About the Building Support for Library Series 

Massachusetts Library System (MLS), in collaboration with the Massachusetts Library Association (MLA) Legislative Committee, is excited to share a special selection of EveryLibrary webinars with our members.

These webinars and follow-up community chats are designed to strengthen skills in communication, funding strategies, and community engagement that help libraries thrive. Each webinar introduces strategies from national experts, followed by a community chat where members can revisit the content, ask questions, and explore how to apply these ideas locally. Together, the series offers expert guidance and space for peer connection, supporting healthy, vibrant libraries across the Commonwealth.

Description:

Why do people in power agree to help solve your problems? Not because you told them a good story. Instead, it is because you have successfully mapped your issues to their concerns and started working with them to co-create a solution. In this session, attendees will learn the best practices for communicating with elected officials and other community leaders to focus on change. This includes understanding how to create a briefing on your issue, a dossier on potential elected officials, a power map of community cares or concerns, and a new vocabulary for speaking with people across the political spectrum. The session will also reflect on personal interests and capabilities for this advocacy work.

This webinar will be recorded and posted on the MLS Vimeo Page. 

Presenter

John Chrastka, Executive Director, EveryLibrary

EveryLibrary’s founder is John Chrastka, a long-time library trustee, supporter, and advocate. John is a former partner in AssociaDirect, a Chicago-based consultancy focused on supporting associations in membership recruitment, conference, and governance activities. He is a former president and member of the Board of Trustees for the Berwyn (IL) Public Library (2006 – 2015) and is a former president of the Reaching Across Illinois Libraries System (RAILS) multi-type library system. He is co-author of “Before the Ballot; Building Support for Library Funding.” and “Winning Elections and Influencing Politicians for Library Funding.” Before his work at AssociaDirect, he was Director for Membership Development at the American Library Association (ALA) and a co-founder of the Ed Tech startup ClassMap. He was named a 2014 Mover & Shaker by Library Journal and tweets @mrchrastka.

Accessibility

The Massachusetts Library System (MLS) strives to create inclusive and accessible events. To request a reasonable accommodation to attend this event, please contact Sarah Donnelly (Event & Project Manager) at sdonnelly@masslibsystem.org or 508-357-2121 ext. 301. All reasonable accommodation requests should be made no fewer than two (2) weeks before the event, although we will attempt to fulfill reasonable requests made after that time.