April 17th Readings

The Case for Consolidation

This article advances the notion that libraries need to consolidate in order to increase their efficiency, independence and ultimately serve patrons better. I really appreciated that the author pulls no punches about what he sees wrong with the current library funding set-up. He notes in passing that the idea of local government, though it may sound great, is instead a way to enforce many societal ills such as racism and poverty. This poor and inefficient performance on the part of local governance is why Amdursky advocates for the reforms that he has written about. One aspect I found interesting about this article was that it was written in 2004, well before the current economic crisis. It just shows that the slashing of budgets in the public sector has been a long term project of saving money. This trend also highlights the necessity of switching over to new sources of income. As the articles last week showed, some money (but certainly not all) can come from fundraising activities such as grants and sales. New tax policies must be engendered if libraries are to provide quality services for their patrons. I did not understand quite how Amdursky proposed to go about raising revenue for libraries. Would the libraries themselves become the agents of taxation? If so, how? If not, how again? Additionally, the “one size fits all” approach here may not be able to help in other communities.

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PL

This article discusses the impact of decreased property taxes on Indiana libraries. I find it pretty amazing that property taxes (at least of this writing) make up 80% of the revenue for public libraries in Indianapolis. This sounds like a problem to be addressed in and of itself. Like Amdursky writes about, if an area is poor and marginalized, so too will its library services be. Much of this article (surprise!) spoke to issues that we have already discussed in class and worked on for assignments. These cuts look quite serious and they are affecting the services that librarians are able to provide. At least the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library was able to sell off their big book-mobiles and purchase smaller vans. This measure probably does not compare with the former services, however. Furthermore, the cuts do not seem to have been offset greatly by the raising of the state sales tax. All issues, unfortunately that we as public librarians will be forced to grapple with in the future.

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

This study by the IU School of Business concluded that libraries provided an overall good economic impact upon the state of Indiana. Do politicians look at these documents? I doubt it… This document clearly shows that libraries in Indiana provide so much good for the people of this state, yet they are continually being asked to shoulder more and more services in an effort to offset the costs of other agencies. Perhaps it is time that we librarians demand (because of our great record shown here) more funding in order to help our patrons meet their needs. 

April 17th Readings

The Case for Consolidation

This article discusses the authors opinion on regional library systems.

I found this article to be rather confusing but I’m not sure why that’s the case. I understood his talk of regional library systems. My hometown library is the main branch/headquarters of a dual-county library system (One of the few if not only of its kind in Minnesota. Its website can be found at wasecalesueurlibraries.com) I understood the logic of pooling resources to create better libraries across the board. What I think threw me was his talk about independent revenue systems. My hometown library is still funded by local government. In their case they receive money from three places: Waseca County, Le Sueur County and the City of Waseca. The money is then managed by the director and allocated amongst the branch libraries by need, not by what money came from where. What did the author mean by becoming independent? If a library isn’t getting its money from government, then where is it supposed to get its money from?

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs

This short news brief discussed the tax cap in Indiana in 2010 and that it will affect Indiana public libraries.

I remember us discussing this situation earlier in the semester. It does seem to suppose what the previous article was saying about dependence on government money, at least from what I could understand. It would be interesting if someone would look at how this really has affected Indiana public libraries. I haven’t really heard too much about how it negatively affected libraries. I mean in part that is because the majority of my library interaction comes from Monroe County Public Library and they seem to be doing just fine in regards to hours and program offerings. But perhaps that is just because libraries in general seem to be able to do so much more down here as compared to back home. There we are down to only two librarians for the whole system, one of which is the director, the bookmobile was cut from the budget a good 20 years ago due to insufficient funds, and besides the summer reading program, there is virtually no additional programming. Perhaps it is all a matter of perspective? But either way, a broad look into how libraries have coped with the change really would be interesting.

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

This document examined the economic impact that Indiana public libraries have on their communities.

One of the first things I realized while wading through all the business jargon (which I definitely need to improve my comprehension of) is that their numbers were not calculated correctly in regards to how they divvied up the circulation statistics. To a librarian this is probably more obvious, but AV materials generally have much shorter circulation periods than books hence they go out more frequently. This means that just because the AV materials only make up 6% of the collection it does not correlate into 6% of the circulation. It is going to be much higher than that. I know at MCPL last year it was at least half and that seems to be the trend for many libraries. I noticed that this was in a way mentioned in their conclusion. I wonder if the ISL has implemented this change?

