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TOPIC: Andrew Medlar of Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh · Pittsburgh Sunday Morning

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: And welcome in. This is a public affairs program shedding
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: the light on the interests, issues, and concerns of the
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  Speaker 1: greater Pittsburgh area.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning.
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  Speaker 1: My name is Johnny Hartwell.
• 0:11
  Speaker 2: I remember my.
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  Speaker 1: Name this time, Andrew.
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  Speaker 3: Well done. I'm proud of you. Thank you.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you.
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  Speaker 1: Andrew Medler, president and director of Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: Always good to see you.
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  Speaker 3: How are you? I am great. I am great.
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  Speaker 4: I'm really happy to be here, and I hope you've
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  Speaker 4: been reading some good books lately.
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  Speaker 2: You know what?
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  Speaker 1: That's a shame. I'm going to ask you for some
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  Speaker 1: recommendations because it's been a minute, really, because I love
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  Speaker 1: to read, and I'm a huge supporter of the libraries
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: here in Pittsburgh. You know, I think You know, obviously,
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: Pittsburgh was known as a blue-collar town and steel workers
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: and things like that. But we've kind of reinvented ourselves,
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: and Med and Ed, as people like to say. And
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  Speaker 1: I embrace that change. And if you're going to focus
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  Speaker 1: on Med and Ed... It starts with literacy. And the
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  Speaker 1: backbone of literacy is the public libraries.
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely.
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  Speaker 4: And thank you for being such a great supporter. And
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  Speaker 4: it's true. At Carnegie Library Pittsburgh, our mission statement starts
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  Speaker 4: with the words, fostering literacy. We do that every day
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  Speaker 4: in so many ways. And I can't wait to talk
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  Speaker 4: about all of those, depending on how much time you got.
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  Speaker 4: But I want to say, okay, all right, I'm ready.
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  Speaker 4: When you think of literacy... Think of life success. And
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  Speaker 4: that really is how we have transformed our community and
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  Speaker 4: all of our lives to be successful is by having
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  Speaker 4: that foundation of literacy that the public library provides.
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  Speaker 1: Now, I've said this before to you, and I think
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  Speaker 1: it's worth noting again. When I first started my broadcast career,
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: I wasn't... I'll be honest with you. I wasn't doing
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  Speaker 1: very well. And then I kind of.
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  Speaker 3: I kind of.
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  Speaker 1: Well, it all started with walking into a library in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania.
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  Speaker 1: Walked in, started to read, and started to love to read.
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  Speaker 1: And really, that was the foundation of my broadcast career
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  Speaker 1: is being interested in so many different things. And when
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  Speaker 1: you're interested, you become interesting. And you want to be
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: on the radio, you got to be interesting. So it
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  Speaker 1: all started with opening up a door of a library,
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  Speaker 1: and it's really started my career in broadcasting. So I
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  Speaker 1: owe a lot to librarians and what the libraries provide
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  Speaker 1: to the community.
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  Speaker 4: That story makes me so happy. And it's one that
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  Speaker 4: we see every single day.
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  Speaker 3: I'm sure you do.
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  Speaker 4: Every single day in all kinds of libraries, in all communities.
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  Speaker 4: And I love that you use the word interesting because
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  Speaker 4: I will vouch for how interesting you are. And also
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  Speaker 4: for the fact that at the library, we have books
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  Speaker 4: about everything. So no matter what you're interested in, There's
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  Speaker 4: a connection in that library. And yes, it's in the books,
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  Speaker 4: and it's in the programming that we do, it's in
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  Speaker 4: the spaces that we provide, and it's in the amazing, talented,
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  Speaker 4: and really well-trained expert library workers who are there to
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  Speaker 4: support you in anything you're interested in.
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  Speaker 1: You know, what's great about the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh,
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  Speaker 1: it's been embraced by the community. And towards the fourth quarter,
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  Speaker 1: you're always saying, hey, this is a great opportunity to
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  Speaker 1: support the library with a donation or some sort of contribution.
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  Speaker 1: And obviously, that's a great way to start. So if
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  Speaker 1: somebody wants to maybe have a similar experience as I did,
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  Speaker 1: if they want to donate to the library, what do
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  Speaker 1: you recommend?
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  Speaker 4: Go to CarnegieLibrary.org slash donate.
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  Speaker 3: Oh, that's amazing.
