small libraries Archives | American Libraries Magazine

A young patron at Joeten-Kiyu Public Library in Susupe, Northern Mariana Islands plays in the library's new Sensory Corner

Libraries Transforming Communities, One Year Later

By Alison Marcotte | November 1, 2024

During the first round of funding, 240 small and rural libraries, located within towns with populations of under 25,000 people, received awards of $10,000 or $20,000 to improve the accessibility of their facilities, services, and programs. American Libraries spoke with five libraries that participated in the program’s inaugural year about their projects’ impact on those … Continue reading Libraries Transforming Communities, One Year Later →

Author and education professor Dr. Bettina Love (left) speaks with Sophia Fifner, president and CEO of the Columbus (Ohio) Metropolitan Club at the Public Library Association conference on April 4.Photo: Kinser Studios

‘Going for Broke’

By Megan Bennett | April 5, 2024

“And by Uncle Jimmy, I mean the James Baldwin,” Love, a bestselling author and education activist, said April 4 during her Big Ideas session at the Greater Columbus (Ohio) Convention Center. In 1963, the novelist and civil rights activist said to a group of New York City educators, “To any citizen of this country who figures … Continue reading ‘Going for Broke’ →

A photo of Meridian (Idaho) Library District's Tiny Library.

By the Numbers: Recycling

By Megan Bennett | March 1, 2024

75% Percentage of recycled material required for each item featured in Mattapoisett (Mass.) Free Public Library’s RE-ART show, held in September 2023. Among the pieces local artists submitted: a robe constructed with upcycled quilts and a purse made from a vintage book. 1,000 Number of volunteers who support the annual book sale hosted by Friends … Continue reading By the Numbers: Recycling →

Aaron LaFromboise, Martha Hickson, Vicki Selander, Chelsea Price, and Marilynn Lance-Robb

One of a Kind

By Megan Bennett | November 1, 2023

At many of the country’s 4,000 rural library systems, staffers are operating by themselves, or nearly so. Solo librarianship can take a variety of forms. It can be a sole employee, a full-time employee managing part-timers or volunteers, or librarians working with small or spread-out teams. As libraries continue to recover from the worst of … Continue reading One of a Kind →

ALA Announces $7 Million in Grants to Support Accessibility

March 3, 2022

The American Library Association (ALA) announced today that its Libraries Transforming Communities project will offer more than $7 million in grants to small and rural libraries to increase the accessibility of facilities, services, and programs to better serve people with disabilities. “[The] Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities [grant] represents an important next … Continue reading ALA Announces $7 Million in Grants to Support Accessibility →

Conversations Creating Change

By Phil Morehart | November 1, 2021

In September 2020, the American Library Association’s (ALA) Public Programs Office announced it would provide nearly $2 million in grants to small and rural libraries of all types to help them address pressing concerns in their communities. Through this Libraries Transforming Communities (LTC): Focus on Small and Rural Libraries grant program, more than 600 libraries … Continue reading Conversations Creating Change →

Social Media for Small Libraries

By Phil Morehart | June 25, 2021

“Social Media for Small and Rural Libraries,” a June 25 program sponsored by the Association for Small and Rural Libraries (ARSL) at the American Library Association’s (ALA) 2021 Annual Conference and Exhibition Virtual, offered easy ways for such libraries to engage patrons online without breaking the bank or overwhelming employees. Suzanne Macaulay, cochair of ARSL’s … Continue reading Social Media for Small Libraries →

Little Libraries, Big Problems

By Phil Morehart | January 24, 2021

In “Small and Rural Libraries: A Candid Discussion,” Kathy Zappitello, executive director of Conneaut (Ohio) Public Library and president of the Association of Small and Rural Libraries (ARSL); Bailee Hutchinson, branch manager at Altus (Okla.) Public Library and ARSL vice-president; Jennifer Pearson, director of Marshall County (Tenn.) Memorial Library and ARSL past-president; and Kate Laughlin, … Continue reading Little Libraries, Big Problems →

Talihina (Okla.) Public Library participates in Play Streets on September 7, 2017. Photo: Talihina (Okla.) Public Library

Rural Libraries and Community Well-Being

By Jamie Santoro | October 6, 2020

The event opened with a meme-filled presentation from author and librarian William Ottens (Librarian Tales: Funny, Strange, and Inspiring Dispatches from the Stacks) and closed with a keynote from renowned librarian and literary critic Nancy Pearl (The Writer’s Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives, with Jeff Schwager). The sessions … Continue reading Rural Libraries and Community Well-Being →

Dewey Decibel: Small and Rural Libraries

Dewey Decibel Podcast: Small and Rural Libraries

September 15, 2020

In Episode 54, Dewey Decibel speaks with Jefferson, as well as two librarians whose work was showcased on his tour. First, Dewey Decibel host and American Libraries Senior Editor Phil Morehart discusses small-library concerns with Corey Christians, director of Yavapai County (Ariz.) Free Library District. Next, Morehart talks with Stacey Russell, interim executive director of … Continue reading Dewey Decibel Podcast: Small and Rural Libraries →

