Current students, future advocates? Including community service-learning in ‘transitioning out’ library programming for upper-year undergraduates

Libraries and community-based organizations (CBOs) benefit from having community advocates who can help them thrive and persist, especially when shrinking budgets and limited civic-mindedness can increase their vulnerability. This poster describes a community service-learning collaboration between the University of Saskatchewan Library and Foundations Learning & Skills Saskatchewan (Literacies in Community) that fosters engaged citizenship, service, diversity, and equity. By helping soon-to-be graduates (those in the ‘transitioning out’ stage articulated by Lizzio, 2011) understand the importance of civic-mindedness and community service through experiential learning, Literacies in Community can inspire students to become the future advocates that libraries and CBOs need. In the program, participants help elementary school children learn, while also exploring the importance of literacy, libraries, and community organizations. An outline of this collaboration and its goals, along with feedback from participants, will be shared.