This book highlights the challenges that small and rural libraries experience and offers best practices to contend with them with limited resources.
Nearly 50% of libraries in the United States are considered small or rural. These libraries face unique challenges and issues that continue to manifest as libraries contend with the systematic problem of access to information.
These challenges include:
- Financial barriers such as the drying up of recent federal and local grant funds for both rural municipalities and public libraries specifically.
- Broadband accessibility for those in rural areas
- The shift from face to face to virtual programs.
- Ebook access
- Mobile hotspot circulation and community access points outside the library
- Book challenges and a changing political environment
How can librarians address these accessibility issues? This book highlights these challenges and offers best practices to contend with them given the limited resources rural libraries have access to.
This book highlights the challenges that small and rural libraries experience and offers best practices to contend with them with limited resources.
Muu info
This book highlights the challenges that small and rural libraries experience and offers best practices to contend with them with limited resources.
Introduction
Chapter 1: The History of the Rural Public Library
Chapter 2: Rural Libraries Today
Chapter 3: Internet Connectivity in Rural Libraries
Chapter 4: Rural Public Library Funding
Chapter 5: Rural Library Programming
Chapter 6: Internet Outside the Walls of The Library
Chapter 7: Partnerships and Outreach
Chapter 8: Political Issues and Legislation
Chapter 9: The Future of the Rural Public Library
Index
About the Author
Jennifer Thiele is an Assistant Professor of Professional Practice in the School of Information Studies at Louisiana State University. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee in 2016 with her dissertation focusing on public library internet connectivity in rural areas of the United States, and the funding structures and programs that supported librarians bridging the digital divide. Dr. Thiele was the recipient of the American Library Association's award for Notable Dissertations in 2017, and has taught classes in rural libraries, public library administration and readers' advisory. She has also taught and developed core coursework for rural public librarian certification programs in the state of Wisconsin. From 2008-2021, Dr. Thiele served as Director of the Marinette County Library System.
