Brett Johnson [00:00:01]:
We are looking forward our way. Hi, this is Brett. The Columbus Metropolitan Library is one of the many jewels in our city. Reid it as one of the top libraries in the country, often coming in at number one. The library strives to inspire reading, share resources, and connect people, and its vision is to support a thriving community where wisdom prevails. Today, we're going to dive into the programs and services at the library that contribute to the success of our city and citizens. Let's welcome Benjamin Reid, public services director for the library. Thanks, Benjamin.
Benjamin Reid [00:00:32]:
Thank you, Brett. Thank you, Carol.
Carol Ventresca [00:00:34]:
We're so glad that you could join us today. And, as I told poor Benjamin on the phone going on and on and on about how the library Reid my favorite place. But also the other favorite that I have that, I keep telling our listeners is that I love numbers. So I'm going to give a little bit of information about the library. It's a respected resource in our region, not just for the number of books, movies, and magazines, but for the many resources that you make available to everyone from our small children to our senior citizens. In case our listeners are 13,100,000 items were circulated, 13,100,000 items were circulated, 9,300,000 website visits, 3,800,000 e content uses, and 2,500,000 computer and wireless sessions. That is a lot of service that our metro library has provided our community.
Brett Johnson [00:01:48]:
Huge. I think, Angie probably has about a hundred my wife has about a hundred thousand of those items circulated. Maybe. I think. I I think it should she would
Benjamin Reid [00:01:57]:
We appreciate
Brett Johnson [00:01:58]:
that. Be in the eye for that one, but she would say, yeah. Probably. Yeah.
Carol Ventresca [00:02:01]:
Yes. Yes. Yes. Well and and I'm I'm, closer to the Westerville Library, but now the Westerville Library is part of the bigger system. So I actually now have access to Columbus Library. I always had access to Columbus Library anyway because I had a card, but even through the through the Westerville Library, if I go to get something and it's not in Westerville, they'll pull it from Columbus or one
Benjamin Reid [00:02:24]:
of the other libraries. They joined the Central Library Consortium. Thanks. Most recently, they were one of the last holdouts within the region. So, really, the whole Reid is well connected now.
Carol Ventresca [00:02:34]:
The liquor liquor libraries.
Brett Johnson [00:02:37]:
It's all the L's.
Benjamin Reid [00:02:38]:
It's all the L's.
Carol Ventresca [00:02:39]:
I was an Otterbein student. I was there before there was liquor in downtown in Uptown Westerville.
Benjamin Reid [00:02:44]:
So You know, if if I can pause right there on these numbers, I wanna I wanna put this in a little bit of perspective for your listeners because, you know, we can we can share, you know, millions of uses and items and it it doesn't necessarily mean that much. So, as we know, Columbus Metropolitan Library is a large urban library. Thank you for mentioning. You know, often rated near the top in the nation by some of these metrics. So we're pretty proud, as we have been, you know, all of us recovering from the COVID years in many ways and knowing how that affected our society across the board. You know, in 2020, we had libraries closed for a time for a number of weeks. We had very limited services. So we had a long period of rebounding back to what we would consider, you know, pre pandemic numbers.
Benjamin Reid [00:03:30]:
And so this, user visit number of that 4,900,000 represents us reaching that 2019 metric of pre pandemic. And from our count, we're members of the Urban Library Council, so a national organization of large urban public libraries. By our count, we're the first library in the country to reach pre pandemic visit numbers. So Wonderful. We celebrated that. We're pretty proud of the support here in Central Ohio and just understanding, you know, how much our customers do rely on these services.
Brett Johnson [00:04:01]:
Well, you know, that says a lot too because you've, gone through because there's some revisions and some rebuilding of libraries during that time period too. Right? So that that has to take some numbers down because of access point. Kinda, you know.
Benjamin Reid [00:04:17]:
Yeah. It's interesting. Sort of Maybe not. Maybe. Down down and up in some different ways. That's why sometimes when we go back and look at, year over year data, it's hard at times to look at that, you know, Apple's steps. Branch app goals.
Brett Johnson [00:04:29]:
Being rebuilt or an additional one. I mean, whatever.
Benjamin Reid [00:04:31]:
Right. But we we you're right. We've been in a major capital plan since, that started in 2014.
Carol Ventresca [00:04:37]:
Right.
Benjamin Reid [00:04:37]:
And, we're still in that now. So some of those were built, you know, during those slower pandemic years and we continue to build. And so what often happens is a location may if we're building on the same site, location may move and go into a temporary location
Brett Johnson [00:04:51]:
Okay. Or
Benjamin Reid [00:04:52]:
what we call a swing space, which is usually smaller Reid services. We usually lose some some services and customer, you know, visits at that point. And then when we open a new location, that may you know, those uses may spike again. So you see some downward trends, but also some increases upon when Yeah. When the opening's happening. Happening.
Carol Ventresca [00:05:12]:
So but as Brett said, even a a huger coup that you were able to get to that pre pandemic numbers even with all of the building. You know, the other thing too, and we're not getting into levy issues in in today's podcast, but the levy has always been incredibly successful here in Central Ohio. And that really is an indicator of the positive view and the services that the library gives. People know that this service is out there for them and so they're willing to support that in any way they can. So
Brett Johnson [00:05:44]:
that Absolutely.
Benjamin Reid [00:05:46]:
Which we are grateful for.
