Programme Lead - Community Libraries

Job Summary

Programme Lead - Community Libraries

Location: Shillong, Meghalaya, India

Contract: Fixed term consulting contract

Based on previous CTC and experience

Project Background

Sauramandala Foundation is an NGO founded in 2018 with a vision to bring about systemic change in the lives of remote communities through empathetic, collaborative, and contextual solutions that are co-created with the communities themselves.

About the Project (CM Youth Center):

The Government of Meghalaya, in partnership with Sauramandala Foundation, has established 22 rural community centres for youth, called the Chief Ministers Youth Centers (CMYC) with an aim to build resilience, agency and problem-solving skills in the community. The key programmes in the CMYCs are - Self Designed Learning, Entrepreneurship Development, Sports Coaching, Arts and Theatre and a Community Library Programme. The learning is open to all ages to have more involvement from the community. The CMYCs are set to expand from 22 centers to cover all 55 blocks of Meghalaya over a 2 year period.

Objective of the Engagement

To design and operationalize well-resourced, welcoming libraries in CMYCs that:

• Build a culture of reading by working closely with children, young adults and youth in the community.
• Serve as learning hubs supporting adolescent well-being and development.

Scope of Work

Curation

• Build vibrant, culturally rooted, multilingual collections for children, young adults and youth.
• Curate collections across themes of well-being, mental health, coming of age, gender, environment, sci-fi, indigenous knowledge and local culture and so on.
• Ensure enough reading materials for beginner to confident and advanced readers.

Programme Design

• Support the design of libraries and child and youth-friendly spaces.
• Design a joyful community library programme that makes reading social, engaging and meaningful.
• Create spaces for dialogue and self expression - reading circles, book discussions, open mics, writing labs, movie screenings and debrief reflections.
• Integrate life skills and SEL into the library programme to build empathy, self-confidence, critical thinking etc.
• Design for the library activities to travel to nearby villages around the Youth Center and to engage with existing Youth Clubs.

Building Community Ownership

• Position the CMYC and the libraries as a community asset by engaging the community especially the adults to build a connection with the space.
• Organise reading festivals, youth showcases, and community celebrations.
• Create systems to encourage youth to play an active role in shaping the libraries - youth volunteers, library leaders and so on.

Strengthening libraries as safe, welcoming, learning hubs

• Develop a simple monitoring framework for smooth operations.
• Train first-time libraries with tools and techniques on youth engagement, creating safe spaces, facilitating shared reading experiences in the libraries.
• Bring in low-cost digital tools and offline e-resources where possible.
• Document learnings and adolescent and youth stories from the libraries.

Expected area of expertise

• Master's Degree in Education/Library & Information Science or related field (preferred, not mandatory).
• 8-9 years of experience in setting up community libraries, training librarians and educators to build a culture of reading.
• Any certifications on library science or engagements with organisations working in the field is preferred.
• Strong knowledge of curation for different age groups from children to young adults and youth.
• Ability to design and facilitate training workshops for first-time librarians.
• Adaptability to an agile, cross-functional, collaborative working environment.

Disclaimer: This job posting has been aggregated from external source. Role details, content, and availability are subject to change. Applicants are advised to confirm the latest information directly on the company website before applying.