library case study examples

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Modern Library Design

A public library helps bridge the digital divide through modern library design., historic building, new opportunities.

The Free Library of Philadelphia’s Parkway Central location is the library system’s hub and a striking example of Beaux Arts architecture. The building opened in 1927 and originally featured reading rooms and other public spaces along with restricted areas that included administrative offices, mechanical rooms, and an enormous four-story room that stored approximately one million books on six tiers of stacks.

Despite the building’s large size, only a third of its space was open to the public. The need for an addition or expansion became evident in the 1960s, but efforts to add on to the historic structure repeatedly ended in disappointment. In 2006 the library’s leadership began exploring ways to repurpose space within the existing building, rather than pursuing an expansion.

The primary goal was to create more public spaces that would help bridge the city’s “digital divide,” the growing gap between residents who had convenient, affordable internet access and those who did not. Providing powerful wifi access, meeting spaces, and other resources would create more opportunities for the city’s residents. The library’s leadership hoped to accomplish these goals without expanding the building’s footprint.

" We really began looking at the possibilities: What was the potential for this building to give more? "

- Siobhan Reardon , President and Director of the Free Library of Philadelphia

" We wanted to give more space back to the public, and it all started with trying to figure out how to move a million books. "

- James Pecora , Vice President of Property Management

Translating ideas into reality

Tackling an extensive renovation in a beloved historic building is no easy task. For five years, the local Spacesaver consultant worked with library staff and the architectural team to bring the architect’s vision to life. His services were backed up by Spacesaver’s world-class engineering and manufacturing expertise.

Off-site book storage

The first step was to figure out how to store nearly one million books while also keeping them accessible. Spacesaver provided shelving for the library’s off-site location, creating a solution that allowed staff to promptly retrieve and replace volumes on request.

On-site book storage

In an effort to keep as many volumes on site as possible, the local Spacesaver consultant designed three high-density shelving systems in the library’s lower level. The systems were custom manufactured to fit around structural columns and varying ceiling heights to create a solution that makes optimal use of the available space.

Spacesaver high-density shelving systems in the library’s lower level kept materials accessible on site while also freeing up space for modern uses.

The art walls.

The “bookshelves” or art walls in The Common presented a number of creative challenges for Spacesaver’s engineers. Working from conceptual drawings, they figured out how to integrate monitors and glass panels into the shelving, and they designed shelves that fit around structural columns and appear to extend through the ceiling. An in-house project manager scheduled weekly calls with the local sales representative, the engineering team, the general contractor, and the architecture team to ensure that all aspects of the project were proceeding as planned. Several months before the installation date, the Spacesaver team provided a prototype ahead of time to ensure a perfect fit.

The end result is an inspiring space that invites all city residents to learn, collaborate, and explore new opportunities.

Other Projects in Library

Library Robotic Retrieval System vs. Spacesaver High-Bay Library Shelving

Compact Shelving for a University Law School Library

Storing Special Collections in a Library

Library Floor-Loading Considerations for Future High-Density Shelving

Remodeling a Campus Library with Moveable Shelving

George Washington Library

Preserving Texas History with Spacesaver Archives Storage

Undergraduate Library Design

Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in Academic Libraries: Case Studies and Reflections

November 30, 2023 Erin Nevius Publications 0

ACRL announces the publication of Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in Academic Libraries: Case Studies and Reflections , edited by Claire Walker Wiley, Amanda B. Click, and Meggan Houlihan. This new book collects excellent, thorough examples of evidence-based practice across functional areas of academic libraries and includes many evidence types in a variety of contexts.

Learn more about Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in Academic Libraries in this excerpt from the Introduction, © the editors.

The most important part of the title of this book, Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in the Academic Library: Case Studies and Reflections , is the word “everyday.” We believe that these chapters contain excellent, thorough examples of evidence-based practice (EBP) in numerous functional areas of academic libraries. It is possible that you may read one of these chapters and feel discouraged, or that you don’t have the skills, resources, or time to engage with evidence-based practice in an effective way. This is absolutely not our intent. The goal of this book is to emphasize the importance of everyday EBP while highlighting well-designed projects to inspire the work of others. An EBP project might look like a yearlong study with many types of evidence collected, or it might look like a simple assessment that helps you make a small adjustment to your work. EBP is a way of operating day-to-day. It’s not just something to turn off or on—it is embedded in the way that we approach our work.