Brett Johnson [00:05:47]:
Yeah. Yeah. And I, you know, you brought this up in in our in our notes here, Carol. I didn't realize the library was nearly as old as the city itself. I I didn't know that. And so, you know, after Columbus was founded in 1812, residents were quickly interested in establishing a public library, finally able to secure city funding to open the first location in 1873 with 1,500 books. That's one.
Carol Ventresca [00:06:08]:
Doesn't sound like a lot, but that was probably a lot of books. Exactly.
Brett Johnson [00:06:11]:
Yeah. And probably, hey, anybody got any books we could put together? You know, I mean, really. I mean, that's cool. It works. The main library is built in its current location, opened in nineteen o seven with a donation from the from, Andrew Carnegie, who had provided funding throughout the country to build, library systems. Our library Reid going grown from just one building now to 23 locations. Through all this growth, the library's main focus has been on community impact. Could you tell us how the library has helped to create, quote, unquote, my library Reid supporting a thriving community through knowledge and learning?
Benjamin Reid [00:06:47]:
Yeah. That's a that's a great question. So when we when we talk about my library, which is one of our strategies, we're really talking about, how our library serves a diverse array of customer needs and in in different spaces and places. So that may not be just checking out a book in a branch, but what's the web presence? Right? What's what's the website like? How do we connect with this really growing area of usage with electronic content, ebooks, and especially digital audiobooks is is our, you know, biggest area of growth. So understanding that as we, you know, went through the building plan, so rebuilding branches, we're building meeting more meeting rooms Reid, different, you know, community members can come in, can book space, book a study room. That continues to evolve the way that, you know, people are working and interacting with the library as a as a third space. Right? So, that's how we think of my library.
Brett Johnson [00:07:43]:
Got it. Yeah. I was gonna say, I've used the study to to do a couple of things with the with the, the the study rooms. And this is based on the Hilliard branch. It's always busy. And I I'm trying to remember how many rooms they have. It goes and I'm not gonna say it goes through through the whole alphabet, but it's about halfway through the alphabet. I've always for I always forget how many rooms are available.
Brett Johnson [00:08:05]:
It's like, you've gotta get on the calendar. You just can't walk in and assume a room is gonna be open Right. Which I think is great. I think it it's utilized and and and it from what I see when I go in, it's it's really used as such. Yeah. Absolutely. Study or tutoring rooms and so I I think it's great. You know, it's Reid to see if you build it, it will be used.
Brett Johnson [00:08:26]:
Even though I know studies were done, of course, but it's that, boy, you know, when when you have success that all those rooms are filled most of the time, that's that's a big happy smile.
Carol Ventresca [00:08:35]:
And I think, too, it really indicates that the library understands the needs of the community. Mhmm. And space is not something that many people have
Brett Johnson [00:08:43]:
Right.
Carol Ventresca [00:08:44]:
For meetings, community groups, whatever. But that the library has really gone over and above and beyond understanding what communities Reid. Because each of those libraries in each community has its own sort of flavor and and serving what that particular neighborhood is in need of. So as an aside, I sort of drive everybody crazy because I'm always looking at statistics and the history and throwing all that bits and pieces. I did not know until I was a a college student at Otterbein that Andrew Carnegie put money into libraries all over the country. The first Otterbein library was a Carnegie library, but they were real small. The fact that Columbus got money from Andrew Carnegie, they had to kind of like push him to put money into that new building because he normally did little tiny libraries in little tiny communities like Westerville was at the time. So the fact that he believed in what Columbus was doing and and had, proposed and he actually put money in, I think, into it three times, from the history that I that I read online.
Carol Ventresca [00:09:53]:
So it really is it shows that that this library this commitment to really public access of information is part of the, birthplace that Columbus has been. So kudos. Kudos. That's great. So let's keep moving here. So our library has some incredible programs, but we first need to examine how it promotes reading. Library's goal is to inspire reading. It's a it's a it's a central component of the mission statement.
Carol Ventresca [00:10:26]:
Can you give us a little quick look at the importance of not only having books on the shelves, but the programs that support reading for kindergarteners and third grade readers and making sure they can pass those third grade tests and for high school students so that they can graduate.
Benjamin Reid [00:10:43]:
Absolutely. And you covered some of that right there. But, you know, if if you were to to survey, you know, all of your listeners, right, And and asked, you know, what is the library's brand? Mhmm. Most people would certainly still say books. Right? And in the course of our conversation today, as we talk about life skills and workforce and other resources we provide, we are we are not gonna talk about books that often. Right? Or if we talk about some of the newer newer features of the community needs, technology needs, we may not talk about books that often. But it's really important to know that, that is certainly a core service of what the library provides for the community, that that's not going away. And in some ways, is, most important with our youngest customers and their families.
Benjamin Reid [00:11:30]:
So I want to break down the our Young Minds strategy for you briefly. We focus on, you know, a couple different, phases in a young person's life. So first would be from birth to age five, an incredibly important time of acquiring the skills to promote literacy later in life. There's this large focus on being ready for kindergarten. And that doesn't mean, you know, you're going to kindergarten, you're reading novels, right, reading picture books, but you are prepared to learn. So kids that start school that know their know their alphabet, that know their letter sounds, that have a a broad array of vocabulary that they've seen in print and they've also heard from their caregivers. We support this through our our story times through we have a series of ready for k classes for, you know, five year olds who are gonna start kindergarten. So lots of lots of messaging to parents on this is a pretty key time in life.
