Wisconsin Public Library Standards

Fourth edition: November, 2005 © Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
Endorsed by
The Wisconsin Association of Public Librarians
The Wisconsin Library Trustee Association
The Council on Library and Network Development

The Wisconsin Public Library Standards document has evolved gradually through the years. While many of the standards have not changed, others, particularly in the area of library automation and information access, have been updated to accommodate changes in technology. Standards are provided for a broad range of factors and criteria to determine library service quality, including governance and administration (Chapter 3), staffing (Chapter 4), collection and resources (Chapter 5), services (Chapter 6), and access and facilities (Chapter 7).

The latest edition of the Standards offers a comprehensive means to evaluate the services, resources, and other requirements for basic library service that should be available to all residents of the state. The public library standards are entirely voluntary, but every library is encouraged to strive to offer all local residents the highest level of service possible, including those who face physical or other barriers to their use of public libraries.

As in the previous edition of the Standards, quantitative standards are included and are fixed for approximately five years to allow libraries to plan for setting service goals to be achieved over time. Certain quantitative standards are included based on both the municipal and service population of the library. The quantitative standards are established at four levels of effort: basic, moderate, enhanced, and excellent. Each library can establish service targets by selecting an appropriate level of effort to apply to each standard, or use the levels to plan for progressive improvements over time.

The Standards document provides a useful tool in a library board’s planning process. At a minimum, the checklists can be reviewed periodically to determine that the library meets at least a basic level of service, that its policies and programs meet statutory requirements for library service and library system membership, that its staff are adequately equipped and trained to proved service to the community, and that its policies and procedures do not have errors or omissions that pose liabilities to the library or community.

Wisconsin Public Library Standards, Fourth Edition, ©2005

Links to the document below will open sections in PDF format.

Some chapters are offered as a Word .DOC files, which may be helpful for using the checklists.

Contents

Foreword	Appendices:
Acknowledgements	A: Quantitative Standards by Municipal Population DOC
Introduction DOC	B: Quantitative Standards by Service Population DOC
Chapter 1: Imperatives for Planning DOC	C: Quantitative Standards Regardless of Community Size DOC
Chapter 2: How to Use These Standards DOC	D: Summary of Technology-Related Standards
Chapter 3: Governance and Administration DOC	E: Bibliography
Chapter 4: Staffing for Public Libraries DOC	F: Definition of Terms and Acronyms Used in the Standards
Chapter 5: Collections and Resources DOC
Chapter 6: Services DOC
Chapter 7: Access and Facilities DOC

Large files of the full Fourth Edition of the Wisconsin Public Library Standards is available in Microsoft Word format: standards4th.doc and PDF for Adobe Acrobat: standards4.pdf

Another Standards Resource

OWLS Public Library Standards Web Page Rick Krumwiede, Director of the Outagamie Waupaca Library System (OWLS), has developed this web page covering use of the Wisconsin Public Library Standards. Included is a nifty tool that will automatically calculate the quantitative standards levels for your library. All you need to input is your library name, municipal population and library service population.

For questions about this information, contact John K. DeBacher (608) 266-7270

Last updated on 2/25/2008 12:49:41 PM