Pawlet Public Library’s Path to Community Engagement
The Pawlet Public Library developed its strategic plan through a community engagement model, involving 13 community groups and several individuals over an eight month period. The library is pleased to share what it has learned about the community’s aspirations.
Read the complete Strategic Plan here.
To download a PowerPoint summary, please go to 2019 Community Engagement Summary. To download the complete spreadsheet of information gathered, please go to Community Input Raw Data.
Pawlet Public Library Team Presents Engaged Planning at State Conference
On May 21, 2019 Consultant Erica Freudenberger of the Southern Adirondack Library System and PPL Library Director Mary Lou Willits presented Engaged Planning, on community involvement, to the Vermont Department of Libraries’ Trustees and Friends Conference.
“Authentic community engagement is an essential part of effective strategic planning, and the work of the trustees and the director of the Pawlet Public Library to listen deeply to the needs of their community and respond to those needs will help ensure that the library remains a vibrant part of its community far into the future.
“This process of “Turning Outward” and allowing the community’s knowledge to guide the future of the library is a process that Mary Lou and consultant Erica Freudenberger shared with attendees at the 2019 VT Trustees and Friends Conference in Burlington, VT. In the world of libraries in VT, directors and trustees often rely on the guidance and mentorship of their colleagues, building upon shared wisdom and applying what they learn in their own communities.
“Erica and Mary Lou, by sharing their progress and experiences in Pawlet, acted as peer guides to the Conference attendees, inspiring their colleagues to engage in the essential paradigm shift that comes with authentic and consistent community engagement.”
Lara Keenan – Vermont Department of Libraries Consultant – Governance and Management
Pawlet Public Library 