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MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

TODAY'S LIBRARY
Flossie Benton Rogers

Generations of Americans have depended on the public library as a core community institution where they can teach their children the love of reading, search for reference information on how to repair a sink or knit a sweater, and browse for that special book to curl up with for a relaxing evening.  As the world continues to change, so do libraries.  

The new public library is the old library PLUS.  The tools that bring us information are no longer just books, magazines and newspapers, but now include videos, audiocassettes, CD-ROMs, online reference resources, the library’s Web Site, and the Internet.  Librarians continue to be specialists at selecting, organizing, and categorizing information to make finding it easier and faster than ever before.  They are applying those same skills to computers and guiding the public in learning how to use these latest technological tools that are so critical in today’s world.  Libraries are one of the few places where you can get help from an expert -- the librarian -- in finding the precise information you need whether online or in some other form.

The evolving national information infrastructure is making previously unimagined amounts and types of knowledge available online.  While this new technology promises vast riches of information, it also threatens those who can not afford computers or do not know how to use them -- a trend known as the digital divide.  According to the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration, families with incomes over $50,000 are five times more likely to have access to computers and 10 times more likely to have access to online services than other families.  Libraries have historically served as the nation's great equalizers of knowledge, providing books and other resources to all people regardless of their ability to pay.  This role is more critical than ever in the new era of electronic information.  To help bridge the gap between the information rich and information poor, libraries provide free public access to the Internet and other vital resources, and teach people of all ages to use the new technology.

Libraries are places with life changing power where children can get a head start on reading by participating in preschool story hour and where adults can pursue the learning necessary to effect positive life changes.  It can provide powerful opportunities, as shown by the following winning entry from the American Library Association’s Essay Contest “Libraries Change Lives.”

“When I first learned my son Mark had Down’s Syndrome, it seemed like the end.  The library helped me find books to read about this disability that gave me understanding and hope.  I began checking out books for Mark when he was two months old.  I read to him daily.  By the time he was three, he would repeat words from the stories.  For his ability to talk and read today, I thank the library.”  Constance Hodder, Princeton, NJ.

Libraries are places that foster the love of reading and learning in children.  Librarians have always been the guardians of child literacy.  They know how to interest kids in reading.  They know that reading creates strong readers and workers and good citizens.  Illiteracy is a problem that affects us all, perhaps not directly, but indirectly through crime and lost productivity.  Being able to read is a basic survival skill in today's information society.  Without the variety of interesting materials and youth programming that libraries can provide, reading can be boring to kids who are entranced by the excitement of television and video.  In fact, many children who once disliked reading have told librarians they now prefer reading over television, that is, since someone took the time to introduce them to the library.

Libraries serve as community activity centers where people can attend special programs and community groups can meet.  They are also instrumental in providing access to those with disabilities through special needs equipment such as talking books and equipment for the blind, a machine that converts printed words into spoken words, and devices to amplify hearing and enlarge words on a screen.

Libraries are still places to get a good book.  You can find out how to prepare for an interview, plan a trip, or start a business.  You can write a report or resume.  You can check your stocks, search your family tree, or learn how to line dance .  Some question the need for libraries when everyone can get all the information they need from computers in their offices and homes.  Electronic information is not replacing books any more than airplanes have replaced automobiles - just providing another method to obtain information.  In fact, statistics show there are more books, magazines, and newspapers being published today than ever before and that computerization is actually increasing the demand for books.  Computer technology is drawing people into the library and is spurring the use of the library's books and information resources.  Libraries will continue to serve their communities best by focusing on what they have always done well: giving customers the help they need to get the information they need.

Citrus County Library System
Email: suggestions@citruslibraries.org