InlandLibrarian

Remarks at the Native Daughter Award

2011-06-23T08:42:00.000-04:00

Yesterday there was a wonderful reception at the Norwich Holiday Inn honoring Maureen Sullivan, a native daughter of this community and incoming president of the American Library Association. From her remarks it is clear that she is the sort of insightful, energetic person ALA needs at its helm. She understands that the status quo for libraries, based on assumptions about our role as community assets, is categorically untenable. I was honored to be among those asked to address and congratulate Maureen, and I would like to share those remarks with you:
Maureen credits her time as a teenager working at Otis Library for her success. “I remember being able to go and have the whole world of books open up for me,” she said. “It made me attuned to the ways libraries contribute to every child’s education, but also how a library contributes to a community.” As a consultant and educator, and as she proudly acknowledges, a “real librarian” she is a catalyst for change and innovation, sharing her knowledge and skills with others who share with her the same love of reading and learning. That is an important commitment and essential to being a real librarian. There was a time, not that long ago, when the status of libraries as community assets was unquestioned. Libraries were in so many respects inviolable institutions. There was an implied consensus about their importance to the common weal, to education and the maintenance of community fabric; they were unassailable. That consensus has frayed. Being, through your actions a catalyst for change is integral to the definition of being a real librarian.
Being a real librarian describes a commitment of time and energy to planning, assessment and advocacy, based on the understanding that not making the investment of time in these areas leads to awful consequences. We at Otis have learned from two years of retrenchment, reductions, furloughs and pain. That pain was a great antidote to the assumption that we could conduct business as usual, or that as an “acknowledged community asset” we would always have enough, do enough and know enough to survive. The new mantra is test, probe, identify opportunities, collaborate, advocate, think in terms of the library as a community center, and NEVER assume anything!
Acknowledging the need for change, questioning and eschewing the status quo are essential to the definition of a “real librarian,” and we are pleased to offer our congratulations to Maureen Sullivan, a deserving recipient of the Native Daughter Award in recognition of her achievements.

Reflections on the 2010-2011 Fiscal Year

2011-06-21T08:44:00.000-04:00

Last night was the final library board meeting of the 2010-2011 fiscal year. It was a year inadequately defined as challenging. That word does not contain enough nuances to fully describe the strains placed on staff and board as we absorbed another six figure budget reduction and the specter of yet another two week staff furlough and two week summer shut down. Yet we survived, and if we did not quite thrive, we persevered, we learned, and institutionally and professionally we evolved. The following is a slightly revised version of my comments to the board last evening:

2010-2011 has been the occasion for considerable reflection on the future of libraries in general, and in particular the role of Otis Library as a community asset. There is an existential element to be considered: about our immutability as an institution and the value of our contributions to the common weal, especially in light of the decisions made about what constitutes an essential service and what is determined to be expendable. We spent the year balancing daily operations with the need to prepare and plan for the future. The general solution is a commitment of time and energy, based on the understanding that not making the investment in planning leads to awful consequences. All the pain endured during this past year and the year before was a great antidote to the assumption that we could conduct business as usual, and that as an “acknowledged community asset” we would always have enough, do enough and know enough to survive. The new mantra is test, probe, identify opportunities, collaborate, advocate, think in terms of the library as a community center, and NEVER assume anything!
None of this commitment to change would mean much without a dedicated staff willing to participate in an arduous and frequently stressful planning process. I must not only thank them for agreeing to commit to it but also for arguing that we needed to assume responsibility for our future rather than hunkering down and hoping the bad times would just go away.
Last year I believe outgoing Board president Keith Fontaine remarked that almost everyone loves libraries, but libraries cannot live on love alone. We certainly have ample examples of friends and supporters willing to provide both love and money. Thank you to the Evening with an Author Committee and its peerless chair Millie Shapiro! Kudos to the Edward and Mary Lord Foundation for believing, correctly, that books and materials are at the core of our mission, and supporting us so generously. Thank you to the Friends of Otis Library-Ann Lathrop and the Friends Board- for their generous support for materials and special projects and for stepping up in hard times and giving so generously when it counted. Encomiums to the Sachem Fund, the Esther Gilbert Fund and the Lafayette Family, the Sayet Family; the Elsie Brown Fund for programming, The Norwich Rotary Club and AHEPA for materials, and Bahria Hartman and the Last Green Valley for the support of special projects. A special thanks to Tucker Braddock for bringing us Barry Clifford as a guest speaker. I have undoubtedly left someone out, but this list speaks volumes for the inherent value of libraries to their communities and specifically to the continued importance of this institution to a vibrant, educated Norwich.
Finally, I want to briefly note some of the ways in which our commitment to planning, identifying opportunities and investing in collaborations are already manifesting themselves: This summer, thanks to a Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut grant we begin a pilot reading program with the Wequonnoc School that ensures that reading and libraries remains an integral part of the summer for hundreds of students. Thanks to Sachem Fund we will begin an internship program to cultivate the next generation of librarians among young adults. Working with the Eastern Regional Mental Health Board, library staff will create a guide for libraries on how to interact with young adults who have mental health and substance abuse issues. It is modeled on the behavioral standard set by this library, which includes accepting mental health and substance abuse services. Working with the Southeast Mental Health Authority its staff and clients, we will collaborate on a book group designed to decrease the stigma of mental illness.
I think these and initiatives yet to be envisioned are part of our role as futurists. To borrow from Dr. Steve Matthews, WE are committing to a new model exemplified by inquiry and innovation, thereby acknowledging that the Otis Library will be prepared when called upon to contribute to a future where schools are preparing 21st Century students for jobs that don’t currently exist. We will be using technology that hasn’t been invented to solve problems we don’t yet understand. At the Otis Library we will be testing, probing questioning and identifying needs perhaps even before they are widely recognized as such.

Evening with an Author 2011: Memorial Day Weekend 2011

2011-05-31T16:14:00.001-04:00

Friday's Evening with an Author fund raising event featuring Sebastian Junger was enormously successful. Mr. Junger's reflections on Afghanistan and the conflict there, as well as his discussion of his friend and colleague Tim Hetherington killed only a few weeks ago while covering the fighting in Libya were eloquent and affecting. I also wanted to share with you a portion of my remarks. The proximity of Evening with an Author to Memorial Day, the subjects of the evening's remarks, and my later attendance at events commemorating Memorial Day seemed to speak to several matters raised both during the evening and over the next several days.

When the Friday of Memorial Day Weekend was first discussed as the date for Mr. Junger’s appearance there were some misgivings voiced over the wisdom of scheduling EWA on the cusp of a holiday weekend. Personally, given the subject matter of WAR and the experiences we will hear of this evening, I could think of few more appropriate dates. Your presence as part of a capacity audience confirms the efficacy of selecting the date we did. There was also the subject matter, the War in Afghanistan, a conflict that sizable segments of the population are dubious of, disconnected from, or have filtered out of their daily lives. A frequently cited statistic augments this statement: less than 1 percent of the population serves in uniform at a time when the country is engaged in one of the longest periods of sustained combat in its history. "One percent of Americans are touched by this war.” Regardless of your attitude towards the war keep those statics in mind as you listen to Mr. Junger’s discourse, read WAR or view the film Restrepo. Contemplate the profound implications of that imbalance. As Secretary of Defense Robert Gates put it “"[T]here is a risk over time of developing a cadre of military leaders that politically, culturally, and geographically have less and less in common with the people they have sworn to defend." That sentiment was echoed by Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who cited that same 1 percent statistic, and continued "I worry that we could wake up one day and that the American people will no longer know us, and we won't know them." I hope that after listening to tonight’s presentation, reading WAR and watching RESTREPO, you will better understand and appreciate those who defend the remaining 99% of us, and the potential consequences of that ominous 1% statistic.

Otis Library and the 2011-2012 budget

2011-05-10T17:18:00.000-04:00

Last night was the last public meeting on the proposed 2011-2012 city budget. There may be more such forums, in as much as state government and employee unions are engaging in a game of brinkmanship that John Foster Dulles would envy. What the final state budget will look like remains a matter of speculation. I took the opportunity to speak on the library's behalf, and wanted to share some of my comments with you. I addressed the impact of the $50,000 allocated to the library for 2011-2012, and ended with some observations regarding the municipal budget process:

The addition of $50,000 to the library’s allocation is welcome, and much appreciated. The immediate effect, an end to the 2 week summer furlough is particularly gratifying. For two weeks during each of the last two years the public was denied access to essential services and every staff person faced the prospect of two weeks without a salary. I know I speak for the staff and board of the library in expressing relief and thanks that the end of this dismal period is imminent. I would be remiss if I did not remark on the status of the library even with the restoration of these monies. I do this while keeping in mind the mantra which now appears in every discussion of budgets, be they Federal, state, or local: “shared pain.” What follows clearly establishes that the library has born it share of pain.

The 2011-2012 allocation, $936,228, most closely resembles the 2005 allocation for the library, $917,000. This was at a time when the library occupied its former, smaller site at 261 Main Street and its equally modest temporary site at 2-6 Cliff Street. Those facilities, converted department stores, were half the size of the current library, 20,000 vs. 40,000 square feet. In addition, the former site attracted less than half the annual patronage of the new facility.
Per capita support in 2005 was $29.06. This coming year, based on the latest census information it will be $21.77.
If our allocation is approved our operating budget will reflect a 5% increase over 2010-2011, versus a 6% increase for the city’s general operating budget, and is still $185,000 less than the 2008-2009 operating allocation. We will account for .58% of the city’s budget at a time when library services on average account for 1% of municipal operating budgets.
My point here is not to overstate the condition of the library, or appear insensitive to the conditions in other departments which face cuts and the pain and stress that induces. Keep in mind that the library experienced plenty of the latter over the past two years: lost public service hours, lost staff, lost resources and two weeks of inaccessibility each summer. We have to be empathetic. It is not to overlook the angst of tax payers. This year the library operates on a budget that is less than 8% higher than its budget for fiscal year 2005-2006, the last year in our smaller, antiquated facility. Our per capita operating expenditures over that time have increased by $2.00, from $27.50, to $29.50.

I note that on page 7 of the proposed city budget there is the following statement: “From fiscal year 2002 to fiscal year 2011, non-education expenditures have grown only 13.6% compared to the 26.4% increase in the Northeast Consumer Price Index from July 2001 to July 2010 – that is just a little over half the rate of inflation!” An estimable accomplishment, but over the same time the library has accommodated itself to even tighter financial discipline. We felt the effects of the pain and fiscal stringency before it was shared.

Regarding the budget process, and its relationship to the vision of Norwich’s future. I would like to see a few additions made to each year’s budget process. First, I would like to see a clearly stated vision for the city at the beginning of the budget document. There are succinct city wide goals included in the opening pages of the budget, and these are a good beginning, but they need the added energy of a statement that clearly identifies the fiscal year budget as part of a long range strategy to resuscitate the city. We have been through two horrific fiscal years in Norwich. Those budgets reflected deep and painful rescissions, and a diminution of services in several areas. It behooves city government to say we know how difficult these budgets were to accept, but you need to know that we have learned, we are taking the requisite steps to ensure that these parlous times teach us how to better prepare for the future, the importance of articulating priorities that the public can accept with confidence as a reflection of a long term strategy for sustaining and where necessary rebuilding the fabric of the community. Those goals and objectives should be reiterated at every opportunity, and proposed actions both operating and capital should clearly reflect the contents of the goals and objectives. In closing, people are willing to follow and support planning based on clearly defined priorities building substantive, positive change. It will take a bit of reflection and planning but the results will be invigorating.

Tim Hetherington

2011-05-01T14:31:00.002-04:00

This posting is a departure from my normal subject range, which consists of musings on libraries, Otis Library in particular, or the general field of librarianship. However, the recent death of British-American photojournalist Tim Hetherington while covering the Libyan conflict, and his close association with Evening with an Author speaker Sebastian Junger led me to this unscheduled detour. His work with Mr. Junger would be reason enough to warrant a post, but other intersections and commonalities made this essay necessary and in some ways unavoidable. On the day Mr. Hetherington died I was reading James Brabazon's memoir My Friend the Mercenary a recent addition to our collection which recounts Brabazon's experiences as a photojournalist during the ineffable horrors of the Liberian Civil War, and his evolving friendship with his South African body guard and sometimes mercenary Nick du Toit. One of the other protagonists featuring prominently in Brabazon's memoir is Tim Hetherington.

The second connection was Hetherington's Directorship of the Academy Award nominated documentary Restrepo based on the time he and Sebastian spent in Afghanistan's Korenghal Valley embedded with the 173ed Airborne Brigade at the eponymous base named for medic Juan Restrepo. That film, and the companion book WAR have personal resonance. My eldest son Jon served with the 173ed in the valley and was acquainted with both Sebastian and Tim. For Christmas, Jon's gift to me was Tim's book Infidel a photo essay composed of images taken during the 173ed's deployment.

Clearly, there are many connections and the sense of loss evoked while not based on a personal relationship is something more than the predictable emotions triggered by the death of a well know public figure or personality. It may be his relative youth-he was only 40-or the disbelief that someone who had escaped so many physically proximate encounters with death would perish as the result of a anonymously launched projectile meant for no one in particular. My emotions may also reflect a profound belief that wars ought not be and their coverage a moribund or extinct profession. Whatever their genesis, I firmly believe that the world is a lesser place without Tim Hetherington in it.

Social Media

2011-04-17T13:59:00.002-04:00

Recently I began following a site dedicated to discussing social media. On my last visit I encountered an effusive post encouraging readers to "Be Real and Be Credible." It ended with the following call to action:
"The days of talking at people are over. It’s time to start talking with people. In order to do that, we have to take down our walls, step out from behind the desk and podium and (in the wise words of an MTV series) 'start getting real.' It’s time to show our humanness.

