PVLD Director's Blog

Libraries are an essential part of a community's infrastructure

This year I am Chair of the California Library Association's Legislative Committee, which means I am getting an up-close look at how the perilous state of the economy and of the California budget are threatening library services. 

Libraries across the state are reporting deep cuts to their budgets resulting in closed branches, reduced hours, elimination of online resources, book budgets that are being reduced by 50% or more, layoffs, furloughs, and hiring freezes.  At the same time we are seeing extraordinary growth in demand for library services, especially in communities that have been hardest hit by the recession where the public library may be the only place people can come for free access to computers to prepare resumes and submit job applications.  I can hear the strain in the voices of my colleagues as they try to balance these competing forces and still provide the best possible service to their communities.

All too often it feels like we are in competition with other public services, with the implication being that in a community's hierarchy of needs libraries are somehow less essential than "public safety" typically defined as fire and police. 

People forget, and librarians find it difficult to articulate, that libraries play a unique role in a community in that they both play a role in public safety (by providing safe spaces and activities for people of all ages, providing access to medical and other basic information to support basic well-being, helping people find jobs, enhance their skills and otherwise sustain financial security)  and help fulfill needs that are higher up on Maslow's hierarchy as an integral part of the educational infrastructure and a center for lifelong learning.

I've been reading a delightful little book called Dewey: the small town library cat who touched the world ,which is bringing this home to me.  I thought it was going to be a sweet story about a cat, and it is, but it's also about the important role played by the library in a struggling farming community in Iowa during the farm crisis of the early 1980s.  It's also a terrific read!

In yet another example of the synchronicity that the Internet fosters, this morning I came across this blog post by Stephen Abram.  He hits the nail on the head when he writes

"I and most people would pay a hefty fee to be guaranteed that I and my family would never have to visit or be visited by the police, fire crews, hospital staff, or ambulances. The only thing on that list that I pay taxes for that I willingly and gladly choose to go to often is the public library.

And that's different in a special way. All the others are awesome and Lord forbid they not be there or funded properly. But the world will be a lesser place and life in our communities damaged forever, if our public libraries are sacrificed at the altar of budgeting."

And like Stephen I was thrilled to see this video from Minnesota (shared on the always interesting The M Word blog about marketing for libraries), which puts libraries alongside fire and police as an essential local service

These are tough times, and I know that cuts in basic services are inevitable.  My hope, and my goal, is that we can help decision-makers understand that libraries are in fact basic services and that when cuts need to be made libraries are no less important to the safety and well-being of our communities than police and fire, schools, and hospitals.

Hats off to the people of Minnesota for expressing it so well.

Library Funding - We Still Need Your Help!

Last night we received word that Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger have reached agreement on a "compromise budget" that does NOT include borrowing of local property tax revenues.  I've written before how devastating it would be to PVLD if the State were to borrow property taxes as they comprise 87% of our budget.

I have to think that the concerted effort by library supporters who called, emailed and wrote to Legislators to voice their indignation over the State taking local property tax revenues played a role in keeping these revenues out of the compromise budget. 

I know first-hand that many Palos Verdes residents helped with this effort - but the efforts of one young man went above and beyond what most people would be willing to do.  13-year-old Peter Kim spent many hours collecting signatures on a petition that he faxed to the Governor.  His story was on the front page of today's PV News.  Thank you Peter!

I wish I could say that we are out of the woods, but the budget still needs to be ratified by the leaders of both parties and passed by the Legislature and could be changed at any point during that process.  Tonight our Board of Trustees will be reviewing contingency options in the event we do end up losing property tax revenue this year - and some of the options aren't pretty.

You can help by calling or emailing your local Legislators and asking them to approve the compromise budget as is. 

National Library Legislative Day

I'm writing this quick post during a break fron the Amercan Library Association National Library Legislative Day briefing.

I'm sure I'll have more to write as the next couple of days unfold,but I wanted to post briefly about how proud I feel to be part of a group of library supporters, many of whom came to Washington at their own expense and on their own time, who are committed to making sure our Federal Legislators understand the importance of libraries in a democratic society.

