LIS 641 | The Public Library
Concert Program
ALSC Competencies: I, III, V
In the Public Library, we discussed the history of the American Public Library, what public libraries offer as organizations and institutions, the policies and procedures that public libraries follow, and the role of public libraries in the community. I really enjoyed this class because I think that from my experience working in a public library, it’s easy to see how important they are to the community they serve, but this class solidified and gave me concrete evidence as to just how much they do for their patrons. I chose to include my concert program from this class because this was one of the most rewarding programs that I had ever created and I am so grateful for the opportunity to be able to lead this program. I worked with a local organization that serves adults with special needs to put on a concert for some of their students. This assignment really helped me learn how to coordinate with other outside organizations in order to work with the public and create something that everyone can enjoy.
Concert Program Write Up
Project Title: Sing It! With Ms. Olivia
Location of the Project: Ridgewood Public Library Auditorium
Project Objective: The objective of the project is to create a concert-style program for a population of children and adults with special needs. RPL recently received an email asking if there was any interest in putting on a program for CTC Academy, a local not-for-profit organization that offers educational and therapeutic services for students with developmental disabilities.
Expected Outcome/Benefit for the Library/Community:
CTC Academy’s mission is to “enhance the lives of children and young adults with special needs, and their families, by providing an enriched educational, therapeutic and supportive environment.” This coincides with RPL’s mission to “provide information, education, culture, and inspiration.” The outcome of this program would reflect both of those goals by performing a concert at the Ridgewood Public Library of educational songs originally intended for younger audiences, that would be an entertaining and educational experience.
Name of Library Representative:
Justin Kontonicolaou, Teen Librarian
Contact email/Phone:
justin.kontonicolaou@ridgewood.bccls.org
Comments:
(Originally Ashley Loria was my library representative on this project, but she had to go on maternity leave so my other supervisor, Justin Kontonicolaou will comment on this project.)
Outline:
Title: Concert for CTC Students
Objective: The objective of the project is to create a concert-style program for a population of children and adults with special needs.
Project: My proposal is to plan and perform a concert at the Ridgewood Public Library for students of CTC Academy, a local nonprofit organization that provides services for children and young adults with developmental disabilities.
Expected Outcome/Benefit: This will reflect both CTC Academy’s and RPL’s mission to provide educational and entertaining opportunities for their students and patrons. This will also foster the connection between this local organization and the library.
Location: Ridgewood Public Library Auditorium
Date: Tuesday, June 17, 2025, 10:30 AM
Duration: 45 Minutes
Equipment Needed:
For Staff:
Microphone, Speaker, Ukulele, Music Stand, Sheet Music
For Audience:
Chairs
To Do:
Prep:
Choose songs
Practice songs
Create presentation to play alongside concert
Day of:
Set up chairs
Set up microphone and speakers
Set up sheet music
Concert Plan:
I will be picking songs that are light and fun but are also songs that are relatively easy to play on the ukulele. I have been told that the students really enjoy songs by Raffi and Laurie Berkner, so I would like to learn some songs from them that I can sing and play on my ukulele.
Song 1
Introduction: First of all, I would like to start by thanking you all for coming here today, and so I would like to sing a song about How nice it is for us to be together here today!
The More we Get Together by Raffi
Song 2
So since we are at the start of summer, I would like to sing a song about the sun!
Mr. Sun
Song 3
Everything Grows by Raffi
Song 4:
Okay friends! That was great! So for this next song, we’re not going to go under a tree, but we’re going to go under water. This next song is a classic Beatles song called Yellow Submarine.
Yellow Submarine by the Beatles
About the Project:
A few months ago, we were approached by CTC Academy, a local not-for-profit organization that offers educational and therapeutic services for students with developmental disabilities. They had asked a few different libraries about programs for their students but there weren’t any available. Most libraries in our area offer storytimes or musical programs for younger children, but not too many programs for older children and young adults with developmental disabilities. My supervisor and I thought it would be a great idea to put on a concert for these students, and then to also invite students from the STEPPS program, which is another local program that provides services for individuals aged 18-21 who meet state requirements to graduate, but need more time to transition into adulthood. Since my undergraduate degree is in theatre, I love singing and I am always looking for ways to incorporate music into my storytimes and programs. This program is a great way to incorporate my creativity into a program and connect with these organizations and provide a service that wasn’t previously available in our community.
We asked the CTC supervisor what kind of music the students would like to hear, and she said that they love songs for younger audiences. I chose Summer as the theme because there were a lot of songs that could work with that theme that I could play on the ukulele. I also wanted everyone to be able to sing along, so I chose fairly common kids’ songs and popular songs. Once the songs were picked, I practiced them and made sure I was comfortable performing the materials. The setup is very simple for this program: I only need a microphone and a music stand, and then I am bringing my own ukulele.
Assessment/Reflection:
Going into this program, I think that the biggest challenge that I faced was learning all of the songs on the ukulele. I have been playing for years but I haven’t played in a while and I am a little bit rusty. I chose mostly the songs that I knew how to play on ukulele, but two or three of them are songs I had to learn.
The program went really well! I am very happy with our turnout. In total, we had 35 attendees from both CTC Academy and the STEPPS program. I think I might have overestimated my ukulele abilities, but the crowd was very forgiving. We sang six songs total: The More We Get Together, Mr. Sun, Yellow Submarine, Everything Grows, Banana Phone, and Octopus’s Garden. I think that choosing songs that most of the participants knew and could sing along to helped a lot. When I worked on previous programs like this, we usually ended with me playing a song on my phone through a speaker and then I would invite everyone to get up and dance to the song. In this case, I omitted that part because there was a large portion of the audience who had mobility limitations so only a few students would be able to participate.
I love being able to work on projects like this. I have a lot of family members with developmental disabilities and I have both autism and adhd, so being able to show these organizations that folks who have different needs are always welcome at the library is really important to me. I’m really passionate about making sure that the library is a safe space for all patrons regardless of ability, and so I wanted to make sure that the participants had a good time. I’m very proud to say that the participants enjoyed the songs and then were able to go into the children’s room and explore the library a little bit more. I got to talk to both the students and faculty of both organizations and connect with them as well. I think that this project really strengthened our connections with these organizations and it will be easier to connect with them in the future.