(Personally, I would much rather talk with someone than post 140 character summations of my eating habits or current status in the coffee machine queue.) The core message of this post seemed to be, based on a survey of college students,that "scholarly" posts are less palatable and human than squibs that describe yesterday's lunch buffet. My response, which I hoped would elicit a riposte, was as follows: "There is something troubling about this line of reasoning, or I am missing a point. Is the point that saying something intelligent or using multi-syllable words is 'talking down' or pontificating? My biggest complaint with social media is its tendancy to oversimplify, or default to plainly vacuous commentary. I do not equate simplicity or banality with humanness." No responses thus far, but I am hoping for some. Honestly, this is not a cheap shot at social media. I am just not sure what it is supposed to accomplish. I mentioned a few weeks ago that I had ceased putting posts on Facebook. I still have a personal Twitter account, but I am beginning to feel much the same way about it. Before putting it on hiatus too, I am going to explore my use further.

I recently read an essay in the book Is the Internet Changing the Way You Think? that concluded the Internet is facilitating a "shift from information scarcity and low levels of interpersonal interaction to an environment of information abundance and high levels of interaction and feedback." I concur, to the extent that we are awash in information and opportunities for interaction and feedback. I can find enormous quantities of information, and often I feel like I know bits about many things. Have information access and social media vehicles improved the content of our discourse? A surfeit of information enhanced my knowledge, to borrow a thought from T.S. Eliot? That remains to be seen. While reading an essay on the poet Wallace Stevens reflecting his empathy with an observation by Henry James, I identified the type of satisfaction I have not achieved from social media, and more generally from my reading and research experiences on the Internet:

"To live in the world of creation-to get into it and stay in it -to frequent it and haunt it-to think intensely and fruitfully-to woo combination and inspiration into being by a depth and continuity of attention and meditation-this is the only thing" I am looking for that "thing" using the Internet, and while dissatisfied with the results to date I continue the search.

Socrates, literacy, and the 21st century library

2011-04-09T20:52:00.000-04:00

Part of the planning for the future of Otis library involves assessing the services we provide, including the technologies. This is especially important now, in a time of complex transition from the unquestioned dominance of print to one where the common wisdom is digital formats will predominate. Maryanne Wolf, author of Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain compares our current situation to the fifth and fourth centuries BCE, a time when questions about literacy were raised by Socrates and mirror concerns equally resonant in the protean environment of the early 21st century. As she eloquently observes, the questions raised more than two millennia ago by Socrates about literacy in the context of the transition from an oral society to a literate one are similar to her own concerns about the immersion of our children in a digital world: “Like the ancient Greeks we are embarked on a powerfully important transition-in our case from a written culture to one that is more digital and visual.”
Socrates felt passionately that written words posed serious risks to society, and posited 3 critical objections that deserve thoughtful consideration as we examine our own intellectual transition to new modes of acquiring information. I will discuss one in this post. Socrates embraced the probative value of orality, specifically its efficacy as a dynamic means of expression, “full of meanings, sounds, rhythms, ready to be uncovered through examination and dialogue.” Written words by contrast were mute, incapable of riposte. This inflexibility of written words doomed the dialogic process Socrates saw as the heart of education.
With the benefit of 2 millennia of evidence Socrates misgivings were demonstrably unwarranted. The process of reflection, writing, revision and committing ones thoughts to paper creates an inner dialectic similar to that he espoused and valued so highly. The dialogue remains, albeit in a modified form.
Whether the essence of the dialogue persists or mutates in the “interactive dimension of communication in the 21st century” as Wolf phrases it, remains a matter of speculation. Perhaps, like Socrates assessment of literacy versus orality it is too early to judge the efficacy of communications often circumscribed by a few hundred characters. There is no sin in brevity or glory in prolixity. I do like Wolf’s closing comment on this matter: “whether [the essence of dialogue] are being developed in ways that sufficiently reflect the true, critical examination of thought would be for Socrates and for us the essential question.”
Socrates articulated a second, more subtle concern which resonates with Wolf, the illusory nature of words. Words, he feared, would be mistaken for reality. Shorn of the probing and modifying effects of the dialogue, written words would delude people into “empty arrogance, leading nowhere, contributing nothing” because words “seem…as though they were intelligent” While the dialogic component of writing is demonstrable, the same remains unproved for the digital environment. In this worry Socrates anticipated the misgivings of “thousands of teachers and parents who watch their children endless hours before computer screens, absorbing but not necessarily understanding all manner of information.”
My purpose is not to deny the need for or usefulness of digital formats vs. analog. However, Socrates fears and Wolf’s open ended speculation regarding the “powerfully important transition” described above are part of the equation we must contemplate as we plan and implement our vision of a responsive, responsible and sustainable 21st century library. Our planning requires a carefully framed and forthright dialogue, featuring decisions based on examination, discussion, and understanding rather than by default, on the allure of new formats and platforms.

Interlibrary Loans and Community Libraries: Endangered Species?

2011-04-03T13:55:00.000-04:00

As the Otis Library proceeds with its strategic planning a new and providential issue faces Connecticut libraries. It also affects our relationship with local libraries. The proposed state budget jettisons entirely the interlibrary loan system. For a savings of less than $1,000,000 a highly successful program is jeopardized, and with it the survival of community libraries as we know them. Why so? That is perhaps an obvious question, but it deserves at least brief consideration. No library can afford to buy every desirable material. This is painfully illustrated by the conditions in small community libraries. Review the monthly statistics for Otis Library and you will find a core group of about 5 area libraries serving small communities that rely heavily on our materials and their availability to supplement the contents of their own financially strapped collections. That reliance is itself sobering and worth pondering, in as much as Otis’s ability to maintain a high quality collection has been handicapped by decreased municipal support over the past two budget cycles. Without the largess of community members such as the Edward and Mary Lord Foundation, Sachem Fund, Norwich Rotary, AHEPA, and the Friends of Otis Library our materials budget would amount to less than $30,000, a starkly marginal sum when compared to the $100,000 invested in materials in 2007-2008.
For certain of these small libraries $30,000 or $25,000, or $15,000 is a princely but illusory sum. Without the means to transport materials from comparatively well endowed peers, their status as community assets is diminished. Their ability to act as centers of community life is dramatically reduced. The question, as of yet unaddressed is, what happens next; Closure and consolidation with larger facilities? and if so under what conditions? Arguably, these communities have lost other services and survived-bus and trains, local high schools and hospitals for example, and they may absorb this added loss stoically.
Rather than face unpalatable choices a proactive decision to alert and influence our state representatives would be in order. On your next visit to the Otis Library pick up one of the concise and instructive advocacy fliers at our service desks. If you are a resident of one of the small municipalities that relies on Norwich, New London, Colchester or another larger community library for access to materials encourage your local officials and library advocates to make interlibrary loans a priority for state funding. It is a modest sum, but its loss has huge and devastating implications.

Decreasing Connectivity

2011-03-22T08:25:00.001-04:00

A week ago I put my Facebook account on hiatus. I sent an e-mail to those with whom I interacted most frequently explaining that Facebook had become a means of staying in random contact with a lot of people, but I felt I needed something less mediated as a means of communication, and besides I was not sure that I was saying anything of particular import anyway. I invited them to write a letter, as a compromise proffered a possible e-mail sent to me at work, or invited them to join me on a Saturday morning at my favorite coffee house for a face to face chat. This latter selection is my personal favorite, even if it greatly reduces the number of contacts. I also reset the timing for updates on my e-mail accounts from every minute to once an hour, which has proved to be far more humane and much less distracting. I also discontinued several RSS feeds, and disconnected from a few seldom consulted e-mail updates. So far, at least, my strategic retreat from complete accessibility has gone pretty much unnoticed, not quite on a par with the reaction to the British decision to withdraw from points east of Suez!
I am not dunning one application for some broken promise or undelivered guarantee. There seem to be millions of Internet users who find their expectations fulfilled, and the level of discourse satisfactory on sites like Facebook and Twitter. Initially, I found social media to be a convenient means of staying in touch with my son during his tour of duty in Afghanistan. After his departure the pages languished, but over time an aggregation of old friends, new acquaintances, folks with shared interests and political causes all took up residence as “Friends” as defined by Facebook.
The principal factors involved in my decision rested largely on a sense, well articulated by Nicholas Carr in his book The Shallows, What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains that the relentless connectivity of the Internet, social media and alleged “smart phones” scattered my thoughts and words, and provided too frequent and unnecessary distractions from what I should focus on at work and home. There was also that inchoate feeling that what was happening was less frequently communicating and more often announcing or launching a comment into cyberspace. There is a passage in The Heart of Darkness in which the protagonist encounters a French warship off the African coast lobbing explosive shells into the interior, so far into the interior that there is no visible impact. A lot of my Facebook use felt like that.
There are other less easily articulated reasons for cutting back on the several categories of connectivity. I have yet to develop full descriptions of them all, but as I do I will offer them here for comment and consideration. For the moment at least the withdrawal has been relatively smooth and pain free. I am also keeping a seat open at the coffee house.

A Philosophy for Hard Times

2011-02-13T12:34:00.003-05:00

Frequent readers of this site are aware that these are hectic times at Otis. We are engaged in an exciting but stressful process that envisions a new model for delivering library services. The first full iteration will be presented to the staff on March 1 and 2 for vetting, followed by a thorough review, revisions as necessary and a formal presentation to the library’s board at our March 19 retreat. In addition, there is the prospect of another challenging fiscal year in 2011-2012, and all the attendant stress uncertainty causes. Aside from attacking a voluminous pile of literature on corporate culture, embracing change and the future of libraries, I find myself spending a lot of time reading the Stoic philosophers, especially Marcus Aurelius’s Meditations. I am not promoting him or the Stoics as THE answer for coping with hard times, but a philosophy that values reason, thoughtful deliberation and moderation as guides to right conduct in an uncertain world has obvious attractions. There is one caveat I must offer: if you do most of your reading at night you run the risk of entering a deep and sonorous sleep. I speak from personal experience. Try to set aside time during the day if you are committed to a full appreciation of the Stoic world view. The results will be rewarding. For those readers who balk at the thought of reading philosophy in depth, there are places to cultivate a familiarity without a full immersion. In particular, I recommend http://www.spaceandmotion.com/Philosophy-Marcus-Aurelius.htm. At the moment I am particularly drawn to the following observation from Marcus Aurelius: “The noblest kind of retribution is not to become like your enemy. “ Amen!

Response to the YMCA proposal

2011-02-09T08:07:00.001-05:00

Below is the text of a note sent to the members of the Norwich City Council earlier this morning.

Good morning Ladies and Gentlemen,

I do not know if you have had an opportunity to read Bill Kenney's response to the Norwich Bulletin article "Norwich mayor says YMCA purchase proposal not ready for public." In his riposte, Mr. Kenney note,

"Sadly, revenue shortfalls in recent years have resulted in the City Council approving budgets that less than fully fund programs provided by, and supported through, the Norwich Public Schools and the Otis Library. I believe the latter has actually seen a double digit decline in the level of municipal funding in the last half a decade. Both organizations are critical components to our city's quality of life who've often made do with lip service and diminished dollars. We should consider providing them additional resources that would benefit all of us."

I do encourage you to read the entire piece, which I have attached to this letter. My purpose in bringing his comments to your attention is not to denigrate the effort to provide Norwich with adequate recreational facilities, which are clearly needed. Rather, I want to point out that the library provides many of the functions cited as attributes of the proposed new facility. I want to end with a quote from a letter I circulated among library customers prior to Monday's City Council meeting.

"Otis Library is a community center. It provides free meeting space for community organizations, sponsors and promotes a wide variety of programs for all ages, serves as the most active regional site for Literacy Volunteers, and is one of the few forums in the city of Norwich where people of diverse backgrounds gather in a common space. It is not a recreational facility, and there is no question that such a facility would be a community asset. That said, before embarking on another project it seems sensible to ensure the long-term support and stability of an existing, heavily used asset currently providing essential community centered services. That entity is the Otis Library."

Thank you,

Bob Farwell

A City on a Hill, Writ Small

2011-02-06T15:52:00.002-05:00

On several occasions during the past months I have spoken of the library’s engagement with strategic planning. Most recently, my comments include references to our planning and its end results as "a city on a hill." The original quote is attributed to John Winthrop, leader of the Puritans-not the Pilgrims, big difference-part of an oration delivered while standing on the deck of the ship Arabella in 1630, off the Massachusetts coast. I don't much care for Winthrop's politics. Winthrop did not represent a tradition of either democracy or religious tolerance, despite the accretions of myth that have settled over his biography and obscured the motives behind the Puritan’s removal to Massachusetts Bay. I do have an affinity for the quote in the context used in the following excerpt. This is part of a speech delivered on 9 January 1961 by President-Elect John F. Kennedy during an address delivered to the General Court of Massachusetts:
"I have been guided by the standard John Winthrop set before his shipmates on the flagship Arbella three hundred and thirty-one years ago, as they, too, faced the task of building a new government on a perilous frontier. We must always consider he said, that we shall be as a city upon a hill—the eyes of all people are upon us. Today the eyes of all people are truly upon us—and our governments, in every branch, at every level, national, state and local, must be as a city upon a hill — constructed and inhabited by men aware of their great trust and their great responsibilities. For we are setting out upon a voyage in 1961 no less hazardous than that undertaken by the Arabella in 1630. We are committing ourselves to tasks of statecraft no less awesome than that of governing the Massachusetts Bay Colony, beset as it was then by terror without and disorder within. History will not judge our endeavors—and a government cannot be selected—merely on the basis of color or creed or even party affiliation. Neither will competence and loyalty and stature, while essential to the utmost, suffice in times such as these. For of those to whom much is given, much is required."

What does this have to do with our homely labor in strategic planning? In our small way we are grappling with unknowns and perils; not as rigorous as building a new government on a perilous frontier, but nonetheless fraught with hazards and challenges: designing a new and possibly seminal model of library operation. The journey has not been a linear process; we have spent time contemplating where to begin, determining priorities, and changing direction before acknowledging that our principal challenge was creating a new structure that might withstand further convulsions in funding and the dynamic, fluid environment public libraries are coping with.

So, as embodied in JFK’s speech, we at Otis Library have an opportunity to construct and inhabit something new and dynamic, a new “city on a hill.” It is a daunting task, it takes an emotional and physical toll, but it offers us a singular opportunity to effect great changes in the way libraries operate, relate to their communities and provide their customers with the intellectual sustenance essential for a healthy society. I am very grateful for the help and support of a committed planning team. I look forward to a successful endeavor and providing you with periodic updates.

