Connecting with libraries, reaffirming our mission

Earlier this month, Columbus wasn’t just the capital of Ohio, but a center of knowledge and literacy as it welcomed public library professionals to the Public Library Association 2024 Conference. Hosting this conference was a testament to Columbus’s status as a hub of technical and educational engagement, and to the important role that public library professionals play in our country’s intellectual and civic lives. That focus continued with National Library Week 2024. This year’s theme, “Ready, Set, Library!” was such a great way to think about libraries—not only as places where learning, growth, and education happen, but as active, engaged partners in so many ways.

OCLC staff were very much involved at PLA and during National Library week. So now that things have calmed down a bit, I want to take a moment to reflect on what libraries mean to me.

In a letter to the Columbus Dispatch during PLA, I celebrated the wealth of Ohio’s library resources. The Columbus Metropolitan Library is recognized among the nation’s elite and exemplifies the strength of Ohio’s library network, which comprises 251 public library locations statewide. According to the Ohio Library Council, more than 7.7 million Ohioans hold library cards and together they make close to 40 million library visits in a year. They use public library computers more than 5.7 million times per year and borrow, download, or stream library resources more than 166 million times.

So many ways “to library”

One thing that struck me as I met with colleagues at PLA and absorbed all the great stories from National Library Week is how flexible today’s library workers must be. Yes, of course, they still help people access knowledge in so many ways. But they are increasingly:

  • Relied upon to evaluate the validity of information
  • On the front lines of media literacy and information advocacy
  • Assisting small businesses with services that drive local economic growth
  • Providing social services related to substance abuse and homelessness
  • Guiding immigrants through the citizenship process
  • Helping students get financial aid

And so many more things that, traditionally, many don’t even associate with libraries.

Library workers also regularly advocate for equitable access to educational materials, while also championing privacy. That can be a tricky needle to thread, but they do it, and it makes a difference.

What do librarians want to learn?

To keep up with all these changes—and because it’s part of their DNA—library workers are always looking for ways to learn and grow. If you look at the most popular webinars provided by WebJunction—a free service provided by OCLC—you’ll find an incredibly wide range of topics that speaks to how widely informed today’s library workers need to be. Some of our most popular programs include:

While these webinars are aimed at public library workers, many of the topics are applicable to those who work in academic, research, community college, and special libraries, too.

Getting libraries the attention they deserve

Events like National Library Week and the Public Library Association convention are great ways for those of us working in and with the profession to get fired up about our love for libraries. And here at OCLC, we enjoy these events and celebrations because they remind us that the work we do resonates far beyond our walls here in Columbus, Ohio. It gives me such energy and excitement to go back and work on projects like:

It also gives all of us at OCLC a great sense of personal pride to be able to focus on libraries every day of the year. When the conferences are over and everyone moves on, we still get to spend our days finding new ways to connect people to libraries.

Related Posts: