Library program planning

The general population growth is perhaps the most obvious influencing factor, but there are others as important. The proportion of younger people in the total population is continually increasing, and is also the largest group of library users, taking between 50 and 60 per cent of the books circulated by the average library.

Other important factors are the generally higher level of educational achievement and increasing leisure time. Finally, concerted efforts on the part of the librarian to reach a large segment of the public which is now classified among the non-users will have a major influence in determining future public library needs.

Traditionally, planning for libraries was the primary responsibility of professional librarians in cooperation with local boards and library consultants. Recently, however, planning departments have been called upon to contribute to this cooperative effort. A review of 33 general plans prepared for major urban centers since shows that 22 devoted chapters or sections of chapters to libraries. Recommendations in the general plans ranged from a simple discussion of appropriate sites to a combination of site selection, service areas, programs, and policies.

The purpose of this report is to assist the planner in recognizing the major trends affecting needs for library facilities and to provide guidelines in the preparation of plans and recommendations for public library developments.

The services performed by the modern library extend beyond the simple function of storing books. Leading librarians stress the importance of diversified services and the actual promotion of library facilities for entertainment, information, and self-education. Increased emphasis on service stems from a concern that a large segment of the population does not now avail itself of existing facilities.

According to an estimate by Wheeler and Goldhor, 25 to 40 per cent of the total population does not now use library facilities but might do so if encouraged.

The transformation of libraries from passive and remote institutions to active centers in the community and the ever-increasing use of bookmobiles are evidence of this trend. Besides books, libraries are providing music and foreign language recordings, films and microfilm, and technical and special interest publications. The library also may show collections of paintings, photographs, and art objects and can provide auditorium facilities for special programs of entertainment, adult education, and community activities.

Greater emphasis on services is also a response to a decline of library use in the inner city. The traditional library has limited relevance to the needs of residents in economically deprived areas, where information and guidance on child-rearing, money management, housing, and the like come much closer to local needs.

Here the library can use such tools as lectures, discussion groups, and films. It can also be a source of constructive activities for both young and old by providing such extra services as story hours for children and record concerts for young adults. The efforts by the Cleveland library system to make its branch libraries into community centers is a case in point.

Posters are placed in churches, stores, and social agencies and gathering places to make people aware of available facilities. Various community activities are either sponsored by the library or made possible because the facilities are available. These include voter registration drives and discussion groups on such pressing issues as housing. In addition, the branches located in slum areas place strong emphasis on children's programs.

Branches are called "treasure houses," with decorations, furniture, and materials oriented toward children. The staff includes librarians with a strong interest in and understanding of childrens' needs. One of the more obvious ways of bringing service to the public, and to expand library services, is the use of bookmobiles, which are equally useful in high-density areas of the city and in the sparsely populated suburban and rural communities.

In , the Chicago Public Library began experiments with the use of bookmobiles for a summer program. The initial objective was to reach young people during summer vacation. The program will eventually operate the year round, with bookmobiles circulating after school hours. Several aspects of this experimental program are worthy of notice. The mobile unit is a brightly painted bus designed to attract immediate attention and to project a feeling of gaiety and fun.

A sound system plays popular music. Other cities experimenting with expanded bookmobile services include Baltimore and New York City. In Baltimore, where the program incorporates many of the features mentioned, one of the librarians contacts the people in the neighborhood to describe facilities and services available and actually knocks on doors to solicit patrons.

In bookmobile services for suburban and rural areas, the objective is to make library facilities available to residents of remote areas, so that distances and economy of operation are the major considerations.

In the sparsely populated areas, where no library exists, bookmobiles can bring the much broader resources of a well-stocked central library. The report Library Facilities , prepared by Herkimer and Oneida counties New York , outlines the operation of the bookmobile service for areas not served by other facilities, The bookmobiles stop every two or four weeks in 46 different locations of this two-county region.