Their conclusion section in general was a bit strange. Perhaps it’s only because I only read what was outlined in the syllabus while skimming through the rest, but I failed to understand why they were pushing connecting with the business community so much. While I can see a lot of potential benefits from such a connection, I also think there are more important patron groups to be pursuing.

April 17th Readings

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs

This article, by Lynn Blumenstein, talks about tax cuts in Indiana and how it is going to affect libraries in 2008.

This article is just stating, what now is, a widely accepted fact though out the United States and that is public libraries are losing money and they are cutting back on what they are able to do. It also mentions that gray area about who is suppose to funding the library, the local or state government. In class we talked about the Circuit Breaker law, which was introduced in the 2010 taxes, which seems to be the what they are talking about in the article, about capping the property tax revenue once it gets to a certain point and I remember Krista saying that one of her revenues go to that point this year. I understand why the government put a cap on property taxes but it is still hard on the libraries when they depend on the money that comes in from those taxes.

The Case for Consolidation

This article, by Saul Amdursky, talks about public libraries consolidation and becoming less dependent on the government for money and using their own tax.

I think that it would be prudent for libraries to look other sources of income to fund the library because of the reduction in money they are able to acquire from the government. It would make sense to consolidate the resources that libraries have into one so that every library benefit but isn’t that also what a consortium does? It does seem practical a new source of income so that they may be able to increase the they receive so that they can institute the programs and resources they were not able to have before and stop trying to keep the library running on a diminishing budget.

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

This report, done by the Indiana Business Research Center, talks about the survey and finding that they found out about Indiana Public Libraries.

After reading the report, it made sense and I can see how library are not quite up-to-date with helping out businesses. To continue to be a force in the community and be relevant to all, libraries need to figure out a way to include business in their patron list whether it being acquiring new resources or planning programs. Businesses are an important part of the community and could help bring revenue to the library. The library needs to continue to reach out to different parts of the community. Libraries also have an economic benefit to the community. I would be afraid to think what would happen to the community if libraries were not around anymore. The economic benefit would not be there anymore. Also patrons who are economically challenged would not have a free place to go to get on the internet. All the benefit the library gives would be gone and there would not be very much to fill the hole that the library made.

reading for 4/17

Case For Consolidation: This article made a case that libraries should not be funded and run county wide, but should consolidate and be run and funded by it's own larger governing body.

I found this article super confusing- anyone else? I understood his points, smaller libraries are harder to fund, and having one library system for every tiny county is so much bureaucracy- but what exactly was the alternative he was suggesting? How are we supposed to consolidate? Who consolidates with who? And what does that mean? I was amused by how the author said that librarians didn't want to loose libraries because they love bureaucracy, oh, and their jobs. Let's not down play librarian's desire to have jobs, it's not just 'cause they've got a stick up their butts and can't embrace change, it's, you know, also their passion and livelihood. Also I appreciated how the author wanted to engage us on how libraries don't serve people of color and poor people as well as they should, but I genuinely do not understand how having less libraries will make that better. I understand the critique just not the proposed solution.

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs: This article considered what Indiana's property tax cut (from 2% to 1%) would mean for Indiana libraries.

This article had a very doomsday feel to it. This article was also pretty darn sparse considering it was talking about some fairly huge changes, like South Bend cutting all summer hours! I think a big piece I see missing from a lot of doomsday-for-libraries articles are some thoughts on why. Why do we live in time where libraries do SO MUCH but are valued so little. I think larger conversations about that should happen. obviously the tea party sentiment is negatively effecting libraries getting funds, but how do we combat that? How do we change public opinion of libraries? To switch gears: I would want to read a fallow up article talking to the same library directors about what cuts they made, how they were able to subsidize their budgets, and other thoughts on adjustments post tax cuts.

Economic impact of Libraries: This very long article summarized a Kelly School extensive study of Indiana libraries impact on the economy, both how much they cost/give to their community, how much they encourage new business in their community.

