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Library Planning

Rolling Hills Library does two types of planning.  One is for the near term and is called a Plan of Service.  This type of plan usually spans 2-4 years and describes targeted concrete objectives related to service response goals selected for attention.  The other type of planning is less detailed and more forward-looking, trying to identify what the library will become in order to best serve the community.  For us, this is called RHCL Futuring and will set a course of possible actions for the library to strive towards.

Plan of Service 2017-2020

Rolling Hills Consolidated Library is committed to providing the best possible customer service while meeting the needs and wants of our users.  This Plan of Service was written to outline our goals and objectives for the years between 2017 and 2020.  With contributions from library board members and library staff, and including expanded sources of community data and consumer profiles, we hope to expand library services and increase library usage because we believe in the power of libraries to transform and improve people’s lives.

Library Service Responses: Goals & Objectives

These goals and objectives were selected from a list of 18 provided in Strategic Planning for Results (2008), a publication of the American Library Association intended to guide the planning process.  While these goals do not encompass all of what Rolling Hills Library does on a regular basis, they provide a framework and a focus for activities during the period covered by this Plan of Service.

Create Young Readers: Early Literacy
Children from birth to age five will have programs and services designed to ensure they will enter school ready to learn to read, write, and listen.

  • The 1000 Books Before Kindergarten (1000BBK) program will increase the number of participating children by 100% from the December 2016 enrollment. (December 2018)
  • The library will present at least 2 early childhood exhibits for the community, in partnership with other community agencies. These exhibits will be high quality, professional, travelling exhibits that might be found in larger urban areas. (June 2020)
  • Library staff will implement program evaluations and surveys of attendees at early literacy events to ensure that the days and times of program offerings are the most convenient for our communities. (December 2020)
  • Collection usage will be analyzed to see if the library is offering the right variety of materials to support early literacy. (June 2018)
  • Library staff will increase outreach efforts with schools and other entities within the two-county region so that at least one program or event per month is located off-site. (December 2020)

Connect to the Online World: Public Internet Access
Users will have high-speed access to the digital world with no unnecessary restrictions or fees to ensure that everyone can take advantage of the ever-growing resources and services available through the internet.

  • Connections to the internet at all library locations will be the highest bandwidth possible, given hardware and budget constraints. (December 2020)
  • Lending of wi-fi hotspots will be analyzed to see if additional units are needed to fill the demand, after a complete marketing campaign informing users about this equipment. (December 2018)
  • Library computer classes will be offered that help users with their specific needs, including internet safety, checkout of digital media, employment and small business help, and being an informed consumer of information available on the internet. (December 2020)
  • Staff will poll library users to find out if they need more assistance in the digital world to design and offer specific library programs, such as help with online banking or filing taxes. (December 2018)

Satisfy Curiosity: Lifelong Learning
Users will have the resources they need to explore topics of personal interest and continue to learn throughout their lives.

  • Library users will be encouraged in new ways to contribute to the development of the library collection by making title requests for the topics they are personally interested in. (June 2018)
  • Using market research about hobbies and interests, library staff will analyze the 2-county region along with library usage data to inform the selection of materials for purchase and the creation of library programs. (December 2018)
  • All library programs will state what learning goal is supported by the program and how library events can be connected to library collections to encourage further self-study or exploration. (December 2020)
  • Library staff will examine and pursue a project to become the community data center, researching and compiling community statistics to measure and report on how well the community is doing on a selected list of measurements of community success. (June 2020)

Stimulate Imagination: Reading, Viewing, Listening for Pleasure
Users who want materials to enhance their leisure time will find what they want, when and where they want, and will have the help they need to make choices from among the options available.

  • Staff at library branch locations will learn more about merchandising and promoting materials so users are exposed to more items on display. (June 2019)
  • The library will create a more personalized reader’s advisory service for users that will incorporate text messaging, phone calls, and email messages in addition to in-person assistance in finding leisure reading titles. (December 2018)
  • Library social media will include more book cover images and promote more library materials alongside library programs. (June 2018)

Visit an Engaging and Inspiring Place: Physical and Virtual Spaces
Users will have safe and welcoming physical places to meet and interact with others or to sit quietly and read, and will have open and accessible virtual spaces that support enjoyment and learning.

  • Bookmobile service will be improved with the purchase of a new vehicle that will be set up with the needs of users in mind. (December 2017)
  • The schedule of bookmobile visits will be reviewed to add at least 2 visits to senior care centers and child care centers per month, as compared to June 2017 schedule of stops. (June 2018)
  • Belt Branch staff will participate in a space planning process to consider ways to better use the square footage of the branch and to decide how the branch design might be updated and refreshed. (December 2018)
  • Outreach efforts across the library will increase, finding ways to bring the library out of our buildings and meet people where they are at least eight (8) times per year, including festivals, events, partnerships, and special programs. (June 2019)

These objectives will be reviewed on a regular basis (at least quarterly) and the overall goals will be revisited in 2020 to revise and update this Plan of Service for the Rolling Hills Consolidated Library.

PLAN APPROVED    July 25, 2017, by the Board of Trustees

RHCL Futuring

As a part of the planning process for the levy renewal in 2019, the Library Board is engaging in a series of work sessions to do some futuring exercises and generate some targets for the library's future.  When issues have been identified and agreed upon, they will be posted here.