These past several months the LJ Index of Public Library Service has been in the news in all regions of the USA, showcasing libraries that excel in providing services to their communities. So, it was troubling to see that the Index became newsworthy in a conflict between a library director and library board. A Library Journal article reports that the library is a 2009 LJ Index 5-Star winner and runner-up for LJ’s Best Small Library 2008 award.
I can’t vouch for the evaluation process used in the Best Small Library awards. But I do know that LJ Index ratings are no basis for drawing specific conclusions about the performance of the director or the library. Perhaps their performances have been exemplary, or perhaps unsatisfactory. It seems that LJ Index Star status would support the director’s side of this painful debate. Nevertheless, at the risk of sounding like a broken mp3 file, I have to repeat the caveat that my colleague Keith Curry Lance and I … [Read more...]
