Libraries: More Than Just Books
By: Lora Parsons
The Ashland Beacon
King Ashurbanipal, Euripides and Emperor Shih Huang-ti all had some form of a library with texts recorded on scrolls, clay tablets, papyrus or vellum, each collection sharing the purpose of archiving the thumbprint of their society. Inspired by these earlier forms of a library and motivated by the expense of books, Benjamin Franklin pooled his financial resources with his contemporaries, starting The Library Company of Philadelphia. Mimicking libraries of the Ancient World, he effectively fathered libraries in the U.S., though the earliest were only accessible by the shareholders who contributed books to them. After opening them to the public, patrons were required to leave a deposit equivalent to the cost of the book they checked out which was refunded to them upon the book’s return. These earlier versions of a library don’t look like today’s, but they all have one thing in common: information collection and sharing.
Serving the community through information is at the heart of today’s libraries, which are in no short supply in our area. Boyd County operates three branches--Catlettsburg, Midland and the main branch on Central Avenue--as does Greenup County--Flatwoods, McKell and the main branch on Main Street. Beyond the public libraries, every school in our area also provides library services to its students. Add to these the libraries at Ashland Community Technical Center and Southland Bible Institute, and the count rises to over 30 libraries in Greenup and Boyd Counties--28 in K-12 schools, six public branches, and two colleges. And that doesn’t include local churches or our Ashland Area Tool Library (where patrons can check out tools instead of texts). We are simply surrounded by resources and information!
As our society has grown, so has the type of information we need and the methods we use to access that information. Quickly peruse the public library’s webpage to find an almost overwhelming list of services available on a wide range of topics--from job assistance to voting registration to tutoring to notary public. Everyone will find something of interest. The resources available to (figuratively and literally) check out inside the walls of a library are innumerable. And, it’s precisely this variety that Summit Elementary School student, Frederick Molinary loves: “I have a bunch of fantasy and nonfiction books to choose from, and I like the SpheroHero and 3-D printing!”
While things inside the library are vast and cover a wide range of topics, part of what makes a library special is the space itself. Movies and television often depict libraries being silent, almost sterile environments where patrons are shushed for rifling the pages of a book too loudly. But, visiting a library proves that false. They aren’t exactly noisy places, but there’s an audible energy about a space dedicated to information gathering--a calm hum that draws patrons in, where curiosity is quenched and knowledge grows. The walls of libraries often hold memorabilia to connect patrons to the past, like the art on display inside Boyd County High School’s library. Or, perhaps they hold inspiring messages to prompt creativity and critical thinking, spurring patrons on by encouraging growth and development. They might even display advertisements of current events or community opportunities to connect patrons to their current world. Whatever it is that fills the space, patrons of all ages, all walks of life, all abilities, all ideologies, will find a welcoming, warm environment where they can get access to resources at their fingertips.
The information available may be the main attraction to a library, but people found there is another layer that makes libraries such special places. Visitors to libraries will always find library staff eager to help connect patrons to the information they need; it’s their passion. Letitia Rudie is the Library Media Specialist at Summit Elementary in Boyd County and described her job as being one in which she “teach[es] students how to access, evaluate, and use information ethically and effectively. [Librarians] also teach technology skills including digital citizenship and internet safety which is a must as a 21st century learner.” The skills librarians help students hone are often focused on identifying what information is needed and finding a resource that holds it. Deidra Bowling-Meade, Library Media Specialist at Paul Blazer High School, said: “We teach [students] how to find credible, valid information and then take that information [and] turn it into a product.” The people inside the walls are often the missing link between resource and patron.
Debbie Cosper from the main branch of the Boyd County Public Library expounded on that idea, reminding patrons--if finances are the barrier between a person and information, the library will break down that wall. If vision is the barrier, the library has solutions. If reading is the barrier, the library can provide information in a different format. In so many ways, our public libraries help to level the playing field. Bowling-Meade reiterated this same sentiment in pin-pointing that NOT providing information in these sorts of multiple formats is a true disservice to the public that they benefit. A library’s main purpose is, of course, to make information available to patrons, but in our technology-rich society, the question has become less about WHAT a library might offer, and more about HOW patrons want to access that information, according to Cosper. She said: “Material is now often available as regular print, large print, digitally…you can listen to it, watch it.... We provide information in the way that [patrons] access it the best” --and without cost. This fact isn’t lost on Summit Elementary student, Allison Smith: “I like how there’s a bunch of different activities because it helps us learn in a bunch of different ways.” Libraries are in the business of serving everyone, and even the youngest patrons recognize this.
With the people, places and things of libraries being so special, it’s no wonder that the month of April is chock full of various ways to celebrate our libraries. All of April is National School Library Month; we just wrapped up National Library Week (April 7th-13th); and, this past Tuesday was National Librarian Day (April 16th). If you missed these, don’t fret. Tuesday, April 23rd is World Book Day. Don’t miss out on another opportunity to celebrate the treasure we have in our local area’s libraries. Step into the magic of one of them, and thank our local librarians for the work they do to curate, preserve, and share information in accessible, relevant ways for us all.