Benjamin Reid [00:12:29]:
And that really that really, then flows right into when you start kindergarten for those first few years of elementary school because there is that, third grade reading guarantee, the series of tests in Ohio where you're starting to really understand, that, a student has moved on to the comprehension stage, that they are proficient readers. The the studies show about that point, about about third grade is when, they need to have those skills. A strong foundation, those skills really, really firmly established that they can continue to learn at the proper rate going forward. So
Carol Ventresca [00:13:10]:
And there have been a lot of studies just out recently about the number of hours the kids are online and how they're now saying they shouldn't be online at all. It and it's you it sounds like, oh, you know, a kindergartner may be online an hour a day. That doesn't sound like a lot, but how much more valuable if they were learning to read, comprehend, analyze what they're reading, understand what they're reading, read back to their to their family or siblings as opposed to looking at a game?
Brett Johnson [00:13:45]:
Right.
Benjamin Reid [00:13:46]:
Yeah. I'm I'm not the expert on, you know, those studies or the implications necessarily. I I do have a my son is is in elementary school, so see some of this and know that, you know, technology is a big part of this generation and how they're gonna learn. So there are, I'd say, hybrid ways that they're using Mhmm. You know, printed books and text along with, using computers, certainly. So back to one point here, just thinking about that third Reid. We often think of this idea that, up to third Reid or about that about that age, that students are learning to read. Right? And at that point, when they're supposed to be proficient, they need to be reading to learn.
Benjamin Reid [00:14:29]:
And you've got to make that transition at that time or the studies are showing, like, then there are setbacks going on. And that really leads up to, that last age group and that last goal for us is that making sure that high school students get through high school. That they get that diploma somehow because that's still a major indicator for future success. Now there are many different pathways after that these days. It's probably growing and changing even more quickly, whether that's traditional college or a trade or entrepreneur. Right? Enlistment. Lots of options there, but getting that diploma is still that key that unlocks that next step.
Brett Johnson [00:15:07]:
Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. Yeah. Well, your role at the library as the public services director is to nurture the life skills programs. Life skills is an in-depth array of many resources to prepare residents for work as well as prepare them for life's challenges. We wanna take a look at these various programs. Can you first focus on the important area of digital skills and equality of access?
Benjamin Reid [00:15:32]:
Certainly. Certainly. So this is my area of work at the library. So this is what we're here to talk about. You call it. Yeah. Right? But I'm glad we did cover my library and young minds as their other other two major strategies. And then life skills is our third, leading strategy.
Benjamin Reid [00:15:46]:
So when we think of life skills, we think of a variety of services, for adults and in in some sort of need usually. Right? So split that work up into adult education, social services needs, workforce development, and then increasingly, digital and digital equity and digital inclusion Right. Needs. And what we find with really with digital inclusion is that there is some overlap with the rest of those areas of work because you really these days need to have access to the Internet, likely a high speed connection, the right device for your need, and then the skills to apply that. Right? To use that device and to use your Internet connection. And it's it's almost as if it should be a utility. Right? Like we need water, gas, electricity. We need high speed internet.
Carol Ventresca [00:16:40]:
As opposed to an entertainment.
Benjamin Reid [00:16:44]:
In just in today's society, in the workplace, for social connection, you know, not to downplay entertainment or social connection, but, it's just needed to to reduce barriers and and put everyone on a level playing field.
Brett Johnson [00:16:57]:
Well, I think even through, you know, the the the COVID time Reid, it may be a good example being that, you know, we had the the health professional access points. That that's how you saw the doctor.
Benjamin Reid [00:17:07]:
Yep. Absolutely. And And and that was a
Carol Ventresca [00:17:10]:
Kids were kids were in their car in the library's parking lot to pick up the Wi Fi to do their own work because they didn't have Internet access
Benjamin Reid [00:17:19]:
at home. Exactly. This challenge, did not begin in 2020, but the It
Brett Johnson [00:17:25]:
made it well.
Benjamin Reid [00:17:27]:
Spotlight it. The focus on it changed. Yeah. How, you know, just the nature of that changing overnight for us. People can't go to school, can't go to work, can't go to the doctor. That that became a major major issue.
Brett Johnson [00:17:40]:
I think that was hand in hand in the from what I heard the conversation, like, okay, this is what we are talking about. Right. Now it's exacerbated and as well as a huge spotlight on this is what we were talking about.
Benjamin Reid [00:17:52]:
Sure. Yeah. So at that time, in in those, you know, those early days of March 2020, the library came together with with Morpsey and with the Columbus Foundation and just started talking about that problem. And early on, it was a group of a few partners and they met early mornings kind of before their work day started. And that group grew and grew. And, that group continues to operate as the Franklin County Digital Equity Coalition. It's a group of nonprofit, public sector government, some private partners that we still meet almost every other Wednesday in the mornings and continue to work on this issue to say, you know, if if that, you know, digital divide is the problem. Right? That digital inclusion work, the tools that we can reach that goal of digital equity, and that we really need that in Franklin County for everybody as we continue to grow, as we want our industries and our workforce environment to grow, and we just wanna, you know, provide opportunities for all people in the county.
Benjamin Reid [00:18:58]:
So that has really led to, maybe not brand new areas of work in the library. We've we've had, you know, public computer labs Reid years and years. We've helped people with technology in the past. But I think what it's done is provided a bit of a different focus for us. So we've we've been very involved in this work for a number of years now, have employed, a new type of position at the library called a digital navigator under a couple different grant programs. Somebody who is singularly focused on helping people with those digital inclusion needs, high speed Internet at home, the right device for their need, like, acquiring the skills they need. We are working currently with partners, and at at present time, Smart Columbus here in town, is a really a project management lead around this work and is doing a great job of connecting partners. But we're currently, running a program called Digital Skills Hub, which is, which which we love.
