Reporting:

According to Lear in ’Tis better to be brief than tedious? The Evolution of the American Public Library Annual Report, 1876-2004, librarians in Britain and the United States originally created annual reports for a number of reasons: as a means of being accountable to the public, because it was the “normal” thing to do, as a way of soliciting and acknowledging gifts and because those who advocated reports were influential among their peers.  Today’s reports lean toward “support(ing) the public relations message” (Lear  477) and do not mention every program but rather report on the highlights of the year’s events. Ultimately, gathering and disseminating library statistics is a valuable tool whether used to reflect upon successes of our past, or project toward success in our future.