Schlow Library - $1 $2 Content

Schlow By The Numbers

Melissa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 10:14:02 -0400

2007 Highlights

310,960 Visits made to the library
686,897 Books and other materials checked out
238,056 Books and other materials used in the building
133,224 Books and other library materials on hand
- 12,477 New library materials added
79,406 members of the Centre Region population served
- 40,845 Total Cardholders
- 5,235 New Cardholders
22,152 Reference/Informational questions answered
67 Computers
- 34 available to the public
- 33 for staff use only
54,852 Uses of the public computer/Internet stations
6,384 Wireless connections were made to the Internet
60,342 Items returned to our remote book returns
24,619 People attended library programs
3,213 Hours open
Staff of 38
- 16 full time
- 22 part time
5,997 Volunteer hours logged by 65 volunteers
361 Donations received to equal $71,863
423 Members of the Friends of Schlow Centre Region Library

Art & Architecture of Schlow Library

Melissa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 12:02:06 -0400

Schlow Centre Region Library strives to provide a comfortable & aesthetically pleasing environment for our patrons.

Mission and Vision of Schlow Centre Region Library

Melissa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 09:50:27 -0400

The Mission of Schlow Centre Region Library:

Schlow Centre Region Library opens doors for members of our diverse community to gather, share, and discover a wealth of ideas, the joy of reading, and the power of information by providing services and resources in a welcoming, convenient and responsive manner.

Schlow Centre Region Library's Vision:

Schlow Centre Region Library will be our community's best and most sought after gathering place where all are welcome to pursue their interests, learn new skills, express their creativity, interact with other members of the community, and enhance their quality of life.

Central Pennsylvania District Library Center

Melissa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:54:17 -0400

Beginning in 2008, Schlow Centre Region Library was designated the Central Pennsylvania District Library Center, which serves Centre, Clearfield, Juniata, and Mifflin Counties. Schlow Library, as the district center, gives support and guidance to the public libraries in those counties and provides services to their residents, both directly and through the local public libraries.

Some services provided are rotating collections of DVDs, downloadable audio books, a license for public libraries to show feature films, the Learning Express database, homebound library by mail service, interlibrary loan and delivery service. Support to the libraries covers technology and administrative topics. A consultant librarian, working from Schlow Centre Region Library, serves as a liaison between the local library and the state, and provides education and training to boards, staff and library directors.

Schlow Centre Region Library Funding

Melissa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:01:52 -0400

Schlow Library receives annual appropriations from the Centre Region Council of Governments municipalities (State College Borough, College, Ferguson, Halfmoon, Harris and Patton Townships), Centre County government, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Schlow receives three types of state aid through the PA Department of Education - compensation for lending items to Pennsylvanians who live outside Schlow's service area (statewide card reimbursement), state aid as a local public library and member of a library system, and district center aid in Schlow's role as a district center library for the Central Pennsylvania Library District. State aid is calculated using population and local financial effort. In the case of the statewide card reimbursement, use statistics are the measure.

Most state aid and county funds flow through the Centre County Federation of Public Libraries, which disburses funds to Schlow Library and Centre County Library according to an agreed upon formula. State aid is 31% of the library's income; county funds make up another 8%.

Funding from the Centre Region municipalities accounts for about 51% of all the library's income. Municipal shares of the local government income are based on the percentage of use from the municipalites. If 15% of all library checkouts one year are made by residents of a particular township, then that township provides 15% of the local government share of the following year's budget.

The library also receives income from donations, fines and fees, sales, and interest - 10% of all library funds. In 2007, the library's total income was $1,757,174 and its expenditures were $1,728,450.

The library is a 501 c (3) charitable organization. Donations to the library are tax deductible.

Awards & Accolades

Melissa — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 11:41:12 -0400

2007 and 2008 were banner years for Schlow Library! Schlow Library received two Best Practices Awards each year for services to children under the age of 6. These awards were granted by the Pennsylvania Library Association, and presented at the Early Learning Forum held in early April in Harrisburg.

The first award was for the summer libraries program that Schlow sponsors jointly with the State College Area School District. That program, which has been in existence for more than 15 years, opens four or more elementary school libraries one day a week for six weeks each summer for library checkout and activities.

The second award was for the library's special celebration of the One Book Every Young Child statewide event in April during National Library Week.

The third award recognized an ongoing program to provide developmental screenings for young children in the areas of hearing, vision, speech and more. These screenings are offered free of charge at the library by local professionals who volunteer their services.

The fourth award was for a series of Lunch Bunch programs on parenting, presented at the library by the school district family life specialist. Free childcare was offered simultaneously, to allow parents to give the speaker their full attention.

Schlow Centre Region Library is one of only two libraries to receive multiple awards in one year, let alone for two years running. Hooray for Schlow's children's department!