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  Speaker 4: And please, please contribute. The library is amazing. about community
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  Speaker 4: because it's all of ours. And so we can all
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  Speaker 4: contribute to the library. You know, our original donor back
• 4:01
  Speaker 4: in the 1800s, Mr. Andrew Carnegie, I've heard of him.
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  Speaker 4: That might ring a bell. It might ring a bell.
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  Speaker 4: And we're grateful to him because he gave us in
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  Speaker 4: so many communities around the world, public libraries. And it
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  Speaker 4: was really that trailblazing that, that came from Pittsburgh and
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  Speaker 4: went to the world is amazing. So, he gave us
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  Speaker 4: our amazing library, and then he handed it over to
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  Speaker 4: Pittsburghers and said, take it and go with it. So,
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  Speaker 4: we have over our door at the main library the words,
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  Speaker 4: free to the people, because that is what it is
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  Speaker 4: all about. And coming in and finding those interests and
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  Speaker 4: doing all the amazing things, that is free to the people. Yet,
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  Speaker 4: we are as a community responsible for making sure that
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  Speaker 4: we can continue to do that because free isn't free.
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  Speaker 4: So we have those words over the door because Andrew
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  Speaker 4: Carnegie said them at the ribbon cutting of that building
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  Speaker 4: when he was turning the building over to the community.
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  Speaker 4: And in turning the library over to the community, he
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  Speaker 4: was good. What I mean by that is he didn't
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  Speaker 4: also give us money. So there is no Andrew Carnegie
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  Speaker 4: fund that is supporting us still today.
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  Speaker 1: Is that a misconception? People assume that there was some
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  Speaker 1: sort of endowment that he continues to give to the libraries.
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  Speaker 3: I think it is.
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  Speaker 4: Lots of folks that I talk to say that they say, oh, well,
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  Speaker 4: you've got all that Andrew Carnegie money.
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  Speaker 3: And we don't.
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  Speaker 4: We have a wonderful legacy and amazing buildings and libraries.
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  Speaker 4: You know, so much that we wouldn't have without his support.
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  Speaker 4: Yet there is no Andrew Carnegie endowment or funding that
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  Speaker 4: we receive today.
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  Speaker 3: So it's up to all of us.
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  Speaker 4: It's up to all of us to keep our libraries
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  Speaker 4: going so that they are free to the people for
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  Speaker 4: all our neighbors.
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  Speaker 1: I don't want to discount what you just said, but,
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  Speaker 1: you know, the endowment is that he brought the libraries
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  Speaker 1: to Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh embraced those libraries and And so
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  Speaker 1: that is worth something. Now, it would really be worth
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  Speaker 1: it if there was some sort of endowment. Because I
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  Speaker 1: recently saw an interview and somebody mentioned Andrew Carnegie. And
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  Speaker 1: usually they talk about his industrialist, something of what he contributed.
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  Speaker 1: And what they really were talking about was the library
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  Speaker 1: system or Carnegie Hall. It's really difficult for me to say.
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  Speaker 1: And it was funny. They were like, oh, here's somebody
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  Speaker 1: who was, you know, embraced the arts and libraries. And, well,
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  Speaker 1: at Pittsburgh, it's almost we know his history as an industrialist.
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  Speaker 1: And then maybe the Carnegie Library is, you know, derived
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  Speaker 1: from him. I just thought it was interesting that they
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  Speaker 1: didn't see him as, you know, that somebody who was
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  Speaker 1: an industrialist, but just somebody who was philanthropic.
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  Speaker 4: Well, and everything that he did in his life... He
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  Speaker 4: credited to reading.
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  Speaker 1: Oh, yeah.
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  Speaker 4: He understood that connection between literacy and life success. It was,
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  Speaker 4: you know, someone that he worked from or worked for
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  Speaker 4: in his youth who allowed him access to a book
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  Speaker 4: collection that led to however you think of him and
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  Speaker 4: whatever success or challenges that he had, it sprung from
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  Speaker 4: his love of reading books.
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  Speaker 1: Now, obviously, we're looking at 2027.
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  Speaker 3: Oh, that's kind of like, that's.
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  Speaker 1: Hard to get my head around.
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  Speaker 3: It's coming. It's really close.
