Adding to Our Community
Strong and vibrant public libraries are the cornerstone of vital and stable communities. Public libraries are the literal and figurative center of our neighborhoods, cities and counties. Increasingly, however, people in our communities are forced to make hard decisions about which services they can continue to support, which are vital and which are just nice to have. Capital Area residents want and deserve strong public libraries that continue to meet the education, information and recreation need of our young people, our business community and our seniors.
Our Stats
Library services are more critical than ever before. Residents of Ingham County have followed a recent nation-wide trend of turning to libraries in record numbers. In 2009, CADL circulated over 2.7 million items. Over 1.5 million people passed through our doors, and 1.3 million visited our Web site. Special library events drew 51,000 attendees. That same year, our wireless usage increased 256% as we provided over 284,000 hours of Internet access.
The number of people visiting CADL locations has increased considerably over the last 10 years. New offerings such as downloadable books and WIFI are one reason for the increase, but another is the tough economy. Many research studies point to increased use of public libraries when times are tough, as a way to help people make their dollars stretch farther.
“Every year, Americans visit the library more often than we go to
the movies and six times more often than we attend live sporting events
(including professional and NCAA football, baseball, basketball and
hockey).”
- OCLC primary research, 2010
“Library cards are about as prevalent as credit cards. Two-thirds of
Americans have a library card. For many young people, the first card in
their wallet is a library card.”
- OCLC primary research, 2010
Public libraries are the one place where knowledge and opportunity are open to everyone. They serve as an excellent support resource at a time when school budgets are stretched thin and those who don’t have computers and Internet service at home are at a growing disadvantage. From 2005 to 2009, CADL added 14% more public computers in response to the ever-increasing demand.
“A study by the Gates Foundation found that 50 percent of children
surveyed use library computers to do their schoolwork, and that youth
from low-income families are disproportionately likely to use library
computer resources.”
- Gates Foundation
Along with an increase in the number
of public computers, CADL saw an increase in the number of hours those
computers are used. Between 2005-2009, we had a 5% increase in computer
hours used.
“Public libraries provide the only access to computers and the Internet
for many people, including those who are lower-income, minority,
unemployed or have less than a high school education.”
- Pew Internet & American Life Project
CADL’s collection of books, movies, music
and more continues to be heavily used. From 2005 to 2009, we had an
increase of 41% in the number of items checked out from our
libraries.
“U.S. public libraries circulate as many materials every day as FedEx
ships packages worldwide. U.S. public library circulation: 8 million
materials daily. FedEx shipments worldwide: 7.9 million shipments
daily. We enjoy $82 million of value every day from the materials we
check out at libraries.”
- OCLC primary research, 2010
To help meet the ever-increasing demand
for our books, movies, music and more, we continually add to our
collections. Between 2005 and 2009, we added 18% more items. Most of
our collection is available for online browsing; visit cadl.org/catalog
to get an idea of all we have to offer.
“Every day, Americans borrow 2.1 million DVDs from libraries, and we
spend over $22 million for DVD rentals at outlets like Netflix and
Redbox vending machines.”
- OCLC primary research, 2010
With the introduction of the Kindle,
iPhone and other devices, downloadable books have become incredibly
popular. To help meet the increasing demand for this format, CADL
increased the size of its downloadable collection almost 500% between
2005 and 2009. Visit cadl.org/emedia to get
started.
“ There are 3,000,000 people in the U.S. reading an eBook on their
iPhone.”
- NextSpace OCLC Newsletter, January 2010
CADL’s website has grown and changed over
the years, evolving from a static online bulletin board to an
interactive and indispensable gateway to information. Between 2005 and
2009, visits to cadl.org increased 134%. In 2009, we had more visits to
our website than to all of our locations combined, making it almost
like our “14th location.” In addition to hosting our library catalog,
the website provides access to a wide variety of local, national and
international resources, including premium subscriptions to scholarly
and reliable information, something you cannot find using Google.
“Many search engines cannot gain access to certain pages and online
databases that contain vital information – much of which can be
accessed through library subscription services.”
- Pew Internet & American Life Project
CADL began offering free WIFI access at our
libraries in 2008. It has proven to be a very popular service,
providing access to the Internet and making library resources available
at people’s fingertips. For those who cannot afford Internet service at
home, or who live where it is not available, this library service is
invaluable.
“Most public libraries provide free wireless Internet access for their
users. Nearly 12,000 now offer free WIFI. That’s more than Starbucks,
Barnes & Noble or Borders.”
- OCLC primary research, 2010
