Past efforts to build world language collections have been marginally successful. A local nonprofit offers Marathi language and cultural classes in four libraries across Hillsborough County, where children meet weekly and are encouraged to read and speak the language outside of class. Parents wished to circulate donated reading materials in this language through the library for greater access across the county, but samples of donated materials from India did not meet library collection bindery standards.

The library identified a vendor in India that offers reinforced book binding and MARC records for ease of cataloging. Acquisition was driven by the community as they selected the children’s books in the Marathi language that best fit their learning needs. Additional copies were purchased in the Hindi, Bengali and Telugu languages. Engaging our residents and local nonprofits in the selection process has created a dynamic children’s collection for these programs and the community.

The Indian community in Hillsborough County now has easy access to popular children’s books in four Indian languages, and more than half of the materials have been checked out within the first few months alone. By listening to the community’s needs and working with our vendors for a solution, engagement with the Indian community has increased and staff have a better understanding of the steps needed to develop a relevant world language collection.