Each unit is stocked with 3, volumes, plus films and recordings. Even though bookmobiles have the obvious advantages of mobility, flexibility, relatively low cost, attractiveness, and convenience, they do have disadvantages, including the facts that no specialized programs are possible; that materials must be limited; that service is available for each location only for short periods at intervals; and that study and research by patrons are not possible owing to limitations on space and materials.

Standards for bookmobiles are largely determined by local needs and cannot be as comprehensive as those for library buildings. In general, however, the bookmobile service should be planned and operated to provide equal service to children and adults.

Its schedule should include afternoon and evening stops for at least 30 hours per week. The appropriate capacity of such units is 3, to 4, volumes and never less than 2, volumes.

Bookmobile materials include basic references such as an encyclopedia, world almanacs, Readers' Guide, and information pamphlets. Although bookmobiles are generally considered an effective and relatively inexpensive means of reaching remote areas, other solutions may be necessary when density of population is too low to justify even this relatively limited expenditure.

In Washington State, a rural library system serving a very sparsely populated area gave up the bookmobile and experimented with mailing a catalog of books available in a larger and more centrally located branch library.

The catalog is a simple and inexpensive publication similar in format to the Sunday book supplement of a newspaper. Books selected from the catalog are requested by using an enclosed postcard. The experiment is apparently extremely successful. In the first two weeks of the program some 1, requests for books were received by the library. Planning for library facilities is difficult because of the continuing change in library services. Consultation among the library staff, a qualified consultant, an architect, and the planning staff is essential to determine how existing facilities meet the demand for services, what developments are necessary to overcome shortcomings, and to plan for future needs.

The librarian is the pivot of this cooperative effort, and his basic function is to draft proposals based on his evaluation of the community's needs and the capabilities of existing facilities. This includes the responsibility for organizing the library program and suggesting initial planning proposals to make that program possible. Since most librarians do not have the necessary experience to deal with the details of library planning, a specialized group of librarians well versed in dealing with library problems should provide consulting services.

These consultants assist in the selection of sites and advise on building programs as well as on the functional layout of the library. The cost of a library consultant is relatively minimal compared to the total investment, and on the average, equals approximately one per cent of expenditures for new construction.

Another indispensable member of the team is a qualified architect, who, in addition to helping in site determination, must develop appropriate design and preliminary and working drawings as well as cost estimates for construction and supervision.

With the increased attention paid to exterior design and interior layouts, architect's fees, which usually range from six to eight per cent of new construction, are a wise investment.

Planners are not newcomers to this cooperative effort, but their function is too frequently reduced to advising on the selection of sites for new developments. The resources, tools, and knowledge available to the planning staff, however, and the understanding of such factors as pattern of growth, population distribution, land-use regulation, and traffic flows can make this role much more meaningful. In fact, because the planner is in closer touch with the many facets of community needs, perhaps more so than the specialized technician, he can become a positive force in initiating needed improvements.

Evaluation of existing facilities is the first step in determining the need for library improvements. Buildings, whether old or new, should be easily accessible and provide adequate parking. The exteriors should be inviting and the interior layouts so arranged as to stress convenience of use, comfortable surroundings, and ample space.

The following tables summarize accepted standards for buildings, book collection, circulation, staff, and space requirements. Although these standards are valuable in the preparation of library plans, local conditions often require modifications. Such problems will be discussed in the "Local Survey" section of this report. Source: Wheeler and Goldhor, op.

The location of a library is a major factor in its use. Conflicting considerations, however, can suggest totally different locations. Concern with cost alone, for example, led to the practice of placing libraries where the land for buildings and for parking was inexpensive and readily available.

No notes for slide. Library Program Planning 1. Beard 1. Beard 2. Beard 3. Audience 8. Beard 4. Beard 5. Time and Location Beard 6. Beard Press Release Layout Beard Brochure Example front inside Beard Bookmark Example Beard 7. Resources and Supplies Beard 8. Budget Beard 9. Collaboration Beard Evaluation Beard Mesulang! If you have any questions, feel free to contact me: Megan K. Total views 22, Books and Authors. Community Engagement. Environmental Sustainability.

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