In the October newsletter, CSLP announced exciting news about upcoming summer reading programs. Thanks to all the suggestions and information collected from library staff around the country, CSLP state reps selected an official 2027 slogan and 2028 theme. 2027’s theme will be based on Mystery/Detective/Suspense, and the slogan to complement it will be Mysteries Await at Your Library, 2028’s theme will be based on Mythical Creatures. CSLP thanks everyone who shared their thoughts and ideas through surveys, listening sessions, and committee participation.
CSLP’s Outreach Committee is also excited to announce plans for creating an Outreach Toolkit to provide support and resources that will help libraries bolster efforts to build community relationships, serve community members, and expand services beyond the library building. CSLP is encouraging library staff to help build the toolkit by gathering different resources for outreach like library programs, articles, websites, and relationship building ideas. Please note that this toolkit is digital so resources should be able to be linked on a webpage. To help build this toolkit, library staff can submit resource ideas through CSLP’s online Outreach Committee Resources Submission Form.
The October newsletter also shared a summer reading program success story from New York! To wrap up their program, the East Greenbush Community Library celebrated the end of 2024’s Adventure Begins at Your Library by hosting “glow parties” which engaged three different age groups. The Head of Youth and Family Services at the library, Amy McCarthy, reported that the events were a huge success and 220 kids, teens, and adults, participated in the Baby Rave, Glow Up Party, and Glowing Away Party, all geared towards different age groups. These events included activities such as dance parties and glow in the dark fun, and the library did an amazing job utilizing materials they had on hand along with inexpensive materials such as black lights and highlighters, and neon art supplies. Check out more information about this summer reading success story in the CSLP’s October Newsletter.
Registration for the Collaborative Summer Library Program’s annual virtual Summer Symposium is now open! This year’ symposium will focus on ideas and tips for library staff planning Summer Reading Programs around the 2025 theme of “Color Our World.”
The symposium happens on Thursday, December 5 from 11:00 AM to 4:30 PM and will feature keynote speaker Mychal Threets, who will share about the joy that books and libraries can bring to all of us. The symposium also features a session by Keturah Cappadonia and Haleigh Mikolajczyk from New York's Southern Tier Library System who will share ideas about how to add more sustainability to Summer Reading Programs.
Registration is free, and CSLP encourages public library staff to attend as many sessions as they can! Recordings of sessions will also be available so be sure to register for the symposium even if you can’t attend all sessions.