LibGuides: Value: Public Libraries & Value

Value Content

Abram, Stephan. Upping Our Game: Unlocking Real Value in Libraries Information Today. 2015.
American Library Association. I Love Libraries. Library Value Calculator. 1997‐2013.
Barron, Dave. South Carolina Public Library Impact Study. SLIS. 2005
Crawford, Walt. Give Us a Dollar and We’ll Give You Back Four 2013.
Crawford, Walt. $4 to $1: Public Library Benefits and Bud Newman, R. (2012).
Durrance, Joan C., and Karen E. Fisher. How Libraries and Librarians Help: A Guide to Identifying User‐Centered Outcomes. Chicago: American Library Association, 2005.
Economic Impact of Libraries in New York City. New York, NY.
FELS Research & Consulting. The Economic Value of the Free Library in Philadelphia. 2010.Florida Department of State. Taxpayer Return on Investment in Florida Public Libraries. 2003, 2008, 2013.
Gross, Valerie. J. Moving Up to First Class: Libraries = Education. Public Libraries. July/August. 2015.
Holt, Glen E., Donald Elliott, and Amonia Moore. Placing a Value on Public Library Services. St. Louis Public Library. PLA, 1996.
Imholz, Susan, and Jennifer Weil Arns. “Worth Their Weight: An Assessment of the Evolving Field of Library Valuation.” Public Libraries Quarterly, 2007.
Johnson, C. A. Do public libraries contribute to social capital?: A preliminary investigation into the relationship. Library & Information Science Research, 2010.
KC Consensus Statement. Making Book, Gambling on the Future of Libraries. 2004.
Kassel, Amelia. “Practical Tips to Help You Prove Your Value.” Marketing Library Services 16, no. 4 (2002).
Library Board of Queensland. The Library Dividend Summary Report: A guide to the socio-economic value of Queensland’s public libraries. State Library of Queensland. 2012.
Library Research Service. Return on Investment for Public Libraries. 2011.
Newman, W. Third generation public libraries: Visionary Thinking and Service Development in Public Libraries (to 2020) and Potential Application in Ontario. Toronto: Ontario Ministry of Tourism and Culture. 2013
OCLC. “Public Libraries: Return on Investment/ROI” n.d.
OCLC. At a Tipping Point. 2014.
PEW Charitable Trusts (2012) The Library in the City: Changing Demands and a Challenging Future. 2010
Policy Research Institute. The Role of Public Libraries in Local Economic Development. University of Kansas. 2000.
Preer, Jean. “Where Are Libraries in Bowling Alone?” American Libraries 32, no. 8 (2001).
Rao, G. C. The Great Equalizer: The Case For Investing In the Toronto Public Library. Toronto: Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. 2012.
Santa Clara County Library Disrict. 2013 Return on Investment Report. 2013.
SPL. The Seattle Public Library Central Library: Economic Benefits Assessment Social Inclusion Audit and Toolkit. (CULC/CBUC). 2005
Tenopir, Carol. “Investment in the Library: What’s the Return?” American Library Association. Midwinter Conference. Boston, 2010.
Tenopir, Carol. “Value and Impact Workshop.” American Library Association Annual Conference. Washington, D.C.: Association of Research Libraries, 2010.
TSLAC. Texas Public Libraries Return on Investment Study Available. TSLAC. 2012.
TPL. The Economic Impact of the Toronto Public Library. 2013.
Urban Libraries Council. Making Cities Stronger: Public Library Contributions to Local Economic Development. Washington, DC: Urban Institute. 2007.

What does value mean in Public Libraries?

Although one might think that identifiying the value a public library has to a community is hard to do, a focus on economic development as well as more and substantive impact public community studies have made it possible.

In fact, examples of the economic value of public libraries are not only available but replicable for libraries needing the focus to convince their constituents. That being said, one definition of "what is value" is almost impossible given the nature of communities is so individual and ever-changing.