For public libraries the main source of Federal funding is through the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), which provides funds for grant programs administered by the State Libraries. This year PVLD is benefitting directly from LSTA funding in 3 areas -

1. The Early Literacy for Families (ELF) grant that is supporting enhanced services for families with young children and particularly for families of children with disabilities.

2. The Transforming Life After 50 grant that is supporting enhanced library services for the 39% of Peninsula residents who fall into theBaby Boom generation.

3. Scholarships to assist PVLD staff who are attending library school while working.

This morning we have already heard how challenging the Federal budget negotiations are, and how proposals currently on the table amount to a 2% spending increase (less than inflation) before any changes to programs such as No Child Left Behind.

It's pretty disheartening, especially when you realize that the total annual LSTA funding we are seeking amounts to less than 1/2 the amount we are spending DAILY on the war in Iraq (we are seeking $214.432 million in LSTA funding for next fiscal year while in April of this year the Washington Post reported that the Iraq war is costing $434 million/day)!

LSTA is only one of the issues we are addressing in Washington this week. Others include funding for school libraries, for federal libraries including the National Agriculture Library, and for the E-Rate telecommunications discounts that are made available to schoolsand public libraries including PVLD and PVPUSD.

The total annual funding being requested for all of these programs (including LSTA) adds up to less than 3 days funding for the Iraq war!

What does that say about our priorities ?

What Are Libraries For?

First, a disclaimer:  This post contains links to some content that might be considered "adult".  Venture forth at your own risk!

I spent some time cleaning up my computer desktop today while I was eating lunch, and I cam across this post on "Defining What Your Are For (Just Like Porn)" that I had saved for future reference.  Hugh McGuire's blog is great because he's not a librarian (at least I don't think so!) but he often writes about stuff that is on topic for libraries and librarians.  And he is President of the Atwater Library in Montreal - a public library funded almost entirely by private donationsn now there's a challenge! -so he has does have insider library knowledge.  And I like his taste in music, too!

Anyway, I thought Hugh's comments about the risks of defining your institution in terms of what you do, rather than what you are for were very thought-provoking:

He writes that institutions

"...have defined their existence by various functions they perform within a given ecosystem. In the context here, these institutions grew up in an ecosystem where information was scarce, and information distribution limited. The ecosystem has changed (info distribution & access is abundant), and institutions are having a hard time adapting. So: music labels think they sell CDs to people; newspapers think they get writers to make news articles, and get people to read them; libraries think they give people access to books and computers; universities think they provide a place for people to learn and do research; governments think they try to improve society by implementing policies wanted by the people … etc. But I think they are all wrong.

All those kinds of definitions get you tied up in the functional stuff you do, and they don’t really get to the core of what’s important, what the real thing is that you are doing. I don’t have answers, but any business/institution that thinks like this is going to get creamed in the next ten years, unless they take a look at what they are really for."

Then, in a real stroke of genius, he makes the comparison to the porn industry, which has no illusions about what it is for and is one of the most enduring and profitable industries in the world...but you'll have to read the post to learn more!

Anyway, I re-read Hugh's post and then, still munching on my hummus and pita chips, I spent 20 minutes listening to the latest Joan Frye Williams and George Needham Thinking Out Loud podcast from Infopeople.  They were talking about the book Forces for Good: the Six Practices of High-Impact Non-Profits and what lessons there might be for libraries. 

The whole podcast was interesting, but one comment from Joan particularly struck me.  In talking about the need for libraries to be actively engaged with their communities she said "you have to have a place at the table, but you also have to bring a dish once in a while".

Another way of saying it's not enough to talk about what you do (your function), you actually have to connect with people in ways that they find useful (what you are for)!