A proposal too important to ignore

2011-02-04T14:22:00.000-05:00

Dear Readers,

The City Council will hold a public hearing Monday, February 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the council chambers on a proposed ordinance to bond $800,000 to buy and start renovations on the former YMCA property. A separate resolution would authorize City Manager Alan Bergren to negotiate a purchase price with the Chelsea Groton Bank. The price listed in the resolution is $425,000. The total cost of the renovations is expected to total $3 million. No votes can be taken Monday, as the council awaits a recommendation from the Commission on the City Plan.
It is extremely important that the public attends and participates in these discussions. Past meetings devoted in large part to the purchase and renovation of the YMCA have been poorly attended, and were certainly not fully representative of the Norwich community. A proposal of this magnitude deserves serious public discourse by parties on both sides of the issue.
Over the last few weeks there has been extensive coverage of the proposed reuse of the former YMCA building as a “community center”, including today’s report of extensive vandalism only recently discovered. In considering the proposed measures, let us keep in mind that Otis Library is a community center. It provides free meeting space for community organizations, sponsors and promotes a wide variety of programs for all ages, serves as the most active regional site for Literacy Volunteers, and is one of the few forums in the city of Norwich where people of diverse backgrounds gather in a common space. It is not a recreational facility, and there is no question that such a facility would be a community asset. That said, before embarking on another project it seems sensible to ensure the long-term support and stability of an existing, heavily used asset currently providing essential community centered services. That entity is the Otis Library.

2011-01-09T13:55:00.000-05:00

I want to share with those of you who are not subscribers a letter I submitted to the Norwich Bulletin. It pertains to an article on the voters' approval of a bond issue to stimulate economic development in the downtown Norwich business district. My comments speak to the optimism reflected in a positive vote, the role that economic factors played in keeping Otis Library part of the downtown ambiance, and the dismal effects of a possible third year of budget reductions. Without resorting to a jeremiad, I hope contributions like this will point out, constructively, the contradictions between pursuing an improved downtown while simultaneously underfunding an existing positive contributor to the city center, the Otis Library:

Your Dec. 30 article “Norwich keeps up fight for downtown” failed to mention Otis Library, a positive attraction built in part with economic development funds.

Norwich citizens expressed their belief in a renewed, economically healthy and attractive city center by supporting a substantial bond issue. It seems contradictory at this juncture to further reduce city support for the library, thus diminishing the library’s capacity to serve the public and provide a venue on Main Street where people feel safe and comfortable. A possible third year of reduced funding will mean — again — fewer hours, fewer resources and fewer reasons to visit the city’s center, not to mention opportunities for the bond to succeed, causing the city center to further deteriorate.

Extended library hours are not the sole prerequisite for a renascent downtown. I firmly believe that making the library more accessible is part of the solution, along with the successful implementation of the downtown bond, adequate recreational facilities and participation of law enforcement, to cite but three examples. I cannot envision how reducing the capacity of the library to serve the public will enhance or help maintain the stability of the community or promote a vibrant city center.

ROBERT D. FARWELL, Director
Otis Library

Libraries and education, briefly stated

2011-01-03T16:53:00.000-05:00

I will confine today's post to a brief observation based on Tony Judt's book "Ill Fares the Land" He speaks of the decaying effects of unequal access to resources, and how, under conditions of severe inequality all other desirable goals become hard to achieve. He goes on to note some particulars about education: Under conditions of endemic inequality the permanently underprivileged cannot get a good education, and without that " they cannot hope for minimally secure employment-much less participation in the culture and civilization of their society." Conversely, "better educated populations not only lead better lives, they adapt faster and at less cost to disruptive technical change." The library is part of the solution to the problem of unequal access to education and unhindered access to information. As we think about the the services we provide to the community we need to keep in mind these transcendent roles. The value of empowering our customers and a common focus on providing excellent service cannot be underestimated.

Whither Libraries?

2010-11-21T16:28:00.002-05:00

The convergence of planning, budgetary constraints and the prospects of another portentous fiscal year in 2011-2012 (see the recent New London Day article “Norwich Budget Picture is Grim”) has heightened my awareness of the challenges and options confronting public libraries. The challenges, fiscal matters aside, reflect several factors, not the least of them being the expectations of four generations of customers spanning those, to employ a convenient metaphor, raised on the card catalog to 60 million Millennials whose world is fully digitized and who may find no need for traditional library services. We are reminded that our traditional users and the service models designed for their needs are both on the wane, that circulation of analog materials (think books and other hard copy formats) has declined annually since about 1997, and that even notoriously sclerotic bureaucracies at the state and federal level are abandoning their paperwork bulwarks for new entrenchments based on digital forms and correspondence. M.I.T.’s Nicholas Negroponte forecasts the demise of the analogue book in five years, and, one might reasonably extrapolate the disappearance of print repositories not many years hence.
On the other hand, warnings abound about the pernicious results of the decline of print and the ensuing retreat of literacy. Two of my favorite jeremiads are taken from Chris Hedges book “Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle” and Thomas Frank’s essay “Bright Frenetic Mills” in the December 2010 edition of Harper’s Magazine. Hedges book is deeply discomforting, but I share his concerns and recommend it to those who are disillusioned by the apotheosis of spectacle and other mechanisms that divert us from confronting the economic, environmental, political and moral collapse. A particularly resonant comment for those of us raised in an analog world appears towards the end of the book, “The more we distance ourselves from a literate, print-based world, a world of complexity and nuance, a world of ideas, for one informed by comforting, reassuring images, fantasies, celebrities, and a lust for violence, the more we are destined to implode.” I do not believe that the evolution of digital formats portends the end of the world as we know it, but I do worry over the tangible evidence of a growing preference for the “comfort, reassurance and beauty of illusion.”
Frank is more directly concerned with the decline in quality journalism in its traditional forms, replaced by news gathering motivated by two factors, “what people are searching for on Google and what advertisers might pay to associate themselves with a given topic.” More specifically he fears that “professional news gathering organizations can no longer be supported by the for-profit system.” The digital replacements, the proliferation of tweets and blog posts and general techno-optimism, he opines, obscures what is actually happening in the world:
“So powerful is our desire to believe in the benevolent divinity of the technology that it cancels out our caution…We have trouble grasping that the Internet might not bring only good; that an unparalleled tool for enlightenment and research and transparency might also bring unprecedented down-dumbing; that something that empowers the individual might also wreck the structures that have protected the individual for decades.”
What of the public library’s role in addressing the challenges posed by this tumultuous, fractious environment and competing perspectives?
First, to cite Dr. Steve Matthews, Library Specialist, Utah State Library (USL), Salt Lake City "[p]ublic libraries have NOT figured out that the 21st Century patron does not need 20th Century library services. Unless we want to see brick & mortar libraries go the way of the rotary dial telephone, the transistor radio, and the cathode ray tube, we need to understand the “new” library patron and adapt library services to meet their interests, because they do not appear to have library service “needs” and will not seek services from public libraries!” This rings true, although it does not mean the jettisoning of our traditional formats and patron services. The requests for print materials remains strong, and despite its slow devolution into a hackneyed cliché, there is considerable truth in the observation “everything is not on the Internet.” Neither is it in digital format, and it is certainly not accessible without a degree of literacy and acquired research skills. We cannot assume that the critical thinking skills necessary to separate good information from bad are an integral part of school curricula.

Equally salient, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation released a sweeping report titled “Informing Communities — Sustaining Democracy in the Digital Age.” which concludes the health of America’s democracy and communities rests on plugging troubling gaps between the nation’s information haves and have-nots. Access to broadband Internet, for example, is a luxury for most low-income households. And that access gap leaves many on the political, social and economic sidelines. To that might be added access to information regardless of format, at no or minimal cost.

These are not definitive answers to my initial query, “Whither Libraries?” and both perceived threats and opportunities are clear. At the moment, there are no simple answers, certainly no one source of information, or one service model supplanting the general commitment to high quality. As our planning continues, and we assess the perspectives offered by Hedges, Negroponte, Frank, Matthews, our patrons, staff and board I look forward to presenting more reports on what we discover and how it informs our thinking.

Planning: For Now and for the Future

2010-11-13T14:01:00.000-05:00

Over the past month the library has engaged in the first steps of a new strategic planning process. One of the key components of the planning process is the recognition that the library is serving five distinct generational groups whose needs and expectations bear distinct imprimaturs. To quote Dr. Steve Matthews, Library Specialist, Utah State Library and author of the 21st Century Library Blog:

“Ten years into the 21st Century, public libraries are still predominantly providing “traditional” library services for the “Great Generation” patrons and toddlers who make up a large segment of our users. We also provide services for “Traditional” [Digital Fugitive] patrons, the 76 million “Baby Boomers” many of whom are “Digital Immigrants” … who may need help acquiring information in a digital world. What can/should 21st Century librarians do for them?
Where does this broad spectrum of patrons [Digital Fugitive to Digital Native] fit within the “library service response” framework? Does it? Do we need to revise that framework? How do we span the broad spectrum of services from traditional to digital to meet the needs of these diverse patrons? Do we? Should we? How do we, as a profession, transition from library-centered services to patron [customer]-centered services? What do we need to know, and where do we get the knowledge?”

Pertinent questions indeed. We serve multiple library constituencies, and while all deserve the best services possible the means employed are evolving rapidly. How we provide excellent service which satisfies the diverse requirement of our customers is central to the future of the Otis library and its status as a community asset.

Our Mission

2010-10-19T08:41:00.000-04:00

Otis Library Mission Statement
“The Otis Library provides free and open access to information, ideas, and services that anticipate our community’s personal, educational, and professional needs. The library enriches our region by maintaining a safe and welcoming environment and by offering resources that promote lifelong learning.”

Our mission statement mandates that Otis Library create environments where all residents feel safe, smart, and comfortable. These are estimable goals, but not as simple to define as the words may imply. For example, traditionally libraries have been equated with information. Yet designating libraries as “the information place” is limiting and arguably leads to a narrow definition of what libraries and librarians do. We are certainly a repository of information, which librarian Walt Crawford defines as services designed to “bring resources to people for their education, enlightenment and entertainment.” That sounds very much like the work of Otis Library and its staff. To that I would also echo Crawford’s addendum that “we serve as a safety net for the displaced and a primary place where young people learn to love reading and knowledge.” That too describes the Otis Library. Both elements allude to the principal reasons we are on Main Street rather than some leafier thoroughfare. We are situated to stimulate interest in the downtown area, to be accessible by foot and mass transit as well as automobile. Our mission statement also describes a community centered library-a community hub-strategically placed to encourage the economic and cultural renascence of the city center. These individual elements as a whole are the substance of what we are, what we do, how we place ourselves in our surroundings and the lives of our patrons.
Our mission is service to our community in many forms. The niches we fill, the ways in which we measure and incorporate community needs into our planning, and by so doing remain relevant to those we serve reflect both traditional library roles and those required of a responsive, engaged community asset.

Libraries, education, and more

2010-10-11T14:52:00.000-04:00

A very brief posting today. During the past week I read several articles that proclaimed the importance of education in a democratic society. One included a quote from Franklin D. Roosevelt, "Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education." Elsewhere, similar sentiments were expressed in slightly different language. Clearly libraries were not expressly referred to by the late president or the pundits who echoed this theme, but it takes no stretch of the imagination or definition to include them. Yet somehow, without appreciating the irony libraries are excluded from the definition of educational institution when it comes to funding. It would be easy enough to excoriate the officials who determine funding priorities for not recognizing the value of public libraries. There is enough vitriol and incivility available on line and in print to make that sort of response unappealing. The best remedies are positive and proactive. Public libraries "pick up the slack" when school libraries are eliminated, funding for after school programs reduced and alternative sites sought for extracurricular activities. These are cogent reminders of the utility of public libraries. When funds for mandatory summer reading materials disappear the public library fills the void. When children and young adults need a safe after school environment and internet access the library answers both needs. It is equally salient to remind community leaders that libraries, far from isolating themselves from public dialogue and community matters avidly engage in civic culture, be it envisioning a community's future through cooperative long range planning or assessing the impact of new parking regulations on the local business district. There are myriad other ways-adult education, services to new Americans for example- in which libraries contribute to community health and well being, and extend the definition of education. Reminders to that effect are essential and positive examples of the public libraries contributing to the common weal.

New patrons, New uses

2010-07-27T08:24:00.000-04:00

Several weeks into the summer and staff members are reporting a noticeable increase in the numbers of people-family units, parent(s) and child, child and older sibling-who are now arriving in the morning and spending the day at the library. “Noticeable increase” is one of those nebulous terms that are anathema to me, but we are only now beginning to quantify the numbers and trying to better describe the composition of these groupings. What I can say categorically, is that these are not single adults “without visible means of support”. We are also seeing unprecedented growth in attendance at children's programming. Historically these are among our most popular programs, but attendance has grown rapidly. Two recent programs for which we anticipated 80 participants attracted 250 and 180 patrons. Other manifestations are a surge in new library card applicants, and many new faces in the audiences. There is also anecdotal evidence that the programs and the library represent a safe harbor for parents and children. Some of the day long stays are directly related to a lack of other options. For example, one young patron confided that they were having financial difficulties at home resulting in interruptions of utilities and phone service. Another young patron described moving from temporary residence to temporary residence and interludes with friends and relatives. Hardly definitive indicators of trends, but I will not be surprised if these are evidence of both increased use and unconventional uses of community assets like the library.

My larger point in submitting these observations is this: I believe we are witnessing evidence of larger and arguably grave conditions affecting the community. Some of our increased usage can plausibly be attributed to reduced personal circumstances, and reduced access to other venues such as recreational programs, the former YMCA, school based libraries and other ancillary activities. Also I do not want to ignore those seeking refuge from the prolonged bout of hot humid weather. I am glad we have the flexibility to adjust to changing needs, but also want to ensure that the larger, portentous community effects are acknowledged and addressed.