How incredible was it to read that Indiana libraries give back $2.38 for every $1 they get?!?! I was stoked! I was also surprised, I've never heard a number like that before- why? I'm a second year MLS student, you'd think I would have heard this before. Thus going back to my point I made for Tax Cut Hurt- we have got to make a case for how amazing libraries are. We have an amazing fact, we give back more then twice the amount we're given, why on Earth is that some big secret? I was really stoked that two of the article's recommendations were to help libraries be able to assess their economic impact, and AGGRESSIVELY promote how much they give back financially- it's like they read my mind! We're fighting for existence here, let's fight like pros!

Readings Reactions Week 15

Lynn Blumenstein
Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs

This article shows that since public libraries in Indiana receive about 80 percent of their funding from property taxes, the recent lowering of these taxes will hurt library funding.

As this was just a new blurb, the article doesn't really go into how libraries will be offsetting this loss of funding aside from a quick mention of grants and not filling open positions. Grants are not always very easy to get, especially for organizations that are new to writing grant proposals, as mentioned last week in class by Mr. Zoss. Libraries that are used to receiving funding from property tax probably are not very prepared to write a lot of new grant proposals.

"By raising the state sales tax, the plan ameliorates the impact of the plunge in state revenues. However, no income gained is guaranteed for libraries." If only some percentage of the sales tax had been earmarked for library funding, the extent of this funding crunch could have been lessened. It seems ridiculous that this wasn't done.

Saul Amdursky
The Case for Consolidation

This article elaborates on why local libraries need to consolidate their resources and become independent taxing districts.

I am not completely sure what being an independent taxing district means. Can libraries create a "library tax" and use that for funding as opposed to receiving funding from existing property taxes? Are libraries not already a separate government entity with separate funding? Aside from these questions, consolidation makes a good amount of sense to me. It seems like consolidation would make things simpler for libraries and patrons, while improving services at both small and large libraries. While true, it would be a bit of a pill to swallow for a former library director to become just a branch manager, and probably take a reduction in pay, this isn't my biggest worry. The big worry for me would be a loss of jobs and the possibility of branches closing that are unnecessary for the service of the overall library system.

Indiana Business Research Center
The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

This study expressed that overall Indiana's libraries are a good value but need to expand their outreach to businesses.

This is yet another article that sings the praises of libraries, while still calling for an increase in services. Past articles have shown increased governmental responsibilities being shoved onto libraries without any additional funding, and this article follows up with private businesses wanting better business reference services from libraries that are already strapped for cash. I can see how hiring a business reference librarian would be at least as, if not more, useful than a genealogy expert but my first reaction is to ask where the funding for expanded business services will come from. Perhaps this would be a good opportunity to create partnerships with local businesses, they can supply some funding, and the library will supply the staff and information.

04/17 Readings

"The Case for Consolidation"

Saul Amdersky’s “The Case for Consolidation” argues that while local government institutions were initially meant to put more political power in the hands of the people, they are actually used as oppressive tools by those already in power. The excessive number of public libraries fit into this picture by sucking up community resources, differing in quality across communities contributing to the quality of life of the wealthy and keeping the poor poor and comparatively ignorant. Amdersky makes an interesting case, but not a fully developed one. First, he calls for a nation-wide standard among public libraries in terms of the services and resources offered. At first, it sounds as though this would place communities on a more equal footing, but it would put many at a disadvantage. B. Hodge’s and R. Tanner’s “Grassroots to Grassfed,” an article discussing a library’s efforts to collaborate with and tailor its resources to the farming community it served, showed how public libraries best serve their populations when they are not forced to conform to a state or national standard. Second, Amdersky’s suggestion that public libraries consolidate and eliminate branches would also be disadvantageous and inconvenient for many people. To use his example of Kalamazoo County, MI, I doubt that consolidating 12 libraries over 562 square miles would work well in practice for the citizens of Kalamazoo. Many people would have to drive a long way before finding a library, library usage would go down, and the remaining libraries would eventually be forced to close. My last issue with Admansky’s article is that it blames too many problems on the government. I’m not the biggest fan of the government, but not everything (such as people’s racist attitudes or an economic slump) is its fault.

