Everyone Is Welcome: Tools for Confident and Safe Patron Interactions

Tammy editedYou never know who will come into your library. Tammy Boudah from Howard Center will lead this workshop to help you feel confident that you can provide service to everyone, including people with mental health problems and substance use disorders. It will include a discussion of language, diagnoses, stigma, how to set boundaries, and how to engage with people who are in need of service, but not a threat. It will cover when and who to call for crisis intervention. There will also be time to discuss situations you encounter or have encountered in your libraries.
Tammy Boudah is a native Vermonter and Burlingtonian. She has been a member of the Howard Center Street Outreach Team for eleven years, working with a variety of individuals experiencing struggles with homelessness, mental illness, addiction, poverty, and other issues.
Join us Monday, May 18th from 2:00 – 5:00 pm at the Fletcher Free Library for this exciting pre-conference workshop. You can register for this and a Champlain College Dorm Room monday night, if needed, when you register for the main event. Our event hashtag is #VLC2015 and please RSVP and share on Facebook