Libraries as Community Assets

2010-07-07T10:21:00.000-04:00

My new mantra for the Otis Library, or rather my renewed emphasis is on the library as a community asset. That sounds obvious, but observing the state of libraries in other regions there seems to be a significant gap between the acknowledgment and substantive support. Among the more ominous signs of ambivalence: Recent articles on the gutting of the New Jersey library system, including, potentially, elimination of all statewide library programs and services; the closure of the Hood River Oregon Library system, after 98 years of continuous operation,the closure of two of the libraries serving Plainfield, Connecticut, recent turmoil in Pennsylvania, and articles with unsettling titles such as Why Closing More Public Libraries Might Be The Best Thing (...Right Now).
There was a time, not that long ago, when the answer to the question "are libraries community assets?" would have been unequivocally yes. However, if actions-like those cited above-speak louder than words, there is cause for concern. Some of this seems rooted in the glib assertion that everything is available on the Internet. I have addressed that in other blogs, and the arguments against that assumption have not changed. I would only add, to paraphrase a recent post by Delia Lloyd, the Internet is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to research skills.

Making a case for the Otis Library

2010-05-07T08:03:00.002-04:00

Last night was the second public hearing on the proposed 2010-2011 budget for the city of Norwich. There were large and passionate groups opposed to the level funding of the school budget and school closures, and the cuts inflicted on the social services budget, in particular the reductions at the Rose City Senior Center.

It was also an opportunity to restate our case for better library funding.I have taken the liberty of reproducing my statement to the city council in full for your perusal:

To the Norwich City Council:
First, I want to thank you for your service to the Norwich community. Fiscal oversight is never an easy responsibility, and it is even more burdensome in a difficult and contentious environment such as the one we currently face.
In crafting a final budget document for the 2010-2011 fiscal years you are faced with no easy choices, and the insuperable problem of having too few resources to satisfy the needs of every constituency.
I have attended most of the departmental budget presentations and the public hearings and heard cogent cases made for departments without whose collaboration and support the library could not function. I will not enumerate them all, but I must mention the Department of Public Works, the Norwich Police Department, Fire Department, the Department of Human Services, school department and the Norwich Parks and Recreation Department. Each renders invaluable service to the Norwich Community, and at some point during the past 12 months each has assisted the library as a service provider or collaborator.
Clearly, the library represents but one part of a complex budgeting equation, and will be judged by a set of values and priorities you must carefully consider. Perhaps one of the dilemmas in making a decision about the library’s place in the budgeting equation is that we do not fit into one easily identified category, like public safety or a school system. Art Brodsky the communications director for Public Knowledge, a Washington, D.C.-based public interest group, summed up this conundrum nicely: libraries serve a range of purposes - they help teach children to read, they help students work on projects, they provide meeting space for tutoring, they provide Internet access. They serve students, seniors, immigrants. They provide assistance to the unemployed. Libraries combine education, workforce development, socialization, recreation. But they aren't the school board, or a social services agency, and so they generally get buried in the larger budgets.
As you deliberate, I would like you to consider Brodsky’s comments and the following observations: In one forum or another I have quoted at length from local, state and national indicators substantiating the use of the library by the public. I have referred to quantifiable increases in visits, circulation and library card applications. Of equal salience, in a community where the poverty level is above the state average, over 11% compared to 7.8% across Connecticut, the need for our services is clear. It is equally clear that the envisioned reductions to the library roll back our capacity to provide services to the parlous conditions at the beginning of this decade, a time when the library facility was cramped, the collections outdated, and per capita support anemic.
Every community has a unique base of assets upon which to build its future. The Otis Library is part of Norwich’s asset base, along with schools, parks, social service organizations, and hospitals. The library is a visible and formal part of the community fabric. Reductions at the levels contained in the current draft budget diminish both the library and the community it serves. Diminished as well are the incentives for future community stability and growth, for newcomers to select Norwich as their home and for current residents to maintain allegiance to this city. I hope, therefore, that you will revisit the proposed budget and contemplate its effect on our asset base, the funds allocated to our asset base generally and the library specifically.

Libraries:Then, Now, and in the Future

2010-04-26T17:38:00.009-04:00

I recently picked up a copy of Main Street, Sinclair Lewis's 1920 novel of life in the small Midwestern town of Gopher Prairie. What resonated with me, aside from the many personalities still recognizable 90 years hence, were the pungent comments about urban libraries. Even then, apparently, the diversity of urban patrons and their proclivities invited reproofs from commentators. When Miss Villets, the Gopher Prairie librarian disdains library methods in large cities-St. Paul, Minnesota specifically-because they afforded shelter to "tramps and all sorts of dirty persons practically sleeping in the reading-rooms" there is a tone familiar to current patrons and staff. Mercifully, some of her more belligerent comments, those about turning libraries into nursing homes and kindergartens for example, have given way to a more expansive and inclusive vision of what public(s) constitute the modern library's constituency. Very likely Miss Villets would approach apoplexy at the diversity of programs and active public engagement encouraged by the Otis Library and embedded in its mission statement. The ability of libraries in general, and this library in particular to evolve and adapt, to provide essential services and embrace new community roles gives me hope for the future.

Libraries are often labeled as quality of life enhancements, especially when the subject involves money and support. There is an unspoken assumption in that label, that perhaps things that promote quality of life are somehow less essential, less worthy of serious consideration than infrastructure, safety, and transportation. Were that so, in a harsh financial climate the reductions to the library, as articulated in the 2010-2011 city budget might appear tactically prudent. Strategically they are arguably imprudent. Every community has a unique base of assets upon which to build its future, to attract new residents and businesses and maintain the fealty of those currently situated. The Otis Library is part of Norwich’s asset base, along with schools, parks, social service organizations, and hospitals. The library is a visible and formal part of the community fabric. Reductions at the levels recommended-$100,000- for the forthcoming fiscal year both diminish the library and the community it serves. Diminished as well are the incentives for future community stability and growth.

Briefly Noted

2010-03-07T14:18:00.010-05:00

On Friday I read a provocative article by Craig Mod entitled "Books in the Age of the iPad". It was well balanced, and a welcome relief from the hubris of the "print is dead" crowd and the angst of those who foresee the imminent disappearance of the public library and print. I do not happen to see either as imminent, although I do believe that libraries need to examine their missions and their roles as community resources. That is an opportunity implicit in Mod's article. I am also struck by his version of the book's future, one in which the formless books-the airport paperback to coin a phrase-"the book printed without consideration of form or sustainability or longevity" are the domain of the e-reader, while print volumes "embrace their physicality — working in concert with the content to illuminate the narrative."

These will be books:

◦Confident in form and usage of material.
◦That exploit the advantages of print.
◦Are built to last.

The results are, as Mod see it:

◦The Books We Make will feel whole and solid in the hands.
◦The Books We Make will smell like now forgotten, far away libraries.
◦The Books We Make will be something of which even our children — who have fully embraced all things digital — will understand the worth.
◦The Books We Make will always remind people that the printed book can be a sculpture for thoughts and ideas.

"Anything less than this will be stepped over and promptly forgotten in the digital march forward." There is some way to go until we reach this point, and I encourage you to read carefully the many comments elicited by Mod's argument. There is still plenty of room for debate, as witnessed by the points and counterpoints offered by the respondents

Libraries and Communities

2010-02-15T14:31:00.003-05:00

Today's holiday offers a bit of thinking space, and an opportunity to comment on libraries and their roles in the community. In the case of the Otis Library, this involes a broader involvement in community affairs, and a willingness to act as an agent of change. For example, the library now works with the Norwich Community Development Corporation, Norwich city government and other stakeholders to develop an economic vision and plan for Downtown Norwich. Keep in mind that when the library decided to remain at its downtown site, one of the considerations was its ability to generate foot traffic and act as a catalyst for a renascent downtown. It is our responsibilty to help shape the municipality that Norwich residents desire. That means grappling with tough and sensitive issues of who populates the business district, what other services are present and who do they attract. The Otis Library cannot remain aloof from these matters or consciously ignore them. We must also acknowledge that finding solutions to seemingly intractable problems-empty real estate and a transient population to suggest two-requires collaboration and community engagement, the assembling of facts,planning and the foreswearing of speculation in the guise of informed opinion. The library, as a center of community activity and a public forum has an critical role to play in this process.

The Library as Thinking Space

2010-02-10T13:32:00.008-05:00

It is snowing to beat the band today, with fierce winds and poor visibility. Rumor has it that a herd of Musk Ox has taken up residence downtown, but that remains unsubstantiated. The library is closed, as is most everything else hereabouts. This seemed like an opportune time to dig into the pile of library related articles I have been accumulating, and offer at least one of them for your further perusal. One that I especially enjoyed is Jessamyn West's interview with Jaron Lanier, author of You Are Not a Gadget: A Manifesto (Library Journal, 2/1/2010). There are many good observations to read here, but my personal favorites are Lanier's comments on the role of libraries as thinking space. That is really a very old idea, and one we tend to downplay because of the connotations it evokes. The shushing librarian, the oppressive silence and implied or active censure of those who dare to speak above a whisper. Lanier rightly points out that we are in dire need of thinking space, a refuge from digital distraction, where you can focus and organize your thoughts, free from the distracting buzz and flash of everyday life. There ought to be space for reflection, one amenable to thinking, designed as an escape from the false paradigm that being "busy" is being productive.

This latter misconception recalls a comment in another article worth reading, Heather Havrilesky's "'Digital Nation": What has the Internet done to us?'(Salon.com, 1/31/2010). Built around a critique of PBS's Frontline report "Digital Nation" which explores the side effects of "our digital immersion", Havrilesky quotes Sherry Turkle, director of MIT's Initiative on Technology and Self on the shortcomings of a plugged-in environment: "I've been busy all day and I haven't thought about anything hard, I mean the point of it is to be our most creative selves, not to distract ourselves to death." There should be room in our institutions to meet multiple requirements. Especially in a library like Otis, with patrons representing so many diverse needs, we will find ourselves balancing digital access with space for quiet contemplation and deliberation, and the desire for group interaction with individual pursuits. Identifying, assessing and responding to these challenges helps the library remain a dynamic and responsive institution, regularly in touch with the people it serves and changing community requirements.

Shifting priorities and the case for libraries

2010-01-03T13:58:00.005-05:00

Sunday's New London Day contained an interesting piece on the front page. Entitled Buying Less, Doing More, the summary notes "Quietly but noticeably over the past year, Americans have rejiggered their lives to elevate experience over things." Among the experiences benefiting from this shift are spending time with family and friends, reading, and on hobbies. This is good news for libraries, which are designed to encourage communal activities, civic engagement and of course reading. Visit the library's home page and you will encounter reading groups for adults and teens, and story and craft activities for children. There is a link to a calendar filled with club, civic, and community events. I might add too that thanks to the support of the City of Norwich, Sachem Fund, the Friends of Otis Library, AHEPA, the Norwich Rotary Clubs and Kiwanis Club of New London, and generous individuals, there are new books and materials to read, watch and listen to.

When the library committed to maintaining its location in downtown Norwich these were the sorts of results envisioned. The Otis Library would be a destination, and a facilitator of the activities that make communities work. A library serves many functions, and its role as a forum, a gathering spot for community members to exchange ideas, interact, and learn are high on the list of priorities. I hope you will take advantage of the myriad opportunities at the library to engage with other residents in learning, discourse, and community enhancement.

Recent articles:Libraries are essential

2009-11-11T15:23:00.002-05:00

Dear library patrons,

In her recent New Yorker review of Cass R. Sunstein’s new book, On Rumors: How Falsehoods Spread, Why We Believe Them, What Can Be Done, Elizabeth Kolbert provides more than ample evidence that we continue to mistake information for knowledge, and knowledge for wisdom. Not that library advocacy is the purpose of her essay; indeed, libraries are never mentioned. Nonetheless Sunstein’s book is a study of the Internet and other emerging technologies, and their aiding and abetting the “growing power of consumers to ‘filter’ what they see,” and I might add, hear and eventually say. Again, according to Sunstein, while many of the major Web sites remain the most popular-CNN, the BBC, and the New York Times-people increasingly turn to information in a customized form, via e-mail updates, RSS feeds, and other vehicles. These allow access to one’s favorite topics-and similarly oriented correspondents-without the discomfort of sifting through, or exposure to information and points of view which in Kolbert’s words, might be “less congenial.”

Libraries are not the sole means of addressing this imbalance and its pernicious results. It is worth noting that with its shelves of periodicals and wide ranging selection of books, DVDs and CDs, -and diverse patronage-libraries can be a counterbalance to the tendency to seek out only those people and that information we agree with, while discarding or ignoring reports and people that might raise questions. While never directly addressing the distinctions between information, knowledge and wisdom, there is ample evidence that libraries provide the resources, expertise and diversity of perspectives to encourage critical thinking, interpret and assess information and nurture the acquisition of knowledge and wisdom.

Kolbert’s review is not the only recent article which merits further consideration. First Monday’s November 2 installment features a lengthy but worthy article entitled “Public Libraries and the Internet 2008-2009 Issues, Implications and Challenges”. While the article confirms what we long suspected based on observation, namely that “patrons and communities have embraced the Internet-related aspects of library services as essential contributions of the library”, it also confirms several points we would rather not contemplate. Chief among these are: patron and community needs for Internet access are fast outpacing the ability of public libraries to meet these needs; and, while libraries in urban areas continue to experience growing demands for Internet services, the library hours of operation have decreased on average, with especially large drops among libraries in high poverty and urban areas. This second point is particularly resonant in Norwich. In each of the last 10 years, Norwich has ranked among Connecticut’s 25 most distressed municipalities. Like its peers in other urban areas, the Otis Library lost operating hours as state grants, which are essential to Norwich’s operating budget, have contracted and the city’s capacity to provide support has diminished. From an average of 59 service hours per week in 2008-2009, the library experienced a contraction to 46 service hours in 2009-2010. The timing could not be worse: “people are using library computers to apply for jobs, and assistance at record numbers, but have to contend with fewer hours that the library is open, inadequate numbers of computers and connection speed, and time limits that constrain their ability to fill out online applications, send e-mail messages to potential employers, and search and apply for assistance.” Fortunately, the Otis Library’s computers are new enough, and the connection speeds fast enough to cope with some of these shortcomings for the near future. Demand is high enough however, to require restrictive time limits of 45 minutes per session.

