CURRENT POSITION Programming Specialist, Dallas Public Library DEGREE BA Fine Arts in Theatre Arts, Texas Tech University, 2013 FAST FACT Alvarado used to be an audio technician and toured with bands. Photo by Carlos Roque

Playful Programming

Jessica Alvarado was drawn to library work after seeing how involved the Dallas Public Library (DPL) was within the city and local communities and loves being able to provide diverse, inclusive, and engaging programming. One of her first projects was Drag Queen Story Hour, a safe, inviting, educational, and fun event that opened a more extensive dialogue on inclusivity and how it impacts the community. “It was definitely much easier finding volunteers to read to kids than reading to adults at a bar,” she says, “but both age groups loved the story hours.” 

She now helps produce Geek Central—a weekly gathering highlighting different programs including trivia, Dungeons and Dragons, and Libreopardy—and the Twitch channel, where staff can interact with patrons via games and streamed panels. Alvarado believes that “going where the people are, offering more opportunities for the community to discover us, we become more of a presence in their lives.”

Most recently Alvarado has become one of the lead creators of the city’s first Poet Laureate, created to encourage greater literacy awareness and advocacy for the literary arts in the Dallas community. The selected honoree will serve a two-year term as a poet-in-residence at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library, providing workshops and programs around Dallas and building an anthology from work generated during their term.

Citing half a dozen additional projects by Alvarado, such as the “Queer Gay-mers” panel during DPL’s FanCentral virtual Comic Con event, one nominator writes, “I often refer to Jessica as a ‘machine,’ because she’s always involved in more projects than I can follow. And, each of her projects is a success.”