"The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana"

The Indiana Business Research Center’s “The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana” was the antithesis of Amdersky’s article. It reported on the direct and indirect economic impact of Indiana’s many public libraries, essentially concluding that the proliferation of public libraries provides jobs and millions of dollars worth of benefits to the public. Furthermore, the public gets more economic value out of libraries than it puts into it. First, this report is a god-send. I hope that its findings were widely published; if more people understood how economically beneficial public libraries were, the issue of public libraries’ survival would be solved. Second, the report brought up an interesting issue. Because it was published by the Kelley School of Business, it was clearly written with a bias towards the business community. However, the report’s suggestion that public libraries cater more to the business community and community leaders seems to undermine the mission of the public library. Local business people are, of course, part of the public and I think that publicizing the library’s business resources is a good suggestion, but the public library is not meant to be an elitist institution. On the other hand however, catering more to the needs of local business and community leaders could partially solve the library’s need for third party funding as discussed last week.

"Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs"

Lynn Blumenstein’s “Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs” briefly discussed the impact of property tax caps and other tax cuts on Indiana public libraries. While the article stated nothing new, it was a reminder of how dependent public libraries are on tax revenue, and how tax revenue can only go so far. It lends some credence to Amdersky’s argument that public libraries need to reorganize themselves into independent entities that do not rely largely on tax dollars or federal funding derived from tax dollars. It also emphasized the need for public libraries to form partnerships and find third party funding as discussed in last week’s class.

Indiana Public Library Certification Manual

The Indiana Public Library Certification Manual simply laid out the guidelines for public library certification in Indiana. First, I had a question that the last section of the manual partly addressed, but didn’t get really in-depth with. According to the manual, people need to maintain their certification by getting LEU credits even if they are not currently working as librarians. What if you are unable to get enough LEUs over a 5 year period because you were too busy with another job, or you chose to take time off work to stay home with your kids? Would you then be forced to take a lower certification upon re-entering the field or could you just pick up where you left off? I also found it interesting that state funding is cut for libraries whose librarians fail to pick up enough LEU credits. Not only does it show that the state must be desperate to save money in the face of an increased demand for library funding due to decreased property taxes, but it also goes along with Amdersky’s argument that there is too much governmental control over local public institutions.

Readings Week 15

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs by Lynn Blumenstein

The article discusses the tax cuts placed on home owners in IN and its impact on public libraries.

I believe the article brings to light how much reliance the library places on the community to fund itself. Although it is a government institution, the library does not receive a very large amount of government assistance. The article reminds me of another reading we had where the community band together and practically funded the library budget voluntarily. Although it is difficult to think that every community will share this sentiment. Likewise, I think the library community may have to begin considering alternative sources of income. Going back to our collection development assignments and our budget assignment earlier on in the year, I can really begin to see the importance of what we are doing and applying these lessons to situations that may occur in the future. Budget cuts are happening and therefore, the libraries have to be ready to find alternative sources of income to maintain the services provided and make the experience of coming to the library as enjoyable as it was prior to the tax cut or budget cut.

The Case for Consolidation by Saul Amdursky

Amdursky discusses the changes that need to take place within the library to become more efficient and progress into the “modernity”. The author notes that although change is difficult it is necessary if the library wishes to maintain a presence in the ever changing communities.

I think the concept of consolidation is interesting and if done properly could be very beneficial. However, it is worrisome that positions may be lost for those that really need the employment should consolidation take effect. I agree with the author, change is difficult, but like anything in life it can be a good thing. Honestly, the comment the author made about the status quo is accurate and could even be furthered by referring to the song from High School Musical, where the students are discussing the importance of the status quo for the functioning of the school. If furthered, they would realize the school does far better when the different groups and cliques merge and realize that there are more similarities and benefits than before. I think this is an approach that should be viewed in a similar way, open minded and prepared for what could happen.

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

The article discusses the economic benefits the public library has had for the state. The study was conducted by the Kelly School of Business at Indiana University.