Benjamin Reid [00:19:59]:
It's a bit of like a learn and earn model. So, in this case, a customer would take ten hours of skills courses learning on a on a high end Chromebook device. And upon completing the ten hours, they keep that device for free. This work, again, is managed by Smart Columbus, is funded by the City of Columbus by in Franklin County, and there are currently 18, nonprofit partners working on this program, and we continue to build. We've we've got big goals with this.
Carol Ventresca [00:20:31]:
What what are the kinds of things they're learning in that ten hour span?
Benjamin Reid [00:20:36]:
Sure. So because we're working with Chromebooks, they're primarily learning, the Google suite of products. So they're, you know, they're learning the basics of the device they're on. They're learning the browser. They're learn learning the Internet with Google. But then also focusing on, you know, those Google apps that they would most be likely to use. So, you know, the Google the Google Docs and the Sheets and the Google Slides and these things that are, you know, good for personal use, but also can be applied to business uses as well. What we love about this this program is on the again, ten hours goes by pretty pretty quickly.
Benjamin Reid [00:21:10]:
But on that final day of the class, all of the participants do what we call a final showcase. And they have have to, you know, apply something that they learned and then demonstrate it for their cohort. And these are not large classes, you know, 10 to 15 people at times, sometimes a little bit smaller. But we've had people come up and create a spreadsheet about, you know, they're moving and they need to buy items for their new apartment and they need to get a checklist and they've created that. Or Reid a presentation they might use for work or even draft a simple, you know, schedule for their family. And, you know, seemingly, simple tasks if you're familiar with technology, but really meaningful to see people have the device, have the knowledge, and unlock that even within just ten hours of of course time.
Brett Johnson [00:22:03]:
Yeah. Moves it beyond the toy that it's a tool. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah.
Carol Ventresca [00:22:08]:
So that really builds right back into my next question then is that, you know, the library has been known for its work to support and help job seekers for years. I remember this going back to when I was in high school. Let's talk a little bit about what you are doing to help prepare the workforce for tomorrow's jobs.
Benjamin Reid [00:22:34]:
Yes. Great question. So, you know, a number of things I think we can talk about here as well. You know, one thing we mentioned was, sort of the tail end of of students under that young minds strategy and how they're nearing completing high school and thinking about what might be the next step. That is an is an area of of real focus more recently. Because again, we're thinking, you know, the earlier we can help work on that preparation for career next step, the better. So one thing I wanna mention is is this is in partnership with that team on the youth youth services side, but we have run a large scale, internship fair at main library. In fact, we just had that towards the February at the Main Library location with, I think we had around 60 different employers that have internships, apprenticeships, summer jobs.
Benjamin Reid [00:23:26]:
So point being, like, this is not just a traditional job fair, but focused on, skill development in young people. And, and what I love about this event is that we work with schools around the region and we pay to bus in the students. So we brought in over a thousand high school students on that one day and it's opened up also to Columbus State. Students are great to attend that as well. And many other students showed up on their own to meet with these different employers to look at, you know, what's, what's an internship I might get? Or what's a summer job that may help me understand, you know, what could be the next step in that career path? So as we think about kind of building that base, I love that. I love that example. Now for adults, you know, you're right. This is, again, not not new for libraries to help people with some of these questions.
Benjamin Reid [00:24:19]:
But I think we're continuing to to think about, new ways to improve that service and how we iterate. And so, we certainly have people at the library. Right? Our librarians and our information professionals that are here to help. And one of the programs that we've built is called Community Support Center. And the idea behind Community Support Center is that we can set aside our staff to have dedicated time to answer, an array of questions that our customers bring in. So we think might think of traditionally the library has that reference desk and people come in and they have that really in-depth question that we're gonna sit there and answer. But in reality these days, that's, you know, we may have more technology related questions and more social services questions in many locations and that's not, it's not the same everywhere. But that, that notion that we are gonna, you know, maybe open up a reference book and look through that deeply to find one answer is not necessarily the relationship that we always have.
Benjamin Reid [00:25:21]:
It's often more about helping people learn how to seek out their own information to evaluate sources, to learn, you know, how to search. Right? So in our community support center, that space that we have in time that we provide to address trickier social services questions, longer, you know, technology related questions. And certainly, these questions that, you know, traditionally people bring in to say, I need a job. I don't have a resume. Where do I start?
Brett Johnson [00:25:53]:
Mhmm.
Benjamin Reid [00:25:53]:
Because that's not a quick interaction necessarily. It's not something that we're gonna finish
Brett Johnson [00:25:58]:
in a ten minute. Or should it be.
Benjamin Reid [00:25:59]:
Or should it be. Right. So, we wanna set aside that time. And by promoting the program this way, we're trying not to define for others what what that program is. Right? We want our customers to know you bring us your questions, your challenges. We're here to help.
Brett Johnson [00:26:20]:
Mhmm.
Benjamin Reid [00:26:20]:
You know, we're here to support you. And we'll do our best to get you to the next step right as you walk out the door. Good.
Carol Ventresca [00:26:27]:
Okay. So there are there are programs that you have that are key to particular populations, though, also. Not everybody is going to come to you English speaking. We know that
Brett Johnson [00:26:42]:
Mhmm.
Carol Ventresca [00:26:42]:
Digital background may be nonexistent.
Benjamin Reid [00:26:46]:
Mhmm.
Carol Ventresca [00:26:46]:
So there are some other kinds of things that are going on, though, too in that job help realm to get people up to speed.
