Trustees Of The Public Library Of The City Of Boston

THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY PROVIDES EDUCATIONAL AND CULTURAL ENRICHMENT FREE TO ALL BY ENGAGING THE PUBLIC THROUGH PROGRAMMING AND ACTIVE SPACES, RESTORING AND PRESERVING OUR HISTORY, PROVIDING ACCESS TO BORROW FROM OUR VAST COLLECTION OF BOOKS AND ELECTRONIC DATABASES AND OTHER MATERIALS AND CARING FOR THE PUBLIC'S SPECIAL COLLECTIONS.

THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY (BPL) IS AN EXTRAORDINARY INSTITUTION THAT HAS SERVED THE CITIZENS OF BOSTON SINCE 1848. FOUNDED AS THE FIRST MUNICIPAL LIBRARY AND THE FIRST PUBLIC LIBRARY TO LEND BOOKS, THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY IS DEDICATED TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING AND IS "FREE TO ALL," AS IS CARVED IN THE FACADE OF THE HISTORIC MCKIM BUILDING IN COPLEY SQUARE. THE BPL ENCOMPASSES A CENTRAL LIBRARY, TWENTY-FIVE VIBRANT NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARIES, A ROBUST WEBSITE, AND CLASSES AND PROGRAMS FOR ALL AGES. THE LIBRARY'S COLLECTION OF MORE THAN 23 MILLION ITEMS INCLUDES CIRCULATING BOOKS, EBOOKS, DVDS, AND MUSIC, AS WELL AS RESEARCH AND SPECIAL COLLECTIONS THAT ENCOMPASS RARE MANUSCRIPTS, PRINTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, DRAWINGS, MAPS, POSTERS, AND MORE. THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY'S KIRSTEIN BUSINESS LIBRARY AND INNOVATION CENTER, NORMAN B. LEVENTHAL MAP CENTER, AND COLLECTIONS OF DISTINCTION SUCH AS THE PERSONAL LIBRARY OF JOHN ADAMS, THE ANTI-SLAVERY COLLECTION, THE THOMAS PENNANT BARTON COLLECTION OF SHAKESPEARE, AND THE BOSTON PICTORIAL ARCHIVE ATTRACT RESEARCHERS AND SCHOLARS FROM ACROSS THE CITY AND AROUND THE WORLD. IN FISCAL YEAR 2021, BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY HOSTED 4,299 PUBLIC PROGRAMS REACHING 336,971 PEOPLE, RECEIVED 6.7 MILLION VISITS TO ITS WEBSITE, AND LOANED 5.2 MILLION ITEMS. OF THOSE 5.2 MILLION LENDS, MORE THAN 3.9 MILLION WERE DIGITAL DOWNLOADS OF E-BOOKS AND AUDIOBOOKS. IN THE SAME FISCAL YEAR, THE BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY HELPED 119,595 MASSACHUSETTS RESIDENTS - ADULTS, CHILDREN, AND TEENS - SIGN UP FOR NEW LIBRARY CARDS, HOSTED 9,490 FREE COMPUTER SESSIONS, ENABLED 37,250 FREE WIRELESS INTERNET SESSIONS, AND HAD MORE THAN 384,519 VISITORS. ENGAGING THE PUBLIC THROUGH PROGRAMMING + ACTIVE SPACES: THE LIBRARY OFFERS A VARIETY OF PROGRAMS FOR ALL CHILDREN, TEENS AND ADULTS INCLUDING: FUTURE READERS CLUB, HOMEWORK ASSISTANCE, LOCAL & FAMILY HISTORY, WRITING PROGRAMS, THEATRE PRODUCTIONS, THE LOWELL LECTURE SERIES, COPLEY CONCERTS, NEVER TOO LATE PROGRAMS, CHILDREN'S MUSIC AND STORYTELLING. SERVING THE PUBLIC WITH IMPROVING TECHNOLOGY: BPL IS A NATIONAL LEADER IN LIBRARY SERVICE TECHNOLOGY. THE LIBRARY HAS BEEN IMPROVING THE LIBRARY'S IT AND BUSINESS SYSTEMS, INCREASING ACCESS TO KNOWLEDGE THROUGH THE PROVISION AND CREATION OF DIGITAL CONTENT, AND CLOSING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE BY PROVIDING THE PUBLIC IMPROVED ACCESS TO THE KINDS OF CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGY THAT ENSURE EQUITY. RESTORING AND PRESERVING OUR HISTORY: AT AN ESTIMATED ONE MILLION MANUSCRIPTS, HOLDINGS ARE PARTICULARLY STRONG IN MEDIEVAL AND EARLY RENAISSANCE MANUSCRIPTS, COLONIAL BOSTON AND NEW ENGLAND, AND THE AMERICAN ANTI-SLAVERY MOVEMENT. THE LIBRARY IS ALSO HOME TO HUNDREDS OF ARCHIVAL COLLECTIONS WITH STRENGTHS IN LOCAL BUSINESS, POLITICAL, CULTURAL, AND SOCIAL HISTORY. CARING