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America’s Star Libraries, 2014: Top-Rated Libraries
We are very pleased to announce the results of the seventh edition of the Library Journal Index of Public Library Service, sponsored by Baker & Taylor’s Bibliostat. The LJ Index is a measurement tool that compares U.S. public libraries with their spending peers based on four types of output measures of their per capita use. When the LJ Index and its Star Library ratings were introduced in 2008, our hope was that whether libraries were awarded stars or not, they would examine these statistics more closely—both for their own library and for their peers—and make fuller use of these and other types of data for local planning and evaluation purposes. In the meantime, however, another type of data has come to the fore—outcomes. Here we will explore what some of this year’s Star Libraries are doing with outcome measures.
Focus on Relevance: Tell politicians why libraries are vital | Editorial
Not long after Republican Kim Wyman was elected secretary of state of Washington in 2012, she had a meeting with a legislator that set her on a new course. As they began to explore the possibility of rebooting an envisioned but later abandoned Heritage Center project, she was asked, “Are libraries necessary?” It’s a great question. Her response should be a prod to all of us to get out there and make sure our elected officials have the insight into libraries they need to help build and sustain strong funding.
As App Gains Traction, Queens Library Considers Vending to Other Libraries
The initial success of the new free app developed by Queens Library has led QL to consider adopting a library-as-developer role, selling customized versions of the app to other libraries to support this and other in-house development projects.
LibraryReads Nominations Now Accepted via NetGalley
LibraryReads, which offers a monthly list of ten current titles recommended by library staff nationwide as their favorites, has joined with NetGalley to make nominating titles even easier. Previously, library staff who participated voted solely through Edelweiss. Now staffers who use NetGalley, a major software and services company that delivers secure digital galleys to professional […]
Data & Assessment in Academic Libraries – A free, three-part webcast series, developed in collaboration with ER&L
A free, three-part webcast series, developed in collaboration with ER&L
Building on the Data-Drive Academic Libraries webcasts, Data & Assessment in Academic Libraries will be focusing on projects that range across various service points. We will start with an in-depth focus on qualitative measures used in libraries, then move into how data is being used in innovative ways to inform and make changes in information literacy and reference. We will conclude the series by looking at measures that impact collection development and discovery decisions in the digital environment.
Copyright Incentives in the GSU Appeals Court Ruling | Peer to Peer Review
The word “incentive” appears ten times in the ruling issued last month by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in the Georgia State University (GSU) copyright infringement case, but it is slightly unclear in this rather odd opinion just who is the object of the incentive created by copyright. In seven of those ten instances, the incentive is clearly intended to benefit the author. But there are three sentences at the very end of the majority opinion (the other three uses of the word) where the court seems to interrupt its analysis to state that the incentive belongs to publishers, not authors. It is, I think, worth parsing this apparent contradiction in order to guess at how the trial court might think about incentives on remand.
Indianapolis Approves $58 Million in Bonds for Libraries
Indianapolis Public Library (IPL)’s modernization plan, which involves renovating five branches, relocating five others, and building one brand new facility, will get started next month after area lawmakers voted on Nov. 10 to approve $58.5 million in bond issues over the next six years.
Maker Jawn Initiative at Free Library of Philadelphia to Expand to Adults with IMLS Grant
In a move that will help the Free Library of Philadelphia (FLP) expand Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM)-based Maker space programming to multi-generational audiences, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) on October 23 awarded a $500,000 National Leadership Grant to FLP in support of the library’s Maker Jawn initiative.
Latest Articles
Focus on Relevance: Tell politicians why libraries are vital | Editorial
Not long after Republican Kim Wyman was elected secretary of state of Washington in 2012, she had a meeting with a legislator that set her on a new course. As they began to explore the possibility of rebooting an envisioned but later abandoned Heritage Center project, she was asked, “Are libraries necessary?” It’s a great question. Her response should be a prod to all of us to get out there and make sure our elected officials have the insight into libraries they need to help build and sustain strong funding.
#timetoread for National Readathon Day
Ask anyone who loves books about the most challenging aspect of being a reader, and the answer you’ll inevitably hear is: There’s never enough time to read. Fortunately for book enthusiasts everywhere, this January Penguin Random House will be teaming up with the National Book Foundation, GoodReads, and Mashable to encourage readers across the country to take four dedicated hours to read—for a good cause.