Benjamin Reid [00:26:55]:
Right. And we can we can sidebar here, I think, on English language learning as another key area of work. But I'll continue a little bit more. So, I think also we'll talk about partnerships a little bit more as well later. So, I wanna mention, so we talk about our staff, our people helping people, in library. Our customers be able to bring their questions. I mentioned all this and I and I want to be sure not to, you know, give, you know, specific locations or times for your listeners. It's gonna be great for people to go to columbuslibrary.org to look at the events box and to search for some of these resources and they can do that by program name or by subject and at their at their favorite location, right, at their neighboring location.
Brett Johnson [00:27:42]:
Because it will vary.
Benjamin Reid [00:27:43]:
It will vary.
Brett Johnson [00:27:44]:
Because the libraries are customized
Benjamin Reid [00:27:45]:
to a
Brett Johnson [00:27:46]:
certain degree.
Benjamin Reid [00:27:46]:
And
Brett Johnson [00:27:46]:
things should be to the neighborhood they are in.
Benjamin Reid [00:27:48]:
Right. Sure. From today to when a listener may hear this, like, some of these schedules may may have changed. Right. But there's a really great resource I want to talk about that is online and available to library card holders that they can access, anywhere. Not just the library, but also from home. So a few things. We have a resource from a company called Brainfuse called JobNow.
Benjamin Reid [00:28:11]:
And you can think of JobNow as, like your your virtual, job help support center, a real database of resources, for job seekers. So you can find resume help. You can read about, you know, improving your soft skills or working on your interview techniques. But what we really like about this service is that there are live job coaches available through this through this web service, from two to 11PM every day. So which means you can talk to somebody live about your resume. You could do a mock interview. You can think about how does my cover letter support my background. So, you know, our our expert staff can help with that, but also this resource job now is is available anywhere and at at later times.
Benjamin Reid [00:29:06]:
And it's it's excellent. I've used it to try in the past and you can submit a resume and somebody will look at that and they'll send you a markup and they'll send you ideas back to you. And then, you can make make those changes, take it or leave it, think about what you're applying for. So, it's a really great service. One other I wanna be sure to mention is another service that you can use with your library card online, and it's called LinkedIn Learning. And some listeners may remember a service called lynda.com. This is the same.
Carol Ventresca [00:29:37]:
Was it also Coursera? Was that the same?
Benjamin Reid [00:29:40]:
That may be a different service,
Carol Ventresca [00:29:41]:
but it
Benjamin Reid [00:29:41]:
may be similar. Yeah. I know this one as lynda.com being being acquired by LinkedIn to become LinkedIn Learning. This is such a great resource for self paced discovery on a number of different topics. So not just maybe tech skills. How do I how do I do this in Word? Right? But also, what does, you know, what does this industry do? What do I do in this job? How do I become a graphic designer? Here's a whole course plan on learning how to learn what your next steps may be. Now that doesn't mean that you won't need, some official credentialing, right, at some point or certifications, but, this is helping people learn at their own pace and really opening up a world of discovery.
Brett Johnson [00:30:27]:
Yeah.
Carol Ventresca [00:30:28]:
You know, too, let me I'm just gonna put an aside on that. One of the things that, our listeners hear from me all the time is that we put together a resources list of information about each podcast and include that in our show notes. We often include the library and LinkedIn Learning Oh, wonderful. To those resource sheets. And I think what's important for people to realize is, if I understand correctly, LinkedIn Learning, if you do it through LinkedIn, there's maybe a cost. But because you do it through your Columbus library card, there is no cost because the library has the subscription.
Benjamin Reid [00:31:07]:
Correct. Right.
Carol Ventresca [00:31:08]:
So it it's there are, like, tens of thousands of opportunities to learn. And this goes with a point that I didn't make in the notes that I sent to Benjamin before we started the podcast. I'm a firm believer in lifelong learning. So although we've concentrated on young people today, folks, job seekers of any age, are going to learn something through the library, particularly these kinds of resources. And when someone says to you, well, you need to update your skills, you know, to be a great job, seeker, it can be done. You know? Don't think you cannot do it. There are a lot of resources out there, and the library is huge in resources to for you in your job search adventure. Yeah.
Benjamin Reid [00:32:02]:
Absolutely. Thank you for sharing that on your other on your other podcast as well. Right?
Carol Ventresca [00:32:07]:
Let's continue a a little bit more with some of those resources that you have for not only just job seekers, but for those who may be looking to create their own business as an entrepreneur, maybe an employer who's looking to make some changes within their business. There are a lot of resources that the Library has to help in that in the workplace, and partnerships that you've created to also help, job seekers and workplace. So
Benjamin Reid [00:32:35]:
Yes. Yes. Okay. Big question. So we'll go on that one here. So, yeah, I do wanna talk about, a specialized and and and, unique feature at our main library is our business and nonprofit resource center. We have long, offered, you know, services with the business librarian out of main library. But not until recently, just about two years now, that we we redesigned and built a space dedicated for the service and increased the expertise of our of our staff dedicating to the service.
Benjamin Reid [00:33:10]:
So I'll, you know, scope that out for our listeners here. On the Third Floor at Main Library, underneath or on the Third Floor at Main Library within our adult services department, there is space with some, you know, some really interesting furniture features. We're thinking this as, you know, flexible and hybrid workspace. This might become your new favorite co working space. This could be a space that you bring your small company for a retreat. We have access to technology including, Macs, Mac computers for adults and also have loaded in the Adobe Creative Suite, which we didn't have that available for adults at any other location at Columbus Metropolitan Library. So it's a place for, you know, more access to technology for maybe creatives or people working in different fields. And certainly our librarians, our business librarian, our non profit support librarian.
