The sustainability reading club of Pasco-Hernando State College was started by the Associate Director of Library Services at the Spring Hill campus. All meetings were held on Zoom.
Articles were shared before each session but attendees could participate without having read the articles.
The program began in fall of 2020 by defining sustainability and looking at sustainability in global and local contexts.
The following term (spring 2021), they divided out the three pillars of sustainability. In February, they discussed environmental sustainability and had Kristen King from Keep Pasco Beautiful as a guest speaker. In March, they discussed financial sustainability and had Scott E. Taylor from the Hernando IFAS extension. Finally, in April they discussed social sustainability and had Jessica White from PHSC Student Life and Leadership as a guest speaker.
For the summer 2021 series (in collaboration with Pasco County Libraries, Hernando County Public Libraries, and the New Port Richey Public Library), they had three sessions. In May, the theme was environmental sustainability and the speakers were Dr. William Lester (Horticulture Agent III, UF/IFAS Extension Hernando County), Dell deChant (Associate Chair, Department of Religious Studies, University of South Florida), Kristen King (Coordinator, Keep Pasco Beautiful), and Rachelle Dobbs (Recycling Supervisor, Pasco County Utilities). In June, the theme was social sustainability. The speakers were Liana Dean (Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking), Elise Aiello (Outreach Librarian, Pasco County Libraries), Anna Chavez (Project Coordinator for Creating a Regenerative Community Food System (Pasco Expansion); Volunteer Coordinator; Spanish Intake Specialist, Tampa Bay Network to End Hunger), and Kelli Rodriguez (Family Services and Compliance Director, Early Learning Coalition of Pasco and Hernando Counties). In July, the theme was financial sustainability. The speakers were Shari Bresin (Family and Consumer Sciences Agent- UF/IFAS Pasco Extension Office), Kristi Mosac (NPR Public Library- Tasty Tuesdays Community Market), and Daniel Mitchell (SmartStart Program Director- Pasco EDC).
This past fall (2021), they again focused on dividing content up by pillars, but did not have speakers.
In addition to Kayla’s creation of this reading club, she expertly manages the library at the Spring Hill campus, contributes greatly to the campus and college, and is actively involved in the community. She presents at state and national library conferences, is a leader in the state and national library associations, and is continuing her graduate education.