Sun Nov 08 2009
By LISA NICELY
There's more time for books in Defiance County.
The Defiance Public Library system will be extending its hours starting on Sunday due to voter-supported tax dollars. The new revenue will also mean restoration of some staffing cutbacks and implementation of new programs.
"We did a survey of our patrons through the end of November and asked them what hours they would like us to be open," said Marilyn Hite, library director. "The hours are ones suggested from the survey. I'm pleased with the schedule."
Voters defeated a .5-mill, five-year levy in May 2006, which resulted in cutbacks, including reduced hours at Defiance Public Library and its two branch locations, Johnson Memorial in Hicksville and Sherwood Branch Library.
In May, Defiance County voters approved a new .75-mill, five-year operating levy. The levy will generate approximately $500,000 a year, and the additional revenue will be available in March. In September, the library district restored some hours, rather than waiting until 2008. This month, those hours will be extended further.
"We decided to wait until January to get our staff in and have them trained as well as waiting until after the holidays," said Hite.
Additionally, the library is refilling some posts, including part-time positions with adult services, an aide and circulation. A branch position in Sherwood will also be filled. An employee, who had been dividing his time between the Sherwood and Hicksville branches, will be stationed at Johnson Memorial.
The staff will be a great asset to customer service with the extended library hours, said Hite.
Ten hours were added to the schedule for Defiance Public Library, with the library opening its doors once again on Fridays.
Hours for Monday-Thursday remain the same, from 9:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Friday hours will be from 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Weekend hours were extended also. Saturday hours will be from 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. and on Sunday, 1-5:30 p.m.
During the summer months, the library will be closed on Sundays from Memorial Day through Labor Day weekends.
Four additional hours have also been added to the schedule of Johnson Memorial Library. The library will be open later two nights a week. New hours are Monday, Tuesday and Thursday from 12-8 p.m., Wednesday from 9 a.m.-8 p.m., Friday from 12-6 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m.-12 p.m.
Sherwood hours will remain the same.
Besides the additional library times, there are a few other projects in the works at the library.
"The levy money will also help us increase our book buying for the first time in five years," said Hite, adding that more books, e-books and audio/visual materials will be purchased. "We were cutting back to help balance our budget," she said. "It's so exciting to add books to our collection. Our collection is undersized for our communities."
In addition to more books, the library will be adding a new program this year to support early literacy efforts. The Ohio Ready to Read program is an effort by the Ohio Library Council and State Library of Ohio. It stresses six skills children need to know: vocabulary, print awareness, letter knowledge, phonological awareness, narrative skills and print motivation. The program's use was suggested to libraries statewide by Gov. Ted Strickland.
"Our first goal is to set up an environment in the library where parents, caregivers or day care providers can come in with children," said Hite. "These will be fun places for kids to be and will emphasize skills to prepare them to read."
A board in the youth services section already hosts some penguins with the letter P around them to focus on letter knowledge.
There will also be activities set up for children to do, no matter when they visit the library. Storytimes, too, will formally focus on the six skills from the Ready to Read program. Storytimes already informally introduced these skills to children.
"Nearly $22,000 of the levy funds will be put aside to fund the program in 2008," said Hite. "That will buy equipment, supplies and materials for all three of our libraries to get the program off the ground. At the end of spring, some components will be off the ground."
Hite said the program should be up in full force by September.
"We'll do our part to make sure the kids get off to a good start for school," she said. "We are helping the future do what it needs to succeed."
The Defiance Public Library system will also continue to hold other programs for individuals of all ages including book discussions, knitting, movies and gaming.
There are several other projects in the works. The board of trustees is looking at long-range planning for 2008 and beyond.
Technology-wise, the library will be adding to its e-library collection with TumbleBooks for young children. That is tied to the launch of the completely revamped website, expected sometime this month.
Additionally, the library is looking to have a computer specifically for digital downloads of e-books and other digital material, a self-checkout and a computer reservation system for Internet use.
"Our goal is to be very customer service friendly," said Hite. "We will continue to offer and have many programs and services to benefit our patrons."
For more information on the capital campaign, phone 419-591-3840.
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