Good News Rhode Island: Public Libraries, Pt. 1
Summary
TLDRIn this episode of Good News Rhode Island, we explore the evolving role of libraries in Greenville, Cranston, and other communities, highlighting their significance beyond traditional perceptions. Chris LaRue from Greenville Library and Ed Garcia from Cranston Public Library share their journeys to librarianship, underscoring the diversity and modernity of library services. From fostering a love for reading to offering cutting-edge technology like 3D printers, Rhode Island's libraries serve as vital community hubs. They provide access to a wide array of resources, including ebooks and online content, showcasing libraries as dynamic spaces that adapt to the digital age while maintaining their core mission of promoting literacy and information access.
Takeaways
- 😃 Libraries provide a welcoming community space for people of all ages to gather, read, learn and create
- 📚 While formats have changed, libraries still promote literacy, reading and access to information
- 💻 Free public computer and WiFi access meets needs for those without home internet
- 📱 Ebooks, audiobooks and more available for free download to personal devices
- 🚪 Libraries serve as a public square and hub for community groups and events
- 🖨 New technologies like 3D printers allow patrons to design and create their own works
- 🎨 Libraries showcase local art through rotating exhibits and gallery spaces
- 🌎 Online catalogs and interlibrary loan systems expand access to resources
- ✏️ Services help aspiring writers develop their work and tell their stories
- ☺️ Librarians have diverse backgrounds but share a common passion for helping people
Q & A
What is the main role of libraries in communities according to the script?
-Libraries are described as the center of towns and communities, serving as hubs for reading, learning, meeting people, and accessing information and ideas. They have evolved from being strict places with rules to vibrant community centers that offer a wide range of services beyond just borrowing books.
How has the perception of librarians changed from the past to the present in the script?
-The script challenges the old stereotype of librarians as cranky individuals enforcing rules, introducing modern librarians like Chris LaRue and Ed Garcia who represent the diverse roles and services libraries offer today, including technology and community engagement.
What educational background is common among librarians mentioned in the script?
-Both Chris LaRue and Ed Garcia, the librarians mentioned, have history degrees and pursued library science at the graduate level, highlighting the diverse educational backgrounds and paths to becoming a librarian.
What role do computers and digital services play in modern libraries according to the script?
-Computers and digital services have significantly changed libraries, enabling them to offer eBooks, audiobooks, online access to their catalogues, and internet access to the community. Technology has also helped libraries to connect statewide and provide services like 3D printing.
How do libraries maintain relevance in the age of digital media as per the script?
-Libraries maintain relevance by offering current and popular materials, hosting community events, providing access to technology and digital formats, and serving as information centers. Despite the availability of digital media, libraries continue to see high foot traffic and usage.
What are some examples of non-traditional library services mentioned in the script?
-Non-traditional services mentioned include 3D printing, hosting art shows, offering spaces for community events, and providing resources for self-publishing and content creation, demonstrating libraries' roles as multifunctional community centers.
How do libraries cater to all age groups according to the script?
-Libraries offer programs and services for every age, from young children to grandparents. They foster a lifelong relationship with their patrons by hosting age-appropriate events and providing materials suitable for all life stages.
What is the significance of libraries offering free access to computers and Wi-Fi?
-Free access to computers and Wi-Fi is crucial for community members who may not have internet or computer access at home. It supports inclusivity by ensuring everyone has access to digital resources and information, especially important for education, job searching, and personal development.
How do libraries support local artists and community groups?
-Libraries support local artists and community groups by hosting art shows, providing meeting and event spaces, and facilitating community forums. These activities highlight the library's role as a community hub for cultural and civic engagement.
What is the mission of modern libraries as discussed in the script?
-The mission of modern libraries is to provide access to information and ideas in a public space, promoting literacy, digital access, community engagement, and the exchange of diverse ideas. They aim to be the public square of the community, adapting to serve current needs while still focusing on their core mission.
Outlines
📚 Introduction to Good News Rhode Island
The video opens with a warm welcome to 'Good News Rhode Island,' a show dedicated to highlighting the positive aspects of Rhode Island, its people, places, and events. The introduction emphasizes the central role of libraries in community building, recalling childhood memories of libraries as places of discovery, learning, and community engagement. Despite the stereotype of the 'cranky librarian,' the narrative quickly shifts to showcase libraries as vibrant community centers in Greenville and Cranston. The segment introduces guests Chris LaRue from Greenville Library and Ed Garcia from Cranston Public Library, setting the stage for a discussion on the evolving role of libraries and how they remain relevant and integral to community life.
