Grants:Project/Rapid/Virginia Library Association Wikipedia booth

statusFunded

Rapid Grants

Tokyogirl79/Virginia Library Association Wikipedia booth

I am going to set up a Wikipedia booth at the annual VLA conference in October 2016, with the goal to raise awareness of Wikipedia and its benefits among librarians, some of whom are also teachers.

targetEnglish Wikipedia, possibly WikiEd

start dateOctober 26

end dateOctober 28

budget (USD)315.00

grant typeindividual

grantee• Tokyogirl79

contact(s)• toncraygirl@hotmail.com

friendly space expectations

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Project Goal

Briefly explain what are you trying to accomplish with this project, or what do you expect will change as a result of this grant. Example goals include, "recruit new editors", "add high quality content", or "train existing editors on a specific skill".

At the last Virginia Library Association conference I wore my "I edit Wikipedia" shirt and received multiple questions from librarians interested in learning more about Wikipedia. Most were unaware of what Wikipedia could provide, so my goal is to have a booth that will provide materials and a Wikipedian (myself) in order to answer these questions and raise participation with libraries.

Project Plan

Activities

Tell us how you'll carry out your project. What will you and other organizers spend your time doing?

I will host a booth and answer any questions users might have about Wikipedia, how it works, and how it can benefit them. Ideally this will lead to them signing up with Wikipedia that day or very soon.

How will you let others in your community know about your project (please provide links to where relevant communities have been notified of your proposal, and to any other relevant community discussions)? Why are you targeting a specific audience?

I have reserved a booth, so Wikipedia will be listed as one of the booths at the conference. I am targeting librarians in specific because they are typically defined as gatekeepers of knowledge and as such, they would be in excellent positions to spread awareness of as well as improve Wikipedia.

What will you have done at the end of your project? How will you follow-up with people that are involved with your project?

My goal is to leave the librarians with a more favorable image of Wikipedia and to encourage them to sign up with accounts and participate. I plan on giving people my contact information on Wikipedia and my personal contact information so they can contact me as needed.

Impact

How will you know if the project is successful and you've met your goals? Please include the following targets and feel free to add more specific to your project:

1. Number of total participants
2. Number of articles created or improved (if applicable)
3. Number of photos uploaded to Wikimedia Commons (if applicable)
4. Number of photos used on Wikimedia projects (if applicable)

I will keep track of the number of pamphlets, booth traffic, and visitor interactions.

Resources

What resources do you have? Include information on who is the organizing the project, what they will do, and if you will receive support from anywhere else (in-kind donations or additional funding).

I have transportation to the event and a room at the hosting hotel. I have been given pamphlets for the booth as well, although any additional swag that can be provided is welcomed.

What resources do you need? For your funding request, list bullet points for each expense:

• Financial reimbursement for the booth.

Endorsements

• Support I talked with this contributor about their project. The plan is to table at a library conference, so of course Wikipedia will be a hit. I have no doubt that anyone with a Wikipedia sign at an event like this will be asked many questions, and I already know this person to be knowledgeable from their on-wiki activity. This is a small price to pay for a big impact in Wikipedia's favorite sort of partner, librarians. Blue Rasberry (talk) 19:56, 18 August 2016 (UTC)