Senior Services Today - (Practical Guides for Librarians) by Ashley Brooks (Paperback)

About the Book

Senior Services Today will help library staff provide excellent services and programs for older adults. This practical guide's purpose will guide libraries and seniors in cultivating symbiotic relationships with a key community by intwining the library's core mission with seniors' personal values.

Book Synopsis

Senior Services Today will help library staff provide excellent services and programs for older adults. This practical guide's purpose will guide libraries and seniors in cultivating symbiotic relationships with a key community by intwining the library's core mission with seniors' personal values.

Review Quotes

Brook draws from her experience working with older adults (or seniors) as a library assistant to identify ways to better serve them. In eight chapters, she identifies common values among older adults while addressing such pertinent topics as engaging older adults, marketing to them, and ensuring that technology is accessible to them. Brooks offers examples of programs that librarians can put into practice right away, including book clubs, senior proms, and programming related to film, oral history, gaming, and genealogy. A common theme throughout the book is the importance of collaboration with existing community partnerships and senior organizations to create exemplary programs and services. Acknowledging that older adults are not a uniform group, Brooks also includes a chapter on demographic differences within this group. The result is a comprehensive guide that will help libraries provide excellent service to a growing and significant demographic. Given that older adults are among the fastest growing demographic groups in the United States, this work will prove valuable. Recommended for all public libraries.

Brooks dismantles the current stereotypes around senior services - producing a researched, attuned approach to the opportunities of a rapidly growing population. Backed by branch experience, these chapters can inspire programs that become touchstones for the older adult community.

About the Author

Ashley Brooks is a freelance writer and former library assistant from Athens, GA. Ashley was inspired to write this book following years of teaching computer and technology skills to older adults at several libraries and one senior center in rural Georgia. The teaching experience showed her just how helpful libraries can be in improving the lives of older adults in the modern world. She wanted to share her perspectives with other library professionals and provide tips on creating a senior services plan that exceeds expectations.