"The library is people." On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the Pedagogical Library in Bytów, we are talking with its manager, Grażyna Kikcio

The Pedagogical Library in Bytów is one of the oldest cultural and educational institutions in our city. Established in November 1951, it continues to serve the inhabitants of Bytów. Over 3 years ago it moved for the fifth time - this time to ul. Wąska 12. On the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the institution, we talk to its manager, Grażyna Kikcio.

"Kurier Bytowski": After 44 years of operating in the Bytów castle, the Pedagogical Library moved in 2018 to the former building of meliorators on the Bytowa street. What is it like to work in a new place?

Grażyna Kikcio: After receiving information that an elevator was to be installed in the castle, we knew that our existing area would be significantly reduced. This resulted in the change of the seat. It so luckily happened that the present building, administered by the Marshal's Office in Gdańsk, was put at our disposal. From the first visit to this place, even before the renovation, I felt the potential, although the interior then underwent a huge metamorphosis. Three floors have been adapted so that both users and employees feel comfortable in this rather unusual, narrow building. Answering the question - our current workplace is very pleasant, well-lit, and from behind the window you can hear a relaxing sound of water on the damming of the Bytowa River, which flows right under the windows of our library. Almost everyone who comes to this building for the first time pays attention to it.

What are the advantages of the new headquarters, and maybe what was better in the previous one? The change of location turned out to be very beneficial for several reasons. Our facility has gained an independent headquarters with a total area of ​​almost 400 m 2 , thus it has almost doubled. In the first year, we occupied two floors. We currently use three levels. Another plus is the location in the city center, which makes it very easy to plan a visit to the library. For many of our users, this place is "on the way". The biggest advantage is the educational room on the first floor, which was created one year after the move. The area of ​​the castle in the castle walls did not allow for the separation of space for educational or cultural activities. So we used the hospitality of other institutions: the West Kashubian Museum, the City Library and the auditorium at the Bytów high school. Currently, our facility has become fully independent in this respect. If we mention the previous seat, it is of course in the context of the castle scenery. When I started working in the pedagogical library in 2006, the fact that I can stay in the castle walls every day turned out to be an extraordinary experience. Today, nostalgia remains, but from the windows of our current headquarters we can see the shape of the castle. To sum up, I am pleased with the way this place works today. I think it complements the cultural and educational offer centralized in this part of the city. Next to it, we have a BCK and a music school.

Is there anything still missing? The greatest need has been met. We are talking about the aforementioned educational room, which was created in 2019 and equipped with equipment necessary for various activities: multimedia, furniture, a platform and even a piano. It has an independent entrance and social facilities. We also plan to install air conditioning.

What was the move like? After all, there was something to move ... For the needs of the library's operation, it was necessary to arrange a space that would allow the creation of a user service zone, reading room, and storage space. Adaptation work began almost immediately, but at the same time the construction of the elevator in the castle began. This accumulation required extremely efficient logistics. It turned out not to be easy, as the vast majority of the book collection and shelves were located in the castle attic. The biggest challenge was to skillfully pack and label the packages with books and magazines, lift them for further transport, unload them in a new location, where renovation works were still ongoing. Probably not many people remember it, but exactly at this time also the reconstruction of the separator and the construction of a new outlet for storm sewage system to Bytów right next to our door was carried out, which significantly hindered access to the new headquarters. We, on the other hand, had in mind the efficient restoration of reader service. At ul. Wąska, all the equipment and the book collection were moved to the second and third floor and re-arranged. At individual stages, the help of the employees of our parent institution, volunteers and the Bytów Youth Initiative, which became involved despite the hot summer months, turned out to be invaluable. There was also a professional help from a transport company.

A lot of meetings with authors, concerts and workshops have already been organized in the new place, because the library is not only books, the library is people. All our plans and actions are aimed at the recipients. We try to cover different age groups with our activities. Various events have taken place since the opening of the new headquarters. Initially in the reading room on the second floor. After the creation of the educational room, everything gained momentum. It is planned for 50 seats in an auditorium arrangement, alternatively, it is possible to organize workshops, trainings or conferences there. Only a few months after its opening, our enthusiasm was halted by a pandemic and, like many other institutions, we had to cancel numerous projects. It must be admitted, however, that the hall fulfills its role, its intimate atmosphere is particularly conducive to meetings with authors and concerts. A lot of people have already had the opportunity to find out about it. There were two solo concerts by Paweł Ruszkowski, three events with the musical setting of students of the Bytów branch of the State Music School in Słupsk, three exhibitions of local artists from the "Library closer to art" series, several workshops for students of various institutions, training for teachers in the field of prevention and new technologies , meetings of cooperation networks between teachers, librarians and career advisers, four meetings with authors, an interdisciplinary conference, training councils, competitions for students with a final gala.

