Program Types & Tips Community Forums & Discussions Humanities: Setting Up a Reading Program Here’s another idea for community forums/talks/discussions on a wide range of topics central to a democracy. Each state has a state Humanities Council. As part of their mission, they often sponsor community programs. Your state council can help you find proven speakers and plan and publicize your program. And they may be able to provide funding for an honorarium. For a complete state council directory you can contact the Federation of State Humanities Councils 703/908-9700, e-mail gleftwich@erols.com State councils may have on-going programs that feed into the theme of “speak up for democracy and diversity.” One council, for example, offers programs such as “Civil Rights and Protected Classes,” Religious Freedom: What Is It?”, “Human Rights and Indian Rights,” “The Struggle for Suffrage,” and Campaign Coverage and the Democratic Process,” among others. Another offers “front porch discussions" on “The Good Society: Searching for What Unites Us.” The sample reading and discussion programs have been complied from the collective experience of the staffs of State Humanities Councils that have conducted reading programs for the general public. The format for the reading programs involves five or six two-hour sessions composed of lectures followed by open discussions of materials that have been read in advance. Program participants sign up in advance at the library; books and other reading material then are either sold or loaned to them. Because these sessions are based on discussion and dialogue, the size of the reading group should be limited to about twenty in a small library setting to forty or more in a large city library. The following brief outline of steps to keep in mind also gives a list of the materials and resources needed in planning a reading and discussion program. 1. Set up an advisory board. This group of three or four but no more than six (including the librarian and patrons) should choose the topic and format that they believe will be of the greatest interest to the community. 2. Prepare a budget. A budget should include scholars’ fees, book purchases, printing, publicity, etc. 3. Recruit the scholar-presenter. Select the reading and discussion scholar with care. In some cases, the best known specialist may not have the skills needed to serve as discussion leader. Make no commitments until you have the person you want. A good approach is to ask for resumes from a list of scholars you have compiled and then consult with department heads, librarians, and others. The presenter should be regarded by peers as an exceptional teacher. It is advisable to sign a contract with the scholar that stipulates his or her specific duties. 4. Set the dates for the program. Setting the program dates should include a three-way conversation among the library, the scholar-presenter, and the program director. Begin by obtaining a commitment from the site where the program will be held for a tentative set of dates. 5. Prepare the syllabus. A reading program relies on a syllabus, prepared by the advisory group and/or scholar. The scholar may select materials from throughout the books and anthologies that appear on the syllabus. These books are then made available in sets to the site for use by program participants. 6. Purchase the books. If books are to be purchased for the participants, orders should be placed at least four months in advance of the program date. Discounts for large orders are generally available from the publishers themselves or from wholesalers. 7. Design and print the brochures and posters. Regardless of the size of the community, most libraries can make good use of fifty posters and two hundred brochures. Allow time for printing any special fliers or for typesetting or designing materials. Professionally printed materials may take up to six weeks in turnaround time. If the budget allows, have advance publicity done professionally. Presenting the program in a focused, professional manner will help generate public awareness, interest, and advance registration. 8. Two months before the start of the program, deliver all materials to the site. Do not underestimate the amount of time needed to take care of vital details. Ordering books; seeing to details of preregistration; handling correspondence between the program director, the scholar-presenter, and other interested groups or individuals requires planning, preparation, and staff time. 9. One month before the start of the program, confirm details with library where program is to be held. Are the posters and brochures on site? Are the books in? Begin the book check-out. 10. Prepare news release or public service announcements twenty-one days in advance. Contact local media outlets (i.e., newspapers, radio/TV stations) to determine deadlines for submission of press releases or public service announcements. 11. Fifteen days in advance, check on preregistration and confirm the time and place with the scholar-presenter. 12. The week before, conduct follow-up calls, if necessary. If forty participants are expected, at least twenty should be signed up a week before the start of the program. 13. Check resources. The resources needed to conduct a reading program include the following items: bank account and bookkeeping system; workroom for program organizers; meeting place; books; a dry storage area for books; posters and brochures; office supplies; librarian packet (program description, sign-up forms, sample news release, close-out forms); scholar packet (sample syllabi, program description, contract). 14. Remember, face-to-face contact during the planning stages is best. Consult with key people frequently. A caution about book loans: some reading programs have lost as much as 10 percent of their books through failure of the participants to return them. It is the coordinator’s responsibility to see that loaned books are returned. >>Community Forums & Discussions Main Page >>Traditional Forums >>Virtual Forums >>Forum Formats >>Contacts & Resources >>Comparative Law Forums >>Community Conversations on Pluralism >>Democracy As a Discussion >>Humanities: Setting Up a Reading Program Reaching the Community Home | Program Types & Tips Home