Let’s say that you’re interested in making improvements to your information literacy program assessment process. You could conduct a review of the literature, analyze instruction statistics, run focus groups with students, survey faculty, and schedule one-on-one conversations with every teaching librarian. But it’s crucial that your EBP process fits your reality. Perhaps you don’t have the time to collect all of this evidence. You may face institutional hurdles when collecting student data. Maybe your faculty suffer from survey fatigue. Once you’ve considered your context, adapt an EBP cycle to your needs. We like the evidence-based library and information practice (EBLIP) cycle developed by Brettle and Koufogiannakis (2016), and you will see it referenced many times in these pages. Perhaps you could spend some time with instruction statistics this semester and/or recruit a colleague to help you scan the literature. Next semester (or next year!), have coffee with some targeted faculty to get their perspectives and collect feedback from your colleagues using the process that works best in your library culture. EBP doesn’t have to be exhaustive (or exhausting), and it doesn’t have to move lightning fast. It does, however, need to be flexible and appropriate for your context.

EBP Foundations

Denise Koufogiannakis and Alison Brettle’s 2016 book, Being Evidence Based in Library and Information Practice , provides the foundation for our work. Their book introduced a new framework for EBLIP including a “holistic and cyclical approach to considering evidence” (2016, p. 4). Koufogiannakis and Brettle also encourage librarians to take the principles of EBLIP and “emphasize an overall approach to practice that is about being evidence based ” (2016, p. 3). Everyday Evidence-Based Practice in the Academic Library: Case Studies and Reflections aims to provide real-world examples of librarians who embody this call. LaFitte (formerly Koufogiannakis) and Brettle also graciously contributed to this edited volume, writing the first chapter titled “The Evolving Model of EBLIP in Research and Practice” that explains the history of EBP in libraries, describes the ways that the scholarship and practice in this area have evolved and grown over the years, and makes predictions for the future.

The cyclical approach to the EBLIP process proposed by Koufogiannakis and Brettle includes five steps: articulate , assemble , assess , agree , and adapt (2016, p. 4). The authors emphasize that this process is designed to foster a “continual cycle of improvement” (2016, p. 7). In the following chapter, they provide additional insight into the cycle. In addition, the EBLIP framework encourages librarians to consider three categories of evidence to be used in combination (pp. 29–43):

• Research Evidence: Literature reporting on the previous research that is related to the question at hand.
• Local Evidence: Forms of data specific to your institution or context, either that you already have or that you specifically gather in order to answer your question.
• Professional Knowledge: What we learned in school and on the job and from mentors, peers, and professional development opportunities.

Each category encompasses many types of evidence in order to allow for the process to be “as broad and complete as possible, depending on the problem faced or question posed” (p. 28). Table 1 includes examples of different types of evidence that are described in chapters from this book. These examples provide a preview of the “everyday” focus of this book. You won’t find any randomized control trials or meta-analyses here! We acknowledge that these are valuable types of evidence for many research questions, but they are less commonly used to answer questions in library and information science practice.

Table 1. Examples from Chapters of Everyday Evidence by Evidence Type              

Building the Evidence Base

Thorpe’s (2021) proposed sixth step in the EBLIP cycle is announce/advocate, which involves communicating the EBP work that we do. She proposed four benefits that could result from more announcing, advocating, and communicating as part of the EBP cycle: “to advocate and influence, to contribute to the profession’s evidence base, to demonstrate professional expertise, and to build organizational capacity and maturity” (Thorpe, 2021, p. 121). This book is our announcement , our attempt at contributing high-quality evidence from a variety of perspectives to the library and information science evidence base.

It is our hope that this book inspires a commitment to evidence-based practice in your day-to-day work and perhaps even in your library culture. We look forward to seeing many announcements of your work as the evidence base grows.

Koufogiannakis, D., & Brettle, A. (Eds.). (2016). Being evidence based in library and information practice . Facet Publishing.

Thorpe, C. (2021). Announcing and advocating: The missing step in the EBLIP model. Evidence Based Library and Information Practic e, 16 (4), 118–125. http://doi.10.18438/eblip30044 .

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At times, our sponsors make available valuable insights in the form of complimentary white papers or case studies that they wish to share with our audience. You’ll find descriptions and download links for these documents below.

Posted:  Jun 2024

A/V Primary Sources Are a Valuable, but Underutilized Resource

Academic libraries can play a critical role in supporting the use of AV primary sources in colleges and universities. This white paper explores the benefits and challenges of using AV primary sources in more detail. It also highlights how academic librarians can play a critical role in overcoming these barriers and encouraging the use of AV primary sources at their institutions.

Click Here To Download This White Paper

Posted:  Jun 2022

Reinventing Libraries for Post-Pandemic Success

As library system leaders plan for the future, they have a unique opportunity to leverage federal pandemic relief aid and build on the changes they made during the global pandemic to more effectively serve their patrons’ needs going forward.

Posted:  April 2022

Analytics Play a Key Role in Campus Library Operations

Data now inform nearly every aspect of our lives, and academic libraries are increasingly using data to drive operations. In fact, a new survey from Library Journal and EBSCO reveals that library analytics are critical for understanding how users engage with campus libraries.