I felt that the article was interesting because it provided so much information about how much the public library system has impacted the economy. I had never thought that the library would have close to 9,000 jobs available. Also, the fact that “good value” is considerably greater than the cost of operation. I had thought that there would be more disparity between the two, skewing in the opposite direction with operation being greater. I believe that even though there is a lot of worry about where the library stands currently, these figures help alleviate some of the uncertainty because it seems libraries are here to stay. The fact that community leaders consider the library to improve the local quality of life and the pride the community has for their library speaks a great deal about how the library will stand in the future.

Readings Journal 4/17

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs by Lynn Blumenstein

This article discusses the lower property taxes in Indiana, which have caused budget cuts at Indiana public libraries.

This article reinforces the discussions we had earlier this semester about budget cuts.  I was surprised to learn that 80 percent of public library budgets in Indiana are made up of property taxes.  With that type of dependence on property taxes it is no wonder libraries are facing a budget crisis.  Although I understand why property taxes were lowered, I think that before lowering the taxes, public libraries should have been given a new way to get the money they lost.  By hurting libraries, patrons are also being hurt.  The article states that the St. Joseph County Public Library, South Bend closed on Sunday’s during the summer.  This is also seen in the Pub Lib Listserv, the Wells County Public Library is reducing their Saturday hours during the summer.  Reducing hours during the summer hurts all patrons, especially kids who don’t have school in the summer and depend on the library for education and entertainment during the summer months.

The Case for Consolidation by Saul Amdursky

This article discusses the need for libraries to consolidate to achieve greater independence and to save money.

I had a difficult time understanding this article.  The author made it sound as if local control is a horrible thing, but how does consolidating libraries gets rid of local control?  All libraries are dependent on their local population, and as such, are subject to local control to some extent.  The author also stated, “patrons who use different libraries are often confused by the libraries conflicting policies.”  This doesn’t make sense because branches of libraries should all have the same policies.  If it is a different library system with different policies, the patron probably can’t use the library, as patrons are usually only able to use the library system in their county or district.   I was also a little confused by the consolidation concept because it seems like small communities wouldn’t be represented.  Small communities often have different needs than larger communities, so is consolidating the small and large libraries really a good idea?  Will the needs of the small communities still be met?

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana by Indiana Business Research Center

This study measures and discusses the economic benefits of Indiana’s Public Libraries.

It’s always nice to see the numbers behind what public libraries actually do.  Although we always feel as if we’re making a difference and helping people, the numbers in this study prove that we are.  By placing values and dollar amounts on the services libraries provide, it was easy to see the value of libraries to the community and the economy.  I did wonder how they chose values to represent the services; did they just pick random amounts?  I also noticed that many of the suggestions included outreach to the business community.  This ties in to many discussions we have had in class about outreach.  Libraries need to reach out to all sorts of different people and organizations, and businesses should not be excluded.

Melissa Brewer

                                                                                                                                Blog Post for 4/17, 2012

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana, by KSOB Business Research Center

This article has been created by our own KSOB Research Center, which I love to see reference to our own school and practices we have studies in class.  I actually just found it very interesting to browse through this article and notice the statistics that you sometimes take for granted and don’t think about.  The importance of the public library in the community is for sure supported by the outcome in this article.  And how nice to see libraries generate > $67.7 million and provide 537 jobs in Indiana!

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs by Blumenstein

This article is addressing like several services the impact of lower taxes….resulting in lower operating funds being allocated each year.  I did pay particular attention to the book mobile being downsized to a mini-van with less staff….a discussion we have held in class a few times.  Even though we all understand there are hard decisions and many cuts and closings…I must say I was surprised to see the section where the Memphis Mayor wanted to close 5 of their 19 branches. I know when we did our budget assignment….I think we felt bad at the thought of closing …any…branches and how that would affect services for the community….but this is really a large and hard decision for so many locations and people who will be touched in different ways.

The Case for Consolidation by Amdursky

This article had a very vocal political opinion…and feels control at the local level is just making current problems even worse such as the poor population and political party unjust.  The example provided at Kalamazoo was for sure an extreme and unusual situation.  I could not believe how people would choose not to live in this location…which is very common act for people buying homes and looking at the school system their children would attend.  I paid attention when information was being given about libraries merging….and this would cut down on the number of Library Director positions available…. Which I know less direction is not usually a good thing.  The one highlight I marked while was reading…was the point on page 40 of how cutting down on the number of libraries and merging would support the ability to have uniform policy for the library system….which I think is something that would most times be beneficial.  I know we talked about how it can be difficult for patrons to keep track of different systems and their rules making sure not to suffer penalties due to confusing their policies.  But what really stood out for me was the closing about how regional libraries with independent revenue and boards will find their contribution to the community to be “only limited by their imagination and creativity.”  I would have thought they would have increased measures and desire to participate in these activities….but I guess I understand you miss out on some of that collaboration and partnership that keeps you giving?

