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Reports from the Forums| Report - Public Perspectives: Libraries in Scott County, Iowa |
The following is a summary about this report from Jennifer Wilding:
In 2005, the four public libraries in the county surrounding Davenport, Iowa, were facing the same kinds of pressures being faced by many libraries around the country. At the state and local level, government leaders were pushing all government services, including libraries, to operate more efficiently. The libraries hired Consensus, a Kansas City-based nonprofit with extensive background in research and deliberation, to conduct a study and public engagement to help them determine what changes they should make. After months of study, Consensus developed a discussion guide and deliberative survey that presented three options - become more independent, collaborate more, and unify into one library. The results showed the tradeoffs people were and were not willing to make, as well as some misconceptions about library service that would have a major impact on gaining support for changes.
As America's libraries increasingly use deliberation as a means to encourage civic engagement, they are also using deliberation to address issues like structure and funding of their own institutions. The report detailing the results of the forums and survey, as well as a final report that presents scenarios for action and the likely response, are available at www.librariestogether.org.
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