The Impact of LSCA on the Joliet Public Library

The Library Services and Construction Act was becoming a law at nearly the same time I was becoming a librarian. The proposed, planned and initial uses of the funds from the new law fueled long and hot debates at Florida State University's Graduate School of Library and Information Science in the Strozier Library basement. Our debates centered on the "best" possible uses of such funds.

Three main points of view seemed to dominate the debates. The first assumed that funds from LSCA would only be granted to major urban public libraries, because they would have the staff to write up all the special reports and proposals. A second group argued that only very liberal libraries would accept the federal limits to their services imposed by accepting federal dollars, shutting out most rural and southern libraries. The third group varied between granting every public library in the country a "fair share," using the grants to improve facilities first and then enable each to apply for grants to improve their services. As graduate students everywhere are wont to do, the debates were endless. Dr. Harold Goldstein, dean of FSU's library school and professor of this particular course, put the coda on the debate by challenging us to imagine what could be "done," rather than what "had" to be done. He believed that the uses of LSCA funds would impact library services in ways far beyond the planned "title" divisions.

In 1975, while attending my third Illinois Library Association (ILA) convention, I heard an informal conversation that mainly passed directly over my head. I replayed the words and questioned, pondered and read tons of state and national plans and programs to begin to make sense of those words. While I cannot remember the exact words, I can give you the scene. At one of the receptions of an active ILA annual conference, Alphonse F. Trezza, director of the Illinois State Library, was surrounded by important people, including system directors and higher! I believe the line-up included Les Stoffel, Bob McClarren, Jack Chitwood, Peggy Sullivan and others.

"Look at the size of the appropriation. If each library gets its 'fair share,' no library will get enough to truly do anything, except maybe Chicago!"

"If these grants require federal documentation, will smaller libraries be able to apply at all? Will they want do? They resent any state interference already!"

"Beyond the construction money, how much will be available for the other titles in future years?"

"Can the larger libraries do anything realistic for the amounts available?"

"The Dunn Report stated that local, state and federal should all contribute!" Debate went on!

At the close of the Library Services and Construction Act, the debates can be resolved and the discussions can be ended — or can they? Many states divided LSCA into pieces for each library. Illinois used the grant funds to enable "imaginative, innovative programs and services, which could be duplicated." Construction and ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliance (formerly called "accessibility") grants provided a spur for updating aging facilities, building new facilities and expanding tight facilities. Public library buildings across the state were able to take a few steps forward into new decades of service via the seed money of LSCA.

Construction, Accessibility and Emergency

The Joliet Public Library (JPL) was able to weather a major firebombing in the midst of an addition to the 1903 Daniel H. Burnham designed library structure.

*James R. Johnston, Director, Joliet Public Library.

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An FY89 Title II construction grant and assistance from the Build Illinois Program, overseen by the Illinois State Library as an LSCA grant, enabled JPL to survive reconstruction. JPL was able to construct an accessible and adequate addition, restore and rehabilitate the fire-ravaged areas and add all the life safety code compliance requirements without interrupting service where its local funds ($6.1 million) may have fallen slightly short.

Recovery and Preparedness

Rebuilding the burned youth nonfiction collections was aided by an LSCA grant to serve the disadvantaged since JPL was in process of applying when the fire occurred. Salvaging, restoring, testing use, informing and speaking across the state completed the process of recovery for the JPL staff. Many of our staff finally made closure for the traumatic experience as they heard and saw our LSCA-funded slide show. Many other libraries were able to draft the recovery plans the State Library was starting to add to per capita periodic requirements in the annual report because of the awareness and concern generated at these JPL presentations.

Automation, Computers, and Survival Skills

Starting in 1978, the Bur Oak Library System (BOLS) invested system funds and a small amount of LSCA funds to seed the joint automation project with and in the Joliet Public Library. JPL items and titles formed the basis of the BOLS Local Library System Automation Project (LLSAP.) Periodically, state and federal funds have joined local and "system cooperative" funds to expand and diversify database, inter-library loan (ILL) and cataloging within the LLSAP. Most recently, Internet access has been added and enhanced by state and federal funds.

