VRtality, an initiative funded in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, is an innovative program focused on supporting positive teen mental health through the co-design of a virtual reality experience.   It is a customizable program that library staff can leverage to build real relationships with teens in their local community.  

Because each community has its own unique qualities, VRtality is not meant to be a step-by-step guide that library staff can simply take and implement. Instead, it’s meant to provide an overview of what libraries need to consider and put in place in order to bring mental health-centered co-design and VR- services to teens.

Visit the Our Philosophy page to learn more about the 3 pillars of philosophy behind the VRtality program: team mental health, co-design, and virtual reality.

Learn more about the VRtality pilot program on the History page of this site.

Mindsets That Work

Our experience shows that library staff working on VRtality initiatives must be:

• Experienced in building authentic relationships with teens and community stakeholders.
• Able to leverage relationships to recruit teens and community stakeholders to a project of this type.
• Able to work collaboratively with a team made up of library staff, community stakeholders, and teens.
• Knowledgeable about strategies for authentic teen engagement and retention.