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  Speaker 1: But let's look back at 2026 and some of the
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  Speaker 1: things that that you accomplished as the library. So tell us,
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  Speaker 1: you know, here's your chance to brag about what you
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  Speaker 1: guys were able to accomplish.
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  Speaker 4: There is a lot to brag about, because I'll tell you,
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  Speaker 4: every day at Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, there are things
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  Speaker 4: that are exciting, and there's that word again, interesting and impactful.
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  Speaker 4: You know, we have over 500 programs a month happening
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  Speaker 4: at our locations across the city, and millions of books
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  Speaker 4: being checked out, and millions of minutes of computer time
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  Speaker 4: being accessed. And all of these things are happening every day,
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  Speaker 4: and we also have special times to really come together
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  Speaker 4: and celebrate. So, for example, since I was here last
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  Speaker 4: with you, we had an amazing Pittsburgh Book Fest. And
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  Speaker 4: that was a day when thousands and thousands and thousands
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  Speaker 4: of people came together in Oakland, at the main library
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  Speaker 4: of CLP to engage in literacy and learning and community together.
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  Speaker 4: And there were dozens and dozens of authors and program
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  Speaker 4: panels and booksellers and just an incredible energy all centered
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  Speaker 4: around books. So that was, hey, it was fun for sure.
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  Speaker 4: And it was actually 25% more people than came to
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  Speaker 4: the festival the year before.
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  Speaker 1: So it's growing.
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  Speaker 4: So it's really growing, and it's a chance to have fun, yes.
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  Speaker 4: Engage in literacy, yes. It's also an economic driver for
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  Speaker 4: the neighborhood. It's also a workforce development event for the
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  Speaker 4: authors themselves and to support their careers. And so that's
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  Speaker 4: absolutely one of my favorite things that happens all year,
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  Speaker 4: and we're looking forward to That 2027 event as well.
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  Speaker 1: Do you have a date yet?
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  Speaker 3: That's June 5th, 2027.
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  Speaker 1: Okay.
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  Speaker 3: So we'll see you there.
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  Speaker 1: All right. Very good. And then the summer reading program.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, you set an amazing record in 2025. How
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  Speaker 1: did you do in 2026?
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  Speaker 4: We blew that out of the water. Let me tell
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  Speaker 4: you what. The kids of Pittsburgh read 35% more books
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  Speaker 4: this summer than they read the summer before.
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  Speaker 3: That's amazing.
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  Speaker 4: I'm so proud. so proud of our neighbors because yes,
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  Speaker 4: it's fun. It's fun to read and discover things that
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  Speaker 4: you're interested in.
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely.
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  Speaker 4: And what that also means is that it is so many,
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  Speaker 4: I mean, it's almost 200,000 books and And so that
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  Speaker 4: is 200,000 experiences, adventures, things that are learned, and the
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  Speaker 4: ability to go back to school at the end of
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  Speaker 4: the summer, retaining more of what you have learned the
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  Speaker 4: year before. Because in addition to all of the fun,
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  Speaker 4: that reading, that literacy that equals life success, keeps the
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  Speaker 4: brain going. keeps the kids active and engaged, and so
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  Speaker 4: there's not a drain on their brain over the summer. again,
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  Speaker 4: not only is it fun and the growth that we're
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  Speaker 4: seeing in the summer reading program continues, and I expect
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  Speaker 4: we're going to blow the 2027 number out of the water, too, because.
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  Speaker 3: Of how fun it is.
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  Speaker 1: Well, I'm glad you mentioned that because, you know, the
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  Speaker 1: summer snows or the winter snows falls on the mountain.
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  Speaker 1: It feeds the rivers and the streams, and that's exactly
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  Speaker 1: what this kind of reading program kind of does. It
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  Speaker 1: allows that kid to not only establish a love of
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  Speaker 1: learning and literacy, but a touchstone with the library and
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  Speaker 1: other people that are reading as well. And that's the
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  Speaker 1: community that you are building.
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  Speaker 3: Exactly.
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  Speaker 4: So, there's community with other readers, both in coming together
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  Speaker 4: in the physical space and also in getting to know
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  Speaker 4: the same people. When you read, whether it's a print.
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  Speaker 3: Book or an e-book or an audio book.
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  Speaker 4: Or a magazine or a newspaper, in whatever format that
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  Speaker 4: may be, when you finish it, you know something and
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  Speaker 4: someone that you didn't know before. And the amazing thing
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  Speaker 4: about how reading is really, when you think about it,
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  Speaker 4: a very social sport.
