UNAIR NEWS – Village libraries have great potential for fostering a reading culture among children, but a book collection alone is not enough. Children need a comfortable space and engaging literacy activities. To meet these needs, the Department of Library and Information (DIP) Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) held training and mentoring for the managers of the PKK (Family Welfare Movement) Library in Rayung Village, Senori Subdistrict, Tuban Regency, on Thursday (October 8, 2026).
The event, titled “Strengthening Village Libraries to Develop Children’s Literacy Services Based on Child-Friendly Reading Spaces,” targeted PKK cadres who manage the library as volunteers. Before the training, library services focused mainly on borrowing and returning books, while managers’ technical skills, the design of child-friendly spaces, and the development of literacy programs were still inadequate.
Developing competency and service innovation
Mentoring team leader Helmy Prasetyo Yuwinanto SSos MKP stressed that strengthening competency and services is the main focus of the training. Nurul Jannah SIIP MHum opened the training with material on library management, from collection management to drafting standard operating procedures (SOPs).
The discussion then moved to developing literacy activities and digital promotion with Imam Yuadi SSos MMT PhD, who introduced the use of social media to attract public interest. Zulfatun Sofiyani SIIP MHum then guided participants in drafting work programs suited to users’ needs.
The team also donated 30 book titles and modules to support collection development and library management. “Through this training, I hope managers can design activities like storytelling and reading aloud, and promote their services,” Yuwinanto said.
Building sustainable literacy among children
Going forward, the DIP team hoped the activity would continue, helping Rayung Village Library managers become self-reliant. The community service team leader, Yuwinanto, stressed that strengthening library services can be a step toward building a reading culture among village children.
“Through developing an attractive and comfortable village library, we hope children will grow closer to books and get used to reading from an early age,” he concluded.
Rayung Village officials appreciated the initiative by Yuwinanto and his team. Head of Rayung Village PKK Library Barrorootun hoped similar training would continue to strengthen managers’ skills, especially in designing literacy activities such as storytelling.
“We hope this skill development can enrich the library’s activities and attract children’s interest in reading,” Barrorootun said.
Author: Vaneza Ika Artamevia
Editor: Yulia Rohmawati
