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Leavenworth Public Library Strategic Plan
2004-2006
During the past decade, technology and the Internet have greatly impacted public library service. The ability to keep up with these changes and to adapt to current trends is what keeps the public library a vital part of the community. In order to help guide the library through upcoming changes during the next three years, the Leavenworth Public Library began the process of writing a strategic plan.
 The strategic planning process is an opportunity for the library to examine how it currently serves the community and to analyze its strengths and weaknesses. The library will use the planning process to determine the needs and desires of the community and then to develop services based on these needs.
The process began in late February when the planning committee first met. The committee consisted of two staff members, two members of the Board of Trustees, a member of the Foundation, and two citizens-at-large. The chairperson was Susan Salomone, a consultant who has worked with libraries in various locations throughout the country.
The committee met several times during March and April. As their guide, they used the book The New Planning for Results: A Streamlined Approach, Chicago: American Library Association, 2001. First, the committee looked at the city of Leavenworth, reviewing current census data and future trends. Next, the current services, programs, and conditions of the library were examined. Several focus group meetings were held to solicit input on future needs and desires from the community.
Once the data was gathered, the committee spent time studying the results from the focus group meetings and reexamining the library's current services. Several themes emerged from the research and these were used to write the following action goals. A committee of staff members developed the objectives for each of these goals. The six areas for review are the following (listed in alphabetical order):
Vision Statement:
Leavenworth Public Library will become a more valuable, visible, and accessible community resource that meets community members' needs for learning and research resources, entertainment media, and a community gathering space.
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Goals |
Collection
Leavenworth Public Library will maintain a collection in a wide variety of formats that meets the needs of the citizens. |
- Continue to enhance the AV collection.
- The Collection Development Committee will evaluate the placement, display, and signage associated with the audio-visual collection.
- Increase the number of copies of bestsellers available and the speed with which they are available for checkout.
- The Assistant Director will continue to monitor the standing order plans, making additions or adjustments as necessary. The Collection Development Committee will explore possibilities for the display of new books.
- Weed and discard old materials, especially in some of the non-fiction areas.
- The Assistant Director, along with the Collection Development Committee, will develop a plan to target specific areas of the non-fiction collection for weeding and replacement of outdated materials.
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Facility
Leavenworth Public Library will provide a safe and comfortable library facility that meets the needs of a variety of users. |
- Increase the efficiency of the parking lot lighting.
- The library Director and maintenance staff will work with city officials to update and improve the lighting in the library parking lot.
- Add signage outside the building to increase visibility, especially from 4th and Spruce Streets.
- The library Director, along with maintenance staff, will explore the possibility of renting an outdoor sign to advertise our activities, placing the street numbers (417) on the building, and posting our hours in a more visible format.
- Improve appearance of the entryway by adding more vibrant, exciting, and varied displays.
- The Reference Department staff will work with the Carnegie Arts Center, schools, and various individuals to increase community participation in the current display cases. The library will investigate the possibility of purchasing a flat screen monitor to list daily activities.
- Explore an expansion or repurposing of space for an expanded youth services area and for additional meeting space.
- The library Director will continue to work with the Mayor and city commission to continue planning for the building expansion project.
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Promotion
Leavenworth Public Library will develop and implement a marketing plan to increase its visibility in the community. |
- Implement, with the approval of the Board, a marketing plan.
- The library Director will develop a marketing plan that will reveal new approaches to promote library services and improve community awareness.
- Increase library advocacy using staff, Library Board members, Friends of the Library, and Patrons Foundation.
- The library Director, along with the Assistant Director, will develop a program to present to the Board, Friends, and Patrons on library advocacy and their role.
- Redesign the web site to make it easier and more fun and accessible to use.
- Library staff will work with our web master to continue to make improvements to the library's web page.
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Services
Leavenworth Public Library will evaluate current services and programs and make changes to reflect the needs of the changing community. |
- Add additional coffee hours, including in the evening.
- Library staff will consider the possibility of adding an additional evening coffee hour beginning in 2005.
- Become a clearinghouse for city information.
- The Reference staff, in cooperation with the system administrator, will investigate the possibility of adding the "information and referral" database to the card catalog.
- Offer more one-time educational programming for adults (the sandwich generation).
- The Programming Committee will identify the needs of the community and then determine the types of programs to offer. The committee will work towards offering one program each in the spring, summer, and fall of 2005.
- Engage in more outreach and/or collaboration in the community, especially with organizations serving at-risk children.
- The Youth Services department will look at developing outreach programs, especially RIF distributions, for the schools, Youth Achievement Center, Richard Allen Cultural Center, and other agencies that serve the at-risk population of Leavenworth.
- Realign hours of operation to better meet users' needs.
- The library Director will propose to the Board an increase in Sunday hours from 1:00-5:00 beginning in January 2005 and to remain open during the summer months beginning June 2005.
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Staffing
Leavenworth Public Library will employ and develop a knowledgeable and friendly staff. |
- Continue to improve salaries and wages for all employees.
- The Director, along with the Library Board, will investigate avenues of additional funding to enhance salaries and wages for all staff members.
- Develop enhanced opportunities for new employee orientation, training, and continuing education.
- The Director will continue to use monthly staff meetings as a means of providing continuing educational opportunities on a variety of topics. Department supervisors will continue to make use of the "New Employee Checklist," especially during the first year of employment for new staff. Library staff will continue to participate in the state-wide SMART meetings.
- Strengthen communication and support among staff members.
- Library administration will work towards increasing communication through the staff newsletter and other print and Intranet tools, as well as revising the evaluation process, allowing more face-to-face communication between employees and supervisors.
- Provide cross-training opportunities so that employees have a better sense of how everyone works together.
- Library administration will develop a plan where all department heads will be introduced to the work of other departments during the spring of 2005. The program will then be expanded to include the majority of employees during the remainder of the year.
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Technology
Leavenworth Public Library will use the most up-to-date technology to create, store, access, and deliver information. |
- Implement a study to determine the most efficient usage of PCs to best meet our patrons' needs.
- The system administrator, along with the Reference and Children's staff, will evaluate how all patron computers are used and if there is a need for any changes in technology services.
- Implement a technology budget that will support the technology needs of the library.
- The library Director will work with the Library Board to develop a budget plan, after future technology needs are determined.
- Develop a library Intranet for use in posting the library policy manual, staff newsletter, and other documents and correspondence.
- The system administrator will investigate the necessary hardware, software, and associated costs in setting up an Intranet during the spring of 2005.
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