LIBRARIES TRANSFORMING
COMMUNITIES:
EXTENDING OUR REACH
ALA Annual Conference | 6.30.2013 | Chicago
Organizers



John Amundsen, Communications Specialist, ALA,
Office for Literacy and Outreach Services
Lisa Gieskes, ALA, Coordinator of Hunger,
Homelessness and Poverty Task Force
Julie Winkelstein, Ph.D., University of Tennessee –
Knoxville
Guest Speakers




Ruth Barefoot, Manager of Innovation, San Jose
Public Library
Cathy Delneo, Acting Assistant Chief of
Main/Branch Manager, San Francisco Public Library
Karen Strauss, Chief of Main, San Francisco Public
Library
Teresa Windham, Library Experience Director,
Richland Library
Criminalizing homelessness
Various laws:
Panhandling, loitering,
camping
Outcome:
Citations/tickets
create barriers to
employment, housing
(Photos: Seth Anderson, 2004;
Renjishino, 2007)
Weaponized architecture
“This marked my first
realization of how
landscape could be
devised into a kind of
weapon, targeted at a
specific group of people
with the sole aim of
removing the informal
infrastructure of their
survival and thereby
forcing them out of the
city.” (Finoki, 2009)
(Photo: Dan Udey, 2009)
More examples


Slippery and cold/hot
benches
Prongs in window wells
Debunk assumptions

Which one of
these young
people is or was
homeless?
Housing status
Separate housing status from person’s identity
≠
Extending Our Reach:
San Francisco Public Library
Karen Strauss and
Cathy Delneo
chiefofmain@sfpl.org
Homelessness within Populations
.2%
.8%
c
San Francisco Public Library
Homelessness in San Francisco
Care
Not Cash
c
San Francisco Public Library
Homelessness within Neighborhoods
c
San Francisco Public Library
Homelessness in San Francisco Libraries
People who spend their
days at the library:
•
•
•
•
•
have nowhere else to
go during the day
have jobs
are housed
are homeless
just enjoy what we
have to offer
c
San Francisco Public Library
A Safe and Welcoming Environment for All
c
San Francisco Public Library
Clear Expectations
Behavior Guidelines
Baggage Limits
c
San Francisco Public Library
Consistent Consequences & Fair Process
Uniform Enforcement
Appeals Process
c
San Francisco Public Library
Partnerships: SFPD & DPW
San Francisco Police Department
Department of Public Works
c
San Francisco Public Library
Partnerships:
Department of Public Health
c
San Francisco Public Library
Partnership Goals:
Enhance Access to Existing Resources

Shelter

Food

Clothing

Showers & Laundry
Facilities

Storage

Legal Aid

Medical / Mental
St. Boniface Church, San Francisco
PHOTO: Jeanette Antal
Health Care
A Woman’s Place, San Francisco
c
San Francisco Public Library
Library Services to the Homeless:
Branch Division

Led by Branch Staff, assisted by Security

Focus on:
•
•
•
Providing a safe and welcoming environment
Meeting routine information needs
Referring to appropriate social service agencies
c
San Francisco Public Library
Library Services to the Homeless:
Main Library


Team effort involving Library Staff, SFPL Security,
the Health and Safety Associates, and the Library
Social Worker
Focus on:
•
•
•
Providing a safe and welcoming environment
Providing access to social services
Meeting routine information needs
c
San Francisco Public Library
Main Library Services to the Homeless



Inspired by Free Library of Philadelphia’s collaboration with Project Home
Partnership with the SF Department of Public Health evolved out of Project
Homeless Connect
Salaries covered by SFPL budget
c
San Francisco Public Library
Main Library Social Worker

Reaches out to Main Library patrons
who are homeless to connect or
reconnect them with social services

Trains, supervises and mentors HaSAs

Does not carry a case load

Coordinates training for staff
c
San Francisco Public Library
Health & Safety Associate (HaSA)
Job Overview

Paid internship (up to 15
Job Responsibilities

Monitor the bathrooms for
hours/week)
inappropriate activities

Six to 12 month duration

Morning, afternoon and evening

shifts

Representative of San Francisco’s
Provide resources (free eats,
showers, shelter, etc.)

