Letters

To the Editor:

Thank you for the excellent report on the dire straits of school libraries in Philadelphia and elsewhere ( "Era of Neglect in Evidence at Libraries," Dec. 1, 1999). I would like to point out that the answer may be closer and cheaper than some might think.

In fact, the people of Philadelphia don't have to look beyond their own back yard to find highly successful school-library-media programs. In 1994, the Dewitt Wallace-Reader's Digest Fund invested $1.2 million in public-private partnerships to improve library services in Philadelphia's elementary and middle schools. Called "Library Power," the program currently reaches more than 27,000 students in 36 Philadelphia schools, which now fund their own programs. Library Power is also succeeding in cities and towns large and small, from Cleveland and Denver to Lincoln,...