse resources, including Gay & Lesbian
materials, diversity training videos, etc.
They are currently at work identifying appropriate
GLBT materials to be highlighted as part of
the Library’s next diversity focus plan.
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| Programming
Subcommittee |
| As part of its
working relationship with the Staff Development
Committee, this subcommittee arranged for Dr.
David T. Abalos to speak at the 1999 Staff Development
Day and booked “Plays for Living”,
an interactive theatre troupe highlighting diversity
issues, for Staff Development Day 2000. (Additional
programs for later Staff Development Day have
been sponsored by the Diversity Committee every
year in 2001 [Online Diversity Resources] and
2002 [Diversity Works Game]).
To assist branch locations in meeting their
goal to provide one large multicultural program
a year, the Programming Subcommittee researched
and made contacts for a variety of special
multicultural programs representing different
ethnic groups which were held at twelve locations
during 2000. More of these programs for the
branches were offered for 2001 and 2002. $3,000
were allocated to co-sponsor these programs
and others related to current diversity focuses
in 2000, $3500 in 2001 and $6,000 in 2002.
In 2002, the Programming Subcommittee
coordinated the “Good for the Soul:
African American Book and Film Discussion
Series” and additional programs for
the public which would encourage dialogue
related to current issues of diversity.
The Programming Subcommittee also produced
and placed on OceanNet, lists of diversity
program information, multicultural holidays
and a bibliography of Ocean County Library
resources for diversity programming. To expand
ideas and acquire new information on diversity
issues, Programming Subcommittee member have
visited the Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies
in Philadelphia. Members of the Programming,
Collections and Outreach Subcommittees have
also attended regional, national and international
conferences including El Primer Paso - Improving
Services for the Latin American Community;
the Challenge to Change Conference at Penn
State; New Jersey's Changing Cultural Landscape
conference at the Asbury Park Press headquarters;
Many Faces, One Family conference held by
the Department of Bilingual Education of New
Jersey; Diversity Forum at Ocean County College;
various diversity-related events at ALA conferences;
NTL workshops and the Guadalajara Book Fair
in Mexico.
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| Outreach
Subcommittee |
| This subcommittee
has been working on creating lists of local
organizations and groups representing diversity
issues and populations. They have contacted
these groups and provided support for the Phase
I Community Groups training sessions. From these
sessions an Ocean County Library Community Advisory
Board on Diversity Issues is evolving and members
met with Ocean County Library representatives
and Mountaintop Ventures during the Spring of
2000.
This subcommittee coordinates registrations
of the Library’s Cultural Awareness
Series for staff and other diversity training
sessions, and collects evaluations of those
sessions. The Outreach Subcommittee is also
focusing on many key areas in preparation
for active recruitment and retention of minority
staff. As part of this process a list of colleges
with large minority student populations has
been developed for future recruitment and
job placement activities. They are also planning
a community/branch representative event.
In order to assist staff helping customers
speaking languages other than English, a list
of bilingual staff is available on OceanNet,
along with their schedules. A packet of Library
literature has been translated into Spanish
and is distributed at a variety of Latino
outreach locations. Plans are being made to
lead English conversation groups for immigrants
and to prepare a packet of information including
referrals to agencies which assist immigrants.
In October of 2000, the first annual system-wide
celebration of Diversity Month was coordinated,
with most of the branches offering a variety
of diverse programming. During that same month,
members of the Outreach Subcommittee also
invited Philip Milano, author of “Why
Do White People Smell Like Wet Dogs When They
Come Out of the Rain? And Other Questions
Worth a Smack on the Head from Mom”
and creator of the Y?
The National Forum on People's Differences,
a web site dedicated to presenting frank,
honest dialogue about diversity issues, to
speak at the Library and Ocean County College.
In October of 2002, the library celebrates
its third annual system-wide celebration of
Diversity Month, offering a wide range of
diverse programming at its branches. Members
of the Outreach Subcommittee arranged for
Michael
Fowlin to perform his one-man show,
“You Don’t Know Me Until You Know
Me”, a powerful performance on discrimination
and violence prevention for staff and the
public in October 2001. They were also charged
with promoting the “Good for the Soul:
African American Book & Film Discussion
Series”, throughout 2002 to the Library’s
communities in many different ways, including
making arrangements to host an author visit
by Gloria Naylor.
In October, 2001 the Ocean County Library
created a new position, Outreach Services
Librarian. This staff member is primarily
responsible for outreach to diverse communities
and for carrying out the Diversity Committee’s
proposals. She may be reached at: cfinnen@theoceancountylibrary.org
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