[Publib] Library Program in Jail

[James Casey]

Miranda:


>From bitter experience I learned that extending public
Library resources via grant or just simple bookmobile
stops could result in prison and/or jail administrations
using such assistance as a pretext to cut their jail
or prison library budgets.  I was suckered into such
a scheme by a prison librarian back in the late 1980s
when I was director of a county library in Ohio.

Since I was foolish enough to provide some bookmobile
stops to a prison facility in my county without any
written guarantees, the prison library materials
budget and staffing lines were basically eliminated.

The prison "librarian" was actually a clever
accomplice in this scam (moving on to another job in
the corrections system) and his boss was the
warden who got a gold star for gutting his library
budget.  The public library diverted resources and
staff time to furthering the cause of prison libraries
while the result was negative for the Library, the
County taxpayers who pay for library service and
most assuredly for the prisoners themselves.

Before extending library service to a jail or prison
get a guarantee in writing that the prison or jail
will devote MORE money to its library program
for X number of years in acknowledgment of
the cooperation extended by your library.  Check
with your State Library to see what, if any, library
standards exist for jail and prison libraries.  And
if the prison/jail representatives claim that they
have no budget for such services to their inmate
populations, ask them why not!

The effort to slash library funding in the guise
of "cooperation" isn't just played out with jails.
When I was approached by a School Superintendent
asking that our public library put a branch in his
Middle School building, the people most opposed
were the school librarians at that school who were
convinced that their school library might
be eliminated from the school budget if the public
library branch moved into the new building.


James B. Casey -- My own views.
Director of Oak Lawn Public Library
ALA Council Member


-----Original Message-----
From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org [mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Miranda Burton, Outreach, HCMPL
Sent: Thursday, May 08, 2008 10:30 AM
To: PubLib; KY Programmers
Subject: [Publib] Library Program in Jail

This one may have been brought up before, but if so I do not recall it.
Have any of you out there in Library-Land ever started any sort of
program in your local jail/detention center? If so could you please
share some details?
Thanks!
Miranda


_______________________________________________
Publib mailing list
Publib at webjunction.org
http://lists.webjunction.org/mailman/listinfo/publib