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  Speaker 5: And so.
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  Speaker 4: because other people are engaging in that same thing and
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  Speaker 4: meeting the same people that you are. You know the
• 12:25
  Speaker 4: same people as someone else who has read the same
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  Speaker 4: book as you. You've been to the same places. You've
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  Speaker 4: learned the same things. And, you know, we interpret them differently,
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  Speaker 4: and they mean different things to different people and different
• 12:37
  Speaker 4: things at different times. If you've ever reread a book
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  Speaker 4: that you read when you were young, you may feel
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  Speaker 4: differently about it later. but it becomes part of you
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  Speaker 4: and it's also part of other people.
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  Speaker 1: Is there a particular book that you find yourself rereading
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  Speaker 1: from time to time?
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  Speaker 3: I reread, well, there are actually three. Can I say three?
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  Speaker 3: You can.
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  Speaker 1: This is your time.
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  Speaker 4: I will say, well, I'll keep going. I will say
• 13:03
  Speaker 4: A Wrinkle in Time.
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  Speaker 3: Oh, yeah. I love to read over and over again.
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  Speaker 4: And that's a great example of something that I loved
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  Speaker 4: when I first read it in elementary school. And I
• 13:13
  Speaker 4: still have my very, very old copy from elementary school.
• 13:19
  Speaker 4: And I can see things that I underline in pages
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  Speaker 4: that I, you know, dog-eared. And I loved it. And
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  Speaker 4: now when I read it again, I thought, wow, I
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: didn't understand that or I didn't remember that. And I
• 13:34
  Speaker 4: didn't realize that that's what the author was talking about. So,
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  Speaker 4: it's fun to revisit again and then I see even
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  Speaker 4: more in it. Another example would be The Lion, the Witch,
• 13:45
  Speaker 4: and the Wardrobe, which I reread at least twice a year.
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  Speaker 3: Oh, wow. Okay.
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  Speaker 4: And the other would be my favorite book of all time,
• 13:55
  Speaker 4: of course, The World Book Encyclopedia.
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  Speaker 1: Oh, wow. Cover to cover?
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  Speaker 4: I go into different parts of things that I am
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  Speaker 4: interested in.
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  Speaker 1: Oh, wow. Okay.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah.
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  Speaker 1: Mine is A Brief History.
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  Speaker 5: Of Time.
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  Speaker 1: It's by Bill Bryson.
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  Speaker 3: Excellent.
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  Speaker 1: It is an amazing book, and I probably reread it
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  Speaker 1: probably once a year because somebody will say something, I'm like,
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: that reminds me of that particular chapter, so I'll go
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: back to that particular chapter to kind of review. And
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: I remember my books that I read because the last
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: time I talked to you, I was planning a trip
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: to Mexico, and so I was reading a book on...
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  Speaker 1: The Mayas.
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  Speaker 3: That's right.
• 14:37
  Speaker 1: And then after that, it was Aztecs. So Mexican history
• 14:43
  Speaker 1: has probably been my interest of this year because I
• 14:46
  Speaker 1: would go on vacation, experience Mexico, but then I was like,
• 14:51
  Speaker 1: I don't know anything about the culture. ancient culture. So
• 14:55
  Speaker 1: that got me interested in those kind of things. So
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  Speaker 1: you never know where a book will lead you.
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  Speaker 3: That's right.
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  Speaker 4: And I mean, I've been all over the world in
• 15:05
  Speaker 4: books that I've read, and that's great for those of
• 15:08
  Speaker 4: us who have the privilege of traveling and seeing the world.
• 15:11
  Speaker 4: And I think in many cases that interest in traveling
• 15:14
  Speaker 4: and seeing the world is inspired by reading. And also
• 15:19
  Speaker 4: for folks who aren't traveling, who are staying closer to home,
• 15:24
  Speaker 4: They can travel the world while they are staying at home.
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  Speaker 1: We talked a little bit about how Pittsburgh has embraced
• 15:30
  Speaker 1: the Carnegie Library system and what an important engagement it
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: is with the community. Is that something that you think
• 15:39
  Speaker 1: of consciously, or is that something that is more organic?
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: I mean, do you guys kind of sit down and
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: think about how you're going to maybe plan out the year?
