|
HAPLR
2009: Tenth Anniversary Edition
Thomas J. Hennen Jr.
June 2009
Summary
We celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Hennen’s
American Public Library Ratings (HAPLR) this year. In 10 years HAPLR has
become widely recognized in the public library world with both praise and
criticism, of course. As is to be
expected, the rating
system has critics as well as fans. We are proud of HAPLR
and what it has
done for libraries in the nation. We look forward to many more years of ranking,
assessing, and providing report cards for libraries in the U.S. I will continue
to refine HAPLR based on the advice of both fans and critics.
In this article I begin by making some overall observations
about the past 10 years in bulleted points. I note the introduction of the LJ
Index and compare it to HAPLR. I consider issues for rating systems such as
electronic use measures that can be included in ratings. I also note the
problems with population assignments as well as library spending categories and
their impact on HAPLR and the LJ Index. I provide an overview at
the national level over to consider where libraries have changed overall. I discuss the book Hennen’s
Public Library Planner and its relationship to a HAPLR-inspired method of
strategic library planning. Finally, I provide some of the major criticisms and
praises that have been leveled at HAPLR ratings over the past 10 years.
I must add that it
has taken me 10 years to realize the level of courage that American Libraries
Editor
Leonard Kniffel
demonstrated when he published HAPLR
ratings for the first time in 1999. Kniffel publishes for
American Libraries, the official publication of the
American Library Association.
Upon publication and repeatedly over the years, he and American
Libraries were criticized because publication appeared to imply
endorsement of the ratings even though he repeatedly noted that this was not the
case.
HAPLR scores are compared to their LJ Index counterparts
here.
Directory
for the rest of this page:
Over the past ten years:
-
Critics of the HAPLR system had a lot to say. So did
fans.
-
Hundreds of
newspapers, radio stations, and television stations have covered HAPLR
ratings for libraries throughout the country.
-
Thousands
of libraries have purchased HAPLR reports on their libraries, reports that
compare a library to comparably sized libraries in the state and nation.
-
Many
thousands of libraries have used the HAPLR website to make quick comparisons
on library data.
Also over the past ten years:
-
A total of
39 states had at least one top ten library.
-
A quarter
of all top 10 libraries were in Ohio;
-
Another
quarter were in New York, Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota
Considering the overall data for
libraries over the past 10 years:
-
Almost 23,000 more library
staff were employed in libraries (almost a 20% change)
-
Total
spending per capita rose $11 to $38 per capita, while materials spending per
capita rose 33% to $4.32 per capita
-
Circulation
per capita rose 14% while visits rose 22%
The table below compares the HAPLR rating data for the 1999
edition to that of the 2008 and 2009 editions.
|
Data |
1999 Edition |
2008 Edition |
2009 Edition |
From 2008 Edition |
10 Year Average |
|
Number of Libraries |
8,752
|
9,076
|
9,080
|
0.0% |
0.4% |
|
Population served |
259,463,453
|
285,579,896 |
291,302,705
|
2.0% |
1.2% |
|
Staff (Full time equivalent) |
117,741
|
136,014
|
140,438
|
3.3% |
1.9% |
|
Collection Expenditure |
$840,956,250 |
$1,142,839,506 |
$1,259,636,602 |
10.2% |
5.0% |
|
Total Expenditure |
$5,551,991,409 |
$8,632,693,011 |
$9,578,451,862 |
11.0% |
7.3% |
|
Book Volumes |
709,424,788
|
803,013,857 |
805,008,471
|
0.2% |
1.3% |
|
Periodical Subscriptions |
1,854,165
|
1,820,422
|
1,832,775
|
0.7% |
-0.1% |
|
Hours Open |
33,098,377
|
35,915,538
|
36,181,122
|
0.7% |
0.9% |
|
Visits |
1,012,614,319 |
1,320,647,162 |
1,381,561,074 |
4.6% |
3.6% |
|
Reference |
284,416,840
|
303,914,504 |
294,442,201
|
-3.1% |
0.4% |
|
Circulation |
1,641,514,552 |
2,008,090,565 |
2,098,751,934 |
4.5% |
2.8% |
|
