This study analyses how community resources are integrated into four areas of the Australian Curriculum: Languages (Chinese), The Arts (Visual Arts), Sciences, and Humanities and Social Sciences (Economics and Business). It examines four case studies to compare the use of rural resources and local partnerships in achieving educational goals and…

School and public librarians both strive to offer resources and services to their communities, often with limited budgets. School and public libraries offer different business hours, diverse resources, different online databases, unique facilities and makerspaces, and varying services. Both also collect materials and provide programming for many…

Pathways to higher education can appear opaque and unattainable to rural adults, despite the affordances provided by modern broadband and increasing provision of university online learning options. This paper describes an innovative partnership model that connects rural adults to university and technical and further education pathways through…

This second edition provides key information, updated program ideas, and practical tips that will help library workers feel more prepared to serve members of this prevalent population. Since the first edition of this landmark guide was published, there has been increased interest in services for library patrons on the autism spectrum; indeed, more…

In the fall and winter of 2020, New America embarked on a snapshot study to gather data on how--or if--people were discovering, accessing, and using their public libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on materials that libraries made available online. Our findings, which include data from a national survey of 2,620 people, highlight…

Community-driven design is a current movement in the forefront of many designers' practices and on university campuses in design programs. The authors examine work from their respective public state universities' design programs as examples of best practices. In these case studies, the authors share experiences using community-based design…

This article explores a case methodology of action research in Tennessee and investigates how library and information science (LIS) educators can extend their social responsibility to the state's small businesses and rural public libraries. Insights are drawn from a planning grant that was recently awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library…

Public libraries are ideal contexts for supporting child development and family involvement (Families and Work Institute, 2015; IMLS, 2013). Families with children often attend public libraries to participate in educational programming and experiences, yet university-based developmental scientists who study how people develop and adapt across the…

University researchers are asked to make their work relevant and accessible to people beyond their research fields, increasingly by undertaking public engagement with science themselves. However, academic outreach often only reaches an already-science-attentive audience through traditional museum visits or lecture-style presentations. Even…

Interactions between universities and surrounding communities have the potential to create empowering education through community engagement. Innovative "town/gown" relationships such as multigenerational learning communities with immigrant communities may foster positive student learning outcomes while at the same time strengthen local…

The joint-use library is a place where people of all ages, interests, and income levels can find items of interest at no personal cost. The mission of A. H. Meadows Public and High School Library in Midlothian, Texas, is to offer what other public libraries provide: educational and entertainment resources to a community. Yet, the staff also wants…

More than just storerooms of information, tribal college libraries are gathering spaces that bring people together. The Tuzzy Consortium Library at IIisagvik College builds community by providing services and programs that reflect the values of Alaska's North Slope Iñupiaq people. The college library collaborates with different organizations to…

The Big Read was developed by the National Endowment for the Arts to revitalize the role of culture in American society and encourage the reading of landmark literature. Each year since 2007, the DeKalb Public Library, Northern Illinois University, and Kishwaukee Community College have partnered to foster literacy in the community. This article…

In late December, a set of articles and essays in "The New York Times" focused on the public library as a place, and on the changing meaning of that place with the rise of electronic books and the demise of brick-and-mortar bookstores like Borders. As librarians "struggle with the task of redefining their roles and responsibilities in a digital…

Public libraries have long supported the literacy goals of public schools in their communities by providing access to printed and electronic resources that enhance learning and teaching. This article describes an ongoing collaboration between the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh's BLAST outreach program and the Pittsburgh Public Schools that has…