While the news may not be entirely felicitous, both articles provide ample evidence that libraries remain essential community assets. The multiplicity of ideas and perspectives embodied in library collections, and the provision of free access to the Internet in library computing facilities are two ways in which libraries, and ours in particular contribute to a healthy and sustainable community.

Recent Events: August and September

2009-09-24T08:42:00.004-04:00

August was a short month for the library, with the most significant feature being a two-week closing at the end of the month. Considerable time was devoted to preparing the library and the public for this hiatus. In response to an article in the Norwich Bulletin referring to the closing as a vacation, I composed a letter to the editor reiterating the reasons for our two-week hiatus and distinguishing between a vacation and a furlough.

Among the preparatory tasks required were circulating a special issue of the news letter with information on the closing period and other details, arranging for our consortium and the state inter library loan system to defer loan transactions involving the library, circulating information to patrons and residents on alternative library sites, and ensuring that adequate forewarning was provided to the public in order to avoid frustration and upset.

Ironically, even as the library prepared to close, the demand for services increased. While the overall statistics for circulation reflect a decline in absolute numbers, a comparison of numbers of items circulated per service day shows that in August of 2009 about 650 items were circulated per service day, while in 2008, the number was 596. For inter library loans, the figure was 90 per service day, versus 75 in 2008. One other, albeit unscientific measure of the use made of the library is the need, for the first time, of multi-lingual signage that includes announcements in Mandarin as well as Spanish and English. This was based on observations made after reducing hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the beginning of July.

Prior to closing we also prepared a mailing to all candidates for city council and mayor, inviting them to an informal gathering with board and staff following the September 21 board meeting. This proved to be an exemplary event, with board, staff, current city council members and candidates getting an opportunity to discuss their perceptions of the library, the library’s role as a community resource and its essential service as a democratizing agent. The event was well received, and should become an anticipated part of each election season.

I want to recommend to all library patrons a recent article in the on line journal First Monday http://firstmonday.org/ entitled The Relationship between Public Libraries and Google: Too Much Information. There is a popular misconception, glibly espoused in certain uninformed quarters, that all information is available on line for free, thus making libraries anachronisms. For those needing a thoughtful rejoinder to this bit of untruth I encourage you to read and share this article.

2009-08-26T12:31:00.005-04:00

Dear Library Patrons,

The library reopens to the public on September 1, and perhaps Connecticut will have an agreed upon state budget. As I am sure you know, none currently exists, and the prospects for the development of a document agreeable to both the governor and legislature remain dim.

What you may not realize is that the governor’s current version of the budget includes massive cuts to existing library support. The total estimated reductions amount to approximately $5,000,000, which effectively wipes out a number of essential services. These include:
• Reduce funding for interlibrary loan services by 30%, (-$82,000), which would result in a 50% reduction in federal funding, and potentially cuts in ILL personnel and longer waits for materials to be delivered.
• Suspend Funding for the State-Wide Digital Library, (-$1,968,794), these monies provide Connecticut residents with access to a wide selection of databases and electronic resources to support their educational, cultural, economic and personal interests.
• Suspend funding for Connecticard Payments (-1,226,028), this funding is provided to libraries who allow patrons to borrow and return items to any of the approximately 195 participating libraries. There are approximately 4.6 million loans bringing the reimbursement rate to about .37 per loan. It costs libraries an average of $1.05 to circulate an item. Any reduction in state funding will result in an approximately 50% in federal funding.

I do not mean this to be a definitive list. It does illustrate the deep and likely irreparable damage that could be inflicted on public, college and university libraries if the full implementation of these budget reductions does occur. I recommend that you visit Web Junction CT http://ct.webjunction.org to learn more about the budget process, the reductions envisioned, and the extraordinary levels of library use being reported across the state. It would seem counterintuitive to reduce and eliminate the very small amounts allocated to fund library programs, given the increasing demands placed on those services by the public. Yet, that is what will happen unless the public speaks up. Please visit Web Junction and then let your state representatives know how you feel. In the mean time, my best wishes to you for the remainder of the summer. Please visit us on September 1, and thereafter.

Best regard,

During the intermission

2009-08-19T10:16:00.007-04:00

With renewed interest in the YMCA site as a community based recreation facility-I trust that does not sound too facile-this is a good time to pause and consider the opportunities presented for invigorating our community. The absence of a site for recreational activities convenient to the downtown area has been exposed since the YMCA closed, and it is a serious omission. While the library is, by reasonable definitions, a center of community activity it has a mission and vision which do not encompass many of the enhancements formerly provided by the YMCA. Beyond the obvious need to ensure that the mission and planning for this new facility acknowledge and complement the services provided by the library, there is an equally salient need to recognize this as an opportunity to address the renascence of the city center. There are many earnest and thoughtful groups dedicated to establishing a unique identity for Main Street and environs. There is an opportunity here to incorporate both fully articulated and still inchoate visions for such essentials as parking, visitor services, retail, and transportation into a collaborative plan. I hope that the broader concerns of community development will be integral to the planning process.

Ongoing matters

2009-07-28T17:53:00.005-04:00

It has been an extraordinarily busy time for the library. The year ending June 30 was, statistically, one of the best since we started compiling information on circulation, Internet and numbers of patrons.

At the end of June fiscal year circulation figures attain record levels, with approximately 159,000 items circulated, versus 148,342 for 2007-2008. For the month of June, both incoming and outgoing inter library loan totals continued to show steady growth. Outgoing loans rose by 55% vs. June of 2008, while incoming loans increased by 26%. While complete Internet use figures for 2007-2008 are not available due to early software configuration problems, a comparison of those months available reflect an approximately 35% increase during 2008-2009 even with the absence of the foreign students employed seasonally at the casinos. Despite the hard times and fiscal uncertainties, the library's annual appeal and signature "Evening with an Author" fund raising event were enormously successful and combined for a total of over $80,000 in support. Also, despite a shaky economy the library finished the year with a balanced operating budget.

The month of July witnessed a new fiscal year and unfortunately, a reduction in the funding designated for the library's operation. The city of Norwich, like the state in general is suffering through a difficult financial time, so every organization affiliated with municipal government is affected. One of the unfortunate ramifications is a staff furlough and library closing between August 17 and September 1. I hope that this is the first and only time the library finds itself in such a position. The statistics reflect the need for the services provided by the library, and not being available to the public is deeply frustrating.

Historical Amnesia and libraries

2009-06-22T09:43:00.001-04:00

Beverly Gage’s appearance at our recent Evening with an Author event gives me ample grounds for spending just a moment on the topic of historical amnesia, and the importance of libraries in fostering public literacy and memory.
Her book, The Day Wall Street Exploded, a Story of America in Its First Age of Terror is a study of the Wall Street bombing of Sept. 16, 1920. The bombing, allegedly the act of anarchists, killed 38 people and maimed hundreds more. It was the worst terrorist bombing in the United States until the Oklahoma City attack in 1995, the worst in New York until the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center. This image of terrorist acts describes an America that may seem quite alien to us, or at least more volatile, reflecting more dissonant voices and discontent than commonly associated with the early 20th century. Yet these realities are clearly elucidated throughout the book. This dichotomy between perception and reality in turn reminds me of a particularly resonant theme in the speeches and writing of Abraham Lincoln, that being his frequent assertion that a faded or false view of the past can harm the future. Exemplary of this, in his address at Cooper Union (1860), Lincoln complains of "invocations to Washington, imploring men to unsay what Washington said, and undo what Washington did”. Commenting on this passage, political scientist Diana Scab rightly observed, “Being misty-eyed or bleary-eyed about the past leaves us vulnerable to sophistry. Our acquaintance with the past must be fully mindful.”

The Day Wall Street Exploded is the sort of book that helps us to maintain that fully mindful relationship, disabuses us of our frequently ahistorical relationship with the past, and serves as an antidote to the historical amnesia that is lamentably commonplace.
I also believe that public libraries, such as the Otis Library, are an essential part of the anti amnesia therapy. On our shelves, in proximity to The Day Wall Street Exploded you will find books exploring the trial and execution of anarchists Bartolomeo Vanzetti and Nicola Sacco, dissidents who also appear in Professor Gage’s book. Also nearby is Howard Blum’s history of the 1910 bombing of the Los Angeles Times Building during a violent struggle between radical union and anti-union factions in that city. That attack left 20 dead and about the same number injured. A few shelves away, Christopher Finn’s From the Palmer Raids to the Patriot Act: A History of the Fight for Free Speech in America provides valuable context for the zeitgeist in which the Wall Street Explosion took place, including the 1919 anti-radical campaign instigated by Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer, and more commonly and eponymously known as the Palmer Raids. (Lest we think Connecticut was immune from the egregious violations of the First Amendment that accompanied these raids, Finan notes the detention for almost 5 months of 100 men in Hartford without charges and without access to legal counsel.)
What the library offers then, is information, but more importantly, the opportunity to weigh that information, establish a context, and cultivate the critical thinking skills that inoculate us against sophistry. Especially in these hard times, when personal finances are in a parlous state and our patrons may not have other access to books, magazines and the Internet, the Otis Library is an essential resource, not a luxury, and undeniably an asset to the community it serves.

Changes at Otis

2009-06-12T15:52:00.003-04:00

To Our Friends and Patrons:

As you know, the city of Norwich faces a very difficult 2009-2010 budget year. Every city department confronts daunting cuts in funding, and the library is not exempt from this reality. In our case, this amounts to 12% of our 2008-2009 allocation, a total reduction of $134,580. In order to adjust to this reduction we need to reduce expenses in several areas.

Therefore, beginning with the new fiscal year starting on July 1, 2009 the Otis Library must reduce its hours of operation. We have reviewed levels of usage, tracked attendance at different events, and attempted to minimize the inconvenience to the public.

As of July 1, 2009, our hours will be as follows:

• Mondays and Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
• Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (except July and August when we are closed on Saturdays)
• For Fiscal Year 2009-2010 (July 1, 2009 to June 30 2010) the library will suspend Sunday hours;
• During the weeks of August 17 and 24, the library will be closed.

We know that recessions are cyclical, and conditions will improve. We also must approach the current challenges with maturity, fiscal prudence and perseverance.Our hope is that if the economic indicators improve and with them the fortunes of the city, the library will be able to restore hours and recoup the funding that is now unavailable.

Thank you for your patronage, support and understanding during these difficult times.

Yours Sincerely,

Robert D. Farwell, Director
The Otis Library

On Memorial Day

2009-05-25T13:38:00.005-04:00

Today, I have listened to, or read perhaps a half dozen pieces musing on Memorial Day, ranging from those recounting its originsn to others questioning whether the majority of Americans recognize its significance or merely associate it with a long weekend and the unofficial beginning of summer. For me, it evokes two very different events. First, I recall my elder son's combat experience, his wounding and successful recovery. I spend considerable time thinking about the circumstances that put him in harm's way, and would recommend Joker one : a Marine platoon's story of courage, sacrifice, and brotherhood by Donovan Campbell, and Andrew Bacevich's The limits of power : the end of American Exceptionalism as two excellent and thoughtful perspectives on America's current conflicts.

The second person in my thoughts, although I never knew him, is my great grandfather, Albert Benjamin Hayward. He had a much different war time experience, in his case during the American Civil War. Serving in the Union infantry and later artillery, he experienced no major set piece battles, but rather participated in a small, largely forgotten but none the less destructive and harrowing incursion in North Carolina, and later in trench warfare in Virginia. Reading his petitions for an increased pension and descriptions of his desultory experiences after service, his life was bleak, and, though never wounded in combat, he suffered both physical and psychological damage. I am not surprised that my grandmother never spoke of him or alluded to his service. For those who wish to understand men like Albert Benjamin Hayward, those who were scarred and traumatized but whose wounds were either unrecognized or misunderstood, I recommend Drew Gilpin Faust's This Republic of Suffering.

There are of course innumerable other sources, perspectives and experiences to be consulted, but these represent good places to start. My principal hope is that these suggestions will give readers reasons to reflect on Memorial Day, its continued relevance, and the types of sacrifices made in service to this country. These are, in my opinion, estimable goals.

Changing times, changing roles

2009-05-11T09:03:00.001-04:00

A recent article reiterates the message that a public library is more than a collection of information sources. Dauntingly titled Estimating Library Efficiency Using Stochastic Frontiers it is principally a study of public sector cost efficiencies using public libraries as the test subjects. Summarizing his research, author Jeffrey Hemmeter draws a resonant distinction between the services provided by small town libraries and those, such as the Otis Library serving larger, urban audiences: “Libraries in different settings perform different functions…a library in a small town may focus on books and magazines, while a library in a large city may focus on its role as a community resource for culture and the arts with a lecture series or other events.” There is an equally noteworthy impact on cost efficiencies, attributable to the multifaceted functions a larger institution serving a heterogeneous population must perform: “it is possible that the larger the population, the more services libraries need to perform, decreasing the efficiency measured by the variables in the model.”

Despite the awkwardness of the language-and the arcane mathematics involved-the points made are salient to this library’s role in the community. This library is not an island, and while we can offer a respite from the frenetic pace of life outside our walls, we are not immune to the affects of social problems, economic hardships and pressures generated externally which may affect efficiencies. If we see a change in populations served, as we do now with a growing number of unemployed and possibly homeless youths, age 16-24, we have to act on that knowledge. If constituents need a location in which to perform community service, court ordered or otherwise, we will accommodate that need. If we need to adapt fines on materials to help patrons in straitened financial times, or work with new Americans who need library cards we will explore the options. If more family groups now spend longer periods of time at our programs, request more programs, or simply use the library for extended periods, we have to address the issue or opportunity. By Hemmeter’s yardstick, efficiency is also affected by the energy expended in accommodating the growth in Internet use-61% for adults, April of 2009 vs. April 2008-and incoming interlibrary loans, which increased 62% between April 2008 and April 2009. Finally, the library must help fashion solutions to problems seemingly unrelated to its operation. For example, during the winter, many folks waiting for the Buckingham Shelter to open patronize the library between 5-7 p.m. Come next fiscal year, as a result of financial constraints, that option will disappear on 2 week day nights. While it is not, strictly speaking our responsibility to design a solution, we have an obligation as a center of community activity to help craft a response in collaboration with the Department of Social Services, and St. Vincent De Paul Place. This is part of our role as a community center.

