Hello Pflugerville,
A lot has happened in the past year. At the library we have been busy rethinking public space, creating new programs and expanding collections. Our library board has been busy reviewing library policy and developing a five-year plan, and our staff has been busy representing our community at professional library events.
Jennifer Griswold
The library partnered with Pflugerville Public Works – Water Conservation to install a xeriscape for the library to promote its Pflourishing Flora program. The new landscape includes native and drought-tolerant plants and will continue to grow indefinitely. The installation is intended to promote the city’s rebate program for customers who plan to remove all or part of their grass and install native, non-invasive and drought-tolerant landscaping. The landscape also enhances the public art sculpture “A Place for Our Thoughts,” approved by the library board.
Director of Youth Services Melissa Grzybowski and her team, Carmen Lazo, children’s programs coordinator, and Diane Sikkenga, youth librarian, organized the first-ever Texas Youth Services Roundup. This was the first statewide conference dedicated to youth services librarians and attracted approximately 100 participants.
As part of a Family Place Grant, and to better serve our community, Youth Services installed a Mamava nursing pod and became a Family Place Library. The children’s area now includes interactive toys, family-friendly furniture and a computer for parents and children. Parents of babies and toddlers can safely concentrate on their computer work while their child plays in the carrel.
To ensure we have enough meeting space for our growing community, we have installed two booths. These cubicles create an accessible, quiet workplace with active ventilation and a height-adjustable desk. Cabins can be reserved or used on a first come, first served basis if not reserved.
This year we added the EBSCO BlueCareer electronic tool to our collection. BlueCareer is a new workforce development platform and is the one-stop shop for members of our community to explore the skilled trades industry.
In November, the Pflugerville Public Library and community lost one of our greatest literacy advocates, Audrey Dearing. Audrey helped found the Friends of the Pflugerville Library in 1981. The Friends of the Library opened the first library in 1982 and has grown into our current 28,000 square foot building. She was a wonderful lady who served her community in every way she could.
In addition to presenting at the annual Texas Library Association Conference, the library staff expanded its reach to a national scale. Library staff were selected to present at the American Library Association’s midwinter conference, LibLearnX, and its annual conference.
As always, we believe that the library is for everyone and that a public library should reflect not only the community it serves, but also the larger global community. We remain committed to ensuring the representation of our diverse community in our programming and materials, and we remain committed to providing spaces for these voices to be heard.
Jennifer Griswold is director of the Pflugerville Public Library.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Pflugerville librarian: 2024 was a busy, productive year