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: Do you have a strategic plan? Do you think about
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: those kind of things?
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  Speaker 3: Absolutely. Absolutely.
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  Speaker 4: We have a strategic plan because, as I always say,
• 15:58
  Speaker 4: if you don't know where you're going, how are you
• 16:00
  Speaker 4: going to get there? And we know where we want
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  Speaker 4: to go. We have a vision statement at CLP, which
• 16:08
  Speaker 4: is of a strong, connected community with the library at
• 16:13
  Speaker 4: its heart that embraces individual and collective achievement and access
• 16:17
  Speaker 4: to knowledge and a sense of joint belonging. And That's
• 16:22
  Speaker 4: where we want to go. That's where we want to be.
• 16:25
  Speaker 4: And so to get there, we've got a strategic plan.
• 16:29
  Speaker 4: Our current plan, we are halfway through. It's a five-year plan.
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  Speaker 4: And I'm really proud of our entire team for really
• 16:36
  Speaker 4: bringing it to life. Now, a lot of people, I'm
• 16:39
  Speaker 4: a bit of a strategic plan geek. And I, because
• 16:43
  Speaker 4: they are that path, they are a map to where
• 16:47
  Speaker 4: we want to be and what we want to do
• 16:49
  Speaker 4: for our community and what they want.
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  Speaker 3: Need and want and deserve.
• 16:53
  Speaker 4: And so the fact that we are halfway through this plan,
• 16:57
  Speaker 4: we have accomplished almost 70% of the goals in the
• 17:00
  Speaker 4: plan already that we set out to do. And so
• 17:05
  Speaker 4: it's really helping the library be a place that, again,
• 17:08
  Speaker 4: at the end of the day, It creates a sense
• 17:10
  Speaker 4: of joy.
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  Speaker 1: Before I ask you, you know, where do you want
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  Speaker 1: to end up? Tell me a little bit about where
• 17:16
  Speaker 1: you started and how that progression is going for the
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: library system.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah. Well, we have, you know, made incredible progress since
• 17:27
  Speaker 4: coming out of the pandemic. I mean, that was a
• 17:29
  Speaker 4: tough time, certainly for all of us. And it was
• 17:32
  Speaker 4: amazing how libraries responded to that time. and how many
• 17:37
  Speaker 4: people use the libraries during that time. And it's also
• 17:40
  Speaker 4: been a place of forward motion from that time. So,
• 17:43
  Speaker 4: for example, talking earlier about how many amazing books the
• 17:48
  Speaker 4: great kids of Pittsburgh read this summer and how that
• 17:51
  Speaker 4: was an amazing increase over last year. Well, since the pandemic,
• 17:57
  Speaker 4: that number of books read from the summer reading program
• 17:59
  Speaker 4: has actually gone.
• 18:00
  Speaker 3: Up over 600%.
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  Speaker 5: And so.
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  Speaker 4: Making that progress and moving forward has been really purposeful
• 18:10
  Speaker 4: because the strategic plan has helped us do it. And
• 18:13
  Speaker 4: it really, the pieces of making that happen are about
• 18:19
  Speaker 4: community connections. It's about regional cooperation, all of us helping
• 18:24
  Speaker 4: our libraries, all of our libraries across our region. It's
• 18:27
  Speaker 4: about responsive services and it's about organizational excellence. So those
• 18:33
  Speaker 4: are the ways we look, the framework that we look
• 18:37
  Speaker 4: at this plan to get us from where we were
• 18:40
  Speaker 4: to where we want to be because of what our
• 18:44
  Speaker 4: neighbors want and need and deserve from their library.
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: Well, I don't want to get too far without reminding people,
• 18:48
  Speaker 1: if you want to support your local libraries, how can
• 18:51
  Speaker 1: they do that?
• 18:52
  Speaker 4: CarnegieLibrary.org slash donate. Stop into your local library, too, and
• 18:57
  Speaker 4: we will be happy to help you out with that
• 19:00
  Speaker 4: there as well. All right.
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: You talked about in your strategic plan and working with
• 19:03
  Speaker 1: the infrastructure, let's say, you know, the Pittsburgh government, for example.
• 19:08
  Speaker 1: What kind of advocacy, what kind of advocates do you
• 19:11
  Speaker 1: have in the city government?
• 19:13
  Speaker 3: We have amazing advocates.