In summary, the roles and responsibilities of a public library evolve to meet the needs of the community it serves. In the case of the Otis Library, that now includes services quite unlike those associated with libraries in less dissonant times. It also means in the foreseeable future addressing demands and responsibilities with fewer resources, fewer staff, and fewer dollars and materials to draw on. That too is reflective of the times we live in.

It is in the figures!

2009-04-14T17:24:00.014-04:00

Hard times influence the library, and the results are in the statistics. 2009-2010 reflects further substantial growth, better even than that experienced in 2007-2008, which was a very good year. Total circulation, numbers of new patrons requesting library cards, and Internet use all show increases when compared to March of 2008. For example, adult computer use grew by 85%, while inter library loans to other libraries grew by 54%. The most recent report from the Connecticut State Library enumerated inters library loans from Otis Library to 73 libraries statewide between March 1 2008 and February 28 2009. To these 73 institutions we loaned 19,208 items versus 15,536 for the comparable period in 2007-2008. These are impressive figures, and validate the centrality of the library to our community.

The paradox here is that while we are needed even more when fiscal distress leads to straitened personal circumstances, we, like other departments in Norwich, will have fewer resources to work with. The forthcoming fiscal year, 2009-2010, and likely the one following that will feature diminished funding for many types of municipal functions. The figures are there in the City Manager's proposed budget, which can be viewed on the Norwich city home page. These are the results of an agonizing process, reflective of the severity of the problem. Taking a longer view, conditions will improve, and we will approach the future determined to provide exemplary service to the citizens of Norwich. That is what our constituents deserve regardless of circumstances.

Hard Times

2009-03-26T08:50:00.005-04:00

Today's Norwich Bulletin and New London Day feature articles on the proposed closing of the YMCA in Norwich. Whether is is directly related to the current flaccid economy is unclear-at least to me-but it is a tragedy. There have been innumerable stories on individual fiscal pain and suffering. We are all aware of the financial condition of the city, that austerity is the current mantra, and that the results of the forthcoming city budget are likely to be more portentous than many citizens currently realize. The closing of the YMCA has far reaching, decidedly negative ramifications for every strata of society in Norwich. Despite some obvious differences, it, like the library is a community center with programs and resources essential to community health and well being. I sincerely hope that we-individuals, government, foundations-can identify and cultivate the resources necessary to resuscitate and stabilize this community keystone.

More updates

2009-03-02T13:16:00.006-05:00

It is snowing heavily, periodic wind gusts are filling in several of the areas I recently cleared. Hardly a day for outdoor activities, but a good time to catch up on my blog entries. As described last month, we have embarked on a new program designed to help some of our patrons reenter the work force. The first week has just ended, and from my perspective it is going very well. Both gentlemen assigned to the library are excellent workers. They are willing to undertake almost any task requested of them, and complete it in a timely and thorough fashion. I am hoping that a successful first installment will help ensure steady funding for this collaboration between the library, the city Department of Human Services, The YMCA and St. Vincent De Paul Place. While the results to date are gratifying, my particular frustration is the knowledge that there are other potential candidates who cannot be placed because of the paucity of funds. Perhaps we can rectify that situation.

We have two students from Norwich Free Academy preparing to start community service projects at the library. This is a wonderful opportunity to introduce young adults to the library, and also allows us to implement some further audience research. In particular, we could use more information on the methods of transportation employed by our patrons. Based on the results of our last two survey, there are noteworthy differences between those who drive and those who use public transportation or walk. Initially I would like to illuminate the percentages using various forms of transportation, and adduce more about the different uses made of the library. Some of these differences were revealed by the responses to the earlier surveys, but there is more to be learned. What we learn is also valuable for designing programs and events scheduling.

I also hope that readers of this blog are following the changes made to the library's web page. We have added photographs from recent events, including a packed forum on health care sponsored by Congressman Joe Courtney and a highly successful reading by author Wally Lamb. Please consult our home page for forthcoming programs and vignettes from recent events.

Meeting other community needs

2009-02-02T08:25:00.004-05:00

The Otis Library has evolved beyond its traditional role as a repository of information, and is more appropriately described as a community center. One responsibility that implies is identifying community needs and addressing them, either alone or preferably in collaboration with other city agencies. In the near future we will introduce another program reflecting a collaborative solution to an existing problem. Working with the Norwich department of Human Services, the St. Vincent De Paul Center and other cooperating group we will launch a job training program for members of the city's homeless community. Participants will attend training sessions on job related skills, and then put those skills into practice at various sites, including the Otis Library.We want to encourage some of the basic skills-punctuality,customer service, taking supervision- absolutely essential to job performance and productivity. Our hope is to make this a first step on the path to employment for one segment of our constituency.

More Analysis Results

2009-01-30T08:08:00.005-05:00

Another part of developing accurate portraits of our audiences is determining when they use the library. In conjunction with the two surveys described below we also conducted an hourly assessment of attendance Between November and January. These statistics were taken directly from the counter embedded in the security gate at the entrance to the library atrium. The preliminary results show a modest start to most days, between 60-80 patrons in the first hour, with a gradual rise during during the day, and especially heavy use between two and six p.m. and a gradual downward slope until closing. The probable reasons for the ebb and flow? Plausibly, attendance increases after the St. Vincent De Paul Center conclude its noon time meal service, school is dismissed, and the work day ends. As the evening wears on, some patrons are ensconced at home, others are availing themselves of overnight shelters, and those here to do homework have completed that exercise. Fairly prosaic results, certainly nothing unpredictable, although I would like to conduct assessments during each season to identify any meaningful changes. Also, the characteristics of patronage are helpful in making decisions on a number of matters: when to schedule programs, when to schedule staff in various departments, and when our security officers need to be on site. It is the sort of information, which in combination with patron surveys will allow us to provide exemplary services to our public.

Survey Results

2009-01-28T13:29:00.001-05:00

Survey Overview

During late 2008, the library conducted two patron surveys. I thought this might be a good time to share the results of these assessments with you, and describe some of the general conclusions we have drawn. The first survey was conducted on site on weekdays in October and November and consisted of 52 patron interviews equally divided between males and females. The second, completed between November and December was distributed electronically, using the same Constant Contact program employed in disseminating our newsletter. One hundred and ninety-six newsletter recipients responded, of whom almost 70% were female. The results illustrate the range of patrons served by the library, their attitudes towards several aspects of our operation and services, and their overall assessment of our collections and resources. In this abbreviated format, I focus principally on differences in audiences, types and frequency of usage and a few related questions. Although the questions occasionally differed from one survey to another, the general outline and goals remained constant. We wished to know more about patron perceptions of the library, how they viewed and used it, and what strengths and weaknesses they had observed. The results will help inform future decisions on a range of topics from material purchases to programming and marketing, and complements the work being done to implement the results of the board and staff retreat.

The surveys identified two generally distinctive audiences, albeit with some common characteristics: Over 70% are Norwich residents, and similarly high numbers have a library card. Both groups cite borrowing and returning materials as a reason for their patronage. Forty-seven percent of on line respondents referred to borrowing or returning materials as a reason for visiting, while 44% of on site visitors reported similarly. However, from that point the differences manifest themselves. One group, interviewed on site, consists of frequent users who require access to our technology and collections and rely heavily on our public computers. A full 73% of those responding to the on site survey reported using the library at least once a week, and 33% listed computer use as a principal feature of their visit. The second general group, those who responded electronically, is less likely to visit every week (21.1%), and more inclined to visit every 2-3 week, (25.2 %), or every month (17.5%). Generally, this latter group does not need or use the public computers-only 3.6% cited that as a reason for visiting the library- and is principally interested in selecting, ordering, and retrieving materials from the collection or from interlibrary loan. Given the low numbers drawn to the public computers, and their on line responses, it should be no surprise that 95.5% of electronic respondents had a home Internet connection.

Onsite visitors were more often younger, frequent users, without access to other computers, while those responding to the online survey were older, and female. In fact, the respondents to the online survey were overwhelmingly female (69.8%) and in reference to age, were predominantly between the ages of 46-55 (23.4%), and 56-65 (23.9%). In October/November, 15% of the on site respondents were 13-15, 19% 26-35, 15% 36-45, 19% 46-55, and only 8% between 56-65.

Other noteworthy differences also reflect distinctions in library use. Those interviewed in the library were far more likely to refer to use of the Young Adult area (29%), bringing someone to the library (27%), use of the children’s department and programs (21%), and studying or reading (19%). By comparison, percentages for on line respondents were Young Adult (4.1%), bringing someone to the library (6.8%), use of children’s department (5.5%), and studying or reading, (6.4%). While both groups were inclined to return and check out materials during a visit, the on site patrons were more likely to linger and read magazines (19%) than those on line (4.3%). Onsite respondents were also far less likely to use the library’s home page than on line users. Eighty percent of the online patrons said they had visited our home page; only 30% of those on site gave a similar response. The home page contains information on programs, hours, and links to numerous resources. Further analysis might clarify whether the on site users are focused on a particular form of use, have a predetermined agenda for the use of the computers or find the library’s home page deficient in some way.

Reactions to programs and services

Sharp differences also surfaced in the reactions to various elements of the library’s operation. While it is not necessary to enumerate each category of question, there are several which deserve further comment.

As with the general reactions, there were areas of consensus encompassing both types of users. Commenting on the library facilities, electronic and on site respondents both lauded the building. Fifty-two percent of on site respondents were very satisfied with the results of the building program, while 37% were satisfied, and 61% of on line respondents found the facility very much to their satisfaction and 31% expressed satisfaction. The library’s location drew strong general support from on site respondents, with 44% expressing strong satisfaction with the library’s location, and 23% being satisfied. However, among the on line users, 29% gave the site a very satisfactory rating and 33% evinced satisfaction. In contrast to on site users, of whom only 4% expressed dissatisfaction with the location and none responded as very dissatisfied, 7% of on line users found the location dissatisfying, and 11% were very dissatisfied with the downtown site. Additional comments offer some insights regarding the reasons for these less enthusiastic responses. Commentators noted the lack of adequate parking, which is a frequent anecdotal explanation for infrequent use, and expressed a generalized unease with parking and conditions downtown. Interestingly enough no discomfort about use of the library itself surfaced.

Regarding parking, 38% of onsite respondents were either dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the availability of parking. That is not a comforting statistic, but even less inspiring is the 59% of the electronic respondents who expressed dissatisfaction or strong dissatisfaction. Add to this the presence of a transient population, and the combination has the capacity to foster a generalized sense of discomfort.

In counterpoint to this, there is a sizeable group of residents for whom these factors are not deterrents. Among the follow up investigations worth pursuing is an assessment of how patrons reach the library. How many, for example, use public transportation, how many live within walking distance, how many drive and what impact will the relocation of the transportation center have on visitor traffic. For those patrons who do use the library remotely, and plan their visits to pick up and return materials, what technologies will make electronic access even more attractive and enhance the usefulness of the library. Also, apropos of accessing the library, will more parking actually result in a meaningful growth in patronage, or is the answer more and better electronic access, and/or better public transportation? Regarding the general downtown environment, we must work with city officials to create an ambiance in which appropriate use of the library and environs is courteously but firmly articulated and enforced. We also need to participate in programs that address and alleviate social problems. Ultimately, our goals is to create conditions in which patrons, regardless of circumstances, will find downtown Norwich a safe and comfortable destination and experience.

Making connections, gaining perspective

2008-12-21T12:49:00.007-05:00

I was reading a bit further in Michael Kammen's American Culture, American Tastes, when I came across the following passage from Middletown, a study in contemporary American culture, by Robert S. Lynd and Helen Merrell Lynd. The original version appeared in the leading paper of Muncie, Indiana: "The American citizen's first importance to his country is no longer that of citizen but that of consumer. Consumption is a new necessity." It reminded me of President Bush's exhortation to America following the September 11th attacks: "Now, the American people have got to go about their business. We cannot let the terrorists achieve the objective of frightening our nation to the point where we don't -- where we don't conduct business, where people don't shop." [Italics mine]. I offer this juxtaposition of quotes because while they seem contemporaneous, only one dates from the 21st century. The Lynd's quote appeared in 1929. There is plenty of criticism in the media of our consumer culture and its pernicious impact on society. There was a fair amount of criticism leveled at the banality of a major presidential statement, following an horrific act, which implied that shopping was patriotic and an important rebuke to terrorism. We also incline to the belief that somehow this was another indicator of the superficiality of modern society. Yet, here is a quote from 1929 which resonates, and which, shorn of an identifying date could very well have appeared in a contemporary speech or monograph. Or, what of John Dewey's observation from 1930 that the need to buy had become as much an American duty as savings had once been? The point is not to defend the 2001 statement, but to observe the importance of understanding that the mind set it represents is not new, and is not simply the product of conditions or attitudes peculiar to the present. Rather they are the result of incremental changes visible for decades, recognized, analyzed and commented on by trenchant observers . Not surprisingly, all of the materials necessary to make these connections, and develop a cogent case for or against the validity of my statements originated in a public library. The quotes, the books and the individuals cited all come from resources, either electronic and print, accessible at no extra charge. I hope you will join me in using them.

Odds and Ends

2008-12-12T11:35:00.010-05:00

A short post today, really just a few observations and a few recommendations. One recent discovery is a site called Slow Leadership. I encourage any of you who are involved in management, aspire to be a manager or work in a supervisory capacity to subscribe. Their ‘credo’ can be summed up in these words from the Buddha:

“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. Do not believe anything because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything because it is written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. But if, after observation and analysis, you find that anything agrees with reason, and is conducive to the good and the benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.”

