Wide shot of woman reading book while browsing in antique bookstore while exploring during city vacation
How Local Library Systems Are Supporting Communities and Evolving with the Times
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Asia Tabb
Wide shot of woman reading book while browsing in antique bookstore while exploring during city vacation
Aired; April 16th, 2025.
As part of National Library Week, we took a closer look at the critical and evolving role libraries play in our lives. To help us understand, we welcomed two local leaders in library services—Ryan McCory, Executive Director of the Dauphin County Library System, and Carolyn Blatchley, Executive Director of the Cumberland County Library System. Together, they painted a vibrant picture of how libraries have become vital hubs of connection, learning, and community.
While the mission may be similar, the way libraries operate can look very different from county to county.
Carolyn explained that Cumberland County has a federated system. “We have seven member libraries. One of our libraries has a branch… each library has its own director and its own board,” she said. Despite the autonomy, the system ensures cooperation through shared services like a unified website, centralized cataloging, and a county-wide computer network.
Ryan, on the other hand, oversees a unified system in Dauphin County, with “one board that oversees all eight branches.” That distinction makes a big difference, he explained: “We set the tone for all of those libraries. We set the policies… ours are all unified.”
The services today’s libraries offer are far more expansive than most people realize.
“We’ve never been about books,” Ryan emphasized. “We’ve always been about information… and we will provide access to that information in whatever format it is.”
He cited initiatives like early literacy programs, financial planning workshops, and even a community garden at the northern Dauphin branch. “Anything harvested goes into the library for patrons to take what they need. The rest is donated to the local food bank.”
The modern library has taken on an extraordinary range of responsibilities, including some that might traditionally fall under social services.
“In McCormick Riverfront Library, we’re helping people connect with housing and health resources,” Ryan noted. “We are stretched thin… Libraries have taken on tasks that stretch well beyond the traditional understanding of what a library does.”
Still, both directors emphasized that these services are not free to provide—even if they’re free to access.
“Libraries say all the time that you can use all of this stuff for free. But none of this stuff is free—it costs us,” Ryan said. “We are the epitome of what America is—or what we always thought it was: people coming together, pooling resources for the betterment of everyone.”
Listen to the podcast to hear the full interview.