• 19:15
  Speaker 4: We talked before about how much Pittsburghers love their library,
• 19:19
  Speaker 4: and that really, really is the case here. And the
• 19:24
  Speaker 4: mayor of Pittsburgh and the first lady are incredible lovers
• 19:28
  Speaker 4: of the library and are at their libraries a lot,
• 19:33
  Speaker 4: a lot. You're very likely to run into the first
• 19:36
  Speaker 4: family of Pittsburgh at a story time at the Carnegie
• 19:40
  Speaker 4: Library of Pittsburgh because they understand how the library is
• 19:46
  Speaker 4: such a key part of not only having fun and
• 19:49
  Speaker 4: finding your interests, but again, that life success and being
• 19:55
  Speaker 4: a key part of what makes Pittsburgh such an amazing
• 19:58
  Speaker 4: place to raise families. And looking to make Pittsburgh every
• 20:05
  Speaker 4: family's first choice to grow up, The libraries are a
• 20:08
  Speaker 4: key part of that, and our city officials and supporters
• 20:13
  Speaker 4: get that, and they understand that, and they're engaged every day.
• 20:17
  Speaker 4: And that happens with the county, too, and we have
• 20:20
  Speaker 4: amazing support from our county elected officials for the libraries
• 20:25
  Speaker 4: in the city and all the public libraries around Allegheny
• 20:28
  Speaker 4: County as well.
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: Ari, tell me about your support with your connection and
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: partnership with local schools.
• 20:34
  Speaker 3: Well, this is so key because we're a team.
• 20:41
  Speaker 4: We're all here to help each other. And it's about
• 20:43
  Speaker 4: the community connections. And we really, really believe in a
• 20:48
  Speaker 4: literacy and learning ecosystem in the community. And the library,
• 20:52
  Speaker 4: the public library, is a key part of that because
• 20:55
  Speaker 4: you can come to the public library long before you
• 20:58
  Speaker 4: start going to school. And it's free to do so.
• 21:03
  Speaker 4: And so we really help with preschool and pre-kindergarten success
• 21:10
  Speaker 4: at the public library. And then once kids start going
• 21:14
  Speaker 4: to school, we're there for them as well. And so
• 21:18
  Speaker 4: one of the ways that we work really closely with
• 21:21
  Speaker 4: the schools in Pittsburgh is through our Card Fest initiative.
• 21:24
  Speaker 4: And that is to ensure that every scholar in Pittsburgh
• 21:28
  Speaker 4: has a Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh library card. that is
• 21:31
  Speaker 4: find free and ready to use and a gateway to, again,
• 21:37
  Speaker 4: the fun and the learning and the.
• 21:39
  Speaker 3: Life success the library provides.
• 21:42
  Speaker 4: So now through very great partnerships with PPS, yes, and
• 21:48
  Speaker 4: also the charter schools in the city, we have been
• 21:52
  Speaker 4: able to make sure that 20,000 more young people have
• 21:57
  Speaker 4: library cards now than they did when we started our
• 22:01
  Speaker 4: strategic plan.
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: Well, speaking of strategic plan, I didn't ask you, you
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: said you're about 70% through a five-year plan. What does
• 22:09
  Speaker 1: the future hold? Where are some things that you want
• 22:11
  Speaker 1: to take the library over the next couple of years?
• 22:14
  Speaker 4: Yeah, well, the possibilities are, and this is another reason
• 22:17
  Speaker 4: it's important to have a plan, because the possibilities and
• 22:20
  Speaker 4: the opportunities are almost endless. And the key to getting there, though,
• 22:27
  Speaker 4: is ensuring that we have a really firm organizational excellence foundation.
• 22:35
  Speaker 4: And so one of the things we are working very
• 22:39
  Speaker 4: diligently on and very collaboratively on right now is our
• 22:43
  Speaker 4: financial transformation program to ensure that CLP is financially strong
• 22:51
  Speaker 4: and financially sustainable into the future. And that's going to
• 22:56
  Speaker 4: be what not only gets us to the end of
• 22:58
  Speaker 4: this strategic plan, but But on to the next one
• 23:00
  Speaker 4: and the one after that and the one after that
• 23:03
  Speaker 4: and the one after that.
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: Well, can you tell me a little bit more and
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: how can the people listening help?