Click Here to Download this white paper

Posted:  Feb 2022

UNC Libraries builds a diverse collection of books and audiobooks with help from OverDrive

Today’s college students want access to books and other materials in the format of their choice, and often that’s online in the palm of their hand. The University Libraries at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill is using OverDrive Academic’s innovative digital reading platform to diversify its library collections by adding custom ebook and audiobook content to meet students’ desire for anytime, anywhere reading options.

Click Here to Download this Case Study

Posted:  Jan 2022

How Libraries Can Support Their Communities’ Digital Needs More Effectively

The pandemic has exposed significant gaps in access to computers and high speed internet service among low-income families in particular.

A 2020 Library Journal survey of public libraries across the United States, developed in coordination with Spectrum Enterprise, reveals how libraries have played a vital role in bringing digital resources to stakeholders during the pandemic.

Posted:  August 2021

Video Streaming Service Meets Library Patrons’ Multiple Needs for Entertainment, Research, and More

Many public libraries have struggled to support their patrons’ needs with remote access to services during the pandemic. But in Ocean County, New Jersey, the library’s 600,000-plus members have enjoyed unlimited access to more than 28,000 hours of carefully curated streaming video content available on any device through a service called Access Video On Demand, from Infobase.

Click Here To Download This Case Study

Posted:  Jan 2021

How Libraries Are Essential Broadband Partners in Their Communities

At a time when more students are learning remotely and many office spaces have remained closed, libraries have been instrumental in making sure that community members without home broadband access aren’t left behind.

A new Library Journal survey of public libraries across the United States, developed in coordination with Spectrum Enterprise, sought to identify the key challenges and opportunities libraries experience with providing internet and WiFi access to their constituents.

Posted:  Nov 2019

Digital Humanities in Action: How Academic Libraries Play a Prominent Role in Advancing Digital Humanities on Campus

The use of digital humanities capabilities is transforming the study of humanities at colleges and universities worldwide—and academic libraries are playing a central role in guiding the use of these technologies.  Download the white paper that highlights the conclusions from a study involving nearly 200 academic librarians from around the world, conducted in June and July 2019 by Library Journal in conjunction with Gale, a Cengage Company.

Sponsor:  LaptopsAnytime

Posted:  Dec 2017

Welcome to Central Library. Your Device of Choice Is Waiting.

Austin Public Library and LaptopsAnytime Invest in Community Change, One Device at a Time

Austin Public Library had a vision for the new Central Library—create a sense of community in a growing downtown. This case study explores how LaptopsAnytime helped fulfill that vision with five self-service kiosks. Each 30-device kiosk accommodates multiple device types so patrons find their laptop or tablet of choice.

Posted:  Nov 2017

Information & Media Literacy: Skills Needed in Today’s World

Extraordinary digital innovation has brought about a global information society and has radically changed information access and standards of authority and reliability — straining the educational and labor market infrastructures needed to confront this change. Read the LearningExpress-sponsored white paper on skills needed in today’s world to decipher information sources.

Designing High-Participation Summer and Winter Reading Programs

Aggregating the results of over 2,000 summer reading programs, and looking deeper at the libraries which have run the highest participation summer programs, our data shows that seemingly small decisions about registration, logging, incentives, and other features can have a measurable impact. This report provides an overview of key insights and recommends some best practices that are enabling top-performing libraries to get the most out of their reading programs.

The Challenge: Breaking Out from Data Silos

In this case study, interim CEO Michael Gannon explores the challenges Prince George’s County Memorial Library System (PGCMLS) faced in providing digital services to its patrons.

He says that the library’s digital needs ranged from event management to a mobile app, and that it had become increasingly difficult to manage the different systems. For all their usefulness, the different systems were “silos” incapable of talking to one another.

Using the Communico suite, PGCMLS migrated from a fragmented, multi-vendor approach to an integrated cloud based platform.  They now find themselves able to provide what their customers expect.

Posted:  Sep 2017

Gail Borden PL Finds Costs Savings & Increased Efficiency

Gail Borden PL serves the fifth largest population in Illinois with a circulation of more than 2 million items. They were challenged to find efficiencies that would result in overall cost savings, free up staff time and put more attention on customer engagement. Their partnership with Customized Library Services by Baker & Taylor allowed them to meet those goals and work on some important new initiatives that had been on their wish list. Download the case study to see how this partnership improved their Tech Services Department.

Sponsor:  ByWater Solutions

Posted:  Jun 2017

Why Now is the Time to Move to a Collaborative Web Based ILS Platform

More and more libraries are finding that their proprietary, client based ILS products are no longer fulfilling their needs. Locked down systems that provide little in the way of open collaboration and interoperability are losing ground to more progressive, lightweight platforms that are open to working with other third party systems and provide unfettered access to the libraries’ own data. Learn how a public library system replaced their client based proprietary ILS and how that change opened doors to other improvements within their library that they never would have explored otherwise.

