USL expands its Dungeons & Dragons programs for all ages with resources from the Washington State Library’s Tabletop Role-Playing Games For All Project, giving the community more access to D&D tools and tabletop role-playing games beyond Dungeons and Dragons!
USL first began to explore D&D programming in 2020, but since library services were all virtual at that time the program was unsuccessful. It wasn’t until June 2022, when in-person programming had resumed and stabilized, that the Teen Dungeons & Dragons club began and immediately became a huge draw for teens coming into the library. Not wanting to be left out, Adults were able to join in on the fun in September of that year, and Tweens in early 2024. Since offering library-led campaigns and purchasing D&D-related materials for patrons to checkout, the game’s popularity has only soared due to its emphasis on creativity, imagination, collaboration, strategy, and yes, even math. Staff following the progress of the very first teens to join the club throughout the years note an increase in their confidence, out-of-the-box thinking, ability to adjust to unexpected situations, and math, reading, and storytelling skills. Most notably, teens, tweens, and adults who have participated in USL’s D&D programs have seen increased skills in teamwork and a decrease in loneliness, with many who join in the library sessions becoming friends outside of the game.
In November 0f 2023, USL was one of several libraries asked to participate in a focus group talking about the possibility of a grant program created by the Washington State Library and funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and by February of 2024 applications for a $400 non-competitive Mini-Grant and a competitive, up to $2,000 Innovation grant were opened. USL applied and were one of the recipients of both grants in April of 2024.
With the state library’s allocation of the mini-grant and Innovation Grant, the library plans to take what they have learned over the past few years and increase the return on investment of the program, using the new supplies, tools, and games beyond D&D to bolster the program and expand the number of players able to join in. So far, using the funds, USL has purchased other board games and TTRPG games, more books to enable current D&D players to increase their skills or create new stories, art supplies for projects inspired by D&D, and a 3D printer, which will first be used to print miniature figures of players’ characters to be used on battle mats supplied by the state library but afterwards will become available to all patrons for projects outside of D&D.
In addition to supplying funds to support gaming programs aimed at increasing library patrons’ social-emotional health and practical skills, the state library – who partially received funding for this project from the Institute of Museum and Library Services – partnered with Washington-based Game To Grow, a non-profit organization dedicated to the use of games for therapeutic, educational, and community growth, for a series of online and in-person trainings aimed at increasing the ability of library staff to facilitate games in such a way that learning occurs. In September, three USL staff went to Everett to join other local librarians from Western Washington for a Game to Grow session opened by Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, a big fan of D&D and its use in libraries and communities at large.
The future of D&D and other TTRPGs at USL include a second group of Adult D&D players, and hopes for special “one shot” games hosted by game masters using Spanish and American Sign Language to play the game. Tween D&D’s come-back is in the works as well, making the future of learning through play bright in Concrete.
