"Librarians, the researchers found, have gone from thinking of themselves as the knowledgeable person with the best answer to a patron's question to being an interpreter and connector who points patrons to helpful materials for their consideration."
"Is It Time to Get Rid of Libraries?" FrontPage Mag / David Greenfield."Despite the general leftward trend of librarians on an organizational level, libraries once served a useful function. Once."
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"“In the past generation, public libraries have reinvented themselves to become technology hubs in order to help their communities access information in all its new forms,” Kathryn Zickuhr, a research analyst with Pew and a co-author of a report on the survey’s findings, said in a written statement.Pew questioned 2,252 Americans ages 16 and older via cellphones and landlines from Oct. 15 to Nov. 10 last year, in both English and Spanish. More than half of those surveyed said that they wanted more e-book selections in their public libraries, and would be likely to check out e-readers already loaded with books — a significant increase from a survey a year ago."
"As librarians across the nation struggle with the task of redefining their roles and responsibilities in a digital age, many public libraries are seeing an opportunity to fill the void created by the loss of traditional bookstores. They are increasingly adapting their collections and services based on the demands of library patrons, whom they now call customers.
Today’s libraries are reinventing themselves as vibrant town squares, showcasing the latest best sellers, lending Kindles loaded with e-books, and offering grass-roots technology training centers. Faced with the need to compete for shrinking municipal finances, libraries are determined to prove they can respond as quickly to the needs of the taxpayers as the police and fire department can."
"As part of my spiel when pitching this then-controversial approach, I’d often point out that the very notion of a “workplace” has become quaint. In a knowledge-and-skills economy, work occurs wherever the worker thinks. No one ever heard of a “thinkplace.”But perhaps there is a “thinkplace” after all: the library.It’s the traditional intersection of huge amounts of information with the silence that enables its assimilation into our minds and values and imaginations. And its shepherded by knowing, caring librarians who can understand where we’re trying to go and point out the most enjoyable paths."
"Libraries are one of the important places left in our society where everybody is equal. Rich or poor, powerful or a nobody, you can have the same access to books and resources as everybody else. They are one of the great levelers of society, where the poor man has exactly the same opportunity for improvement as the rich man. To abolish this democratization of knowledge out of some misguided notion that it is no longer needed in the digital age would wrongly transform books and knowledge into a luxury item, to be purchased by those who can afford them, rather than offered to all who ask for them."
"My library is a remarkable value -- a banquet of books and periodicals, earnest service, and free WiFi. Lately, libraries are playing an unheralded role in the economic recovery by helping people find work and build businesses."
"What’s required is “very different than the library of the past, that tried to contain things,” said [Mary Lee] Kennedy. “You really can’t contain information anymore.”
"Your library might be ready for a UX Librarian if:
• it holds regular cross-departmental meetings that people find productive
• people in the organization put ideas before their egos
• the library is ready to research its community
• change isn't a dirty word
• there's a widespread genuine desire to improve the library"
"There is no existing concept called “Helicopter Librarians” (trademark pending?) but the concept is a logical evolution based on the prevalence of Helicopter Parents. Current students have different expectations and are used to a greater level of support. This is an opportunity to transform the profession regardless of emerging technology trends or fiscal constraints. This Helicopter Librarians approach does not require intensive training; that is why I do not include any checklists to follow. I am not developing any metrics; and I am not advocating for data-driven anything! This is a holistic approach to a human interaction based on individuality and genuine compassion.
A study based on the 2007 National Survey of Student Engagement reports that, contrary to popular belief; children of Helicopter Parents excelled in deeper learning activities and reported higher levels of educational gains as well as greater satisfaction with their college experience. The prevailing perception of Helicopter Parents is that their over-involvement is detrimental to their child’s growth. However, such support appeared to be welcomed by most students and actually beneficial to their overall well-being. Thus the first positive attribute of Helicopter Parents is the fact that they are sincerely concerned with the success of their children. This genuine concern has to be shared by Helicopter Librarians."
"58% of Americans have a library card, and 69% say that their local library is important to them and their family."
"Of the roughly 4,000 people who took the survey, nearly 70 percent said they rely heavily on the libraries, according to University Librarian Thomas Leonard.
“We were taken (aback) by the love of libraries, and how much people seem to connect to them,” Leonard said. “People agreed they were really important for their sense of community.”
Leonard said the results also showed undergraduate students are very concerned about library hours and having a place to study, and that faculty are largely concerned about the quality of the collections. Respondents also opposed spending less money on collections, but accepted that in the long run, a new library service model was necessary due to lowered budget and staff reductions. After discussion with both the Library Committee of the Berkeley Division of the Academic Senate and campus library staff, the survey sought input on two proposed models, a “Full Service Libraries” model and a “Hub and Cluster” plan, both of which would reduce the current number of library branches and available research consultation locations."
"As online resources become more complex, we need wise humans to help act as guides. Librarians know how to do that better than you do. Ask them for help. They also, typically, are warm, curious, helpful people."
"But more than that, it may just be the last free space that is truly free and there for everyone — homeless, young, old, rich, poor, and any race under the sun. We are all welcome there. We are all equal there."
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"Beyond the sheer fiscal capacity of governments to keep paying for them, the case for libraries remains surprisingly solid in the online age. The Canadian Urban Libraries Council commissioned Lumos Research to analyze the trends. The report, released last spring, found that for every person in a given Canadian city, the public library on average loaned out 11.3 books and other items in 2008-2009, up from 9.7 in 2000-2001. Over the same nine-year period, the number of visits to the libraries’ websites jumped to five a year per capita from only one. More loans and Web hits refute the easy assumption that Google searches and cheap online book-selling must be rendering libraries obsolete. "
"Unfortunately, many people today don't understand the power of their library card, and have forgotten about this valuable resource.
Some folks believe that due to the popularity of e-book readers, online bookstores and the Internet, libraries are becoming obsolete. I don’t think those people have been to a public library lately.
The library has changed since the days of shushing librarians, musty books and 3x5 card catalogs. Libraries have become dynamic community gathering spots, and places to keep current with today’s new technology.
As the economy continues its downward spiral, public library usage has skyrocketed. The need for library services and resources has increased dramatically as people have discovered the benefits of a library card over the detriments of a credit card."