Sponsor:  SAGE

Posted:  Apr 2017

As change comes to academic institutions of all types—four-year colleges and universities, community colleges, technical and vocational schools, and professional schools—their library services are changing as well.  LJ ’s 2016 Academic Movers present a snapshot of some of the large and small shifts happening on campuses worldwide. The interviews featured in this collection, sponsored by SAGE Publishing, offer a closer look at the innovative work they’re doing to meet those changes head-on.

Click Here To Download The Insights

Sponsor:  Agati

A Practical Guide to Choosing the Right Furniture for Your Library

What integral elements  of design and construction create the most effective library furniture for contemporary libraries? Because the answer is not always obvious, AGATI has compiled all dimensions of our experience building furniture for academic and public libraries into a short paper just for librarians looking to create the best learning environments possible for their patrons.

Click Here To Download This Case Study

Sponsor:  Userful

10 Key Questions to Ask When Evaluating Public Computing Solutions

When searching for the right public computing solution, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by all the options out there. Librarians always want to ensure they’re getting the best solution for their needs. Knowing the right questions to ask saves time, and ensures librarians make a good purchase decision. This document outlines the  10 Key Questions to Ask When Evaluating Public Computing Solutions . It is a must-have for all library technology decision-makers.

Click Here To Download This PDF

Sponsor:  Gale Cengage Learning

Learn How Public Libraries Can Deliver Accredited High School Diplomas to Adults

Read about Denver Public Library’s (DPL) solution to a challenge uncovered in their community needs assessment—14 percent of their adults population did not complete high school.

To address this local educational crisis, DPL implemented the program Career Online High School, a high school completion program that allows libraries to offer accredited high school diplomas and career certificates to adult learners.

Sponsor:  School Outfitters

Finding New Life in an Old Space: Making the move from library to media center

The very idea of libraries is evolving. Traditional hushed, book-lined environments are being replaced by contemporary workspaces and becoming hubs of collaboration. School Outfitters had an opportunity to work with a local school to modernize their space, transforming it from a sparsely-populated room to one of the busiest in the building.

Posted:  April 2016

Data-Driven Decision Making Ideally Locates New Library Construction

How well do you know your community? Who are they? What are they interested in? How do you know?

Public libraries are the core of their communities and with Analytics On Demand, you can take data-driven decision making and community engagement to the next level.

Learn how Dedham Public Library determined where to build new library and developed new services with  Gale’s Analytics On Demand .

Sponsor:  Book Systems

Posted:  March 2016

Not many libraries migrate to a new integrated library system (ILS) twice in one year – but the Blount County Public Library (BCPL) did! This case study explores BCPL Director, K.C. Williams’ experience and their decision to leave the statewide system and implement Atriuum to meet their needs.

Sponsor:  Comprise

How You Can Benefit from Self Service Payments!

Every day, Spartanburg County Public Libraries uses Comprise’s revolutionary unified payment solution to process tens of thousands of dollars in payments for print services, fines and fees, and donations; most of it without staff involvement! Libraries that have executed the unified payment system have seen their total revenues grow, perfect audits, and happier staff & patrons, which the Spartanburg County Public Libraries can vouch for.

Comprise offers the only PCI-compliant Unified Payment System encompassing point of sale, online, and in-library self-service transactions with a full portfolio of consolidated reports. Our system is compatible with all leading ILS. We work directly with our customers and are committed to their satisfaction 24/7. Learn how your library can begin building a Unified Payment System and offer convenience to your patrons at the same time!

Sponsor:  Infor

See How Kingston Frontenac PL Created a One-Stop Discovery Resource for Patrons

Increasingly, libraries are looking to replace the traditional online catalog with a discovery layer that’s more engaging and visually appealing. A new approach to discovery combines the catalog with the library’s website. Now library users have a single environment to explore not only collections, but also the wide array of services the library offers.

Iguana is a web portal and discovery platform that brings a library’s website and catalog together in one environment. Implemented world-wide, Iguana is becoming the platform of choice for libraries looking to revamp their web presence while providing users a best-in-breed discovery service. At Kingston Frontenac Public Library in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, the library has seen the benefits: more engaged users who explore collections and partake in the many services that the library offers.

Click Here To Download The Iguana Case Study

Academic Insights: Innovation From  LJ  Movers Class of 2016

Posted:  Mar 2017

Posted:  August 2016

The Challenge: Combining a Robust ILS with Ease of Implementation and Use

Posted:  June 2013

Get Print. Get Digital. Get Both!

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