Sunland Park bridging digital divide with new hire
X Vazquez, the city of Sunland Park’s new digital navigator, helps residents visiting the city’s library to boost their digital skills. Vazquez addresses attendees at a party Nov. 17, 2023, celebrating his hiring. (Photo by Diana Alba Soular/ SNMJC)
At a glance
Residents of Sunland Park and nearby areas expressed a need for help with smartphones and digital devices
The city of Sunland Park created a new position — digital navigator — in response
X Vazquez, the new hire, will be based part-time at the city’s library
Residents showed up in significant numbers at a celebratory event, to learn more about the new hire
SUNLAND PARK – It’s rare for the hiring of a new city employee to spark a celebration, complete with pastries, nachos and sodas. But that was the case recently when about 40 residents gathered in the Sunland Park Community Library to meet the city’s first-ever digital navigator.
The job is in line with a national trend aimed at helping to close digital divides and equip people to use the internet in their daily lives.
The hire is in response to a problem spotlighted earlier this year by local advocates: that residents, especially middle-aged and older Hispanic and Latina women, need help learning digital skills, like using text messaging, emailing, and paying bills online. Library staff have said other demographics of people need help with basic skills, too.
“I think it’s wonderful because there are older people such as I who’d like to know more,” said Paula Ruiz, a La Union resident who regularly uses the library, when asked about the new hire.
Selected for the part-time job is X Vazquez, who's worked in several previous jobs, including in health education at a community clinic and with a company coordinating clinical trials. Vazquez is bilingual, an important qualification in this predominantly Spanish-speaking, U.S.-Mexico border community. He started the new job Oct. 12.
Vazquez, who moved to Santa Teresa about a year ago, saw the job posting while visiting the library. He initially thought it was related to assisting with more traditional librarian duties, like managing the inventory of books, but he soon realized it would entail helping residents better navigate the web and use computers and devices. He was thrilled to be offered the role.
“The reason I went into health care education is because I have a passion for helping people,” he said. “I get satisfaction knowing I’m providing assistance to the community in the same way.”
Residents of Sunland Park and neighboring areas turned out Nov. 17, 2023, to celebrate the hiring of a new digital navigator at the Sunland Park Community Library. Earlier in the year, residents reported in in-depth interviews with the grassroots group Mamacitas Cibernéticas that they’d like help learn digital skills. (Photo by Diana Alba Soular/ SNMJC)
A new urgency
This push to improve digital literacy among the public has gained new urgency since 2020, when COVID-19 shifted daily activities like work and school to online like never before. And gaps in computer and cyber literacy that have long existed, especially in rural, minority, and under-served communities like Sunland Park, threaten to leave residents further behind. But public libraries, which, for decades, have served as hubs for accessing computers and the internet, are increasingly becoming a go-to resource to fill those gaps. Some, like the library in Sunland Park, are creating new jobs that will focus specifically on the task.
The city of Sunland Park approved the new position in response to a report, based upon in-depth surveys of residents done by the grassroots group Mamacítas Cibernéticas. Among the mostly middle-aged and older women surveyed, many said they didn't feel confident using the internet, and nearly all expressed a desire for more help learning how to use the web and technology. About 80% of respondents said they had concerns about being able to safely navigate online.
The idea for the position was in the works even before Mamacitas Cibernéticas’ report. City Librarian Crystal Jaime had made a pitch to the city at the start of the year to budget spending for the position. Jaime and an assistant librarian already have been helping residents solve cell phone and computer-related questions, in addition to their other library-related work. But the new role expands upon their small staff’s capacity.
“We’re hoping that it will bring more people in, now that they know that X is here; he can help them with anything that they need, for the most part,” she said. “We’re really looking forward to seeing a positive change and seeing more people come here to ask for help.”
Sunland Park Mayor Javier Perea said Mamacítas Cibernéticas’ report reiterated a need the city noticed during COVID. That’s why the city council approved a budget for the new position. The roughly $25,000 will come from the city’s general fund for now, but Perea said he’d love to find a grant opportunity to fund it.
“If there’s a need, and we have the resources to fill that void, why not fill it?” he said.
The Sunland Park Community Library serves the city of Sunland Park, a mostly Hispanic and Latino city of 17,800 on the U.S.-Mexico border. The library has developed into a community resource for people seeking help with digital devices and computers. (Photo by Diana Alba Soular/ SNMJC)
The city’s population totals nearly 17,400 people, and 94% of residents are Hispanic or Latino, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Some 84% of people speak a language other than English in the home. About one-quarter of the population lives in poverty – about double the national rate, according to the data.
Poverty can pose a significant barrier to accessing the internet and to learning how to better use it. People might not be able to afford an internet subscription, a computer, another type of device, or classes to gain digital skills. Or they might share a single device, like a smartphone, among family members, limiting a person’s access to the web.
Resident: ‘We’re going to go forward’
A retired teacher, Ruiz, the Sunland Park library visitor, said her doctors attempted to get her to use Zoom for appointments during the pandemic, instead of visiting their offices in-person. She tried it once, but “we had a bad connection. I don’t care for it.” Still, Ruiz said the world – since COVID-19 – has shifted to become more digital. And she doesn’t want to be left behind.
“We all accept we’re not going to go back,” she said. “We’re going to go forward.”