Expenditure per capita |
$21.40 |
$30.23 |
$32.88 |
8.8% |
5.4% |
|
Percent Budget to materials |
15.1% |
13.2% |
13.2% |
-0.7% |
-1.3% |
|
Materials Expenditure Per
capita |
$3.24 |
$4.00 |
$4.32 |
8.1% |
3.3% |
|
FTE staff per 1000 population |
0.45
|
0.48
|
0.48
|
1.2% |
0.6% |
|
Periodicals per 1000
population |
7.15
|
6.37
|
6.29
|
-1.3% |
-1.2% |
|
Book Volumes per Capita |
2.73
|
2.81
|
2.76
|
-1.7% |
0.1% |
|
Operating Expenditure per
circulation |
$3.38 |
$4.30 |
$4.56 |
6.2% |
3.5% |
|
Visits per capita |
3.90
|
4.62
|
4.74
|
2.6% |
2.2% |
|
Book Collection turnover |
2.31
|
2.50
|
2.61
|
4.3% |
1.3% |
|
Circulation per FTE Staff Hour |
6.70
|
7.10
|
7.18
|
1.2% |
0.7% |
|
Circulation per Capita |
6.33
|
7.03
|
7.20
|
2.5% |
1.4% |
|
Reference per capita |
1.10
|
1.06
|
1.01
|
-5.0% |
-0.8% |
|
Circulation per hour |
49.60
|
55.91
|
58.01
|
3.7% |
1.7% |
|
Visits per hour |
30.59
|
36.77
|
38.18
|
3.8% |
2.5% |
|
Circulation per visit |
1.62
|
1.52
|
1.52
|
-0.1% |
-0.6% |
States with Top Ten Libraries in each Edition
Ten states and the District of Columbia have never had a library in the top
ten. They are: AR, HI, KY, LA, MS, ND, NM, NV, OK, WY.
The remaining 39 states had libraries in the Top Ten as follows:
|
State |
1999 |
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
2008 |
2009 |
Total |
|
AK |
1 |
|
|
2 |
|
|
|
1 |
1 |
5 |
|
AL |
|
|
1 |
|
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
5 |
|
AZ |
1 |
|
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
|
|
|
4 |
|
CA |
3 |
4 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
23 |
|
CO |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
5 |
5 |
5 |
2 |
27 |
|
CT |
|
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
14 |
|
DE |
|
1 |
|
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
2 |
|
FL |
|
1 |
1 |
|
|
1 |
|
|
|
3 |
|
GA |
|
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
|
IA |
6 |
5 |
4 |
5 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
2 |
38 |
|
ID |
|
|
|
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
|
IL |
6 |
8 |
7 |
7 |
5 |
6 |
6 |
7 |
4 |
56 |
|
IN |
10 |
9 |
7 |
10 |
9 |
7 |
5 |
5 |
6 |
68 |
|
KS |
2 |
4 |
5 |
3 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
4 |
34 |
|
MA |
4 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
2 |
5 |
3 |
2 |
4 |
35 |
|
MD |
2 |
1 |
4 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
23 |
|
ME |
|
|
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
|
1 |
|
4 |
|
MI |
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
|
3 |
4 |
8 |
|
MN |
6 |
8 |
6 |
7 |
6 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
3 |
47 |
|
MO |
2 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
13 |
|
MT |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
1 |
|
NC |
|
1 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
|
NE |
|
1 |
1 |
|
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
6 |
16 |
|
NH |
|
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
9 |
|
NJ |
|
1 |
1 |
|
1 |
2 |
1 |
|
|
6 |
|
NY |
8 |
14 |
10 |
9 |
14 |
12 |
8 |
5 |
5 |
85 |
|
OH |
25 |
12 |
18 |
20 |
25 |
21 |
33 |
31 |
34 |
219 |
|
OR |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
18 |
|
PA |
1 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
13 |
|
SC |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
|
|
6 |
|
SD |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
|
|
|
1 |
1 |
6 |
|
TN |
|
|
|
|
|
1 |
2 |
1 |
|
4 |
|
TX |
2 |
1 |
4 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
16 |
|
UT |
1 |
|
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
20 |
|
VA |
6 |
4 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
|
2 |
2 |
2 |
24 |
|
VT |
1 |
2 |
|
1 |
|
|
|
|
1 |
5 |
|
WA |
|
|
1 |
|
1 |
|
|
1 |
1 |
4 |
|
WI |
6 |
4 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
27 |
|
WV |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
1 |
9 |
|
Total |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
100 |
900 |
This table lists the libraries in the Top 10 for the 2009 edition. Note
that the scores and ranks are within each population category.
