“If only you knew what it’s like to walk in my shoes.” It’s a sentiment many people feel, and it’s one that frontline library workers at Brooklyn (N.Y.) Public Library (BPL) have experienced through an innovative initiative called Branch Tap-Ins.
Three panelists and a moderator from BPL led a discussion at “When to Tap-In and Tap-Out: Nurturing Resilience and Renewing Bonds in Library Teams” at the American Library Association’s 2024 Annual Conference and Exhibition in San Diego on June 29.
Moderator Nicole T. Bryan, branch manager at BPL’s Macon Library, said tap-ins are designed to enhance library staff’s productivity, foster team dynamics, and promote resilience. They’re an opportunity, she said, “to really recharge and connect with each other.” From the administrator side, they’re also an opportunity to gain a better understanding and appreciation of daily operations.
The impetus
The initiative was spurred by post-pandemic burnout, when many frontline staff experienced high levels of stress and administration faced challenges retaining staffers.
“Necessity is the mother of all inventions,” said LaMeane C. Isaac, regional director at BPL. She said the first BPL branch to pilot a Tap-In was Cypress Hills in eastern Brooklyn, primarily because the community had had high levels of people affected by COVID-19, and the branch’s reopening had stalled as a result, leaving many staff members displaced and disconnected.
“Something has to give,” Isaac remembers thinking.
Initially called a “staff retreat,” Tap-Ins gave frontline staffers the opportunity to visit a museum or find other ways to connect with colleagues in a nonstressful environment. In exchange, administration came in for the day, allowing staff to leave. The initiative eventually spread to all 60-plus BPL branches.
“It was our way of saying, ‘We hear you, we see you, we feel you, and we’ve got your back,’” Isaac said.
By design
Sharon M. Palmer, another BPL regional director, said that it took two years to get through all locations, using most Fridays as Tap-In days. Administrators purchased team-building materials—such as cornhole, ring toss, and the games Danger and Choose Happiness at Work—to help break the ice and provide activities prior to staff outings, “just to bond and get to know each other better,” Palmer said.
When designing this initiative, the goal was to build resiliency and relationships through a trauma-informed lens, said Taina K. Evans, BPL regional director. While there were budget parameters, teams were given autonomy on what they did and where they went. Some visited Coney Island, while others went to the mall or took self-guided walks.
In successful scenarios, administrators were given instructions or outlines when they “tapped into” work, Evans said. This included information, for example, about where keys were kept and which patrons may stop by for specific materials.
When staffers were away, patrons noticed. “Did you fire everybody?” Evans recalled a patron asking.
“Library staff are really beloved,” Palmer said. While many of the administrators have had community service backgrounds, the experience, she said, reminded them of the day-in and day-out demands of their teams, from providing social services to assisting migrants to being subjected to verbal abuse. “You realize how much the staff is facing.”
From staff members’ perspective, Isaac said, they felt appreciated when patrons followed up later to express that they were missed: “It was a win-win from both sides.”