Report illegal activities to
cultural diversity
Security staff
c
San Francisco Public Library
HaSAs are individuals who…




…have experienced
and overcome
homelessness.
…have first-hand
experiences using
the social service
system.
…are current or
former clients of the
SF Homeless
Outreach Team.
…do not take the
place of Security
staff.
c
San Francisco Public Library
On-the-job Training
HaSAs receive feedback during daily meetings with the social worker, before and
after their shifts. They learn how to do outreach, respect confidentiality, and
recognize mental health issues.
c
San Francisco Public Library
Making a Difference for Patrons and Staff

Permanent housing for ca.100 patrons

Assistance to over 1,000 patrons


Decrease in inappropriate use of the
public bathrooms
Assistance to Library staff with patrons in
need of social services
c
San Francisco Public Library
Next Steps for SFPL



Continue HaSA program at the Main Library
Expand HaSA program to Branch Libraries with
specific need for outreach to homeless patrons
Develop programming geared toward homeless
populations
c
San Francisco Public Library
Extending Our Reach
Richland Public Library
Serving the homeless
High Impact
Low cost
Teresa Windham twindham@richlandlibrary.com
Explore and Network in your Community
.
• Attend local government meetings
• Search out the agencies helping the homeless
• Get to know the outreach case workers from agencies
• Offer to give them a space to meet with clients
privately
• Work with your volunteer coordinator
.
Champion Staff Community Service
•
Champion and encourage your
administration to support
community service to the
homeless
•
Richland Library allows staff to
volunteer one hour a week for
agencies supporting early
literacy and the homeless
Market Free Library Services
• Contact local agencies
• Stress that you will share books, services
and staff if they will provide dedicated
space
• Emphasize life skills learned, role models
and connection to job skill services
The Transitions Story
A Library at Transitions
Partnering to help empower the homeless to
transition from the streets to self-reliance
Ready, Set, Go
We have a space, what do we do now?
Here is what we did:
• Promoted our idea to have a library at Transitions to the
Richland Library Friends who warehouse book donations
• Claimed used book shelves removed from a renovated
library
• Asked our technology department for an older computer
• Recruited and encouraged staff to volunteer one hour a week
• Wrote a MOA (Memorandum of Agreement)
Nuts and Bolts
• Use Excel to check out books
•
Shelve books by genre
• Keep statistics on attendance and circulation
• Trade out donations every quarter
• Keep a running list of requests
• Train other community volunteers for extended hours
IMPACT AND OUTCOMES
•
Provide learning and entertainment opportunities
•
Teach life skills
•
Provide a safe and caring environment
•
Make personal contacts
•
Teach 21st century skills
•
Provide research and resource help
•
Provide job skill training twice a month
•
Make appointments and encourage customers to use
the Job Center
Promote Homeless Awareness
A Walk in Their Shoes
EXTENDING OUR REACH
San Jose Public Library
Ruth Barefoot ruth.barefoot@sjlibrary.org
“Let’s have
them do it!”
“I’m too
busy; my
duties won’t
get done.”
“I didn’t
know that.”
“No one
will value
what I
do.”
“Not in my
community.”
“We are so
busy with all
the other
things we
do.”
“Training on
this is too
difficult.”
“I don’t deal
with
homeless
people.”
“Just call
the
police!”
Inside SJ’s Largest Homeless
Encampment
Photos by SJ Mercury News
She calls it home
Photos by SJ Mercury News
Life in the “jungle”
Photos by SJ Mercury News
AB 109 Passes in 2011
1955
 339
Psychiatric
Beds for
every 100,000
pop.

2005
 17
Psychiatric
Beds for
every 100,000
pop.

Services to Veterans, Mental Health & Recovery Services
Choice or Necessity?


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Programs for Housing
Job Services
Youth Services
Food & Meals
Transit Programs
Homeless Outreach
Drop-In Services
Rentals
SJPL Steps Up
 Homelessness
Forum Panel
Discussions
 Social Worker in the Library Program
 Staff Inservices with Q & A and
Scenario learning
 Small group training for target issues
 Hosted neighborhood discussions
Success story
Questions?
Cathy Delneo and Karen Strauss, San Francisco Public Library
chiefofmain@sfpl.org
Teresa Windham, Richland Library
twindham@richlandlibrary.com
Ruth Barefoot, San Jose Public Library
Ruth.Barefoot@sjlibrary.org
Lisa Gieskes, Coordinator of the Hunger, Homelessness &
Poverty Task Force
lisagieskes@yahoo.com
Julie Winkelstein, Ph.D, University of Tennessee- Knoxville
jwinkels@utk.edu
Resources
Extending Our Reach, the American Library Association’s
Office for Literacy and Outreach Services toolkit
This toolkit and webinar are designed to help librarians
create meaningful library services for people who are
experiencing homelessness.
 The American Library Association’s Hunger, Homelessness
& Poverty Task Force Website: www.hhptf.org/
 Share your story on Libsuccess: Services for the Poor and
Homeless
U.S. Dept. of Homeless Affairs (phone1-877-424-3838)