Since lunch the thought that has been rattling around in the back of my mind is that while I think there are some core things that I think all public libraries are "for" - centered around literacy, reading, access to information, and lifelong learning - the ways in which we deliver these services so they are of use to our local communities can be very different.  And I also think there are other things that we are "for" because they meet unique needs in our community, and sometimes these feel like they are a long way from the core of functions that we feel comfortable with. 

This month's Library Journal (the print version, available online only to subscribers) recognizes the Chelsea District Library in Michigan as the "2008 Best Small Library in America".  One of the reasons?  They have gone outside the library walls to bring services and activities to the Chelsea Senior Center - including video gaming (Nintendo Wii bowling leagues), music events, and more.  Not much mention of books and reading in that outreach effort...but it clearly says to the Chelsea community that "the library is for seniors, wherever they are and whatever their interests."

In Palos Verdes there is a need for safe, comfortable places for young teens to socialize and relax (and maybe do a bit of homework) after school.  The library has always served this function to some extent, but when we opened the Annex and started offering fun activities for teens over at Miraleste the message we sent to our community is "we are for kids who need a place to go after school but don't want to sit still, be quiet, and study".   

"What are we for?"  "What dishes are we bringing to the potluck?"  Great questions that I suspect will be rattling around in my head for a while....thanks Hugh and Joan!

Tough Times Ahead

I just got back from a meeting of the California Library Association Legislative Committee in Sacramento, and the news on the budget front is not good.  The State budget is facing a nearly $10 Billion shortfall, and department heads have been asked to develop plans to cut their budgets by 10% next year.

We've been making a real push to have funding for the Public Library Fund (which provides a small amount of per capital funding to every public library in the state) and Transaction-Based reimbursement (which partially reimburses libraries for the costs of serving non-residents) restored. Neither program has ever been fully funded, and in this years budget both were cut severely.

Our efforts have included trying to mobilize the library community, but the results have been disappointing.  Only a handful of people have taken the time to make phone calls or  write letters.

In the face of the huge budget deficit and with the challenge of getting people in the field engaged in the advocacy effort it is going to be a real struggle just to maintain this year's funding levels, and achieving a funding increase next year seems nearly impossible. 

A discouraging day, all told....

Advocacy

Today I had the opportunity to attend a workshop presented by the Americans for Libraries Council/Libraries for the Future ( www.lff.org)  which commissioned a national study of public and community leader attitudes about libraries in the 21st century and is working with the American Library Assoication and others to develop national advocacy efforts and stimulate a national discussion about the role and value of libraries in 21st century America.  The study, titled "Long Overdue" (http://lff.org/long_overdue061306.html ) has a wealth of information about what people want from their libraries.  It also reiterates the need for continued, consistent, and persistent advocacy.

As I listened I was thinking about my experiences as coordinator for the California Library Association's Day in the District and Legislative Day advocacy efforts, and about my observations in my own library and community.  It has been really difficult to get broad participation in these efforts. It occurred to me that maybe we make advocacy sound too much like work!  Certainly there is a lot of work in a successful advocacy effort - there are meetings with legislators to set up, prepare for and attend; letters to write and phone calls to make; position papers to prepare; publicity and public awareness campaigns to manage....and there are always many reasons why people can't or won't do this work - too busy, don't like to ask for things, don't need to talk to my legislator because s/he is already a library supporter (or "its not worth talking to my legislator because s/he is a conservative who will vote against anything that costs money")...the reasons are endless.

Maybe we need to reframe our definition of advocacy!  To my mind every time we (librarians, Trustees and Commissioners, members of the Friends of the Library or Library Foundation, or just ordinary citizens) do or say anything that causes someone to think of libraries in a positive light we are engaging in advocacy.  This can be giving someone a great experience at a library program or at the Circulation or Reference Desk; speaking to a community group; bringing information about the library to your book group or service club, or even talking up the library to the person ahead of you in line at Starbucks or the supermarket....

The beauty is that anyone can engage in this kind of advocacy...and the more that people do it the more likely the prospect of success for those of us engaged in the more traditional advocacy efforts.  So, what are YOU doing to be an advocate for the library in your community?