2013

36% of school librarians rated connecting young people to reading and lifelong learning as the top satisfaction of their jobs

June 2013

Image Source: Mark Tuchman, http://www.slj.com/2013/05/research/sljs-2013-job-satisfaction-survey/ School Library Journal recently surveyed more than 1,000 school and public librarians to pinpoint sources of job satisfaction and dissatisfaction within the field. For both school and public librarians, connecting young people to reading and lifelong learning rated first for offering satisfaction with their jobs. Working with young people and […]

Measuring the Impact of Libraries

June 2013

In the June 2013 issue of Computers in Libraries, Moe Hosseini-Ara and Rebecca Jones have an article, “Overcoming Our Habits and Learning to Measure Impact.” They highlight 5 issues that libraries struggle with when measuring impact: 1. Libraries do not set targets for their measures. 2. There’s not enough understanding of stakeholders’ value measures. 3. […]

National Public Library Data Updated

May 2013

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) recently updated the “Search for Public Libraries” and “Compare Public Libraries” online tools with the FY2011 PLS unimputed data. You can find a link to the tools from the PLS main web page at:  http://www.imls.gov/research/public_libraries_in_the_united_states_survey.aspx

The Weekly Number: 425,000+ Coloradans increased their digital literacy skills through the BTOP project

May 2013

The BTOP buzz continues! Recently wrapped, the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) awarded more than $4 billion to 233 projects nationwide. ALA’s “U.S. Public Libraries and Broadband Technology Opportunities Program” report highlights state and local library BTOP projects across the country, which served about 20 percent of all U.S. public libraries. Nationally, programs funded by […]

Pleased Patrons: CTBL Maintains Excellent Service Record

May 2013

The Colorado Talking Book Library (CTBL) provides free library services to more than 6,000 patrons who, because of physical, visual, or learning disabilities are unable to read standard print material. In 2012 a survey was given to patrons of CTBL, where they shared their thoughts about the library’s services. Of the 549 patrons who responded […]

New Fast Facts: More Opportunities, Lower Pay: 2012 Insights from Library Jobline

May 2013

Our new Fast Facts uses data from Library Jobline to evaluate Colorado’s library job climate. In 2012, almost 400 library jobs were posted to Library Jobline, thus marking the third year in a row in which there was an increase in the number of jobs posted. Although there appear to be more opportunities for library-related […]

Preliminary 2012 Public Library Data Now Available

March 2013

Preliminary data from the 2012 Colorado Public Library Annual Report (PLAR) is now available: :  http://lrs.org/documents/plstat12/preliminary-2012-plar-2013-03-22.xls. Preliminary Status A few libraries are still working on getting their data in, however, the vast majority have submitted their reports. The data is considered preliminary until we receive data from all public libraries and all edit checks have […]

Make the case for school libraries with our new impact studies infographic

February 2013

Our new infographic presents highlights of all of LRS’s school library impact studies in an accessible and concise format. We hope this will be an effective tool for school library advocates! Two versions of the infographic are available: -One is optimized for online viewing -And, the second is optimized for printing A printing note: if […]