Madison Public Library outlines device lending, training and data use in digital inclusion push

Pat Garvey, an information-technology specialist with the Madison Public Library, described the library’s digital-inclusion services and partnerships during the Dane County Broadband Task Force meeting on April 2.

Garvey listed the library’s freely available services — public Internet stations and Wi‑Fi, scanners and archiving stations, in‑house iPads and laptops, podcast and media kits for checkout, augmented-communication device lending for patrons who use assisted-speech hardware, printing, copying and faxing — and said those services remain in steady demand. "Computer use, that's a 40,000 sessions that took place in a library," Garvey said, citing library metrics.

The presentation emphasized resources aimed at removing short-term access barriers. Garvey said the library circulates hybrid-meeting spaces that residents may use for public events or broadcasting; the library has digital displays at branch locations and LanguageLine headsets that let staff…