See more

Interview with Paulina Hendel: I take my books for a walk to photograph them

What - apart from the move - has changed in recent years? The past five years have certainly allowed for the implementation of many well-functioning solutions. Currently, readers are very eager to use the online collection database in the Virtua program. This is the central catalog including the collections of the library in Słupsk and 4 branches of the WSP: in Bytów, Lębork, Miastko and Człuchów. Each reader with an electronic account can remotely renew collections, reserve and order. There is also an issue file at the readers' disposal, containing bibliographic descriptions of articles from journals subscribed by the library, which makes it possible to generate a summary on any topic. Another source of information that is gaining popularity is the IBUK Libra cloud reading room. This modern system allows full access to specialist, scientific, popular science and fiction publications issued by the most important Polish publishers, at the same time giving many opportunities thanks to the unique PIN code, which each reader receives once a year. Recently, the need for professional scientific information is particularly visible. , mostly in the form of electronic correspondence with the reader. The measure of our work is not the reader at the counter, but the variety of services we can offer.

Who mainly uses the Pedagogical Library? Readers from the entire Bytów poviat, as well as from neighboring poviats. We especially support improving teachers, students and students. We invite everyone who wants to develop, expand their knowledge and competences. The essence is not so much the number of readers as their activity, and thus the number of visits. Readers during their studies or training are very active and take advantage of all the possibilities available in our offer. What counts for us is that each visit to the library is fruitful and that the reader has a sense of support in the field of sought literature.

After the library was opened 70 years ago, its collection consisted of only 319 titles. When the facility celebrated its 65th anniversary, there were already 33,000 of them. And how much now? Our collections amount to over 35 thousand. volumes. It is mainly scientific literature from various fields, with a predominance of pedagogy, psychology and sociology. The book collection grows each year, and this requires systematic selection so that the library's walls and the journal archive can be accommodated within the walls of the library. We have 35 specialist periodicals in permanent subscription. We also try to listen to the needs of readers and respond to suggestions for specific titles or issues on an ongoing basis, including via the Propose a book tab on our website. In many cases, we provide interlibrary loans in response to individual needs, especially for topics less popular in our collections. It is worth emphasizing that this service is completely free of charge for readers who have an electronic account with us.

How many people currently work in the library? As in all branch institutions, we have 2 teaching positions. They carry out all activities, starting from the typical library ones: collecting, developing, selecting collections, providing services to the reader, by supporting the work of schools and institutions, as well as planning, preparing and implementing initiatives, promoting the institution and broadly understood cooperation with the local community. We work in shifts. Additionally, a service employee is also employed.

I understand that the jubilee celebrations were not held due to the restrictions. Was the anniversary celebrated in any other way? In the context of the 70th anniversary of our facility, we organized bookplate workshops using the screen printing technique. As a result, a graphic symbol was created that refers to both the jubilee year and the new seat of the library. We are also planning to organize a concert. P. Ruszkowski will once again perform his recital. We encourage you to follow our social media, where we place all announcements of planned activities and reports.

What are the upcoming plans and for the coming years? Planning our activities is always mainly the implementation of the priorities of the Ministry of National Education, which as an educational institution we take into account in our work. I hope that many more interesting events will be organized, which will enliven this place with the presence of not only lovers of scientific literature, but also art, poetry and music. We plan to continue cooperation with institutions and institutions in the field of cyclical initiatives and competitions. As part of the "Library closer to art" action, in 2022 there will be four exhibitions on a wide variety of topics. If the situation permits, we are planning a meeting with authors as part of the Pomeranian Literary Spring and a continuation of the workshops in the series "Poetry Duty". Certainly, there will also be activities in the field of education and prevention in response to the current needs of teachers. We cordially invite you to cooperate, to visit our library, to participate in organized events. For us, the enthusiasm of the participants is always the motivation for further actions. Numerous entries in the memorial book give us energy, inspire and build a good aura of this place.

See more

Jakub Onichowski: I repeated one line of the poem for 3 hours

See more

Krzysztof "Kris" Górski found his place in Łąk

See more

Agata Hering - a young clothes designer from Bytów

advertisement