Graves County (Ky.) Public Library's bookmobile. Photo: Graves County (Ky.) Public Library

By the Numbers: Rural and Small Libraries

By Alison Marcotte | September 1, 2020

1982 Year the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL) was founded by Bernard Vavrek, director of the Center for the Study of Rural Librarianship at Clarion (Pa.) University. 5 Number of days the ARSL Conference will take place, September 28–October 2. Previously scheduled for Wichita, Kansas, the conference has switched to a virtual format. … Continue reading By the Numbers: Rural and Small Libraries →

From left: Punxsutawney Phil, 134 years old and living at the Punxsutawney (Pa.) Memorial Library since the 1970s, inside his burrow; at the front of the library, visitors can see Phil's Burrow through the viewing window. Photos: Punxsutawney (Pa.) Memorial Library

Burrowed in Books

By Terra Dankowski | January 31, 2020

Editor’s note: This story was originally published in January 2020. You read that correctly. When Phil isn’t swarmed by media and visitors clamoring for his shadow-dependent spring predictions on Groundhog Day every February 2—in 2019, 25,000 people gathered before the stump at Gobbler’s Knob—the well-known woodchuck lives in a burrow at the front of Punxsutawney … Continue reading Burrowed in Books →

Latest Library Links

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Megan Bennett writes: “From the iconic to the incendiary, political messages like these have emblazoned buttons and pins since the start of US elections. Since 2012, Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has been archiving political buttons. The collection now spans thousands of items over a century’s worth of campaigns and causes. The collection has approximately 4,800 buttons and pins and 200 stickers. Most fit into one of three categories: campaigns (local and national), sociopolitical movements, and community organizations like unions.”

American Libraries column, Nov./Dec.
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Cindy Hohl writes: “Recognizing all of humanity in libraries requires a thoughtful approach and a humble spirit. I believe that we, as information professionals, have been called to this work because of our shared values. Every day, library workers provide a vital public function. We are entrusted to serve our communities, and we know that the best way to serve the public good is to welcome everyone into libraries to access accurate information.”

American Libraries column, Nov./Dec.
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Anne Ford writes: “For Susan Brown, December 17, 2004, was a perfectly normal day—until she saw the elevator doors open. Brown, director of Transylvania University’s J. Douglas Gay Jr./Frances Carrick Thomas Library in Lexington, Kentucky, was walking past the staff elevator on the library’s main level when the doors parted and she reflexively glanced inside. Her gaze locked on the great red books held by two young men inside. On the 20th anniversary of what became known as the Transy book heist, American Libraries looks back at one of the most brazen and puzzling thefts ever to take place in an academic library.

American Libraries feature, Nov./Dec.
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Chase Hunter writes: “Chabot College Library and Learning Center in Hayward, California, held a ceremonial opening last week, but students have already gone so often that it’s quickly become a campus cornerstone. More than 35,000 Chabot College students have visited the new library and learning center—the tallest building on campus—this semester, already surpassing last year’s total. The new building’s geometric clean lines and splashes of orange—the school’s color—over a chrome exterior is attracting students in a way that Chabot College hasn’t experienced since the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The Mercury News (San Jose, California), Oct. 28
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Michelle Ehrhardt writes: “Like the Metaverse and NFTs before it, it feels near impossible to follow tech news right now without hearing about Artificial Intelligence (AI). I understand it can get annoying: The tech is still in development, and everyone’s still figuring out the ethics of generating AI Art, or how to make it not suck. It’s tempting to write AI off entirely. There are a few key use cases I’ve found where AI shines better than pretty much any other alternative. As an AI skeptic, here’s where I think AI is most useful.”

Lifehacker, Oct. 28
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Katherine Klosek writes: “The Librarian of Congress—based on recommendations by the register of copyrights—issued an expansion to the 2021 Digital Millennium Copyright Act regulation that permits researchers to circumvent technological protection measures to conduct text and data mining research. The updated regulation clarifies that academic researchers can securely access research collections of literary works or motion pictures hosted by other institutions of higher education for purposes of collaboration, or to facilitate their own independent research projects.”

Association of Research Libraries News, Oct. 28
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Michele Gile and Matthew Rodriguez write: “A group of Huntington Beach (Calif.) residents known as ‘Protect HB’ said they’ve gathered enough valid signatures to try repealing a new ordinance that could impact which books are put on public library shelves. More than 15,000 people have signed a petition that’s headed to the city clerk. If valid, voters will decide whether the city council majority’s community parent-garden review board [which has relocated books on puberty and potty training to the adult section] will exist.”

KCAL-TV (Los Angeles), Oct. 28

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