Week 15 Readings

The Case for Consolidation

This article discusses the idea of consolidating libraries, so that services are not unnecessarily duplicated and libraries can combine their resources and strengths in order to better serve their patron base.

I like the idea of consolidation, mostly because I have seen it work. The county I grew up in used to have 14 different public libraries, providing very different levels of service. The three libraries closest to us were tiny, with small, not-very-current collections, so we usually ended up driving 30 or 40 minutes once a week, just to go to a library that could support our reading needs. In 1998, 13 of the libraries decided to merge together, and the change that resulted was kind of amazing. The libraries could share collections, had a consistent set of policies, and financially support one another. One of the issues raised in the article was the loss of the local library, or the creation of a chain-store type of library, but that was never a problem at CADL. The former library directors did lose their title of director, but they are now head librarians and continue to perform many of their old duties, and each library is very strongly a part of their own, local communities.

I didn't entirely understand what the author meant by the libraries becoming an independent taxing authority. Does that mean the libraries can ask for a separate, library tax, instead of depending on a portion of property taxes?

Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs

This article looks at the effect lower property taxes have had on Indiana public libraries

A lot of this article was similar to what we talked about earlier in class, when discussing budget cuts. (Which makes sense, since this article is also discussing budget cuts.) It seemed like part of the problem might have been the state's not understanding the importance of public libraries to communities. The study we read for this week talked about how local communities and community leaders appreciated what libraries do for them, but this decision was made at a higher level, so that same feeling probably wasn't present. We've talked a lot about libraries having to promote themselves and the importance of their services, but it is important to remember that promotion needs to be at all levels, not just local.

The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

This study attempted to quantify the impact that Indiana libraries have on their communities.

It was interesting to see a dollar amount placed on the services that libraries provide, even though the authors say that they did not take into account any indirect benefits on libraries. We've talked about libraries' impact on communities, but I usually think of it in terms of social or quality of life benefits, instead of economic/business impacts. I thought the authors had a good point about libraries working more to support their local economy and business community. A lot of the suggestions they had seemed to tie in with our discussion last week, about creating relationships with other members of the community. (In this case, however, one would probably skip the asking for money part. At least, directly.) Either way, it's probably better for a library the more strongly tied it is to its community.

Also, I was curious to know how they placed a value on things like reference questions or program attendance when they were calculating their statistics. Where did the $10 figure come from?

April 17

Amdursky, S. (2004). The Case for Consolidation.

Amdursky’s article was interesting to me mostly because it readdressed the question of libraries being responsible to the government or to their community.  It brought me back to the question that bothered me most about our class discussion on pornography in the library, which was: do you strive to meet the wants and needs of your community most, or do you strive to adhere to a set of standards decided on a more academic level (or governmental)?

What I took away from this article was that Amdursky intended to better serve smaller communities’ needs, but not necessarily their wants.  By dropping the “dead weight” libraries in an area and consolidating with larger libraries, he believes that we can reduce cost.  He brings up what he calls “tough questions” among which are the ideas that libraries will become no better than the rigorously standardized Barnes and Noble (shudder), and also that librarians will have to give up their titles, jobs and even buildings (oh is that all?).  I think any librarian would probably pause at that long list of heavy cuts.

In some ways I agree that we have too many libraries serving the same areas, when fewer could do it better.  In Des Moines, I can go to Urbandale Library (2 branches), Des Moines Public (6 branches), West Des Moines, Clive, and a few other tiny ones without driving more than half an hour.  They all have different cards and different rules.  What exactly is the point of that?  In the end I always go to Des Moines Public, because it has the most selection.  Wouldn’t it be better if all these buildings still existed under a uniform or open source system?  But then, that alone doesn’t save much money.  Some people would have to lose the buildings in their area, which would disproportionately affect those living in poverty and/or those without transportation.