As digital navigator, Vazquez will staff a desk located in the city library's computer room. Adjacent to the main room filled with bookshelves, it’s a place residents go to browse the web, print documents, check email and access online materials, like language resources. As he fields requests for assistance, he'll help library visitors learn the in's and out's of smartphone, computer, and internet use.
Just after the party to celebrate his hiring, Vazquez was helping two people navigate a problem related to email.
Maria Chaparro, a La Union resident who spearheaded an effort for Mamacitas Cibernéticas to asses digital skills, hands a t-shirt with the group’s logo to a resident who attended a party Nov. 17, 2023, to celebrate Sunland Park’s hiring of the city’s first-ever digital navigator. (Photo by Diana Alba Soular/ SNMJC)
Celebration held to raise awareness
Maria Chaparro, a La Union resident who spearheaded the effort for Mamacitas Cibernéticas, was at the city library to celebrate Vazquez’s hiring. She said the city has been one of the first entities to take action as a result of the report findings.
“I’m so happy,” she said. “I feel it (the role) is one of the first of its kind in the region. We want to help the residents get what they want.”
Amid bookshelves and bulletin boards trimmed with Christmas decor, about 40 residents filled the center of the library’s main room, as Vazquez introduced himself in Spanish. Some posed questions and had a back-and-forth discussion with Vazquez and Chaparro. The party concluded with door prizes in the form of gift cards and t-shirts featuring the Mamacitas Cibernéticas logo.
Chaparro said one key will be spreading the word about the new role – in part why the celebration was hosted as a kick-off.
“What we want is the community to be aware so they can access these services,” she said.
Vazquez, who at age 39 is part of the typically tech-savvy millennial generation, said he has experience using a variety of computer programs from the jobs he’s held so far. But he’d like to take some refresher courses, such as in Microsoft Word and Excel, to better help residents.
Residents seeking assistance with their smartphones or digital problems can visit the Sunland Park Community Library, 984 McNutt Road, Sunland Park, New Mexico, for help. A newly hired digital navigator will work part-time from the library’s computer lab. (Photo by Diana Alba Soular/ SNMJC)
Evolving to meet residents’ needs
Sunland Park is not alone in its efforts to help residents become more digitally equipped. Sonia Alcántara-Antoine is the president of the Public Library Association, a division of the American Library Association. While libraries have long promoted equitable access to information and literacy, she said, “post-COVID, this mission has really only become more vital.”
“Before the pandemic, I think the mindset was a little bit like: ‘You know, the internet is non-essential or maybe it's a little bit of luxury,’” she said in an interview with the Southern New Mexico Journalism Collaborative. “But then the pandemic happened, and I think it was plain to everybody that having access to reliable, affordable internet really is not luxury. It should not be a privilege for a few. It's a necessity for everybody.”
Alcántara-Antoine said libraries evolve to meet communities’ needs, including in the area of digital literacy. She serves as CEO of Baltimore County Public Library, which has delved into efforts like distributing Chromebooks to residents and circulating hot spots to library users for home use.
From a 2020 PLA survey on technology, more than one-third of public libraries indicated they have dedicated staff for digital literacy and tech programming and training, Alcántara-Antoine said.
“We don't have exact data on how many of these staff might be considered digital navigators,” she said. “But we are aware more libraries are hiring and training staff to provide hands-on support and to increase awareness of low-cost, home broadband options and signing people up for home broadband.”
Digital navigators help overcome digital disparities in communities by offering wide-ranging support, such as with devices and skill-building; employing one-on-one interactions, and repeatedly interacting with people to build trust, according to the National Digital Inclusion Alliance.
Sunland Park library personnel prepare snacks and drinks for guests at a celebration on Nov. 17, 2023, marking the hiring of the city’s first-ever digital navigator. The kick-off event was meant to introduce the new digital navigator, X Vazquez, who’ll be available part-time to help residents with digital challenges they face. (Photo by Diana Alba Soular/ SNMJC)
Looking ahead
The city has created the position, but it’s only part-time for now. Vazquez will be in the library’s computer lab from noon to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday. (The Sunland Park Community Library’s full hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Friday.) Residents don’t need an appointment to get help from Vazquez; rather, they just need to visit during his office hours.
Vazquez noted that one of the issues identified in Mamacítas Cibernéticas’ focus groups is that residents want to be able to build trust with the people from whom they’re seeking help. The kick-off event was in part to introduce him as a friendly face who can offer that assistance.
“I also tried to reassure them that I’m not here to judge them,” he said. “Because there’s a lot of fear and lack of confidence in technology.
Advocates and city officials say they’re looking to provide the digital support people are looking for in a relevant way. And that includes hiring someone like Vazquez who’s familiar with the city, its residents, its preferred language and the local culture.
Vazquez estimated he’s helping about five or six people a day so far. And while the requests can span the gamut, including residents seeking for help printing out emails and documents or finding tax forms, “it’s usually older folks who don’t know how to use all the functions of their smartphone. Most of the people I help – it’s in Spanish.”
Jaime, the city librarian, said staff will be tracking the numbers of people assisted by Vazquez. That will be important to justify continued spending on the position in future budgets, she said.
“Hopefully next year we can request a full-time employee,” she said.
The Sunland Park Community Library is located at 984 McNutt Road, adjacent to city hall. For more information: 575-874-0873.