Decorah Public Library expanding online materials, programming access

Posted: March 30, 2020

RE: Decorah Public Library expanding online materials, programming access

Decorah Public Library closed to the public on Monday March 16; however, since that time Library staff have been hard at work trying to meet the needs of the community in other ways.

Library Director Kristin Torresdal said “In the past two weeks, we have significantly expanded our e-book and digital audiobook offerings, pivoted to the creation of online content and programming, and spent a lot of time researching and discussing additional ways to serve our patrons.”

The Library will soon be announcing additional online content availability, and as of this week is implementing a regular schedule of online program offerings for children and families (available on Facebook or the library website). Patrons can access resources by signing up for a library card online or by emailing staff at dpl@decorah.lib.ia.us to retrieve their card number.

“We are aware that the public would really like us to offer curbside pickup of materials- and we wish that it was safe to do so- but experts in the library field are advising against curbside pickup and delivery right now. There are simply too many unknowns about the risk of contaminated materials, such as library books- both as they go into homes and as they’re returned to the library. If future research indicates that it’s safe for us to resume materials distribution using one of these methods, we will be happy to do so.

Additionally, we want to abide by Public Health guidelines which recommend avoiding all but essential travel and interpersonal contact- and we cannot in good conscience encourage significant numbers of people (staff and the public) to congregate at the library right now,” Torresdal explained.

Visit www.decorah.lib.ia.us to access online materials. Contact Torresdal at ktorresdal@decorah.lib.ia.us with questions.