In 1982, the Joliet Public Library received its first LSCA contract. The grant proposal, "Preprogramming Computer Experience for Children," an LSCA Title III project, became a reality. Every list starts somewhere; this grant headed a long list of seed money projects. It enabled the Joliet Public Library to purchase and install its first Apple II computer for the youth services area. Teaching kids how to manipulate the keyboard began a process that was visited by grant funds of all kinds over the next 16 years.

The Joliet Township High School library's west campus was brought online for the JPL touch catalog in 1985 via an LSCA grant. Today, both the west and the central campus are online with the Heritage Trail Library System (HTLS) LLSAP, the system successor to BOLS. The analog line and its modem and MUX are only now being removed from the west campus to become a public, dial-in line for the JPL home page.

"Computer Literacy for Kids (CLIK)" was an FY89 Title I project to design and duplicate a beginning operator's training video for Apple He computers. Computers, programs and video were added to the 1982 grant-purchased equipment, and subsequent equipment purchased with local funds to start a youth computer center. Ten computers, including five IIe models that could be checked out, were present in 1989. This is what Dianne Harmon, the JPL Youth Services Librarian at the time, says about CLIK:

"The CLIK grant allowed many more kids to be trained on how to use Apple computers. The training video we made could be watched over and over again. The test was mainly the first time any of these kids had touched a computer. There was a hole in the marketplace at the time for training young people. We copied and sent it to libraries free. We could have made a fortune if we could have packaged and sold this kit."

"We put so many more kids through computer training this way. They were willing to wait and be patient to watch the video and take the test. They did not have to wait for the three times a week scheduled class... I cannot believe how much we accomplished for so little grant money."

Computer literacy as a survival skill has been a cornerstone for additional JPL outreach to schools, social agencies and homework supporting centers throughout town. The library's first FAX machine entered through a 1989 LSCA grant. The west outlet branch and the main library added multimedia computers through a grant. Ariel scanning and software were added with an FY96 grant. "Technical Accessibility and Electronic Access Resource Sharing" implemented 12 Internet access computers at our Online Information Center, 12 public use computers at our Public Media Center, and the firm basis for the dial-in-access for the JPL home page and Internet access.

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Literacy: Adult, Family and Community

In 1985, the Joliet Public Libraries saw the first of an unbroken string of literacy efforts with the Joliet Junior College (JJC) and various Joliet agencies advocating services for the culturally and economically disadvantaged. While the results have been very uneven, the literacy efforts have led to dramatic improvements in responsiveness to educational efforts within the Joliet community.

In 1991, JPL was able to expand and improve its support of the literacy effort. JPL added a special area where all tutor and student support literacy material was housed. This area had Macintosh computers with all the program software and a selection of basic applications. Tutors and classes have "always" had first call for this special room.

Some of the partnership with the college has led to the continuation of programs at the library. English as a Second Language (ESL) classes have been held almost daily for the past three years in the Adult Literacy Center room, prepared with the grant in 1991. Eleven tutors currently schedule and use the room after the ESL classes are done. The college is locating a basic computer course with lap top support in its Literacy Center beginning this fall semester.

Joliet sponsored a Family Literacy grant 1993-1994. "At long last I got a board to approve a sleepover and was it a hit!" Mrs. Harmon said, "Grant participants loved it so much they demanded another one at the end of the grant. We hadn't planned on that. Allison Ford, our coordinator hired by the grant, was a large reason for its success. Grant participants (especially the kids) adores her."

Grant requirements weren't so stringent then and we could do more experimenting with ways to recruit families to the library and parents to adult basic education. "I discovered that many of these parents had never experienced some of the simple activities the grant was providing for their children," Mrs. Harmon said. "We were able to revamp activities to give the adults more chances at being kids again.

