I Love the Library
…even when I’m not there.
I read this article that was written a couple months ago which said libraries are becoming more popular than ever even though people are borrowing fewer books. The author Chris Melore says that a research study conducted by WordsRated, a non-commercial international research data and analytics group, analyzed 17,500 libraries over the last three decades and found many of them to be running quite successfully during our peak digital age.
While some may think the government pays the bills for public libraries, it may be surprising to learn that government funding doesn’t cover library operating expenses…Between donations, grants, fines, and fees, the study finds libraries actually have a $17.05 billion budget surplus.
That’s really good news, since it’s never been more expensive to run a library than it is today…Nearly 90 percent of library costs go towards paying staff and other expenses. Just 10 percent actually help take care of library collections. Despite those findings, researchers say library staff are still paid about 35 percent less than the average livable wage for a family of three.
My librarian in middle school taught me how to create citations for essays — that is one of the many reasons why I respect the profession even though I am not a librarian. I remember getting my first demerit in high school for leaving my backpack in the library. A few of my earliest childhood memories revolve around watching Reading Rainbow in a tiny room with a medieval knight suit of armor wearable handicraft replica with a laminated sign that said “Sir Reads-a-lot”.
I didn’t like the piece I wrote before about my educational interests so I erased it from the Internet. Not all libraries are creepy looking. I am going to take more time to think about what I want to study.
I like this refresher on how to support your local library.