• 23:09
  Speaker 4: So, again, CarnegieLibrary.org slash donate. And that is, again, an
• 23:14
  Speaker 4: opportunity to support the library very directly. Also, ensure that
• 23:20
  Speaker 4: the leaders in your community know that you, too, love
• 23:24
  Speaker 4: the same library that they do.
• 23:26
  Speaker 5: And.
• 23:28
  Speaker 3: Also, we have.
• 23:29
  Speaker 4: Amazing, amazing partners in this work in the Allegheny Regional
• 23:33
  Speaker 4: Asset District. And they are our, CLP's, primary local funding source.
• 23:40
  Speaker 4: And they love the library and they support CLP and
• 23:45
  Speaker 4: all the county libraries wonderfully. And they would love to
• 23:49
  Speaker 4: hear from you and you and you and you how
• 23:52
  Speaker 4: much the library means to you as well because it
• 23:55
  Speaker 4: really is a partnership. We want the same thing of
• 23:59
  Speaker 4: more people getting to use the library because of the
• 24:03
  Speaker 4: fun and the interest and the life success that it provides. So, hey,
• 24:09
  Speaker 4: don't be shy about how much you love the library.
• 24:12
  Speaker 4: Contribute and also contribute your voice so that our leaders
• 24:17
  Speaker 4: in the community know that as well.
• 24:19
  Speaker 1: One of the biggest movies of 2026 was Christopher Nolan's
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: The Odyssey. And I saw it and my, my son
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: saw it separately. And, um, I was surprised. I was like,
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: you know, what'd you think? He goes, I loved it.
• 24:33
  Speaker 1: It reminded me as a, as a kid. And I,
• 24:36
  Speaker 1: I scratched my head. I was like, I don't understand.
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: He goes, you don't remember, um, the CD ROM version
• 24:43
  Speaker 1: that when I was a kid that you gave me
• 24:46
  Speaker 1: and I would just, he would.
• 24:47
  Speaker 3: Watch it constantly.
• 24:49
  Speaker 4: Wow.
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: And so, you know, touching literacy can be, uh, It
• 24:54
  Speaker 1: has changed over the years. We're not talking just words
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: on a page, but it's a CD-ROM. Today, it's audio books.
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: It's e-books. There's so many different ways to spread the
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: spoken word and things like that. So how is that
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: incorporated in today's library?
• 25:13
  Speaker 4: Content is more important than format because formats change and
• 25:18
  Speaker 4: formats come and go, but the content doesn't change. And
• 25:22
  Speaker 4: when people say... Oh, will libraries be around in 5, 10, 20,
• 25:27
  Speaker 4: 25 years?
• 25:28
  Speaker 3: No, they won't.
• 25:28
  Speaker 4: I say, absolutely, because what will not change is that story.
• 25:33
  Speaker 4: I mean, that story that you and your son both
• 25:35
  Speaker 4: connected with. has been around for an awfully long time.
• 25:40
  Speaker 4: If you would have said when that story came out,
• 25:44
  Speaker 4: if you'd said, well, that story would be around.
• 25:48
  Speaker 3: I never said. I never said.
• 25:50
  Speaker 4: But that's an example of, as you said so well,
• 25:53
  Speaker 4: the timelessness of that and the connection that that provides
• 25:58
  Speaker 4: regardless of the format in which it is presented.
• 26:01
  Speaker 3: Now, the current.
• 26:04
  Speaker 4: Growing format right now that we are providing stories and
• 26:09
  Speaker 4: content and connections and collections to our neighbors is through e-books.
• 26:17
  Speaker 4: And your public library provides books in digital format because
• 26:24
  Speaker 4: that is how people want to access it right now.
• 26:28
  Speaker 4: And while it is our fastest growing format, It is
• 26:33
  Speaker 4: also our most expensive. And so that's a challenge that
• 26:36
  Speaker 4: we're working with now. And as part of this organizational
• 26:39
  Speaker 4: excellence work that we're doing through our financial transformation program
• 26:43
  Speaker 4: is really, really working to find sustainable ways to provide e-books.