📖 The Evolution and Impact of Libraries
This paragraph delves into the personal journeys of Chris LaRue and Ed Garcia into librarianship, highlighting the diverse backgrounds from which librarians come and the graduate education in library science that shapes their careers. The discussion broadens to reflect on the traditional and modern roles of libraries, illustrating how they have transitioned from quiet, rule-bound spaces to dynamic community hubs offering a wide range of services beyond book lending. The narrative underscores the importance of libraries in providing access to technology, fostering literacy, and serving as inclusive spaces for all ages. It touches on the technological advancements, such as eBooks and online resources, that have expanded libraries' reach and utility, further emphasizing the critical role of libraries in bridging digital divides and fostering community engagement.
🌐 Libraries as Centers for Digital and Community Engagement
The conversation continues to explore the multifaceted services offered by modern libraries, including access to eBooks and audiobooks at no cost to patrons, emphasizing the role of libraries as gateways to a vast array of information and resources. The guests discuss the mission of libraries to serve as public squares where information and ideas flow freely, facilitated by digital technologies and physical spaces for community gatherings. Examples of 3D printing services and art exhibitions illustrate how libraries encourage creativity and serve as cultural hubs. The segment also addresses libraries' efforts to remain relevant amidst the digital media landscape, highlighting the ongoing demand for library services and the unique role libraries play in providing free access to technology, fostering digital literacy, and serving as essential community resources.
🌍 Embracing Technology and Community in Library Services
This paragraph focuses on the innovative approaches libraries are adopting to engage with their communities and adapt to technological changes. It discusses how libraries are not only about lending books but also about facilitating access to information in various formats, including digital. The narrative highlights the redesigned websites of the Greenville and Cranston libraries, aimed at improving user experience and access to resources. The inclusion of services like online book writing tools reflects the libraries' commitment to supporting creative endeavors. The segment conveys a message of libraries as evolving institutions that embrace technology and community engagement, offering a wide range of services that cater to the needs of all age groups and fostering a culture of learning, creativity, and inclusivity.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Community Building
💡Libraries
💡Librarian
💡Ebooks
💡Public Libraries
💡Technology in Libraries
💡Interlibrary Loan System
💡Literacy and Reading Promotion
💡Digital Media
💡Community Programs
Highlights
Librarians have master's degrees and come from diverse educational backgrounds
Libraries still provide print books and promote literacy, but media formats have changed
Libraries want to serve popular interests to stay relevant but also provide great literature
Many people use libraries for free internet and computer access
Libraries provide free wifi, ebooks, and audiobooks accessible remotely
Libraries serve as community centers for meetings, events, tutoring, and public forums
Libraries have maker spaces with 3D printers for creating prototypes and useful items
Libraries host art exhibits, promote local artists, and provide creative outlets
Library websites focus on easy access to catalogs, requests, locations and hours
Libraries have online tools for writing books, developing novels, and self-publishing
Libraries attract people of all ages, from young children to grandparents
Libraries build community across generations by providing first library cards to toddlers
Digital media hasn't replaced libraries, which keep getting busier
Library mission focuses on information, ideas and community in a public space
Libraries enable users to create as well as consume information
Transcripts
hello and welcome to good news Rhode
Island the show about Rhode Island and
the people and places and events that
make Rhode Island a great place to live
that build our communities nothing
builds a community more than the library
all of us know from our childhood of
going to the library finding books
meeting people seeing your friends
finding out new ideas all from the
library teachers always assigned some
work that had to be done in the library
so we're all familiar with that cranky
librarian who comes up to us and tells
us no talking no gum please only have
two books at a time all the rules that
we kept in our minds as we went to the
library libraries have changed their now
really even though we don't recognize it
so well they're really the center of a
town the libraries that we're going to
be interviewing today are in the center
of Greenville and in the center of
Cranston as well as other communities we
know the libraries are near us and we
need to know what they have inside
because usually we assume it's that
cranky old lady so instead of cranky old
ladies I'd like to interview introduced
to you Chris LaRue who's here from the
Greenville library a very wonderful
library that I visited last night and Ed
Garcia who's here from the Cranston
public library I only went to the
central Cranston library but i have to
say i was brought very quickly into the
21st century by seeing what is in those
libraries because my local library is
very small and not given the proper
space that should have in the community
so I was really thrilled to see what
place your libraries have so
let's get started Chris I'm going to ask
you first what does someone do to become
a librarian how did you move into that
job psychologically I'm disorganized and
so I was trying to but I was a history
major in college I was interested in
museum work and I type of thing I ended
up there was no archival classes at that
time or degree so I was told to go to