Benjamin Reid [00:34:03]:
So helping people understand how they might get started on their journey. It could be through employment as an entrepreneur. Also, you know, starting a small business with a few employees. And heavily reliant on partners in this work. And in fact, there's there's probably so much to talk about on this that you might have a have a future podcast on this where we invite
Brett Johnson [00:34:22]:
We're gonna
Carol Ventresca [00:34:23]:
be back. Gotcha. Yeah.
Benjamin Reid [00:34:24]:
And I will invite my team to come talk about that, because they have they have the details. But just important to know that, you know, we've created this this space. We have technology. We work with many different partners who come in as, you know, reserve an expert, to help people with different questions and have found, especially on the nonprofit side, that, often so much is out there on, you know, maybe grant writing, fundraising for nonprofits, but less so on, just the administrative functions of running a nonprofit. So we we've got some got some support to, you know, add programming in that space. And so we're just Reid excited to grow this to grow this program. We also have, again, through our electronic resources, through our research databases that you can access with your library card, A number of resources that I think are beneficial to both employers and employees. Right? And and some of this again is is a more traditional look at electronic resources and databases.
Benjamin Reid [00:35:24]:
But still, there's lots of information out there. Let's remind our listeners, lots of information out there that, exist on databases behind paywalls that is not just a Google search. Right. Right. Yeah. So, some of those resources, we have Business Source Premier that, pulls together industry profiles, you know, looks at at data and trends, market share with different industries, company profiles, so understanding, you know, again, the the data around, you know, the work that different companies do. Some of this is, you know, really great research for somebody who might be looking to get into a new field or applying for a job in a new field. There are many different, you know, database and and analytical sites.
Benjamin Reid [00:36:10]:
There's one called Simply Analytics where you can create a variety of interactive maps and charts, and some of this has this great, you know, kind of visualizations that go with that, you know, to study demographics and populations, which is really interesting. A classic, the Occupational Outlook Handbook. Absolutely. Yes. Still exists. Yes. Still has information, that's useful. And I've already mentioned LinkedIn Learning, for the library Reid, can just it just opens up a whole world.
Brett Johnson [00:36:41]:
With your database, situation, do you have support to be able to I can go in, take a look at the data, log in, and that sort of thing. But to help me understand what I'm looking at, to formulate it, and to pull information out that's actually useful in what I'm looking for.
Benjamin Reid [00:37:02]:
Yeah. Those are great questions for our librarians and information.
Brett Johnson [00:37:06]:
I'm assuming you do, but I would Right.
Benjamin Reid [00:37:08]:
But to me, it's like,
Brett Johnson [00:37:09]:
okay, I can go and look, but if I know
Benjamin Reid [00:37:10]:
what am I looking for
Brett Johnson [00:37:11]:
and what am I looking at and how does this all come together? You know what is information, but it's that, I don't know what all this means or even to really find what I want. Well Because it's a database. It's just Mhmm. Stuff. Yeah. You know?
Carol Ventresca [00:37:25]:
And even before that, the the the step before that is, and I used to tell my students this when I was at the university, clients at Employment for Seniors, a job seeker doesn't know what they don't know.
Brett Johnson [00:37:38]:
Right.
Carol Ventresca [00:37:38]:
And so a huge part of preparing yourself to be the absolute best candidate you can be in your job search is to get all of the information that you can. And here at the Columbus library is an incredible first step. And you're gonna have a lot of steps after that, and you're going to do lots and lots of things to make yourself that better candidate, it isn't just a resume. It isn't just a cover letter. There are decisions you need to make in your job search that this can get you to. And it it may be your first job, it may be trying to succeed in your career or looking at something completely different or looking to step outside of the workforce and create your own. Lots of different pieces, but there is information for people. And and the librarians have that you're going through training to help people, and you want to help people.
Carol Ventresca [00:38:40]:
So it's it's really a win win situation for everybody to to utilize these services.
Benjamin Reid [00:38:46]:
That's that's why we're there. We wanna make you all really busy. Right. Exactly. We wanna be really busy here to help with with open to all, right, with these free services Right. At the library.
Carol Ventresca [00:38:57]:
That's Right. That's what
Benjamin Reid [00:38:58]:
we do. It's it's it's a pretty amazing concept, I think, when you think about it.
Brett Johnson [00:39:01]:
Sure. Absolutely. Well, one goal of the library is to share information on resources and to connect people. We've already mentioned several partnerships the library has with local nonprofits and other organizations. Now, how does that networking and information sharing provide even more successful outcomes to residents and library patrons?
Benjamin Reid [00:39:21]:
Sure. Well, I I think what's so great about the partnerships is that we, can rely on the expertise where it is in the community. And so when you think about when you think about the library, the public library, and I'd say librarians and informational professionals, what we, what we are great at is being generalists in some ways, right? Knowing just enough about many, many topics to make make a difference and to point people in the next direction as we were just just mentioning. So when we work with partners who have a deeper level of expertise, we can make these direct referrals or warm handoffs where, somebody really needs that that next step. So a number of partners we work with, but OhioMeansJobs is one. Legal Aid of Southeastern and Central Ohio, we bring in. We've been we've been adding resources that I would classify as, reentry resources or those for the justice impacted. Although, it's really for anybody who might have certain barriers to access.
