LA County Library Is Library of the Year 2019
Library
Journal: 5.28.2019 by John N. Berry III
 |
The
LA County Library is the 2019
Gale/LJ Library of the Year. That accolade is story enough, but this year the
news is enhanced by another breakthrough. With this win, LA County Library
becomes the only library to win the Gale/LJ Library of the Year award in the
same year that its director was named LJ’s Librarian of the Year—that’s Skye
Patrick. And, in late 2018, LA County Library had developed such dynamic,
skillful ways to tell its story that its marketing team won the LJ Marketer of
the Year Award.
This
impressive hat trick was set in motion in 2016 when Patrick took the helm as
director, bringing a vision that has since transformed the library system. That
ideal focuses every LA County library and service on equity of access and
education for every person in the 3,000 square mile area served by the system,
no matter their age, gender, ethnicity, origin, sexual orientation,
socioeconomic or legal status, nationality, or physical ability and has spurred
robust innovation, organizational change, and broad implementation of new
approaches across the library system.
THE
WINNING FORMULA
Connecting
directly with the library’s customers and finding out what they want and need
is one key to LA County Library’s transformation. Training the staff to focus
on equity and to recognize and eliminate hidden biases was another. Developing
programs and services for underserved and marginalized populations was a third.
Recognizing and responding to the fact that each community is constantly
changing and staff must work to stay abreast of that change and serve the needs
it creates is crucial. Finally, seeking out both public sector and private
partners, especially those who also serve the same community, is essential.
That is the formula that transformed LA County Library; made its programs,
services, and staff a model for the future of libraries; and won recognition as
the Gale/LJ Library of the Year.
═════════►
LJ
editor panelists select up to six finalists from among the total pool of
entries and invite external judges to participate, including one representative
from Gale Cengage Learning, the award’s
sponsor; the judges each choose their first-, second-, and third-place
candidates from that field and convey their vote to the coordinating LJ editor.
Each vote is assigned a corresponding point value, and each vote is given equal
weight. The cumulative totals determine each year’s award winner and honorable
mentions; any ties are broken by LJ editors.
LIBRARY
OF THE YEAR 2019 SPECIAL MENTION
 |
BILL
PTACEK l CEO
Canada’s
Calgary Public Library has seen a 44 percent increase in active members over
the past three years. Its impressive, award-winning new Central Library opened
in November 2018 (see “Calgary Rises, LJ 11/15/2018, p. 32ff). Literally
connecting parts of the city that had formerly been bisected by a light rail
line (now straddled by the building), it not only serves as a hub for
collaboration and community, but also became a driver of system-wide culture
change.
 |
BRIAN
BANNON l COMMISSIONER & CEO
Chicago
Public Library (CPL) is no stranger to these pages, figuring as a special
mention in 2018 as well. The system goes from strength to strength, innovating on
everything from physical plant, with four branches co-locating with affordable
housing among 12 new and 18 updated branches, to nationally recognized
laundromat story times, and from a partnership with Illinois WorkNet to develop
training modules to make the most of this statewide resource to Peer to Peer
Learning Circles that successfully change the MOOC narrative and help distance
students persist and succeed in online courses thanks to in-person support. READ
MORE >>
2018 San Francisco Public Library, San
Francisco, CA
2017 Nashville Public Library, Nashville, TN
2016 Topeka & Shawnee County Public
Library, Topeka, KS
2015 Ferguson Municipal Public Library,
Ferguson, MO
2014 Edmonton Public Library, Alberta, Canada
2013 Howard County Library System, MD
2012 San Diego County Library, CA
2011 King County Library System, WA
2010 Columbus Metropolitan Library, OH
2009 Queens Library, NY
2008 Laramie County Library System, WY
2007 Worthington Libraries, OH
2006 Salt Lake City Public Library , UT
2005 Fayetteville Public Library, AR
2004 San Jose Public Library/San Jose State,
University Library, CA
2003 Las Vegas Clark County Library District,
NV
2002 Kalamazoo Public Library, MI
2001 Richland County Public Library, Columbia,
SC
2000 Gwinnett County Public Library,
Lawrenceville, GA
1999 The Valley Library, Oregon State
University, Corvallis, OR
1998 Medina County District Library, OH
1997 Ann Arbor District Library, MI
1996 Broward County Library, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
1995 Public Library of Charlotte &
Mecklenburg County, NC
1994 Brown County Library, Green Bay, WI
1993 Austin Public Library, TX
1992 Redwood City Public Library, CA
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