21st Century Librarian - Carla Powers' challenge is to do more with less while serving four generations

Carla Powers returned last May to the city where she was born, when she

was hired as the Duluth Public Library manager, a job that offers the intriguing challenge of doing more with less and transforming the library into a 21st century source of information and education – both at the same time.

For seven years she was director of the public library in Rice Lake, Wis. “I hadn’t intended to leave Rice Lake yet, but I was ready for a new career challenge and I knew a chance like this probably would not come again soon,” says the former KDLH-TV reporter-turned-librarian. (She earned her master’s degree in library and information science online through the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee.)

She landed in Duluth at a time of severe budget challenges for the city, and consequently the library. But Powers knew what she was getting herself into. The library’s staff, for example, had been cut by 35 percent since 2000. Hours at the main library downtown had been substantially reduced and branches kept open just two days a week. Meanwhile, library usage and circulation were rising.

Powers says the situation forced her and her staff to prioritize what they do and find new models for delivering services. Beyond the dollars and cents of the operation, Powers says a main challenge is essentially

serving four generations of library patrons.

“We’re trying to be relevant to everyone from the young child who is ‘born digital’ to the older adult who may never have used a computer, and

the rest of us who fall somewhere in between,” she says. “This means we need to have an exceptionally broad array of materials and services that are library staples, as well as those others increasingly in demand due to changes in technology. Libraries are also key resources in bridging the so-called ‘digital divide,’ the gap between those who can afford access to computers and online resources and those who cannot.”

The challenge of filling that digital divide became somewhat easier last year when the library received an $81,000 grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to buy 50 additional computers. And recently, the library received another $160,000 grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation that helped fulfill the match requirement for the Gates Foundation grant, will provide money for 21 laptop computers and will pay for a full-time library assistant for two years. The assistant will

work with patrons to help improve their computer knowledge and skills. Those things are coming not a moment too soon, Powers says.

“Having new computers, and more computers, will improve our service to people doing everything from searching for a job to filling our government forms to keeping in touch with families overseas. Many depend on

the library’s computers to give them connections they need to function in today’s world,” she says.

Powers also says that technology has helped offset her smaller staff. Along with express checkout machines at all three locations, the staff continues to try to find ways to automate routine tasks to allow them to focus on more complex things. Powers also lauds the many volunteers

who help out.

One person who directly understands the budget challenges Powers has had to face is one who has faced his own on a broader scale, Mayor Don Ness. He hopes library funding can be increased in the next budget cycle, but in the meantime, he appreciates what Powers and her staff have been able to make do with.

“Carla brings a positive, entrepreneurial spirit to the job,” Ness

says. “Instead of dwelling on those cuts, Carla and the library staff have

focused their energy on how they can continue to provide the best possible

library experience for our residents. I’m very optimistic about the

future of our libraries, in large part because of her leadership.”

What of the future? Powers says she’s holding off on making specific

plans now, because the library will be embarking on a strategic planning process this summer. She hopes to get good input from the community on the direction the library should go, such as physical layout, additional

services and how many branches are needed – and }affordable. She does, however, stress a need for an upgraded library Web site and will be working on creating a new one with an emphasis for social networking.

“My goal as library manager is to inspire the staff, the various boards involved with the library and the community to think about what they want their public library to provide, and then to find creative solutions for

doing it successfully within our current budget reality,” she says.