Director's Corner:

Wrapping up 2021

Contributed by John Owen, Director

This has been a tough year. Let's just put that upfront. More than most years, any successes were truly earned through flexibility, resilience, and creativity. But I don't put the metaphorical pen to paper here to give difficulties any more space than needed. I want to share what we have overcome together.

At the beginning of 2021, we were just launching Books on Demand with a handful of patrons on a pilot. Here at the beginning of 2022, 70% of the books we sent out in December 2021 alone were through Books on Demand. Overall Books on Demand and BARD accounted for over 60% of our total circulation. Along with the increase in digital content in both audio and braille, we continue to circulate printed braille and large print materials, and we've seen more books in all formats circulated in 2021 than in the five years. In addition, we have over 70 patrons using Bookshare memberships through our library. You, our patrons, have taken advantage of new ways to get the materials you need through our library and open access for yourselves. Our staff has been working to make sure that you get the books you need, answering your calls for requests, questions, troubleshooting, and sometimes just talking about books and life. We are optimizing our cataloging and your preferences to make sure that you get the books you want.

You may have also enjoyed a Technology User Group program or a healthy living program through the University of Maryland Extension. You may have connected with through programs sponsored by the International Spy Museum or Peabody Conservatory or learned about the marimba through a program for Hispanic Heritage Month. You may have completed the Summer Reading Challenge and attended online events by the Aquarium or Turtle Dance Music. You may have talked with or heard our staff speak at conferences or outreach events, both in-person and online. If you missed any of these and wished you'd been there, please keep checking our website and subscribe to our listserv to find out what new and innovative programming we'll be doing in 2022.

Are you a college student here in the state of Maryland? I hope that you are connecting with your Disability Student Services staff on campus and asking them about the Maryland Accessible Textbook Program. Our MAT team has been fulfilling textbook conversion requests throughout the year, working to help you succeed as students.

The Clyde Shallenberger Recording Studio has resumed safe in-person recording of Marylandia books, and also expanded to volunteers recording in home studios. We have over 200 books uploaded to BARD which are available to you and to people all over the country.

There is so much to tell, but I'll end this message with this: we will continue to overcome barriers. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Call us at 410-230-2443 or email us at reference.desk@maryland.gov. We will continue to listen to you, respond to your needs and draw alongside you as we walk through 2022.

Beyond the Stacks: November 16

Maryland State Library AgencyBy Maryland State Library AgencyJan 19, 2023