Amazon, Hachette End Ebook Pricing Dispute
Amazon and Hachette Book Group have ended the pricing dispute that the two have been waging since spring of 2014. On November 13 they jointly announced a multiyear agreement for ebook and print sales. The new terms will go into effect in early 2015, but Hachette has said that even before that time Amazon will restore its previous supply of Hachette titles and make them available for pre-order, as well as including them in promotions on the site.
NaNoWriMo at Your Library | Programs That Pop
One popular program at the Corvallis–Benton County Public Library (C-BCPL) last year was our National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) series of events, which offered a fun and creative challenge for community members: to write a novel in 30 days. The program was so popular that the library published a collection of writings from many of the participants.
As App Gains Traction, Queens Library Considers Vending to Other Libraries
The initial success of the new free app developed by Queens Library has led QL to consider adopting a library-as-developer role, selling customized versions of the app to other libraries to support this and other in-house development projects.
Developing a Service Philosophy | The User Experience
It takes hard work to create a library that provides good user experience. As convenient as it would be, building an exemplary organization doesn’t happen by waving a wand. Instead, libraries must optimize all of their touch points, develop sane policies, design relevant services, and empower staff to provide members with top-notch function.
BEA, BookCon Repositioned as Separate, Adjoining Shows
In a move to address the frenzy caused this spring by overlapping consumer and professional publishing conventions, Reed Exhibitions executives have decided to make BookExpo America and BookCon separate, adjoining shows in 2015.
Deadline Looms for Lemony Snicket Prize Nominations
Do you know a librarian who has faced adversity with integrity and dignity intact? Nominate them for the second annual Lemony Snicket Prize for Noble Librarians Faced with Adversity, sponsored by the American Library Association, before the December 1 deadline.
Indianapolis Approves $58 Million in Bonds for Libraries
Indianapolis Public Library (IPL)’s modernization plan, which involves renovating five branches, relocating five others, and building one brand new facility, will get started next month after area lawmakers voted on Nov. 10 to approve $58.5 million in bond issues over the next six years.
Copyright Incentives in the GSU Appeals Court Ruling | Peer to Peer Review
The word “incentive” appears ten times in the ruling issued last month by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in the Georgia State University (GSU) copyright infringement case, but it is slightly unclear in this rather odd opinion just who is the object of the incentive created by copyright. In seven of those ten instances, the incentive is clearly intended to benefit the author. But there are three sentences at the very end of the majority opinion (the other three uses of the word) where the court seems to interrupt its analysis to state that the incentive belongs to publishers, not authors. It is, I think, worth parsing this apparent contradiction in order to guess at how the trial court might think about incentives on remand.
Download LJ‘s 5th annual survey of Ebook Usage in U.S. Public Libraries, courtesy of Freading, for the most up-to-date statistics statistics on how libraries are adopting ebooks, and the driving factors behind purchasing and circulation activity in the public market.
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Upcoming Webcasts
Data & Assessment in Academic Libraries – A free, three-part webcast series, developed in collaboration with ER&L
A free, three-part webcast series, developed in collaboration with ER&L
Building on the Data-Drive Academic Libraries webcasts, Data & Assessment in Academic Libraries will be focusing on projects that range across various service points. We will start with an in-depth focus on qualitative measures used in libraries, then move into how data is being used in innovative ways to inform and make changes in information literacy and reference. We will conclude the series by looking at measures that impact collection development and discovery decisions in the digital environment.
More Webcasts:
- Digging Deeper: An Introduction to Qualitative Assessment Techniques
- Data for ROI and Benchmarking Ebook Collections
- Data, Assessment, and Participatory Design: Rethinking Information Literacy, Spaces, and Services in Two Academic Libraries
- Evidence Based Collection Models: Not your Traditional DDA
- Open Access: Looking Back at Ten Years of Open Access Publishing
- Common x 3 (Public, Academic, School): Designing next generation gathering and learning spaces for libraries of every type
- Participatory, Continuous, Connected | Top Trends from Library 2.014
- Supercharge Your Collection: Ways to Boost the Patron Experience and Maximize Turnover
LJ in Print
NaNoWriMo at Your Library | Programs That Pop
One popular program at the Corvallis–Benton County Public Library (C-BCPL) last year was our National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) series of events, which offered a fun and creative challenge for community members: to write a novel in 30 days. The program was so popular that the library published a collection of writings from many of the participants.