FOR THE PUBLIC'S SPECIAL COLLECTIONS THE LIBRARY MAINTAINS AND CARES FOR OF ONE THE WORLD'S MOST IMPORTANT PUBLIC COLLECTIONS OF ART, RARE BOOKS, MAPS AND OTHER SPECIAL OBJECTS AND MAKE THESE PRECIOUS OBJECTS, OWNED BY THE PUBLIC, ACCESSIBLE TO PATRONS TODAY AND FAR INTO FUTURE GENERATIONS. STATEWIDE COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT & ACCESS: THIS PROGRAM PROVIDES RESIDENTS OF THE COMMONWEALTH ACCESS TO PRINT, ELECTRONIC, AND DOWNLOADABLE COLLECTIONS NOT AVAILABLE IN THEIR INDIVIDUAL LIBRARIES. ANYONE WHO LIVES, WORKS, GOES TO SCHOOL, OR OWNS PROPERTY IN MASSACHUSETTS CAN HAVE A BOSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY CARD. BOOK BUNDLES - WITH PATRONS UNABLE TO ENTER BRANCH LIBRARIES AND BROWSE FOR THE BOOKS THEY NEEDED, LIBRARY STAFF QUICKLY TOOK TO CREATING BUNDLES OF BOOKS BASED ON GENRE, SUBJECT, AND READING LEVEL TO HAVE ON HAND FOR CIRCULATION. FOR EXAMPLE, IF A PARENT OF A FOUR-YEAR OLD CAME TO A BRANCH AND ASKED FOR SOME BOOKS FOR THEIR CHILD, THE LIBRARY COULD RESPOND WITH A PRE-SELECTED BUNDLE OF BOOKS THAT COULD JUST BE CHECKED OUT. SIMILARLY, IF A PATRON WANTED SOME DYSTOPIAN SCIENCE FICTION AND A FEW GRAPHIC NOVELS, THAT COULD BE SUPPLIED AS WELL. LIBRARY STAFF CREATED AN INNOVATIVE WAY TO GET PATRONS WHAT THEY NEEDED WITHOUT NECESSITATING IN-PERSON BROWSING. CRAFT KITS - MANY OF THE PROGRAMS GEARED TOWARD CHILDREN INVOLVED A CRAFT. WHILE LIBRARIANS FOCUSED ON INCORPORATING SIMPLE CRAFTS INTO THEIR VIRTUAL STORYTIMES THAT ONLY NECESSITATED BASIC HOUSEHOLD ITEMS, THEY ALSO RECOGNIZED THAT THERE WAS A NEED TO PROVIDE MATERIALS FOR CRAFTS, ESPECIALLY TO HOUSEHOLDS THAT MIGHT NOT HAVE THIS TYPE OF MATERIAL ON-HAND. CHILDREN'S LIBRARIANS IN BRANCHES HAVE BEEN CREATING KITS WITH CRAFT MATERIALS RELATED TO STORYTIMES AND DISTRIBUTING THEM THROUGH BPL TO GO AND AT STORYWALKS AROUND THE CITY. DIGITAL EQUITY INITIATIVES: AS PART OF BPL TO GO, THE BPL'S PROGRAM OF SERVICES AVAILABLE DURING THE PANDEMIC, BPL LAUNCHED THE PUBLIC COMPUTER ACCESS PROGRAM, WHICH ALLOWED RESIDENTS TO SIGN UP FOR A TWO-HOUR APPOINTMENT TO USE LIBRARY COMPUTERS IN A SOCIALLY DISTANCED SPACE WITHIN THE CENTRAL LIBRARY IN COPLEY SQUARE. AT THE SAME TIME, WORKING WITH THE MAYOR'S OFFICE OF NEW URBAN MECHANICS, BPL ALSO EXPANDED ITS WI-FI ACCESS TO CREATE THE OUTDOOR WI-FI PROGRAM, PROVIDING 24-HOUR OUTDOOR INTERNET ACCESS AT NINE BPL BRANCH LOCATIONS ACROSS THE CITY, ALLOWING USERS TO SOCIALLY DISTANCE WHILE ACCESSING THE INTERNET FOR FREE. BPL ALSO CREATED AND ROLLED OUT PRINTING TO GO, A FREE PRINT-ON-DEMAND SERVICE, TO ALL OPEN BPL BRANCHES. PATRONS CAN UPLOAD DOCUMENTS THEY NEED PRINTED BY FILLING OUT A FORM AT BPL.ORG/PRINTING-TO-GO, SELECTING THEIR LOCATION, AND PICKING UP THEIR PRINT JOBS 72 HOURS LATER AT THE BRANCHES, OR 24 HOURS LATER AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY IN COPLEY SQUARE. BPL'S MOST RECENT EXPANSION OF ITS DIGITAL INITIATIVES CAME WITH THE RECENTLY LAUNCHED CONNECTIVITY KITS. CONNECTIVITY KITS ARE DESIGNED TO HELP PATRONS BRIDGE THE DIGITAL DIVIDE BY PROVIDING FREE, RELIABLE INTERNET ACCESS IN ANY LOCATION. THE KITS INCLUDE A 14" CHROMEBOOK, A HOTSPOT, AND A MOUSE, AS WELL AS THE NECESSARY CHARGERS AND A QUICK START GUIDE, ALL IN A BPL BAG FOR EASY ACCESS AND TRANSPORTATION. WHILE THE BPL CONTINUES TO OFFER PUBLIC COMPUTER ACCESS AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY IN COPLEY SQUARE, CONNECTIVITY KITS EXTEND THIS SERVICE INTO PATRONS' HOMES AND NEIGHBORHOODS, ON A SCHEDULE THAT WORKS FOR THEM.