• 26:49
  Speaker 4: Because when we buy a print book, we get a
• 26:54
  Speaker 4: very good discount on that print book. And because of
• 26:58
  Speaker 4: a thing called the first sale doctrine, which is enshrined
• 27:01
  Speaker 4: in U.S. law, We can loan that, we own that book,
• 27:04
  Speaker 4: that physical copy of the book, and we can check
• 27:06
  Speaker 4: it out again and again and again and again, and
• 27:08
  Speaker 4: 100 people can read that book. That doesn't apply to e-books. So,
• 27:13
  Speaker 4: e-books are done differently because the publishers can give them
• 27:21
  Speaker 4: to us differently. And so, they're licensed rather than purchased e-books.
• 27:26
  Speaker 4: And the licenses have, as many publishers as there are,
• 27:30
  Speaker 4: there's many different ways to license.
• 27:31
  Speaker 3: We can license for.
• 27:33
  Speaker 4: A certain number of reads. For example, some e-books can
• 27:37
  Speaker 4: only be read 24 times, and then we have to
• 27:40
  Speaker 4: decide whether we're going to pay more money to get
• 27:43
  Speaker 4: more licenses. Sometimes it's a period of time. Some books
• 27:46
  Speaker 4: we can only have available checkout for two years before
• 27:49
  Speaker 4: we have to decide.
• 27:50
  Speaker 1: So every book and every author is different?
• 27:52
  Speaker 3: Exactly.
• 27:52
  Speaker 5: Wow.
• 27:54
  Speaker 4: And some things that we have that we provide, we
• 27:57
  Speaker 4: have to pay every single time they get checked out.
• 28:00
  Speaker 3: So come and.
• 28:02
  Speaker 4: Check out eBooks, too, if that's your favorite way to read.
• 28:06
  Speaker 4: And we will really work hard to find a way
• 28:09
  Speaker 4: to make that possible. All right.
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: We only have about a minute left. So kind of
• 28:13
  Speaker 1: give us your plan for 2027. And then once again,
• 28:16
  Speaker 1: remind people how they can donate.
• 28:18
  Speaker 4: So you can donate and support your library at carnegalibrary.org
• 28:22
  Speaker 4: slash donate. And particularly now as we're getting to the
• 28:26
  Speaker 4: end of the year, you can also do your holiday
• 28:28
  Speaker 4: shopping at the library because we have an incredible merch
• 28:32
  Speaker 4: store with all kinds of really cool things for book
• 28:36
  Speaker 4: lovers of all kinds. So please check that out and
• 28:40
  Speaker 4: make yourself and your favorite book lovers holiday even brighter.
• 28:46
  Speaker 4: Because as we get into 2027, there's going to be
• 28:49
  Speaker 4: more opportunities for learning and exploring and finding things you're
• 28:54
  Speaker 4: interested in. and making sure that you're set up for
• 28:57
  Speaker 4: a life of success.
• 28:58
  Speaker 1: At the library. Andrew Medler, President and Director of Carnegie
• 29:01
  Speaker 1: Library of Pittsburgh. Always a pleasure, Andrew. Thank you so much.
• 29:04
  Speaker 3: A real treat. Thanks a lot.
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: As always, if you have any comments, a concern, or
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: an idea for a future program, please email us from
• 29:11
  Speaker 1: this radio station's website. I'm Johnny Hartwell. Thank you so
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: much for listening.
• 29:36
  Speaker 2: Wake up and text. Text and eat. Text and catch
• 29:42
  Speaker 2: the bus. Text and miss your stop.
• 29:46
  Speaker 3: Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
• 29:47
  Speaker 2: Text and be late to work.
• 29:50
  Speaker 4: Sorry I'm late.
• 29:51
  Speaker 5: Text and work. Text and pretend to work. Text and
• 29:57
  Speaker 5: act surprised when someone calls you out for not working.
• 30:00
  Speaker 3: Who, me?
• 30:01
  Speaker 2: Text and meet up with a friend you haven't seen
• 30:02
  Speaker 2: in forever.
• 30:03
  Speaker 5: Hi. Oh, hey. Text and complain that they're on their
• 30:06
  Speaker 5: phone the whole time. Text and listen to them complain
• 30:10
  Speaker 5: that you're on your phone the whole time. Text and whatever.
• 30:16
  Speaker 5: But when you get behind the wheel, give your phone
• 30:18
  Speaker 5: to a passenger. Put it in the glove box. Just
• 30:21
  Speaker 5: don't text and drive. Visit StopTextsStopWrecks.org. A public service announcement
• 30:28
  Speaker 5: brought to you by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
• 30:31
  Speaker 5: and the Ad Council.