Director of Learning Resource Centers Northwest Mississippi Community College
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Northwest Mississippi Community College librarians noticed an increased level of stress and anxiety among our students, faculty, and staff. To mitigate the increasing anxiety levels among our community, we applied for and received a grant from the Institute of Library and Museum Services (IMLS) to incorporate new “zen” spaces, materials, and programs to address mindfulness, mental health, and overall wellness in our college. This poster will represent a year-long series of community outreach wellness programs, face-to-face in our three campus libraries and virtual for our entire seven campuses. Each program will be highlighted, along with attendance, program costs, marketing materials, and ideas for how other libraries might do similar programs on a small budget. Feedback from program participants and highlights of what worked well and what we will change in future programming will also be shared. Finally, the role of local community partnerships in our program planning will be shared.