Teen Councils

This great article below comes from Jennifer Lawson, Teen Specialist with the San Diego County Library. She posted this on the ya-yaac listserv on 4/17/08.

            First talk to the teens that you see frequently in the library. Tell them that you are starting a TAG and that you would like them to participate.

            High schools often have volunteer requirements. Find out who’ s in charge of referring students to volunteer opportunities and get on their list.

            Post flyers in unusual places around the library

•             By the pay phone

•             Next to the water fountain

•             On the inside of the doors in the bathroom

•             In popular teen books

•             Under the flap of the photocopy machine

•             On the cd racks

            Post flyers at places where teens congregate (ex. recreation centers, arcades, pizza parlors, shopping centers, comic book stores, coffee houses, churches, synagogues, schools, etc.).

<span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            Ask local community and volunteer groups to promote the TAG to their teens (ex. YMCA, 4-H, homeschool organizations, school librarians, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, boys and girls clubs, Key Club, AVID, etc.).

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            Ask principals and youth leaders to nominate teens to the board. Then send nominated teens a letter inviting them to your introductory pizza party.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            Promote the TAG at school visits.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            Submit an advertisement to your local schools’ newspapers.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            The library’s website! This feature coming soon.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            At all teen programs announce that the TAG is accepting new members.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            For that matter, at all adult programs announce that the TAG is accepting new members. They can refer their teens!

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            Invite 5th graders who are signing up for the last year of th e children’s summer reading program to join when they start the 6th grade.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            Invite all participants in the teen summer reading program. Consider handing out a flyer with their reading log.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            For continuing recruitment, make a display in the YA area tha t includes photos or a collage of things the group has done.

<p style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Cambria; mso-hansi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria">            You may find your recruitment so successful that you have to take applications! See the examples on the following pages.