ALA 2010: Library of the Year Columbus Gets It Done
By Norman Oder, LJ Jun 28, 2010| CML Director Patrick Losinski celebrates with a $10,000 check from co-sponsor Gale Cengage. Photo by Rebecca Miller |
Maybe there wasn't that much more to know about the Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML), OH, winner of the 2010 Gale/LJ Library of the Year Award. But CML's can-do spirit shined through last night at the awards event in Washington, DC, held at the Historical Society of Washington, DC, across the street from the Washington Convention Center and, not coincidentally, the site of the city's flagship Carnegie Library.
A busload of 40 CML-ers got up early on Sunday for what turned out to be (with stops) a nine-hour bus ride to Washington, the last 90 minutes of which they endured with no air conditioning. Plastic handles on luggage stored below deck actually melted.
But they were psyched for the event, for the recognition, for the inspiration, and for the challenge.
Recognition
LJ Editor-at-Large John Berry, who wrote the June 15 cover story on CML, recalled that he used to think that it was a "shotgun wedding" to apply business practices to libraries. "What Columbus has taught me is... I'm a convert. What [CML marketing director and LJ Bubble Room blogger] Alison Circle has taught me is marketing is an incredibly useful tool."
"I've known Columbus for quite a while," reflected Gale President Pat Sommers. "I was impressed by [director PatrickLosinski's] desire to look at new ways of doing things. They have always been innovative and creative."
He cited CML's use of private money to serve as "an agent of transformation" with programs like Ready to Read and Homework Help Centers.
The director speaks
"We do believe that we're a transformational agency in Columbus," Losinski said. "This group is trying every day to make a difference in the lives of our customers."
He recalled that, ten days ago, was sitting next to a local CEO, who told him, "You and your team have turned that library from a noun into a verb."
He praised colleagues and other attendees as "a daily reminder of democracy in action in all of your communities."
Losinski thanked the staff, whose trip, he noted, was was underwritten by our Friends of the Library. He cited Linden Branch Manager Sheryl Owens: "Some people said, 'You have a bad knee, are you going?' She said, 'Well, I'm taking my knee with me.'"
He cited three representative responses to the honor from colleagues. "We truly do make a difference in the lives of our customers," one said.
"My sister-in-law heads an academic library," another reported. "Wait until she sees my picture and our award in Library Journal."
Losinski cited board members for encouraging the library to take risks, recognized members of the CML leadership team, and pointed to Circle and Kerry Bierman, director of Community Relations and Development, for helping CML fulfill its potential for outreach: "We always knew we had a great story to tell."
"We also feel a deep responsibility for this award," Losinski said in closing, "as a platform to lift all libraries together, sharing freely [our] practices... We sincerely believe that libraries endure and thrive when we share our story together."
| The lively crowd stand and cheers for CML during the award presentation. Photo by Kevin Henegan |
| the Well-traveled CML staff outside the Historical Society of Washington, DC. Photo by Kevin Henegan |
Visit ALA Annual Conference News for ongoing coverage of the conference by the editors of Library Journal and School Library Journal. Find shots of various ALA 2010 conference happenings on LJ's Flickr page.
