Worthington Libraries named 5-Star Library

Posted: Monday, February 23, 2009, 3:15 pm

In 2007, Worthington Libraries was nationally recognized as the Library Journal/Gale Library of the Year. Recently, the system was recognized by both the Government Finance Officers Association and the State Auditor for its excellence in financial accountability and reporting. Now, it has another honor to add to the list.

Library Journal recently unveiled its new tool for ranking America's libraries, and Worthington Libraries received a five-star rating—the best possible—in its category of libraries with total annual operating expenditures of over $5 million but less than $10 million.

To be included, a library must achieve four criteria: meeting the Institute of Museum & Library Services definition of a public library, having $10,000 or more in total operating expenditures annually, serving a legal service area population of 1,000 or more residents, and reporting all of the four service indicators used in the index: library visits, circulation, program attendance and public Internet computer uses. Libraries were evaluated on each service indicator relative to the performance of other libraries in their peer group. Over 7,000 libraries were evaluated, but only 256 received a starred rating. Only 84 libraries received a five-star rating.

Worthington Libraries was ranked second in its peer group, behind only the Shaker Heights Public Library in Shaker Heights, Ohio.

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