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Ames Public Library presents expanded services, new strategic plan and summer meal program funding
Summary
Library Director Sheila Shoper and staff outlined the Ames Public Library’s new strategic plan, recent capital work including carpet replacement, continued outreach such as Project Smiles and summer meals, and program metrics including 25,000 monthly visits and 5,318 summer meals served in 2024.
Sheila Shoper, director of the Ames Public Library, told the Ames City Council on Feb. 4 that the library has launched a new strategic plan after community input and is emphasizing service, space and outreach while holding to budget-conscious operations.
The plan, Shoper said, grew from five stakeholder groups, four public input sessions and nearly 600 survey responses. “Libraries are a key component in providing critical information, resources, and spaces for learning and connecting,” Shoper said, and the new plan’s priorities are summarized as “connecting Ames,” “serving Ames” and “a place for Ames.”
The nut of the presentation was how those priorities translate to programs and performance. Shoper said the library hosts roughly 25,000 visits a month, runs 70 open hours per week and relies heavily on volunteers — 344 in the most recent year, 90 of whom are youth volunteers. Alyssa Doornig, resource services manager, described the collection work and outreach: downloadable content and e-audio are growing in use while print remains central; a $25,000 Story County Community Foundation grant enabled tablets and expanded hotspot lending countywide; and an application for a larger federal digital equity grant was unsuccessful.
Shoper summarized recent capital work completed ahead of schedule: carpet replacement in the youth area had opened the week before the meeting and the adult services area was scheduled to open the following day. The library documented the project with a time-lapse video produced with the city communications team.
Youth and teen services were highlighted as major outreach channels. Doornig and Shoper described Project Smiles, a two-decade outreach program that takes books and story times to 91 daycares and preschools; the program’s deposit-collection expansion was supported by a Rotary grant. The youth schedule included nine weekly story times and learning offerings such as robotics and chess club; the library also runs summer programs and a countywide baby fair and camp fair. “That event … drew close to a thousand people from beyond Story County,” Doornig said of a recent family program appearance.
Shoper and staff addressed special community services: the library served as a satellite early-voting site with record turnout and lines, operates an Idea Center for digitizing photos and media, and in April 2024 received a Library of Congress designation as the Iowa Center for the Book. The library’s summer meal service served 5,318 meals in summer 2024, funded by the Ames Public Library Friends Foundation with support from Chevron Renewable Energy Group and Mary Greeley Medical Center. Shoper noted the meals are run by trained teen volunteers and available broadly to families using library programs.
Council members asked about statewide funding headwinds and local service to refugee families, homelessness around the library and bookmobile replacement planning. Shoper said some libraries were feeling tax-related pressure and that Ames was “watch and see” for budget impacts; she said the library aims to be a welcoming place for refugee and immigrant families with conversation-based language groups and an “international family meetup.” On homelessness, Shoper emphasized staff training in de‑escalation and partnerships with social services, adding the library works closely with the city manager’s office and nonprofit providers. Regarding the bookmobile — the current vehicle is about 11 years old — Shoper said funds have been accrued in a replacement account and the Friends Foundation has historically supported bookmobile collections; staff plan to seek community support when replacement time arrives.
Shoper and Doornig closed by noting continuing initiatives such as seed-library programming, outreach to seniors and behavioral-health sites, and partnerships with cultural groups for performances. The council thanked staff and praised the library’s volunteer engagement, partnerships and program breadth.
Shoper’s presentation referenced the Ames Public Library budget packet pages and program performance measures for the council’s review. The council offered no formal action on library funding that evening; the presentation was informational and part of the broader departmental budget review process.
