The Civic Engagement Workshop Series is a collaboration between UNC's Park and Undergraduate Libraries that aims to support college students' civic awareness and self-efficacy and emphasizes the role of the library in developing students' civic engagement. In this presentation, we will give an overview of these workshops, discuss how they were developed and why we believe these skills are important not only for college students, but also for anyone who wants to learn more about how and why local government operates where they live and work, and describe how other library instructors can adapt the main points of these presentations to their own audiences. We identify the key databases and knowledge tools that are broadly accessible to NC libraries, building these information seeking skills in patrons. By the end of our presentation, attendees will understand how to use interactive pedagogy to engage with patrons and highlight topics that are already present in their daily lives but that may not have been immediately visible, engage in active conversation with patrons, and have tips and tricks to make these presentations successful. The relatively small demand on staff makes these programs accessible to many types of libraries, and the learning outcomes appeal to both public and academic library audiences. Public libraries may enjoy the opportunity to make community members more aware of the fundamentals of local governance, and academic libraries support their mission by instructing students on how to parse false and misleading content in the news. Ultimately, our presentation will teach attendees how to broaden patrons’ appreciation of libraries as a resource to learn about topics that affect their everyday lives. In turn, libraries support patrons' ability to develop themselves into informed political participants year-round.