We have also added several link to the library's home page under the heading "Why Are Libraries Important?" These were mentioned in a Twitter posting last week. I hope to add to and refresh these links on a frequent basis. Ironically, even as the importance of libraries is validated by the increases in patronage, circulation, computer use and diversity of services expected, funding has become problematic for many libraries, including well respected systems such as Philadelphia's. For many of those people hardest hit by the convulsions in the economy and most in need of the resources to address their predicament the library remains an essential resource. I thought that the recent NBC Nightly News segment on libraries made that very clear.

On an unrelated subject, I have been reading Michael Kammen's American Culture, American Tastes: Social Change in the 20th Century. While it is not a book about libraries, there are some interesting references to books and reading, and specifically the popularity of murder mysteries, self-help books, and books about health, during the Second World War. Those are three of the genres most popular among our patrons now. I would guess that these choices might be reactions to stress and uncertainty, the allure of escapism in mysteries, and the search for solutions to large and complex problems in health and self help. It might also help explain the dominance of nonfiction titles over all other material types except video feature films in our circulation figures.

Addressing some survey responses

2008-12-01T09:32:00.001-05:00

The library is currently conducting two surveys, one via our electronic newsletter, and a second using the services of an intern from Three Rivers Community College. These endeavors are part of our commitment to providing the best possible service to the community. While both surveys are ongoing, the results of the electronic version reveal some topics which can be addressed now. (I might add that a slightly different version of this letter will appear in the next e-newsletter).

Not surprisingly, parking and security remain two topics eliciting many specific comments. While I will address both once the survey closes, at this juncture let me offer some observations regarding these issues:

Parking is a chronic concern, and references to the paucity of convenient city parking date to the 19th century. In the recent survey it was cited frequently as a deterrent when contemplating use of the library and local businesses. As many of you may know parking is a challenge for both patrons and staff. It costs the library approximately $10,000 a year to provide sufficient parking spaces for the staff, even with the city generously providing several staff spaces free of charge. I will not mention in detail the preemptive actions required of the staff to ensure that these spaces are available on a daily basis.

As for the public, while it offers no panacea, many of you may recall the survey conducted by Rose City Renaissance earlier this year. This lists a number of public parking locations in the general area of the library. Among the most convenient are 26 public spaces available in the Cliff Street Lot, 7 slots by the railroad station, all available for 2 hours at a time, free of charge, and 32 public spaces at the YMCA which are equipped with meters, and available for up to 8 hours at a cost of .25 per hour. One continuing omission is the lack of handicap parking in front of the library. It is our hope, after several discussions, that the city will remedy this situation. A parking map is also available on the library web site, http://www.otislibrarynorwich.org/ . Parking is a matter of concern to us, the business community, and the public. I will use the information gathered in the survey to inform city officials.

Security in the down town area evoked a number of comments from participants. Similar concerns were expressed in our previous surveys. In response to the disquiet reflected in those documents, the library now invests $20,000 annually in security officers who are stationed at the library Monday through Friday between the hours of 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. This is no small sum, and required the shifting of operating funds from materials purchases (books, magazines, audio and videos) and the few other budget lines where expenses are not fixed. In addition, thousands more dollars of capital funds were invested in interior and exterior cameras, and $10,000 will be invested to deter loitering in front of the building. The city police department has shown great responsiveness and cooperation with the library, and I meet regularly with representatives from that department, the city manager, human services, and the business community as part of the Downtown Enhancement Group.

The actions cited above are part of our efforts to provide substantive responses to your concerns. I will continue to advocate for programs that will enhance the use of the library and business area. Thank you for your support and patronage.

What’s a library worth?

2008-11-12T08:23:00.002-05:00

Perhaps it is because the economy is sour, it is time to submit our annual operating request to the city, or simply because it is early morning, and that always seems a reflective time of day. Regardless, I want to draw your attention to two items which address the issues of a library’s worth. One, based on a calculator on the Maine State Library web site, offers some sense of what the services offered by a library would cost in the for profit sector. You might quibble with a few of the answers, but overall I think you will find it edifying. Go to our About Otis Page on the library web site, www.otislibrarynorwich.org, and you will see the link at the bottom of the menu.

The second recommendation is a short article on the web site The Consumerist www.consumerist.com entitled “7 Ways Your Public Library Can Help You During Bad Economic Times.” I most enjoyed two of the 7, although all had merit. First, Make new friends. There are plenty of ways and aids which afford sanctuary from humankind-I am thinking of devices that involve headphones among others-but libraries actually encourage interaction, be it in a book group, public program or as a Friend of Otis Library. The other opportunity, Find a new Job is particularly salient given the shudder inducing economic news. It seems like no business wants to see a paper application anymore. The application form, your résumé, everything is channeled via the internet. Otis has the computers, the resources and the learning opportunities to help you navigate through the process, and as important, to help you minimize the tension and frustration involved.
Of course there are innumerable other good reasons to patronize the library, and I encourage you to view them or calculate their value at the locations above.

Surveys and Insights

2008-10-09T16:37:00.003-04:00

In the near future we will conduct more patron surveys to gauge the use of our current services, determine what services we may want to add, and to get a better overall picture of the public we serve. There will be one survey done in conjunction with our on line newsletter, and with the help of an intern from Three Rivers Community College we will also actuate an on site survey of patrons. Surveys of both types are extremely valuable aids for better understanding what the public wants in the way of services, and exploring the ways in which the library is used. For example, a recent survey for the Chicago Metropolitan Library System revealed some very interesting pearls of information. Fifty-six percent of patrons spent less than 10 minutes in the library; two-thirds did not know what they wanted before they arrived. Fifteen percent of weekly visitors never borrowed materials from the library. Of those who borrowed materials, 70% checked out books while 51% chose AV materials. Only 12% of patrons viewed library signage, and of those who utilized signage 45% consulted stacks signage (i.e. signs designating the location of books and other materials). I do not know if our results will reflect the same patterns of usage, but the resulting information could be very useful in such functions as allocating financial resources, selecting programs, and identifying confusion points and bottlenecks. As the library evolves these types of information will help us be more responsive to patron needs, and in turn will help engage patrons more effectively.

The Impact of Public Library Closings

2008-09-16T08:35:00.002-04:00

Earlier this morning I was reading a report entitled "Why Public Libraries Close"conducted by researchers at Florida State University (June 30, 2008). Much of the contents is devoted to explanations of the research design, methodology, and an analysis of findings. What struck me, and summarized eloquently the centrality of libraries to community health and stability was the following observation:

"The socioeconomic and demographic characteristics of the population within the immediately surrounding 1 mile radius [of] the closed library tended to be poorer, less educated, and with more renters than homeowners when compared to the U.S. population as a whole...These characteristics are often associated with lower mobility and fewer alternatives for information access. Where these population characteristics prevail, closures could disproportionately impact potential library users who may need the public library more than most..."

This is yet another element of the story that libraries have to tell, to borrow again from Walt Crawford: their importance to under served communities as an immediate means of access to resources otherwise unavailable or available only tenuously.

Some thoughts on libraries and their roles

2008-09-12T08:31:00.000-04:00

Over the past several weeks I have read a number of articles pondering the role of public libraries. Directly or indirectly all share a common theme, which is, to borrow the title of one article, “How to Future Proof our Library.” Personally I find that a rather ominous title, which conjures up images of libraries designed like Vauban fortresses or late nineteenth century armories with firing slits for windows and an intimidating, glowering massiveness. Which, mercifully the articles do not advocate or even consider!

One in particular struck me as addressing, albeit indirectly, a common misconception about libraries and their community role. Entitled “The Storied Library” by Walt Crawford, it actually deals with branding, or if a term from the world of marketing grates a bit, the stories a library has to tell about its community, the niches it fills, the ways in which it determines the community needs it will address and by so doing remains relevant to those it serves. So how many stories do we have to tell at Otis? There are several ways to frame the answer. We could count the number of on line data base uses per annum, the number of weekly visits, the number of books, CD’s and DVD’s circulated, programs offered, persons served by Literacy Volunteers, reference questions answered, and a myriad other quantifying factors. To paraphrase Crawford, our stories are in total the substance of what we are, what we do, and how we place ourselves in our surroundings and the lives of our patrons.

What I also like about Crawford’s approach is the reconsideration of information as the paramount library function. Heresy! No, not really. Designating or defining libraries as the information place is limiting and arguably leads to a narrow definition of what libraries and librarians do. We are certainly about information, which he defines as service designed to “bring resources to people for their education, enlightenment and entertainment.” That sounds more like the work of Otis Library and its staff. To that I would also echo Crawford’s addendum that “we serve as a safety net for the displaced and a primary place where young people learn to love reading and knowledge.”

This bountiful definition leads me to believe that we need to address the declivity between what librarians and libraries do and what users think they do. To use only the single element of information, in an environment in which profit increasingly shapes accessibility to information libraries represent just the opposite model, with digital and print, sources conveniently available, complete with a human resource for help. This is what one observer categorizes as the “quintessence of the sustainable information movement.”

Dealing with Distractions

2008-08-01T14:57:00.000-04:00

A brief entry today, addressing the topic of libraries and distractions. I was reading Marcel Proust’s essay, appropriately entitled On Reading, and was struck by his descriptions of hours spent reading in profound silences, undisturbed by distractions, except for the distant sound of bells “carrying the time to distant regions, without seeing me, without knowing me, without disturbing me.” Juxtaposition this with Nicholas Carr’s article Is Google Making Us Stupid? cited in my last blog entry and more recently, the July 20 article in the Sunday Times (Great Britain) entitled Stoooopid .... why the Google generation isn’t as smart as it thinks, subtitled The digital age is destroying us by ruining our ability to concentrate. It is easy enough to categorize this class of complaint as mere crankiness, or resistance to change ( the oft mentioned Luddite analogy) on the part of a few benighted souls. However, it is an issue which arises at the library, and one that ought not to be dismissed. In a library environment the digital accessories of everyday life are numerous and potentially intrusive: mobile phones, various platforms for music, computer generated film and music clips, even normal speaking voices. What might seem an irritant outside the library magnifies into a noxious substance inside.

Personally, I do not think we will ever return to the allegedly pristine environment where the profound silences Proust describes permeate the library and distractions are minimal. Libraries are meeting needs and providing services that do not lend themselves to uninterrupted quiet, and distractions are part of that mix. That said, there are quiet areas in the library, especially in the carrels and seating adjacent to the adult stacks where quiet is the norm, and there are study rooms available, by reservation, through the reference desk. The use of cell phones is prohibited outside of certain spaces, and the list of discouraged behaviors is posted throughout the library. Listening to music don headphones and turn down the volume. Then too, on weekdays there are security officers on duty from the hours of 2-8 who will gladly show transgressors the error of their ways. These measures may constitute compromises, but they also reflect the changing nature of library usage, and the necessary balance between different audiences and their expectations.

Two articles worth reading

2008-06-17T14:58:00.003-04:00

Two recent articles cover topics which library patrons and the reading public in general might find of interest. The first is Robert Darnton’s June 12 New York Review of Books article entitled The Library in the New Age. Darton is Director of the University Library at Harvard, and while he is principally concerned with the relevance of research libraries in the current information age, (he argues convincingly that every age is an age of information) some of his key points are equally applicable to public libraries. The whole article is well worth reading. His case for the instability of information is particularly good, with a wonderful example based on contemporary reports of Washington’s defeat at the Battle of Brandywine.

For those who value public libraries, there are some particularly resonant comments at the end of the article. I am especially fond of the following passages: “[D] on’t think of it [the library] as a warehouse or museum. While dispensing books most research libraries operate a nerve centers for transmitting electronic impulses…As a citadel of learning and as a platform for adventure on the Internet, the research library still deserves to stand at the center of the campus, preserving the past and accumulating energy for the future.” I think these sentiments are equally applicable to public libraries. While dispensing books and other media, the Otis library is also a forum, and a conduit for information in digital and printed formats. It is a source for original research, a classroom, and a community center. This is as it should be. A key challenge for Otis and other libraries now and in the future will be maintaining their importance to the communities they serve. That requires adaptability to changing needs. Otis Library takes that challenge seriously, and strives to be a good example of what Darnton calls a traditional service moving with the times.

The second article of note, by Nicholas Carr is entitled Is Google Making Us Stupid? and appears in the most recent Atlantic Monthly magazine (July/August 2008). The central theme is the impact of online searching and surfing on critical thinking and reading. Carr summarizes the perceived changes in the way he reads and his ability to immerse himself in books and lengthy articles: “[M]y concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages. I get fidgety, lose the thread, and begin looking for something else to do. I feel as if I’m always dragging my wayward brain back to the text. The deep reading that used to come naturally has become a struggle.” It is that ability to read deeply and analyze complexities that on line reading practices sunder. Quoting Maryanne Wolfe, author of Proust and the Squid: The Story and Science of the Reading Brain, Carr wonders if “the style of reading promoted by the Net, a style that puts “efficiency” and ‘“immediacy”’ above all else, may be weakening our capacity for the kind of deep reading that emerges when an earlier technology, the printing press made long and complex works of prose commonplace.”

It is a good question, albeit one even Carr stops short of answering categorically. I suspect I see evidence of the symptoms in my own evolving reading habits, but I leave it to you to test his thesis after reading the article.

Cell Phones and Civility

2008-05-04T12:29:00.004-04:00

Last week a visibly upset patron stopped me and expressed her deep and abiding frustration with cell phones, or more specifically, the way in which some patrons used these devices. What she articulated was a not uncommon phenomenon in libraries. As the nature and uses of libraries have changed, and especially as libraries attract larger numbers of nontraditional patrons drawn by computers, games, programs and other attractions the question of public civility becomes a pertinent and contentious point of discussion. I am not certain that cell phones are the core problem, although they are certainly a visible and justifiable target. (I played baseball on a team where our first baseman had the first few bars of Iron Butterfly's In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida as his ring tone. I always liked that song, until the fifth or sixth time the phone went off during a road trip.)

Not to sound like a curmudgeon, but there seems to be a lack of consideration for others that manifests itself in certain behaviors. Cell phone tones, followed by extended and often personal conversations peppered with expletives and graphic descriptions are clearly obnoxious. Similarly, the folks who stand over the no smoking signs at the library entrance puffing away, the fatigued or unreflective folks who park themselves in front of the book drop, and the group conducting a full throated conversation oblivious to those in adjacent seats trying to read all merit attention and remonstrance.

