Family engagement is a shared responsibility among families, educators, and communities to support children's learning and development. For families, it is about the knowledge, attitudes, values, and behaviors that enable children to be motivated, enthusiastic, and successful learners. For libraries, this means having respectful partnerships with…

Geek the Library, a community awareness campaign designed to highlight the vital role of public libraries and raise awareness about the critical funding issues many libraries face, was developed based on the research findings included in "From Awareness to Funding: A study of library support in America." This study, published by OCLC in…

This article reports on a 2009 budget survey conducted by "Library Journal" in which a random sample of U.S. public libraries were surveyed via mail or fax in October 2008. Those that answered the survey projected a modest increase in budgets for 2009, just 2%, with less than a 1% increase in funds for materials, a predictable area for cuts. That…

Hard times bring out the ambiguity in politics. Except for fiscal extremists, most politicians in North America want to support their libraries. When "Library Journal" ("LJ") planned to name the heroes and villains in the politics of library funding, they rediscovered that politics just is not that simple, and that it may be a…

Sandwiched between Los Angeles and San Diego counties, nudging up to Riverside and San Bernardino to the east, Orange County, California is far more diverse than the stereotype. Orange County has no dominant city; its two largest, Santa Ana and Anaheim--each with populations around 350,000--are, respectively, home to lower-income Latinos and a…

In this article, the author, a technology consultant for the Northeast Kansas Library System (NEKLS), shares the story of how the Kansas Library on the Web (KLOW) program was created. KLOW's story begins with the initial startup fund finding and the enthusiasm of the six pilot libraries. The middle of the story has to do with building a flexible,…

This overview of library finance issues examines governance issues at the state level, the nature of state enabling legislation, the organizational framework at the state level, state-local relationships, constituency characteristics and requirements, and governance characteristics at the local and regional levels, as well as the need for improved…

In this article, the author shares her experience during her practicum for her master's in library science wherein she had the opportunity to work in a school library that was moving toward combining with a local branch of a public library. Combining the public and school libraries meant integrating these two related yet distinct missions, or at…

Some have proposed funding of library services through user fees, but their assumptions are anachronistic and wrong. Rather, drastic changes need to be in the direction of more public support. (CH)

The Guidelines are focused on the library services to babies and toddlers, their families and supporting organizations dealing with early literacy and appropriate services for the very young. Early brain development research has shown the unequivocal impact that talking, singing and reading to babies and toddlers can have on their acquisition of…

A survey of academic, public, and special libraries conducted during the spring of 1974 examined the origin, objectives, and government of "friends" groups and analyzed their activities. (PF)

This document reports request for a total of $271,246,000 for the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) for Fiscal Year 2008. Funds are designed to assist the Institute in expanding its leadership role in creating an informed and educated citizenry, and transmitting the values of American democracy. In recent years the Institute has…

Discusses the history and functions of Philadelphia's Franklin Institute and outlines prospects for the Institute's library with respect to services, programs, and financial support under the direction of Leonard Freiser, the recently-appointed head librarian. The Institute's museum and library collections, especially those concerned with science,…

A comprehensive survey was conducted to (1) determine the present state and future needs of Oklahoma libraries, with emphasis on public libraries, and (2) formulate a plan for library development. A survey team collected basic data on the state's libraries, conducted an in-depth survey of representative public libraries, examined library…

The concept of total planning as applied in this presentation refers to planning as a part of library organization. It is felt that greater care should be taken at top-level planning to ensure that some proportion of the income and credit available is allocated to various services to allow departmental planning to be carried out effectively. This…