Abstract
The need to consider the most equitable way to provide services to people experiencing homelessness must also be balanced by how these services will affect staff in their daily duties. What can realistically be expected from a staff member when dealing with more complex social service issues? At times, the staff is tasked with answering questions that may fall outside their education and training. It is necessary to establish which needs in the community can successfully be provided by someone with an educational or professional background relating primarily to the Library and Information Science field, and which are better facilitated through community partnerships with social service agencies. This study aimed to examine the websites of three major metropolitan libraries in three geographic locations in the United States, explore their policies and services as they relate to patrons experiencing homelessness, and compare these discovered services to the list of ALA Objectives for addressing poverty and economic inequality.
Recommended Citation
Jason Lefebvre, MLIS
(2024)
"Library Services for Patrons Experiencing Homelessness: An Examination of Three Urban Libraries,"
SLIS Connecting: Vol. 12:
Iss.
2, Article 10.
DOI: 10.18785/slis.1202.10
Available at:
https://aquila.usm.edu/slisconnecting/vol12/iss2/10
Included in
Archival Science Commons, Collection Development and Management Commons, Information Literacy Commons, Scholarly Communication Commons, Scholarly Publishing Commons
