Community Collaboration: Dodge County Little Free Libraries
The Dodge Center Public Library is partnering with Triton Schools, the Mantorville Art Guild, the Friends of the Dodge Center Library and local individuals to promote literacy by placing Little Free Libraries throughout local communities. As a class woodworking project, the Industrial Technology class at Triton will construct 10 Little Free Libraries. The artists at the Mantorville Art Guild will paint and decorate the libraries, and individuals will host the libraries on their properties. The libraries will be initially stocked with books supplied by the Friends of the Library, and it is anticipated that patrons of the Little Libraries will follow the "take a book, leave a book" guideline, providing a constantly rotating collection. The hosts of each library will ensure that the libraries are kept up and fully stocked, and can request additional books from the Friends of the Library as needed. The Little Free Libraries will be located in communities in Dodge County that do not have public libraries or in the City of Dodge Center in areas that are a distance from the public library, and information about the services of the public library will be included in each Little Free Library. 8 libraries will set up through the course of the project, with the remaining 2 being retained by the Dodge Center Library to display during informational programs. The goal of the Little Free Library project is promote literacy for all ages and bring community members together to promote the love of reading.
37 participated
Neighborhoods surrounding the Little Free Libraries will have increased access to books, promoting reading and literacy for all ages.
We will conduct interviews of participants to gauge their attitudes to literacy, libraries, and the impact of Little Free Libraries in their community.
The feedback from attendees/participants has been overwhelmingly positive. Hosts of the libraries have reported people stopping frequently to both take and leave books at their Little Free Libraries. Members of the community (some of who have not used the public library) have told me and the library hosts how much they appreciate having the Little Free Libraries in their area. An unanticipated benefit has come from the hosts that have children. Several have reported that their children are taking care of the Little Free Library, sorting through and rearranging books. One said she had had an in-depth discussion with her teen son about why libraries offered free books instead of charging a fee.
We surveyed the attendees of the final program at the library, all of them reported a better understanding of the project at the end. They commented that the project was helping build literacy and community, and appreciated the benefit of having the network of Little Free Libraries around the world. The hosts of the libraries have reported a 20-50% turnover of books in their libraries, showing that passers-by are using the library. None of the hosts have requested more books for their libraries, showing that people are both taking books and leaving books. The goal of the project was to increase access to books and literacy in these neighborhoods. The turnover of books suggests that this goal is being met.
SELCO, Dodge County Public Library, Mantorville Art Guild, Triton High School, Friends of the Dodge Center Public Library