|
Popul. Category |
Library |
State |
HAPLR Score |
HAPLR RANK |
|
a) 500 K |
CUYAHOGA COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
893 |
1 |
|
a) 500 K |
COLUMBUS METROPOLITAN
LIBRARY |
OH |
871 |
2 |
|
a) 500 K |
MULTNOMAH COUNTY
LIBRARY |
OR |
839 |
3 |
|
a) 500 K |
SALT LAKE COUNTY LIBRARY
SYSTEM |
UT |
818 |
4 |
|
a) 500 K |
HENNEPIN COUNTY
LIBRARY |
MN |
803 |
5 |
|
a) 500 K |
INDIANAPOLIS-MARION COUNTY
PUBLIC LIBRARY |
IN |
794 |
6 |
|
a) 500 K |
BALTIMORE COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
MD |
794 |
7 |
|
a) 500 K |
DENVER PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
CO |
790 |
8 |
|
a) 500 K |
KING COUNTY LIBRARY
SYSTEM |
WA |
781 |
9 |
|
a) 500 K |
CINCINNATI AND HAMILTON
COUNTY, PL OF |
OH |
753 |
10 |
|
b) 250 K |
DOUGLAS COUNTY
LIBRARIES |
CO |
893 |
1 |
|
b) 250 K |
HOWARD COUNTY
LIBRARY |
MD |
888 |
2 |
|
b) 250 K |
SANTA CLARA COUNTY
LIBRARY |
CA |
873 |
3 |
|
b) 250 K |
SAINT CHARLES CITY-COUNTY
LIBRARY DISTRICT |
MO |
855 |
4 |
|
b) 250 K |
MADISON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
WI |
801 |
5 |
|
b) 250 K |
CENTRAL RAPPAHANNOCK REGIONAL
LIBRARY |
VA |
793 |
6 |
|
b) 250 K |
JOHNSON COUNTY
LIBRARY |
KS |
780 |
7 |
|
b) 250 K |
AKRON-SUMMIT CNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
775 |
8 |
|
b) 250 K |
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IN |
770 |
9 |
|
b) 250 K |
LINCOLN CITY
LIBRARIES |
NE |
769 |
10 |
|
c) 100 K |
NAPERVILLE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IL |
918 |
1 |
|
c) 100 K |
ANN ARBOR DISTRICT
LIBRARY |
MI |
912 |
2 |
|
c) 100 K |
SANTA CLARA CITY
LIBRARY |
CA |
902 |
3 |
|
c) 100 K |
MONROE COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IN |
895 |
4 |
|
c) 100 K |
MEDINA COUNTY DISTRICT
LIBRARY |
OH |
879 |
5 |
|
c) 100 K |
SALT LAKE CITY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
UT |
874 |
6 |
|
c) 100 K |
ST JOSEPH COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IN |
870 |
7 |
|
c) 100 K |
LOUDOUN COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
VA |
855 |
8 |
|
c) 100 K |
SCHAUMBURG TWP DISTRICT
LIBRARY |
IL |
853 |
9 |
|
c) 100 K |
GREENE COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
850 |
10 |
|
d) 50 K |
WASHINGTON-CENTERVILLE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
935 |
1 |
|
d) 50 K |
WORTHINGTON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
915 |
2 |
|
d) 50 K |
EUCLID PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
911 |
3 |
|
d) 50 K |
CARMEL CLAY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IN |
898 |
4 |
|
d) 50 K |
LAKEWOOD PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
896 |
5 |
|
d) 50 K |
NEWTON FREE
LIBRARY |
MA |
896 |
6 |
|
d) 50 K |
WILLOUGHBY-EASTLAKE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
895 |
7 |
|
d) 50 K |
CANTON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
MI |
881 |
8 |
|
d) 50 K |
GEAUGA COUNTY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
879 |
9 |
|
d) 50 K |
TROY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