Benjamin Reid [00:40:27]:
So, we held a large larger scale record sealing and expungement clinic at the library last year, a license reinstatement clinic with partners from the county. We currently are offering a monthly, we call it a tap in center at branches. Again, partners from the courts and from the DMV. And the whole purpose is to of the Tappan Center is to clear bench warrants. And this is all about, you know, whether it's whether it's, sealing a record, you know, getting a CQE for somebody, clearing a bench warrant, getting someone a driver's license in good standing. You might think that this is adjacent to workforce, but it's not. These are real barriers Totally. That keep people from full employment.
Benjamin Reid [00:41:12]:
And, again, as we think about prosperity, right, in a region and that that big vision of that thriving community where wisdom prevails, then these services feel necessary.
Carol Ventresca [00:41:28]:
Absolutely. Well, and I think too that that, our audience, we've been talking about job seeking over the past few years in an economy where there were more jobs than people looking for jobs. That's probably changing going into 2025, for a lot of reasons, but it it's every job seeker needs to do everything they can to make sure that their their, journey through this this searching process is smooth. And these are all the bits and pieces that need to happen so that you can get on the right path for your search. Yeah. It's not, you know, it's not that an employer won't hire you. Don't make it so an employer can't hire you. They want to hire you.
Carol Ventresca [00:42:24]:
They want good people. They want folks with with great skills or ability to learn those skills, but make it so that they can hire you. So, yes. And our, our population that has had those legal barriers have needed this help for a long time.
Benjamin Reid [00:42:42]:
Mhmm. Right. You are correct. It's been an environment the last few years of, a competitive market, a strong labor market, record low unemployment levels in Franklin County. And and so it you know, I won't prognosticate on that, but we'll we'll see. Right? The future never stays the same. Right? It never comes out exactly. Prepared, you know, for what may come next.
Benjamin Reid [00:43:06]:
And and I think the other thing we're thinking about to to get ahead of some of the changes in our region is to work with partners like Columbus State Community College to think about, again, how do we prepare people to be ready for the big changes that we think are coming, and positive changes. Right? So Columbus State is really focused on, high-tech and advanced manufacturing. Right? That that could apply to a future job, with an intel, right, or to other companies that are that are coming to Central Ohio.
Carol Ventresca [00:43:42]:
Or or the 45 primary suppliers that are going to take care of Intel. There's and and Right. Audience, don't forget, we did a podcast with the workforce development folks at Columbus State.
Benjamin Reid [00:43:52]:
So Oh, good.
Carol Ventresca [00:43:53]:
We'll we'll point you back to that too. It's a lot of good information.
Benjamin Reid [00:43:56]:
Good. We know from from Columbus State that, you know, biopharma, like, especially with Ohio State, that's growing. We work with our our partners with Goodwill Columbus, and they Reid doing training, both on learning like IT level, you know, tech support skills, but also in the healthcare field. And if you just drive around any highway in Columbus, you will see major growth in healthcare. Again, I will not say I'm the expert on this, but if you're just to look around at, the the Capital Building, you would say, I think healthcare is a strong bet
Brett Johnson [00:44:34]:
for future growth. Oh, for sure.
Carol Ventresca [00:44:36]:
Right. And people are honing in on these huge mega database farms that we're doing, but there aren't that many jobs in those farms. But there are a ton of jobs building them. And that's where and that's where those those technical programs that Columbus State has that not only will help you in those kinds of fields today, but then help you move into something even better for tomorrow. So yeah. Mhmm. Kudos to those folks.
Benjamin Reid [00:45:05]:
So those connections have been a focus of our larger scale job fair. So I mentioned we run an internship fair every year. But we also, every year in September, run a large job fair that our team at the library organizes. The past few years, we've had upwards of 75 employers at Main Library, many different customers coming in. I love that day because, again, it's been this strong labor market, and we've had situations where, people were hired on the spot for jobs there. That we had companies who were so ready to fill that we saw people get jobs in front of us. And one one story I love was a was a Benjamin who, was, is a new American and had credentials in, in the country where he lived. But as we know, in The US, those credentials don't always follow.
Benjamin Reid [00:46:00]:
And so he was looking for a job in a medical field because he was a doctor, couldn't work as a doctor here. And through this job fair though, found a company that was adjacent to that, that was in the pharmaceutical field and was hired from that and he just loved hearing and sharing that story. And again, is that is that the equivalent job for this gentleman's, education skill level? No, it's not. But is that a foot in the door to gainful employment within his field? Yes. And that was a really special moment to share. Wonderful. So I think when we talk about, you know, preparing people for the workforce as an earlier question, we we talked about, you know, sort of the hard and soft skills of how to look for jobs, how to apply for jobs. We talked about, growing someone's digital skills.
Benjamin Reid [00:46:53]:
We talked about even, you know, supporting someone's social services needs and reducing barriers. And and so another another key focus for us, especially in Central Ohio where we are so diverse, is supporting people who are, learning English and improving their English. And so we work with a variety of partners and offer, English as a as a second language or as an additional language. Right? Sometimes people can speak multiple languages, so we don't wanna pigeonhole them there. And also our staff help as well. We run a program called English Conversation Tables, a little bit more informal, drop in, no registration. We are finding that, we're just really building community through that event, and just really appreciate the time spent with our customers as they, you know, are are gaining, you know, different skill sets.
Carol Ventresca [00:47:43]:
Right. I I remember talking to somebody at at the library at one point where it wasn't where the women who were here, trying to help their children, but because they their English was limited, they weren't able to help their children with their schoolwork.
