How many times have you heard someone from the public say, “I didn’t know the library did that?” Well we responded and created the Denver Public Library Academy so we could tell them directly and in return activate the power of word-of-mouth advocacy in individuals’ networks. This activated some of our power users in a new and unique way. They love the library, want to know more and help us in anyway they can.

The process began with a call to the community and application process. Over 50 community members applied and 30 accepted. Each of the nine sessions focused on a core services or focus areas (e.g., Early Learning, Digital Inclusion, Reader’s Advisory) and were hosted at different branches. The formula for each session was information about the issue, what we are doing to address the issue, an interactive activity and calls to action for them to complete

The Academy created a cohort of civically-engaged advocates across our city by informing them about the processes and importance of a public library. Word of mouth was proven to be a powerful tool, and libraries have the ability to activate community members in intentional and impactful ways. Academy participants have completed over 200 calls to actions from referring their Lyft drivers to the library, changing careers and providing pro bono legal services for our programming.