Annual Survey, Standards and Accreditation

Annual Survey

The State Library of Iowa encourages all Iowa public libraries to participate in the Annual Survey.  Data submitted in the Annual Survey is used on the local, regional, state, and federal levels. Filing a complete annual survey is one of the requirements to receive Enrich Iowa: Direct State Aid funding.

The statistics gathered in the Annual Survey are helpful when librarians want to:

• Compare their own library activity from year to year
• Compare information from libraries of similar size
• Obtain statistics to support budget requests
• Analyze the needs of their community
• Plan how the library will serve the community in the future

The data collected from the Annual Survey is used to provide Iowa Public Library Statistics and to provide information for a library's accreditation report. Iowa Public Library Statistics includes information on income, expenditures, collections, circulation, and other measures, including staff.

Standards and Accreditation

The Standards and Accreditation program exists to encourage the ongoing development of high quality public library services in Iowa. In Service to Iowa: Public Library Standards is the manual for the State Library of Iowa’s standards program. Iowa’s voluntary public library standards program was established to give public libraries a tool to identify strengths and areas for improvement. It is also used to document the condition of public library service in Iowa, to distribute Direct State Aid funding, and to meet the State Library's legal requirements.

How the Program Works

• Every three years, each library is asked to report its progress toward achieving accreditation by completing the “Application Form for Accreditation and Direct State Aid Tier Level.”
• Each year the availability of the form is announced to public library directors by email.
• The library files a copy of the application form with the State Library.
• The library provides the documentation requested on the “Request for Supporting Documentation”form to the State Library.
• State Library staff audits accreditation applications and supporting materials as needed.
  
• Accreditation certificates are issued by the State Library in June of each year. Accreditation is valid for three
  years.

Help is Available

Understanding the annual survey, standards and accreditation programs takes time.  Your district consultant can provide you with an overview of the programs and how they relate to each other.