Nashville Wins ‘Library Of The Year,’ Earning Praise As ‘A Literacy Gladiator’

Nashville Public Library has won top honors among its peers. The system has been named “Library of the Year” by industry publication Library Journal, which called NPL a “champion of diversity and inclusiveness and a literacy gladiator.”

The

Library Journal highlights
Nashville’s close relationship with the school system, training teachers and parents how to educate their children.

The publication also points to a novel team effort known as Limitless Libraries. Since 2009, Metro students have been able to reserve books from the city system, which are then delivered to their school library.

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Read the article naming the 2017 Library of the Year

“Great libraries find compelling solutions to the challenges in their communities,”
Rebecca Miller, editorial director of
Library Journal, said in a statement. ”
Nashville Public Library stands out for its range of services, innovation in partnerships, and commitment to evolving as its community does, while keeping a keen eye on what’s important from the past.”

Nashville gets praise for its Civil Rights Room and its New Americans project to help immigrants begin the citizenship process. The city’s long-running puppet program, which includes an international festival, and new “maker” spaces giving access to 3-D printers also got a nod.

This marks the first time a Tennessee library has won the prize in its 25-year history.