There are many statewide organizations and agencies that libraries may be able to collaborate with on the local level to serve the community and provide high-quality library services. Below are descriptions of some of them and how they can work with your library.
Community Early Childhood Councils (also called Regional Collaboratives), assisted by the
Governor's Office of Early Childhood, have the crucial role of mobilizing local community members and encouraging partnerships of licensed childcare centers, certified family childcare homes and public preschool providers to offer high-quality learning environments for children who reside in their service areas. The primary goal of all Community Early Childhood Councils is to build innovative, collaborative partnerships that promote school readiness for children and families. Library staff can serve on their local council to help identify local needs and develop strategies to address those needs.
There are 15 Area Development Districts in Kentucky, which comprise a statewide network of multi-county planning and development organizations working along multi-jurisdictional lines to advance local, state, and regional priorities. These districts support a number of initiatives, including such things as workforce development, economic development, broadband planning, tourism, and disaster preparedness planning. There are opportunities for libraries to partner with their local ADD office to promote library services or offer new services for their community. ADD offices can also provide information about community trends, needs, and concerns. A
map showing the different districts and contact information for the director of each district is a good place to begin connecting with the local ADD.
Kentucky Skills U provides free adult education services in all 120 counties to help Kentuckians obtain a GED. Kentucky Skills U is in the Kentucky Education and Workforce Development Cabinet within the Department of Workforce Investment. Your library can partner with your local Kentucky Skills U center to share information with patrons, provide meeting space for individual meetings or group classes, provide computer or laptop access for coursework or become a GED® testing center. Find your local Kentucky Skills U contact
here.
The 10 local workforce development areas in Kentucky plan, oversee, and evaluate workforce service delivery in a multi-county workforce area. They work with the
Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board (KWIB) and the
Kentucky Career Centers (KCCs) to provide local workforce services. Libraries can partner with their local workforce area to provide information and resources to job seekers or serve as an Access Point. Click on the
map to find contact information for each workforce area.