Death by Google? Don’t write off the Library just yet…

Along with the Internet boom came those who predicted that libraries would succumb to “death by Google.” After all, how could libraries compete with the information superhighway? Today, I’m wondering what those skeptics must be thinking as they realize that not only have libraries not met their demise, but instead, they are stronger and more actively used than ever before.

When you consider that computers seem to be everywhere and many think the words “Google” and “information” are synonymous, people are surprised to discover that the public library is busier than ever.

Some people question the future of libraries. But the reality is that the number of people using libraries is up. A recent poll by Harris Interactive found that nationwide 76% of Americans have been in a public library in the past year.

Why were those that foresaw “death by Google” wrong? What’s causing such a renaissance? For starters, libraries haven’t been still. They’ve evolved.

Libraries today focus as much on maximizing the potential of information as they do on collecting it.

For example, libraries have a long history of serving children through story time. In this seemingly simple activity, a revolution has taken place over the past decade that is having an impact on education and our economy.

At the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County (PLYMC), the Baby Brilliant program is a response to the latest research showing that certain skills must be developed by age five for success in school and in life. Library story time was modeled by this research into an activity that encourages a child’s discovery using specific Early Literacy techniques. And story time is no longer just for children. Parents, grandparents and caregivers participate. Librarians model behaviors which participants can repeat with their children at home. Librarians train daycare providers in Early Literacy skills and provide kits that offer techniques to enhance a child’s brain development.

Story times take place in our libraries. But the awareness and impact of library initiatives are taken out into the community through partnerships with organizations such as MYCAP and Child Care Connection.

When the library was offered an opportunity to develop a financial literacy program for low- to moderate-income families, we did not hesitate. The grant opportunity was offered to just a handful of the nation’s libraries by the FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) Investor Education Foundation. FINRA wanted to demonstrate the potential of public library/community partnerships to address a problem that now grips our nation: financial instability.

The Smart Money program couples the library’s expertise with information and its ability to reach a mass audience. The library is partnering with a consortium of United Way agencies and public/private partners concerned with local economic development.

Though still in its infancy, Smart Money has demonstrated results which are already impressive. Free tax preparation services by IRS-trained volunteers in branch libraries resulted in a 36% increase in tax refunds and fee savings coming back into our community. An online portal was created to provide a guide to assistance available locally. Our libraries are offering programs that connect people with the tools they need to achieve greater financial stability.

Those that envisioned “death by Google” are working with a view of the library that is 30 years old. They see the library as a repository of information, passively waiting to be sought out. But libraries offer a variety of programs which tell a different story, such as initiatives focusing on early literacy, financial stability, small-business development and grants for non-profits organizations.

Today’s library does not sit back and wait. It is a proactive organization, a catalyst to connect our community with the knowledge needed to build a brighter future in our communities.

Public Institutions Are Being Seen in a New Light

There is a growing shift taking place in how society views the assets of its public institutions. If you look carefully, you’ll see evidence that assets are being defined in broader, more entrepreneurial ways. You see it in the work of the Harwood Institute, in the work of the Community Driven Institute and in the work of urban planners whose creativity often mixes private and public assets together in ways that magnify their effect. Momentum is growing for organizations to view their work as being more community-driven, less institution-driven. We can find any number of examples showing a realization that the strengths of institutions working for the public good can be magnified when those strengths are shared.

Working in the Sweet Spot of the Financial Meltdown

In the spring of 2008, the Mahoning County’s Library and United Way started to bring together a group of organizations to form what has since come to be known as the Financial Stability Partnership. The library’s interest in fostering the partnership stemmed its being awarded one of 13 initial grants from the FINRA Foundation through ALA’s SmartInvesting @ yourlibrary initiative. Several of the organizations that formed the partnership had a history of providing free tax counseling services for seniors and low-to- moderate income residents. The local Community Action agency and the Department of Finance and Accounting at the local university trained students to providing VITA counseling. The library had a history of providing space to AARP volunteers for tax counseling. In 2008, these organizations decided to more closely coordinate their efforts, promoting each others activities, engaging the IRS to track results, and recruiting more volunteers. A special emphasis was made to increase awareness of the availability of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The result was impressive. The IRS reported that ‘the impact to the community and those most in need has been tremendous, totaling nearly 2.18 million dollars in refunds and fee savings”. 2,487 tax returns brought in over $1,682,357 net refund dollars into the County, including $639,610 EITC dollars. plus estimated fee savings of $497,400. The success of the program seems even more impressive when one considers that this was a trial year and that its effectiveness was muted due to lack of a sufficient number of trained volunteers. Available slots for tax counseling were booked almost immediately. The challenge of recruiting and training volunteers is already being worked on for 2009.

Libraries as Boundary Spanning Organizations

Robert J. Sternberg, dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Tufts University, argues that almost any serious problem at a global, national or local level requires problem-based, interdisciplinary thinking. Sternberg writes that students learn to think in terms of silos, but do not learn how to connect the silos of learning. Much the same can be said about the way that institutions work. Real solutions often require action that is interdisciplinary and multi-faceted.
Is this a role for libraries? Libraries already serve and have relationships with interdisciplinary audiences. Libraries deal with both profit and non-profit institutions. They work with organizations that focus on senior and those that work with children and teens. Library work supports economic development, job seekers, retirees, and local, state and federal government agencies. All of them have relationships with the public library. The public library that decides to embrace an entrepreneurial approach to address community challenges will find itself well-positioned to fill the role of a boundary- spanning organization. The resultant activity will move the library to center of community issues, rather than the periphery.

Why This Title for a Blog

The Harwood Institute calls the place where Public Challenges and Building Community intersect, the Sweet Spot of Public Life. I have added a third factor; Library assets. In pursuing my work, I look for opportunities where Library Assets intersect Public Challenges and Building Community. Working in that sweet spot is where we do the most good. I believe that it is in this space that we have the greatest potential to raise the stature and appreciation of the library in the community and that it is here where we have the most potential to demonstrate the library's potential to make a real impact.