We had a chance to experiment with services, such as story bags. These bags had books and activities for kids and parents to share. We had to limit parents to one bag at a time, as they liked them so much.

We collaborated with the college's CABEL (Center for Adult Basic Education and Literacy), and that partnership continues today. We still allow them to use one of our small, meeting rooms for daily ESL classes.

From 1997-98 we are participating in the family literacy grant called "New Opportunities for Literacy." This grant is a collaborative effort between JJC-CABEL, Catholic Charities/Head Start and the Joliet Public Library. Even though Head Start staff has had difficulties in getting their parents to come out for grant activities, they are aware of the necessity of family literacy. Head Start has created a staff position for some responsible for family literacy activities. JJC also plans to hire someone to have the same type of responsibilities.

We have looked further for agencies with which to collaborate and have been reinforced in our perception of a community in need. Through all out grants, we have worked with and through other agencies to make library service happen. We keep building a foundation and it's about ready to support the needed services.

Other agencies hear about the efforts we've made (we tell them) and are more and more willing to work with us. As we've gained experience in collaboration through these grants, we know to be patient and work at it as trust takes awhile.

The library ran the "Bilingual Babies" program through the local hospitals and OB care facilities. This start was part of the partnership with the college to house the ESL class. The "La Biblioteca es Para Todos" grant added materials and starter programs through a close cooperation with the Joliet Spanish Center. One of the federal grant auditors and an expert in Hispanic services visited to examine this grant and provided a wealth of data for our expansion of our Hispanic involvement.

Joliet was the lead agency in a multiple agency grant of the Heritage Trail Library System libraries to demonstrate "New Library Services for Urban and Rural Hispanics" during FY96. This grant provided materials and services to six area libraries, five of which were trying to set up services to Hispanics. We were able to use our knowledge from previous grants to serve Hispanics to help other smaller, public libraries in our library system.

"I was surprised more by the similarities of the services than the differences," Mrs. Harmon said. "What people wanted was the same, no matter the size of the library or community. Library staffers in each community were determined to provide a service any way they could. All welcomed the responses to the various focus groups that the consulting group conducted. We learned that it's people's perception of what you do that matters as much, if not more, than what you actually do."

"We prided ourselves on always having a bilingual person on staff most of the hours we are open," Mrs. Harmon continued. "We discovered that Hispanic patrons didn't realize that we had a bilingual staff member because they didn't always see someone who looked Hispanic when they walked into the building.

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We all realized we needed to keep up the publicity and be patient."

We enjoyed the new contacts we made in the community. Our services to our Hispanic people have improved along with access to all the grant materials.

Senior Services and Lifelong Learning

The "Bridge to Success," "Don't Miss Out on Life," "Serve Our Seniors" and other grant ideas not previously funded add spice and diversity to the range of ideas and programs seeded by LSCA and other grant funds. Joliet Public Library brings items from its expanded collection to 11 long-term senior care residences from the additions made possible through these grants. Other donations, such as from the Lions Club, have expanded the computer and vision access to JPL collections, Braille collections, a Kurzweil reader and many large-type (LT) titles through periodic grants. "Serve Our Seniors" and the "Bridge to Success" grants were major seeds in the process.

What has been the impact of the 21 LSCA projects on the Joliet Public Library? Starting from a library that needed so much, the grants have boosted the library's service level through four decades of development in only two decades.

Across the whole of internal library operational computing and access to the larger world of information access through equipment, grants have played a key role. They have added value and have made whole accomplishments possible by adding the seeds to spur investment and to try!

The successor of the LSCA, the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA), should continue the process started. The Joliet Public Library would be in a vastly different service position without the added incentives of grant funding.

None of the debates are resolved. The "interference of big government" is still viewed as a deterrent, but in a few places. Every library wants their fair share and all the benefits accruing from duplicating another library's successful plan and program. There are two burning questions that remain: (1) when is the next round of grants, and (2) what are the highest priority subjects for them?

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