As this list implies the problem is as much a matter of behavior as of technology. Therefore, we ask cell phone users to hold their conversations in the foyer, the Media Center or outside the library. There is signage making that request in several locations, but experience shows that signage mostly helps staff point out the policy as they address a violation. Few transgressors read the text before the issue is raised with them. As for the other forms of inconsiderate or anti-social behavior, we could post multiple bill boards inveigning against smoking, cussing, drinking and chewing, but the results would be homely. What we will do is point out the violations as they occur, refer to the copies of the behavior policies posted in multiple locations, ask for cooperation, remove the recalcitrant, and maintain a belief in the long term efficacy of behavior modification.

The hiatus ends

2008-04-16T18:11:00.003-04:00

It is hard to believe that so much time has passed since my last post. In fact, I find the lack of further entries hard to explain. The most plausible explanation is lack of time. It certainly is not for lack of subject matter. One of the topics preoccupying me during this hiatus is security. This is not a topic peculiar to the library, indeed it is a subject long associated with the down town area generally. However, what occurs at the library is a manifestation of larger community concerns, and exemplify the types of issues requiring resolution on a community wide basis.

It has been clear for some time that the library is too large to be adequately monitored by staff alone. There are too many corners, obscured and unobserved areas in the library, not counting the special challenges presented by the entry way and exterior. There are also the quantifiable incidents of untoward behavior which frustrate both patrons and staff and detract from our role as a community resource. It is not that one particularly egregious incident provoked a strong response, rather it is the slow grind of often minor events. These will eventually overwhelm even those of the most equable disposition. Perhaps in a less inspiring environment some of this could be rationalized as reflective of the surroundings, but in a new and dynamic building with wonderful amenities for public use the lack of consideration and proper use become intolerable.

Therefore the library has embarked on a program resulting in new, visible and we judge effective measures. A closed circuit camera system is now being installed expressly to monitor the most problematic areas internally and externally. Security staff are being added to the library and will be a visible presence during the days and evenings. Other salient measures cover the window sills and rest rooms.

In conjunction with these enhancements, we are holding regular dialogs with city officials and departments. The mayor's office, city manager, police department and department of human services are all contributing to these communications. The response from Norwich city government is encouraging, and the willingness of city departments to advocate for improvements in housing, policing, and other services validate their commitment to a renascent down town area.

I am pleased to report that the atmosphere at the library has improved markedly. We are an urban library, and the events in and around the library are those facing other urban communities. The environment may never be idyllic, but with the cooperative spirit evinced to date, both the community and the library will benefit.

Library Updates

2008-03-15T11:49:00.003-04:00

I hope that you have all received the latest copy of the library newsletter. If you have not signed up to receive our monthly update on activities at the library please contact Julie Menders at jmenders@otis.lioninc.org and we will be sure to include you on our list.

One of my goals for the library is offering a broad spectrum of opportunities that enhance our utility to the public. One of our most recent and successful innovations is serving as a community service work site for area high school students. We currently have 6 students from Norwich Free Academy and one student from the Academy of the Holy Family in Baltic. Each student is required to perform 20 hours of community service as part of their course requirements, and we are very pleased to be a work site. Among the duties performed are shelf reading-a time consuming but essential process of placing the collection in its proper order in the book stacks, shifting collections as books and other materials are removed from the collection and replaced with newer editions, and ascertaining the status of materials listed as lost or missing. We are also hosting an intern from Three Rivers Community College who will help us with a patron survey. This, I hope, will help us to be more responsive to the needs of the library's users, and help us to effectively allocate our resources.

Long term, building on these time constrained service programs, my goal is to use the library as a vehicle for training future librarians. A fair amount has been written over the past few years about the graying of the work force in general, and of librarians in particular. Otis is a good location for a program designed to attract young adults and I am currently working on a proposal to build a collaborative effort with Norwich Free Academy that would introduce young people to the librarianship as a profession.

If any of you are interested in establishing a community service program with the library, or have ideas for other community based collaborations please let me know. Feel free to call me at 860-889-2365 x 122 or e-mail me at bfarwell@otis.lioninc.org.

The Library as Dehumanized Supermarket?

2008-02-26T08:08:00.000-05:00

Early this morning I read an article almost as gray and ominous as the weather. John N. Berry's column, posted in the February 15 on line version of Library Journal is entitled The Vanishing Librarian, The library becomes a dehumanized supermarket or a chaotic bookstore. After careful consideration I will describe it as a jeremiad on the "deskilling" of library jobs, the replacement of professionals with less skilled and less well compensated staff, and the wholesale transformation of libraries from humane, differentiated centers of learning and education to indistinguishable, impersonal "cookie-cutter" facilities reminiscent of standardized big box chain stores or mega-groceries. I took a quick mental assessment of our library, and then did a quick tour to reassure myself that this did not describe the Otis Library. I am satisfied that it does not. I cannot envision some of the more execrable innovations described by Mr. Berry, specifically the banishing of the reference desk, the displacement of the circulation desk in favor of self-serve check out stations, and the outsourcing of materials selection. Otis was designed as a community centered library, and these trends, if that is what they are, run counter to the spirit of service embodied in this library. Please let it always remain thus!

If you build a new library they will come. But what will they do?

2008-02-19T16:37:00.001-05:00

One of the important questions currently facing the library concerns it role in the community. At first blush the answer seems self-evident: this library has an historic mission to act as an information gatekeeper, that is to act as guide and provider, sometimes an arbiter for a population seeking particular types of information. Despite the acknowledgments paid to the evolving role of libraries in society, that their purpose may be changing, or is being altered, I think the common perception remains that information provider is a core reason for libraries in society: elucidating, educating, guiding inquiries in pursuit of knowledge, principally through books but by other means as well. That continues as a role for this library, especially given the realities of life in an urban library. Unlike some of the suburban libraries I have visited and worked in, the free public internet computers are not gathering dust. Folks need the 16 computers available in the reference/adult services area because that remains their only-or principal- access to the resources available on line, to job applications, government forms and other necessary items. The queues remain long, and few sessions end early. So, that role for the moment remains important.

As you might have anticipated, here comes the BUT. When I look at the monthly statistics, I wonder about the significance of the information role in the panoply of services accessible to the public. Empirically, we can substantiate the robust levels of patronage hoped for when the building program was conceived. Based on the sheer volume of visits, it is simple enough to quantify the use of the facility. In both our temporary location and in the previous, unlamented incarnation of the library at 261 Main Street, a day registering 300 visits was considered good, or average to good. Since January 1 of 2008, the average week day number hovers around 850. On an above average day, that figure surges to around 1,0000, and on an exceptional day, 1,800 visits were recorded. Looking at the number of new library cards registered at the library confirms the increase in use. Back in July a record 422 new users requested cards or had their bar code added to our patron date base. Subsequently, and not unexpectedly, that number has decreased to a less stratospheric but still impressive 200-plus additions per month. Statistically, that remains impressive, and confirms the importance of the library as a destination. And yet, while this may sound like an obsessive hunt to find the but among what appear to be sanguine indicators, I cannot help feeling that we need to identify future roles and reasons for the library, even as we bask in the knowledge that statistically, we are indeed meeting expectations and then some.

Some of the impetus for reassessment and identification of new roles is based on strategic changes taking place in the accessability to information. For generations the mission of libraries remained essentially unchanged. Thomas Frey of the DaVinci Institute neatly summarizes this immutable mission as follows: “ Leading up to today libraries have consisted of large collections of books and other materials, primarily funded and maintained by cities or other institutions. Collections are often used by people who choose not to, or can not afford to, purchase books for themselves.” Now, and in the future, the role of library as information arbiter and custodian is changing. From a time when information was scarce and defined as a precious commodity, we have entered irreversibly, a time when information is readily accessible in multiple forms, often as easily retrieved electronically while seated in a coffee house as in an archive, and no longer the preserve of librarians and arcane source materials. You can argue the efficacy of a Google search versus a search conducted with a skilled reference librarian, but as Frey points out, “the vast majority of people with specific information needs no longer visit libraries.” That's a generalization valided by the OCLC Report Perceptions of Library and Information Resources: A Report to the OCLC Membership (2005). Surveying 270,000 information users, the report confirms that "the library is not the first or only stop for information seekers." They are more likely to gravitate to search engines, especially Google, e-mail and instant messaging than the library, the librarians, the library web site, or our vaunted arsenal of databases. Yes, we will continue to attract readers, and it will be some time, if ever, before everything needed or desired in the way of information is available outside a library. I dare say that in our community there will continue to be a need for the information services currently provided. But the general message is not wrong. It should be acknowledged as a tocsin by those institutions determined to play a central role in their communities.

So, while I believe we will maintain our position as an information provider, and empirically, I have not no reason to doubt the importance of that service at this time, continued growth in patronage will be based on our ability to adapt to changing needs and a commitment to regularly reassess the mission of the library. I believe one of the contributing factors in the growth of the library’s user base to date is our willingness to embrace the changing nature of the library as a community institution. Some of this reflects a conscious effort, already underway, to find niches for the library to fill. Exemplary of these, the library has embraced a new role as a passport application center, based on the need for a site to replace the city clerk’s office. This was also a responsibility well suited to the library’s operating hours and constituent needs. With extended hours on Monday-Thursday, and Saturday and Sunday hours on the weekends, the library can accept and review applications outside of the usual 9-5 time frame, thus accommodating shift workers and persons with more than one job. Similarly, new initiatives, like a student internship program introducing high school students to the library profession, an online newsletter to inform and poll constituents on current performance and future needs, an advisory board for our Young Adult collection, are reflections of the transitional state libraries find themselves in, and the critical need to revisit and redefine the mission and responsibilities of community libraries with the participation of community members. On the staff level, there is regular solicition of patron opinions and suggestions, be it via informal chats, program assessments, or in the director’s case by conversations while practicing MBWA, or Management by Walking Around.

Despite some of the ominous tinges to the DaVinci Institute and OCLC findings, libraries are far from vestigial or artifacts. However the previously "assumed" role of information provider is no longer unchallenged. We, like other community libraries will thrive if we are willing to redesign library services to meet the needs and expectations of communities we serve. That will mean providing content in new ways, and in such as fashion that it will be used regularly. As OCLC notes, that means we do more than simply educate information consumers about the current library.It will involve dynamic missions, public engagement, dialogue, and new ideas, among other things. There will continue to be a need for libraries as meeting places, as vehicles for personal enrichment, as places to read as public forums, and as one of the few public spaces where all segments of the community find themselves in proximity to each other and on common ground. It is an exciting time to be a librarian, especially in this library!

2/18/2008

It's a great life if you don't weaken

2008-01-31T16:48:00.000-05:00

It was one of those days when very little you learned in library school provided sufficient preparation for the problems encountered. It is an especially bad sign when the project you began with great expectations at 8:30 remains undone at 4:45, and the results cannot be attributed to personal indolence, or avoidance behavior. It is times like this when my grandmother's favorite aphorism seems eminently suitable: It's a great life if you don't weaken.

Most of today's issues involved personal behavior unfitting a public space or adjacent areas. A prime example: a gent who I ejected from the library last week for unsuitable behavior now sees fit to park in the spaces clearly reserved for staff. When asked to leave, he berates the staff and is generally abusive. (I ought to note here that parking in our downtown area is at a premium. Spaces are so scarce that I truly believe some residents spend more time looking for a space than they do attending to the errand they needed the space for). Just to provide enough parking for the staff we spend over $10,000 a year on reserve spaces. So, ejecting the gent from the precious library spots involves the police, the parking commission, yours truly, and time and energy. If we let it slide and let him leave with a warning he doesn't think we are serious and is emboldened, then shows up later and plants himself in another reserve spot until he is threatened, etc. Life is too short. Today's incident was black comedy, involving the exchange of particular hand signals-yes, that hand signal-acquisition of a name, license number and numerous other details, police reports, interviews, and on and on. It set the tone for a day that involved a gent drinking in the first floor men's room, several patrons well beyond the further limts of sobriety, and similar distractions.

We always hope the library will make a favorable impression, but we also acknowledge and address the less than favorable episodes which occur. Recently we conducted our first web based user's survey, and two issues proved particularly important to the experience of our patrons.Both have the potential to cause the greatest discomfort if not acknowledged.

The first is parking. The lack of public parking is not a new issue, and it is one that continues to bedevil much of the business district. For the record, the library now spends in excess of $10,000 a year just to provide enough spaces to accommodate the library staff. However, given the volume of responses indicating that parking is a chronic problem I will address the situation with the mayor, city manager, and the city council. I kmnow they understand the problem, but given the paucity of space down town, I am not sure how the matter will be resolved. However, we need to keep it at the forefront of public discussion, and we will make every opportunity to do so count.

The other long standing and equally contentious matters are loitering and behavioral issues around the library. Again, these are tribulations of long standing, and might better be defined as business district or down town problems. Most library users, regardless of their circumstances, respect, and acknowledge the sensibilities of the patrons and staff of the library. There is however a core group of inveterately problematic individuals who choose to abuse the library and environs, or conduct themselves in such a fashion that they make themselves obnoxious. When these individuals are identified they are dealt with, and if necessary removed from the library. Some are permanently banned when their conduct is particularly egregious. There are clearly defined rules of deportment posted in the library, and proscribed behavior that will result in ejection from the premises. In the entry way a no smoking and loitering sign is posted, and when contrary behavior is observed either the police or I will intervene. These are exemplary tactical methods for dealing with immediate problems.

The reality is this: as long as there is homelessness in our city, or insufficient means for integrating or caring for individuals with mental health and addiction problems, there will be patrons at the library who view it as a safe haven or a warm/cool refuge from a frequently hostile or indifferent world. As long as an individual’s deportment meets the library standards, they are welcome. The strategic solution to many of the problems which manifest themselves at the library is supportive housing. People with domiciles are less likely to conduct their lives in doorways and on sidewalks or to appear impaired in a public place. This is an issue the city council will debate in February, and I will urge as many patrons to attend as possible. As soon as a date for this discussion is announced word will be disseminated to the public.