MI |
876 |
10 |
|
Popul. Category |
Library |
State |
HAPLR Score |
HAPLR RANK |
|
e) 25 K |
PORTER PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
938 |
1 |
|
e) 25 K |
NORTH CANTON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
937 |
2 |
|
e) 25 K |
ELLA M. EVERHARD PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
914 |
3 |
|
e) 25 K |
UPPER ARLINGTON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
913 |
4 |
|
e) 25 K |
PLYMOUTH DISTRICT
LIBRARY |
MI |
903 |
5 |
|
e) 25 K |
ELMHURST PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IL |
897 |
6 |
|
e) 25 K |
ST. CHARLES PUBLIC LIBRARY
DISTRICT |
IL |
890 |
7 |
|
e) 25 K |
LAKE OSWEGO PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OR |
884 |
8 |
|
e) 25 K |
MIDDLETON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
WI |
881 |
9 |
|
e) 25 K |
SHAKER HEIGHTS PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
876 |
10 |
|
f) 10 K |
TWINSBURG PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
959 |
1 |
|
f) 10 K |
HAYS PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
KS |
939 |
2 |
|
f) 10 K |
WICKLIFFE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
938 |
3 |
|
f) 10 K |
ORRVILLE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
914 |
4 |
|
f) 10 K |
PETERS TOWNSHIP PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
PA |
911 |
5 |
|
f) 10 K |
MADISON PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
910 |
6 |
|
f) 10 K |
DARIEN
LIBRARY |
CT |
900 |
7 |
|
f) 10 K |
AVON LAKE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
898 |
8 |
|
f) 10 K |
HENRY CARTER HULL
LIBRARY |
CT |
895 |
9 |
|
f) 10 K |
WAY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
893 |
10 |
|
g) 5 K |
COLUMBIANA PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
953 |
1 |
|
g) 5 K |
BRISTOL PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
947 |
2 |
|
g) 5 K |
BRIDGEPORT PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
WV |
928 |
3 |
|
g) 5 K |
GRANDVIEW HEIGHTS PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
915 |
4 |
|
g) 5 K |
CRESTLINE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
910 |
5 |
|
g) 5 K |
WRIGHT MEMORIAL PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
905 |
6 |
|
g) 5 K |
DOVER TOWN
LIBRARY |
MA |
904 |
7 |
|
g) 5 K |
NEW CARLISLE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
899 |
8 |
|
g) 5 K |
NEW CUMBERLAND PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
PA |
894 |
9 |
|
g) 5 K |
KINSMAN FREE PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
882 |
10 |
|
h) 2.5 K |
JAMES KENNEDY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IA |
920 |
1 |
|
h) 2.5 K |
GRAND VALLEY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
OH |
916 |
2 |
|
h) 2.5 K |
MT. PLEASANT PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
UT |
915 |
3 |
|
h) 2.5 K |
CENTRAL CITY PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
NE |
907 |
4 |
|
h) 2.5 K |
BELL MEMORIAL PUBLIC
LIBRARY |
IN |
906 |
5 |
|
h) 2.5 K |
FAIRFAX
COMMUNITY |
VT |
| |