Message to the Community from Luren E. Dickinson:
The
month of May might seem like a quiet time in public libraries since people are
enjoying the outdoors and the school year is winding down; however, our library
staff is busy at work gearing up for the summer reading program and the Ice
Cream Social on June 15 that signifies the start of a summer filled with
reading. This year’s program—Reading:
Sounds Good!—begins June 11
and continues through July 31.
April
18, Joanne Federman, Shaker Family Center Director and partner in the Play and
Learn Station, Wendy Simon, Lynne Miller and I traveled to Columbus for the
Ohio Library Legislative Day to promote the important role public libraries
play in early childhood education. We joined other library professionals, from
across northeastern Ohio, on a bus trip to the capital where we had the
opportunity to hear testimony on behalf of public library funding by Geauga
County Public Library’s Director, Debbie O’Connor. We also met with legislators and legislative aides to discuss the
importance of state funds.
Under
the Governor’s proposed budget, the current Library & Local Government Support
Fund (LLGSF), which supports public libraries almost exclusively, would be
renamed the Local Libraries Fund (LLF). Because the LLGSF has been cut or
frozen over the past six years, the amount of state funds have dropped 11%
while inflation has risen by 17%—a 28% decrease in spending power. Interestingly, the number of materials
checked out by the public from Ohio’s public libraries increased by 23% in the
six years from 1999 to 2005 (the most recent year for which statewide figures
are available). At Shaker Heights
Public Library, usage went up by 25% from 2000 to 2006. We are fortunate to have
the additional support from our community through property taxes. While our
funding situation is problematic, it is not so dire as more than 70% of Ohio
public libraries, which rely almost completely on state funds.
Another
proposed change, recommended by a bipartisan legislative task force on library
funding, would draw the LLF from the more broadly-based state general revenue
funds, rather than from state income tax as is the LLGSF. This is seen as a
more favorable and stable source of funding overall. The Governor, however, has
failed to follow the task force recommendation of a 3% increase in library
funding at the beginning of the new biennium, July 1. In fact, his proposed
budget continues the freeze through December 31, 2007, and offers nothing but
potential inflationary increases during the next two years. Even Tax
Commissioner Levin puts the two-year increase at no more than 1.5%, much less
than inflation.
Despite
funding shortfalls, Shaker Heights Public Library continues to experience
double-digit increases in the amount of library materials checked out by the
public even in 2007. Interest in the
Library by the local residents and officials was evident on April 12 at the
Community Strategic Planning Meeting. More than sixty citizens, including some
local officials, gave good input regarding the services they feel are important
for our district. Subsequent surveys of specific groups such as teens, parents
of preschool children, and adults, both at the Main Library and the Bertram
Woods Branch, are providing us with an even better picture of where we need to
devote our resources.
While
we cope with funding issues, we continue to plan and to focus on our service to
the public. I encourage you to read the articles about libraries and how they
are evolving in the 21st century, which are posted on our website in
the Strategic Planning section. Please continue to share your insights and
suggestions with us via phone, mail or email.
I look forward to a summer filled with reading and I encourage you to join
us from 6:30 – 8 p.m. Friday, June 15 on the lawn at Bertram Woods Branch when
we kick off the summer reading program.
Luren E. Dickinson,
Director
dickinson@shakerlibrary.org