Overall, I was confused a bit by what exactly Amdursky was suggesting we do as far as the shift to local tax responsibility.  I didn’t think he addressed how to actually SOLVE the tough questions he brought up.  How would we avoid falling into the trap of local bias?  What about those living in poverty who would lose their branches?

Blumenstein, L. (2008). Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs.

This article made me think of the budget cut assignment we worked on earlier in the semester, and what drastic sacrifices we were forced to make as far as collection, hours, and staff.  This is yet another example of how the loss of budget from income tax, have forced libraries to cut hours and services in reality.

 In previous class discussions, we talked about how patrons would prefer 24-hour libraries and don’t even know about many (if not most) of the services we offer.  I fear that they won’t even know what they are missing if budgets continue to shrink.

Libraries are now expected to do more with much, much less, which is only possible for so long.  For this reason, the partnerships and fundraising we discussed recently in class will become a possible safety net.

Weekly Readings 4/17

The Case for Consolidation by Saul Amdursky

The author advocates for moving away from the antiquated funding and governing system used by most public libraries in favor of independently funded and managed consolidated systems.

I have mixed feelings about Amdursky's proposal. On one hand, I understand his argument that it allows tax payers more decision and that it can make librarians even more conscious of the reasons behind their organizational decisions. However, is this what librarians should be concerned with non-stop? General stewardship with public funds is good, but should librarians need to be even more entrenched in fighting for tax levies and worried about the lack of a safety net in local government? He also makes a pretty sweeping assumption that in making libraries independent, the same level of public trust would be maintained. I'm not saying it would definitely diminish, but it is a possibility in the long-term, which would leave even more libraries closing when tax payers are their most fickle (I cite the Dempsey article from earlier in the semester).

I found an editoral by John Berry, editor-in-chief of LJ when this was written, in which he argues against Amdursky's proposal. He states that while there are libraries that have become independent taxing districts and "have done well financially, many librares that are departments of municipal, county, or even state governments have done equally well or better" (Berry). He instead advocates for "finding another revenue source to replace the property tax base." His first citation is Ohio, where libraries did well after changing their funding structure to a percentage of the income tax. He also mentioned Chicago and San Diego, which made their support a percentage of the cost of all government. Again, recognizing that libraries deserve a percentage of some total (income or expenditures) seems to help make income a little more stable. This points to a definite need for states to look at their current funding structures, but there are many changes that could be made before making the ultimate leap into independence.

Berry, John N. "Editorial: Library Users Should Govern." Library Journal 129.21 Feb. (2004). Web. 14 Apr. 2012. .


Indiana Tax Cuts Hurt PLs by Lynn Blumenstein

Blumenstein gives a small write-up about the impact on libraries due to the change in Indiana's property tax revenue.

This article is a good example of why libraries should reassess their funding structure to find the best (or at least a better) one, which is the heart of Amdursky's article. As it stands, Indiana's libraries are at the complete mercy of state legislatures who aren't likely to consider what capping property taxes will do to individual libraries. While Ohio, San Diego, and Chicago libraries are also at the mercies of legislatures, having an entire percentage of income/expenditures makes them specifically target libraries for cuts. This did happen in Ohio two years ago, when the percentage went down over 30%, so it does not offer immunity. Yet when you are relying on the public, is there a truly "safe" revenue source? Should libraries expect not to have fluctuations? While I am not personally a fan of unions, it seems to me that in many instances libraries are being overlooked in favor of their unionized counterparts (police, fire, teachers, etc.). The only thing I know for sure at this point in my career is that I have nowhere near the knowledge necessary to offer informed suggestions on a solution!


The Economic Impact of Libraries in Indiana

This study examined the hard-to-measure aspects of public libraries in an attempt to assign more tangible results in Indiana.

This study was actually fascinating -- great information and surprisingly readable. It was also nice to end the semester with, since it shows what we have learned throughout this course is real and worth fighting for. However, this summary demonstrates how complicated it is to assign value to libraries. They were thorough in the services they chose to calculate costs for, and seeing the calculations was interesting. For most of them, it seemed as if they were erring on the low side (which allows you to say "at the very least, patrons are getting...") though I was surprised by $10 per reference interaction and didn't see much info on why this figure was chosen. This report was thorough enough that it should be emulated by other states to help their libraries as well.

