Midlife Crisis: Programming for Adults

Programming for adults isn’t always easy. In fact, it can be notoriously difficult! Unpredictable attendance, hard to reach audiences, competing for space in busy schedules – these are just some of the reasons you might be tempted to turn your focus to safer programming bets (early literacy anyone?). Edmonton Public Library’s Adult Services Team has tried to break out of this comfort zone by piloting a variety of previously untested adult programs to see what sticks: passive programming like the Summer Reads ’18, to extremely active programming like the Tour of EPL library bike tour, special events like a literary and local themed spelling bee, volunteer-led DIY workshops, live concerts, guest lectures, “Learn Local” discussion groups, and more. At this session the presenters will share what they've tried, what they’ve learned, and where they’re going next to keep growing great adult programming at the library.
Learning Objectives:

• Identify a wide variety of adult programming ideas to try.
• Gather ideas, tips, tricks, and inspiration for adult programming.
• Creative inspiration