Benjamin Reid [00:48:03]:
Mhmm. Mhmm.
Carol Ventresca [00:48:04]:
And how important that is. So it's not just to put somebody into the workforce, but it's also to help stabilize families.
Benjamin Reid [00:48:12]:
Yeah. Oh, sure. Absolutely. There are many different stories out there as we know. We we love to see that dynamic at times in our school help centers that we have in every location during after school hours where, we're not there to do one on one tutoring, but we have a space where students can come in and get any type of help they may need, where we can offer some direction, and certainly see that dynamic of families that, you know, are looking for different levels of support.
Carol Ventresca [00:48:43]:
Wonderful. This has been terrific. And as I I keep I'm I'm the fan of the year here. I just I I I when, when I first contacted Benjamin, I said I've been looking for somebody to come and talk to us for so long. We are so lucky in Central Ohio to have incredible resources. I gave a shout out to the Westerville Library. I also have to give a shout out to the Sunbury Library. Oh, yeah.
Carol Ventresca [00:49:11]:
Folks are phenomenal up there. I kinda live between the two, and they are just amazing, and so gracious. But also, like, the Westerville Library, I remember when we first got tablets. I couldn't figure out how to make this thing work and and how to get books on my tablet. So I went to the Westerville Library Reid they had a rental librarian program. So I rented a librarian for an hour and she walked me through all those bits and pieces. These are resources that can make our life so much better. And thank you to you and your colleagues and your administrators, everybody who has made The Columbus Library an incredible place.
Carol Ventresca [00:49:53]:
Thank you for joining us today. And we always ask our guests if they have any last words of wisdom or maybe something that's going on in the library that we didn't get a chance to talk about. It's all yours.
Benjamin Reid [00:50:08]:
Sure. Well, you know, we mentioned before that if the if the well known brand of libraries is is books. Right? We covered many other topics of what libraries are doing these days. And sometimes things are are just really fun and we we create these moments of discovery. So, depending on when your listeners may may hear this podcast from from today in early March through the May, May '20 second, I think, in 2025. We have a pretty great partnership at our main library with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame out of Cleveland. Some artifacts to see, something they loan are playable pinball machines, with, you know, classic rock icons and soundtracks. And it's a real connect some of them are are, you know, the ones from the seventies, and then there's some some remastered ones.
Carol Ventresca [00:50:58]:
I can maybe do those.
Benjamin Reid [00:50:59]:
Oh, they're they're so much fun.
Carol Ventresca [00:51:01]:
I'm gonna challenge Brett.
Brett Johnson [00:51:02]:
Oh, there you go. Good. Yeah.
Benjamin Reid [00:51:04]:
Yeah. But that that connection to music and creativity and youth culture, we also have a photography show from, one of the Rolling Stone magazine's, first feature photographers. His name was Barron. His name is Barron Wollman. And, our interesting fact that, you know, we have uncovered uncovered and added value to is that Baron Wollman is a Columbus native from Bexley. Went to Bexley High School.
Carol Ventresca [00:51:29]:
Really?
Benjamin Reid [00:51:30]:
Oh my gosh. Was traveling in Germany in the early sixties and, was taking photographs sort of as a hobby and sent his photographs back to Columbus and sold them to the Columbus Dispatch. At which point Reid, I he said, I think I can make a career out of this. Fast forward a bit to the late sixties, hooked up with, you know, Jan Wenner and the team at the Rolling Stone and Rolling Stones and became that photographer of of these iconic images that you would recognize of of rock stars from the air. So we've got, prints of some of his photographs from the sixties and seventies up in the library, a local, history exhibit on the history of music in Central Ohio. So we connect that back to Columbus also. So it's it's a it's a really great exhibit. And it just represents this, you know, added layer of, I think, interest and discovery that you can find when you visit Columbus Metropolitan Library or your local library
Brett Johnson [00:52:32]:
as well. Well, now where is that house? Where at the main, of course. But where at where at the main?
Benjamin Reid [00:52:36]:
It's at the main library on the First Floor in our large open atrium. And with the sounds of the pinball flippers and the dings and the bells, you won't miss it these days.
Brett Johnson [00:52:48]:
I was just gonna say, there's probably either rock music coming out or the pinball machine. Here you go.
Benjamin Reid [00:52:54]:
The great thing about, you know, our libraries today is that we are generally a space of community activity, of sometimes conversation, right, of of community gathering. That that means that it's not always gonna be pin drop quiet, but we create these spaces that you can seek out that quiet if you need to. We talked about the study rooms. We have quiet study areas in many of our branches. So there's a place to get that focus and studying done. But much more of our space is dedicated to this this community center idea, this community resource. And so to, you know, really leave leave the listeners with something here. I I just wanna stress that, you know, we're here to serve the community.
Benjamin Reid [00:53:42]:
I love that we have over the doors at Main Library carved in, open to all. Mhmm. Really speaks to how we think about our work with the public. And that that we are here to help. And we talked about earlier, here to help for free. Right? So, please take advantage. Come visit your local library. We wanna see you in the space.
Carol Ventresca [00:54:02]:
Fabulous. Thank you. Yeah. Yeah. This is great.
Brett Johnson [00:54:04]:
Yeah. Well, many thanks to our expert guest, Benjamin Reid, public services director at the Columbus Metropolitan Library Reid joining us today. Listener, thank you for joining us. You're gonna find the contact information and resources we discussed in the podcast in the show notes and on our website at lookingforwardourway.com. And we're looking forward to hearing your feedback on this or any of our other podcast episodes.