One interesting thing was their finding that patrons use libraries for business enhancement and genealogy equally, yet libraries are more likely to focus on genealogy qualifications. MCPL has done a good job meeting this need in the Indiana Room, offering a lot of business and grant-writing support. This theme of business support continued through many of their recommendations, which made me wonder if the results weren't a little unconsciously skewed since it was a business school authoring the study. Outreach to businesses makes sense, though, especially in connection with what Mr. Zoss was saying last week about forging relationships for future benefit. I also liked their recommendations for each library to develop a benefit-cost analysis (even though it means more work) and using that information to aggressively promote their significance. This would be especially true if districts ever did becoming finance independently. In all areas, libraries need to be even more proactive in the future. I'm not sure how much I agree with finding people from out of town to survey, since it seems like most libraries don't claim to have much of a role in tourism (which the exception of places like the genealogy collection in Ft. Wayne). I think it is more important to focus on touting and strengthening services for local individuals.

April 10th Readings

Working with Friends Groups: Enhancing Participation Through Cultivation and Planning. Lowman & Bixby

This article is a mini history of the friends group that belongs to the Fondren Library at Rice University in Houston, Texas.

First I would like to say that I didn’t realize that university libraries could even have friends groups, or perhaps would is the correct word. Universities already get so much money that it seems like it would be hard to find people willing to donate to an academic library whereas a public library has such a larger patron base, it seems to make more sense for them to have a friends group and to need another source of funding.

It was nice to read about a strong friends group that definitely gets things done and is an asset to its library. However, much of what they do, they can only do because they are either an academic library or because of their location in a large metropolis area. While I feel that some of their information could be picked through and used on a smaller scale at a rural public library, much of it read as too good to be true. Rural libraries have a much smaller number of patrons who are well enough off to support their public libraries financially. Even libraries in more well off communities struggle to find those who would be good at the position with enough time to volunteer to a friends group. It is those issues there that should really be addressed in academic work.

Key Donor Cultivation: Building for the Future. Leonhardt

This article discusses some general advice on funding opportunities for libraries, special emphasis on donors and friends groups.

Again, another article about academic libraries. Why won’t public librarians write about their troubles? It really would give library students better access to information they find relevant when they are studying public libraries. That aside, I did find the first few pages of this article fairly useful. The author has a lot of good advice and it can be taken out of the academic context and applied to public library fundraising. The advice he discusses in the Introduction and Getting Started sections are more practical and less about specific ideas. They are also broad enough for a librarian at any type of library to mold to their needs.

•      The resources were also really good. I would like to add a few of my own though, having worked on a project last semester on public libraries and friends groups. A huge resource was already mentioned in this article, the ALA’s ALTAFF division. A great page on their website is their factsheets found at: http://www.ala.org/altaff/friends/factsheets. My favorite find so far though has been their Model Friends’ Cooperative Network which shows the roles of the Library Director, Trustees, and Friends groups throughout the seven responsibilities of such groups. Finally, The Care and Keeping of Friends Groups by Nancy Hill is a great group of essays on public libraries and friends groups. It also has an incredible list of friends groups by state.

We Would If We Could, But It Is Not In The Budget. Goodman

This article examines partnerships between libraries and community resources, primarily focuses on Australian libraries.

This is my favorite article out of today’s readings. Not only is it about public libraries, but it was clearly spoken and left out the typical tones and large vocabulary of academic articles making this a more enjoyable read. The author had many good points. My favorite was when he stated that “…the first and most important skill is a desire to innovate and to try new things. This may sound obvious, but it is not the most common trait of public librarians…” Librarians really do like to stick with what they know, even those fresh out of library school. It is important to always remember to randomly question why you are doing things a certain way just to avoid falling into a rut. This is especially important for those in any sort of managerial or even supervisory position as it is your responsibility to set the atmosphere for your workplace. If you are open to trying new, innovative and challenging things, your staff will be too thus encouraging thinking outside of the box and becoming an amazing library in which your patrons love using.