History of Schlow Centre Region Library

Betsy — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 09:24:22 -0400

Schlow Centre Region Library opened in January of 1957. The first library, originally called the State College Public Library, was located on West College Avenue in two rooms in a house owned by State College businessman Charles Schlow. Local eighth graders conducted a massive community used book drive to establish the first collection of library books. In 1958 Mr. Schlow expanded the library by adding a storefront, and the library was renamed the Bella S. Schlow Memorial Library in memory of Charles' wife.

The library quickly outgrew the enlarged space. In 1965, the Library Board purchased the old post office building from the federal government. After remodeling the facility, the library moved to its current site at Beaver Avenue and Allen Street in 1966. The library, by then named Schlow Memorial Library, was enlarged twice, once in 1975 and again in 1986.

In February 2004, Schlow Library relocated to the former Borough Building on Fraser Street while a new, larger library was rebuilt on an enlarged Allen & Beaver site. On October 3, 2005, the Schlow Centre Region Library opened at 211 South Allen Street. The new facility was funded by local municipal contributions, state and federal grants and a community fund drive.

The library started as a publicly funded library with a board of trustees appointed by State College Borough Council. A referendum in 1960, which established a library tax in State College Borough, earned the library a prestigious special commendation from the American Library Assocation.

By 1968, the library had become a regional library, with board appointments from the four surrounding townships (College, Ferguson, Harris and Patton) as well as from the Borough, and annual financial contributions from these municipalities. The library also began receiving funding from Centre County as early as 1968. In 1972, the library was folded into the new Centre Region Council of Governments, and now operates as a Centre Region COG agency. In the 2000s, Halfmoon Township joined the other municipalities in funding the library, and in 2008 appointed its first member to the Schlow Centre Region Library Board of Trustees.

Donating to Schlow

Melissa — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 12:21:44 -0400

Nothing feels better than donating to a worthwhile cause. Donate to Schlow. It's good for your health! Gifts to the library can be directed toward the annual fund (to be used in areas of greatest need), to the book or audiovisual fund, for furnishings, equipment and technology, or to support special programs such as summer reading and the homebound Library by Mail. Donations can be made in honor or in memory of someone or a special event (birthday, anniversary, first day of school, holidays, etc.). Some individuals and families give gifts to the library in memory of a beloved pet.

Schlow Centre Region Library is a 501 c 3 tax exempt non-profit corporation. Your donations are tax deductible to the extent of the law. In the spring, the library publishes in the Centre Daily Times and the Friends of the Library newsletter a list of donors to the library the previous year. Donations can be made with cash, check or credit card; stock donations are also welcome. Contact the Administration office for details - 814-235-7814.

Schlow Centre Region Library benefits from donations provided by the Friends of Schlow Centre Region Library. The Board of the Friends determine how Friends membership dues and donations will be used to support the library.The library also receives endowment income from several funds at the Centre County Community Foundation. A donation to one of those funds that benefit Schlow Library builds the endowment so that it earns more income for the library on an annual basis.

Overdrive Downloadable Audio

Nathaniel — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:14:08 -0400

Schlow Library, through the Central Pennsylvania Library District now offers free downloadable audio books!

Getting started is easy; download the free OverDrive Media Console software at the website. Using a valid library card from any of the Central Pennsylvania District Libraries, customers can listen on their computer, transfer to supported portable devices, such as MP3 players, and burn some titles to CD.

Central PA library customers can find thrillers, romance, teen and non-fiction titles. Look for best-sellers like Heartsick by Chelsea Cain or Eric Clapton’s autobiography Clapton. Want to learn a new language? Check out the extensive collection of foreign language instruction audiobooks. Other authors in the collection include James Patterson, John Grisham, Patricia Cornwell, Geraldine Brooks and many more.

With rising gas prices, customers won’t need to drive to the library, they can access the collection from any PC at any time. At the end of the loan period, the audiobooks automatically expire and return to the collection. There are no late fees or damage costs. The service & software are free and available 24/7.

Downloadable audio is available thanks to funding received through the Central Pennsylvania Library District; its technology and content are provided by OverDrive, Inc. of Cleveland, OH. In addition to the above URL, local libraries will have a link on their homepages for customer convenience.

For more information, please contact your local public library.

Centre County Federation of Public Libraries

Betsy — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 09:11:46 -0400

The five public libraries in Centre County Library are all part of the Centre County Federation of Public Libraries, a public library system. Schlow Library serves the six municipalities in the State College area. The rest of the county is served by Centre County Library in Bellefonte and its branches in Centre Hall, Aaronsburg and Philipsburg and their bookmobile that travels throughout the county.

The federation board, which is made up of representatives of the two library boards, and the two library directors, who serve as system co-administrators, plan and work together on cooperative projects to serve all Centre County residents. The federation receives state and county funds and distributes funds to the local libraries. Some funds are retained for county-wide services such as the shared library automation system. Any county resident may use any of these public libraries at no charge, and itemsBooks, audiovisual materials, periodicals. can be returned to any location. A library card issued at any of these libraries is good at all locations.