library school and in library school
which is a graduate program at URI I
began to understand public libraries a
lot better and and that became my career
so you're saying there's some kind of a
link between history the historical
buildings the historical mine ideas that
we've brought with us there what through
our training and then what's what's
there now it's very different but it
still banks on that path there there was
for me the reason that library school is
a graduate program is because it brings
in a lot of diversity people from all
different all different backgrounds
about four degrees okay so degree in
library science is what you have it's a
master's degree okay and how about you
and well for me it's actually funny cuz
i also have a history degree but my
journey to libraries was a somewhat
different mm-hmm i'm actually a fairly
new librarian i just i actually just got
my masters from you or I in 2008 and I'd
spent a long time as a marketing
executive at Sony Music in the music
industry and then I worked at the
American Diabetes Association and I
really thought some of the skills that I
learned in the private sector would be
helpful libraries but I really liked the
aspect of helping people that I learned
at the nonprofit's when I was at the
American Diabetes Association so that i
transitioned in a library school and
become a librarian and you've worked up
through the ranks in the library to
haven't you've tried every job correct
like my first library job was actually
at the central falls public library I
started there as the assistant director
when I finished library school and then
I came back to Cranston and I was a
reference librarian for a couple of
years and then I was the head of our
technology department and then I became
the director in 2012 so there's
something for everyone in in libraries
right well I'd like to start with what
is the same about libraries what what
does someone find who goes in maybe for
the first time they've moved to your
community and they're not sure what
they're going to find what do they find
that they'll recognize in libraries well
I think the core library is still the
same as it was in the 1800s when public
library started to develop in the United
States we still have print books we
still instill the love of reading we
have programs for children to introduce
them to reading the media has changed
the formats changed but the idea that
libraries are information centers and
promote literacy and reading is still
seen a lot of the books that I saw were
very current books that I didn't know
they were going to last 200 years and
that's what people are reading now is
the whatever comes out on the news
that's good to read yeah I mean we
really want to serve the interest of
people want to read now we still have
the great literature the non fiction
historical scientific things that people
need to use or want to read for their
own culture but we want to make sure
that the popular material is that people
are asking for our available central
keeps us relevant that's what keeps
people coming back into the door if we
have the new bestsellers and stock for
them are you in a battle with news media
and not in a battle but in a sort of
survival mode with the news media if you
mean like digit like digital media I
don't think so i think that a lot of
people think that you know because
things are available digitally that
there's no place for a library yet we
keep getting busier and busier and the
central library in cranston we have a
thousand people that come through the
door every day so just because stuff is
available in other media doesn't mean it
makes us less relevant it's just we have
to deliver our content in different ways
how do you think the computers change
libraries well they've changed them a
lot
you know currently what we're looking at
is ebooks in the audio which is the
downloadable format of what was the
print book on paper print book on paper
is still extremely popular it's still
the biggest circulating item that we
have but but the ebooks are going up
astronomically but on the other hand
technology has also helped us to connect
all the libraries together so that
someone can find out what's at any
library in the state from home or from a
computer in the library and we have a
very good interlibrary loan system you
know delivery system people go into your
library to use computers I mean that's
one of the main draws at least in the in
the library that's near me the main draw
is that they have some computer a lot of
computer stations you had a lot of quiet
space you had a lot of computer space
where people could use your computers or
bring their own it seems to me that
people need quiet space now and the
library is that in the even though
there's a lot going on behind the scenes
yeah I think some people might not think
that our building is as quiet as maybe
they remember their but this is a lot of
activity but the computers are really
important for us because there's a lot
of people that either don't have access
to computers at home can't afford a
computer can't afford the internet and
we provide that we're the only place and
the community that people can go and
have free access to use those services
we also have free Wi-Fi I think everyone
library in the state has free Wi-Fi now
so people can come in and bring their
own devices if they need to that happens
a lot if there's a storm we've had
instances where we never lost power the
rest half the city loses power that
every chair is full of someone on a
laptop trying to charge their thing
using our Wi-Fi and sometimes we go to
libraries when we're traveling because
it's the place we know we can get
internet if we really need it so the
other thing I saw was that you have
books that someone can put into their
own computer at their house and get
access remotely is that true did I
understand that correctly we have you
books
chronic books which is what I was
gradual but that was in a in an orc
right that you take home well there's
there's various ways they it can be down
some of them can be downloaded onto your
laptop or computer some of them are put
