Urban Libraries Council

10/16/2026

"In June, the Urban Libraries Council and More Perfect announced an initiative similar to The Library Newsroom Project. Ultimately, ULC hopes for promising case studies. 'The major outcome of this project will be a playbook, a guide to doing this,' says ULC program manager Kelsey Hughes. One takeaway: 'Folks have to understand who they’re trying to serve before going into what they might want the outcome to be.'”

To counteract media deserts, the Library Newsroom Project wants to reinvent public libraries as centers for community journalism.

10/16/2026

Another success story from our membership! Palm Beach County Library System used ULC’s Business Value Calculator to quantify the economic impact of its services to entrepreneurs and local businesses. The results were significant: the library provided more than $26 million in value to the business community in FY2025 through training, education, research services, physical space, and technology and equipment available seven days a week.

To maximize impact, the Library published them in its Strategic Plan FY 2024-2028 and Action Plan FY 2026, placing the data alongside its long-term goals for economic development and strategic priorities. Doing so gives the Library a clear, citable figure to point to when talking with county leaders, partners, and residents about the role it plays in the local economy.

Learn more about the BVC: https://buff.ly/w82uICK

10/15/2026

Friendly reminder to our members... ULC’s Association Management System (AMS)—the system that houses member profiles and contact information, supports event registration, manages billing, and provides access to several ULC platforms—is currently undergoing maintenance and will be back up on Monday, October 19.

Until Monday, ULC members will temporarily be unable to access any ULC systems that require a login, which includes the ULC Member Hub, Data Hive, and Academy portal.

The ULC team thanks you in advance for your patience during this necessary maintenance period!

10/15/2026

Via Bloomberg: "At least a dozen other joint library-housing developments are in the pipeline or under consideration across the US. But the broader US housing shortage is measured in millions. Libraries alone aren’t enough to fill that gap, but Brooks Rainwater, president and CEO of the Urban Libraries Council, thinks combining housing with other city properties more broadly is a good long-term strategy. 'When you look at the full scope of publicly owned land within cities, yeah, it can make a dent,' said Rainwater, who once led the National League of Cities’ solutions center."

Read more:

Several cities are looking combine apartment complexes with public library branches in a bid to add new housing units and boost community services.

10/14/2026

During the American Library Association conference this summer in Chicago, The New York Times reporters Elisabeth Egan and John Maher interviewed nearly 50 librarians from across the country, including leaders from the following ULC member libraries: Alameda County Library (CA), Baltimore County Public Library (MD), Cambridge Public Library(MA), Free Library of Philadelphia (PA), and Iowa City Public Library (IA). They asked the librarians what America's libraries provide, and what they need to survive...

Read more:

We asked dozens of them about America’s libraries — what they provide, what they need to survive. Here’s what they told us.

10/13/2026

Earlier this month, over 250 library leaders and staff from 101 library systems across two countries gathered in Las Vegas for ULC’s record-setting Annual Leadership Forum, In Demand: The People and Power of Public Libraries. Over three days, the energy in the room made the theme feel less like a title and more like a fact. Public libraries are in demand, and so are the people who lead them.

Here are four themes we heard most often, and what they mean for the work ahead...

Read the blog: https://buff.ly/bKz54W5

10/07/2026

💥 New Webinar in Partnership with BiblioCommons Inc.💥 Artificial intelligence is already being built into library tools and software. The more consequential issue is who is shaping AI applications — and how do libraries ensure that the values that define public libraries will be reflected in the tools and software libraries eventually use and recommend?

This panel discussion brings together public library leaders to explore what it means to approach AI from a library perspective: what it looks like to ensure vendor products reflect library values, how to bring staff and communities into decisions that will affect them, and how libraries can maintain the public trust that is foundational to everything else they do.

Featuring:
Ty Beauchamp, IT Director, Harris County Public Library
Jessica Chapel, Chief of Digital and Online Services, Boston Public Library
David Leonard, President, Boston Public Library
Oli Sanidas, Library Director, Arapahoe Libraries
Moderated by: Raena Morrison, Chief Operating Officer, BiblioCommons Inc.

Register now: https://buff.ly/8m189Y0

10/06/2026

The future isn't waiting, and neither should you. ULC Academy's new Future Ready Boot Camp gives library leaders the skills, mindsets, and tools to lead through uncertainty, test bold assumptions, and build services that adapt and thrive. 💥 Register by November 20 and save $300! Use code FRBCEARLY at checkout.💥

Using the Double Diamond framework, you'll turn today's biggest challenges, from new technology to shifting budgets to changing community expectations, into practical solutions you can put to work right away, even when resources are tight. You'll leave ready to champion innovation, prototype and test your ideas, and tap into a network of peers who've got your back.

Want a taste first? Try the free preview of the introductory module and see how the course feels.

https://buff.ly/K8Nbtzn

10/02/2026

Congratulations to Lisa Wells, ULC's 2026 Library Advocate of the Year! 🏆

During our Thursday programming at the 2026 Annual Leadership Forum, we had the honor of recognizing Lisa Wells, executive director of Oklahoma's Pioneer Library System, with this year's ULC Library Advocate of the Year award.

Lisa has given an extraordinary amount of time, energy, and passion to ULC's advocacy work, including as co-chair of our E-Content Action Team, which is focused on addressing unfair e-book licensing and prices for libraries. In congressional meetings, both virtual and on Capitol Hill, she has been a tireless advocate not only for her own system, but for all urban public libraries. Her leadership and engagement with decision-makers is a model for us all.

Thank you, Lisa, for all you do for libraries!

09/30/2026

The future isn't waiting, and neither should you. ULC Academy's new Future Ready Boot Camp gives library leaders the skills, mindsets, and tools to lead through uncertainty, test bold assumptions, and build services that adapt and thrive. 💥 Register by November 20 and save $300! Use code FRBCEARLY at checkout. 💥

Using the Double Diamond framework, you'll turn today's biggest challenges, from new technology to shifting budgets to changing community expectations, into practical solutions you can put to work right away, even when resources are tight. You'll leave ready to champion innovation, prototype and test your ideas, and tap into a network of peers who've got your back.

Want a taste first? Try the free preview of the introductory module and see how the course feels: https://buff.ly/K8Nbtzn