Submitted by Chelsea Lyons, Library Director Socorro Public Library
Socorro Public Library is successful with outreach to middle school students by hosting “Book Chat”
Book Chat is an exclusive time for teens to 
gather, discuss, and challenge each others knowledge of the current Battle of the Books selections. These gatherings provide middle school students an opportunity to meet with other Battle of the Book contestants in the Socorro Community and enjoy a free after school snack. Book Chat takes place every other Tuesday from 3:30p.m. until 5:00p.m.
In addition to hosting “Book Chat,” the Socorro Public Library is also sponsoring a Socorro team of middle school students to attend the Battle of the Books 2019-2020 competition. Battle of the Books, is a free reading incentive program in elementary, middle and high schools across the country. All of the questions in the competition begin with the words “In which book” and the correct answer is always the title and author of the book. This program works at the individual school level as well as at the interscholastic and district wide levels. It is a school year long program ending with a final battle with students across the state!
It is the mission of the Socorro Public Library to meet the educational, cultural, and recreational needs of local residents. To meet the goals of our mission we made it our priortiy to develop a successful community outreach plan. We discovered community connections to the public library are fostered through education and awareness. We recognize that we can achieve more in the community when we connect with our stakeholders and engage underserved areas of the community. By taking a deliberate and thoughtful approach to initiating and expanding our teen programs, Socorro Public Library can reach underserved populations and library non-users. Enriching public awareness of the library’s resources, services and programs is also a crucial goal to fulfilling the Socorro Public Library mission.