on to a kindle or a nuke some of them on
an iPad or whatever it depends on the
format okay so someone can sit in their
home and download a book from your
library yes that's correct I'm a hybrid
collection and what do they pay for that
nothing haha and it's it's an audiobook
it could be an audiobook or it could be
an e-book in text I have if you have
your own kindle or nook you can you can
go onto the website it's called the e
zone and you can download a book right
to it or you can download an audiobook
okay the definition that i read on one
of your websites was i think it was
yours in cranston the philosophy of our
the operating philosophy of the mission
is information and ideas in a public
place you want to talk about that that's
really an interesting change and
definition I thought I've oh my you know
again I've haven't been a librarian for
a long time I think that's always been
library our libraries mission since
libraries were inception it's just it's
just that now we have the space for
ideas and information and different we
still print we have digital formats but
we also consider ourselves kind of like
the public square of the community we
have meeting room space that gets used
by a daily basis by a myriad of
organizations community groups come in
and use our space we're hosting a
candidates forum in two weeks with
candidates from first city council
school comedian Cranston we have tutors
that come in so that's kind of what we
talked about us being like at the public
square of the community having all the
information and ideas we've been trying
to do stuff with technology because we
also feel that users should know just
have to kind of borrow and consume other
people's ideas and information but be
able to create their own so I know that
you know both Chris and I have 3d
printers and our libraries and that
allows people to kind of design and
their own their own content whether it's
a toy or something a useful piece of
something and a lot of libraries are
doing that with self publishing and
other things to allow people to really
create their own information that's our
doctor who tardis doctor who tardis done
by computer a whale with a whole city on
its back and a hot air balloon I think
and there's little owls owls and then
you have a card holder that you yeah
this is actually like so when you 3d
print something doesn't have to always
be a good kind of a toy it could be
something that's useful so this is a
business card holder that we put
together something that's useful that
you can print out and anyone can come in
and use that machine yep you can just
call in set up an appointment to come
use it alright we're also print out
things for you if you send us a design
will print it out for you if you can't
make it down into the building okay so
if you need an extra layer of teeth or
extra you can do that is that right pull
them out put them down I've seen that
being done i'm not sure those are more
advanced printers no i don't know if i
want blue team yeah problem the people
who come to the library are every single
age that also is very impressive when I
was at the library's yesterday I saw
people of every age very young children
I saw a little girl reading to her
mother I saw grandmother's there with
little kids I saw every every age is
that something that you're also trying
to foster is making it multi-age yeah I
think it's always been that way yeah I
mean you have people that come in get
their first library card when there are
toddler and they stay until their
grandparents and they bring their own
grandkids and I think that's been kind
of universal for libraries let's talk a
little bit about the extra space that
you have to you have rooms that are used
for art shows for example there is a
photography show now at the Cranston
central library
quite lovely art of nature and its class
is that right yeah that's from a art
school in warlick and every one of those
prints was lovely and they're for sale
to raise money for the libraries that
right or raise money the artist just
have them for sale oh the artists are
raising okay um yeah we have our shows
every month of the year we do an art
show at the central library someone from
Princeton or someone from Rhode Island
or all over the state we have people
from Cranston Providence there's certain
there's a brown exhibit every year that
comes in the Cranston school department
in May every year does the art fest
where they have students every depict
students are every great every art class
and they did this huge exhibit in the
library every month we've had traveling
exhibits so we did a traveling exhibit
from Taiwan at art william hall library
or two years ago so we do rhode island
or abroad okay and you were telling you
were telling me about your website maybe
you both want to talk about your
websites because i wanted to have those
out on a computer but it's not possible
here in the studio to bring the website
here but i wanted you to talk about your
website so that people knew how to
negotiate them our websites actually
branded we just launched the two weeks
ago we just did or a complete redesign
of it and we had been looking at our old
site what we decided to do was what are
the things that people want to see them
that access the most where our locations
when are we open how to out of access
and request materials so we made that
the cat the online catalog you can
request books from up and center right
on the front center of the page and so
make it easier for people to find that
so we just trying to make this site as
easy as possible to navigate for for
people so our older sites had maybe more
navigation issues so we really tried to
clean them a little I was very it was
very very clear your website had an
offer for people to pup to write a book
online or pencil it says
it's a it's a new database that we
subscribe to or a service that we
subscribe to that helps writers to
develop the novel or bio or whatever it
is that they that they want to do that's
something that we subscribe to so green
go over you'd have to have Greenville
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