Developing a Service Philosophy | The User Experience
It takes hard work to create a library that provides good user experience. As convenient as it would be, building an exemplary organization doesn’t happen by waving a wand. Instead, libraries must optimize all of their touch points, develop sane policies, design relevant services, and empower staff to provide members with top-notch function.
Featured Posts from LJ Reviews
LibraryReads Nominations Now Accepted via NetGalley
LibraryReads, which offers a monthly list of ten current titles recommended by library staff nationwide as their favorites, has joined with NetGalley to make nominating titles even easier. Previously, library staff who participated voted solely through Edelweiss. Now staffers who use NetGalley, a major software and services company that delivers secure digital galleys to professional […]
LibraryReads Nominations Now Accepted via NetGalley
LibraryReads, which offers a monthly list of ten current titles recommended by library staff nationwide as their favorites, has joined with NetGalley to make nominating titles even easier. Previously, library staff who participated voted solely through Edelweiss. Now staffers who use NetGalley, a major software and services company that delivers secure digital galleys to professional […]
Vicarious Voyages | Collection Development: Armchair Travel
An armchair voyage is a journey of exploration—a pilgrimage, a feast for the soul, and a way of satisfying curiosities. These 27 resources, including apps, will help users travel routes and set sail for adventures that won’t require security checks or encounter airport snafus.
Edwidge Danticat’s Brother, I’m Dying: Another Big Read Opportunity for Libraries
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has expanded its Big Read library with the addition of its first nonfiction selection, Edwidge Danticat’s Brother, I’m Dying, a National Book Critics Circle Award winner and National Book Award finalist published in 2007. In this family memoir, Danticat recounts being raised by her uncle Joseph in Haiti […]
The Heart of Romance | Genre Spotlight: Romance
With multiple subgenres and various publishing platforms, romance titles are a valentine to a solid library collection. See what works are coming your way this season.
Famously Firsts | Fall/Winter 2014/15 First Novels
Fiction titles don’t come out of nowhere but—if they’re any good—are suffused with an author’s particular background, perspective, experience, and skill. Here are this coming season’s first-time novelists.
National Book Awards’ Second Annual Long-Lists Honor Jane Smiley, Edward O. Wilson, Louise Glück, & More
This week, the National Book Foundation (NBF) announced its long-lists in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and young people’s literature for the National Book Awards (NBA), featuring books the judges deemed the best works written by a U.S. citizen and published in the United States between December 1, 2013, and November 30, 2014. One list each day […]
Maya Angelou: Last Tributes, Last Words
Maya Angelou’s final book, Rainbow in the Cloud: The Wisdom and Spirit of Maya Angelou, will be published next month (Random. 128p. ISBN 9780812996456. $20), but her wisdom and spirit were on abundant display on Friday, September 12, at a celebration cum memorial service held at the soaring Riverside Church on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. […]
Blogs & Columns
Focus on Relevance: Tell politicians why libraries are vital | Editorial
Not long after Republican Kim Wyman was elected secretary of state of Washington in 2012, she had a meeting with a legislator that set her on a new course. As they began to explore the possibility of rebooting an envisioned but later abandoned … [Read More...]
NaNoWriMo at Your Library | Programs That Pop
One popular program at the Corvallis–Benton County Public Library (C-BCPL) last year was our National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) series of events, which offered a fun and creative challenge for community members: to write a novel in 30 days. … [Read More...]
Developing a Service Philosophy | The User Experience
It takes hard work to create a library that provides good user experience. As convenient as it would be, building an exemplary organization doesn’t happen by waving a wand. Instead, libraries must optimize all of their touch points, develop sane … [Read More...]
Copyright Incentives in the GSU Appeals Court Ruling | Peer to Peer Review
The word “incentive” appears ten times in the ruling issued last month by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in the Georgia State University (GSU) copyright infringement case, but it is slightly unclear in this rather odd opinion just who is the … [Read More...]
1,000 Words | Insights and Outcomes
We’re all familiar with the old saying that a picture is worth 1,000 words. But when it comes to communication with our patrons, whether existing or potential, many in libraryland are more comfortable crafting the 1,000 words than the graphics to sit … [Read More...]
