Last month, we stopped at a public library branch during an EA orientation day to show off one of our city’s amenities to a couple planning a relocation to Cleveland. They said “Wow, your libraries are amazing. The library system in our town doesn’t have many of the resources that your library offers. How did Cleveland libraries get so good?”
And, as often happens on our days guiding a family thru our town, we realized that often we take a local resource for granted because it’s always been there. Once a newcomer points out how amazing it is it makes you stop and think. What if we didn’t have the libraries we have come to depend on for so many things including research, job search support, teen chat rooms, story hours, computers and free WiFi?
So are Ohio libraries really some of the best in the nation? Here’s what we learned (using the library of course):
- Ohio’s public libraries are consistently ranked at the very top nationally according to the Institute of Museum & Library Services
- Ohio leads the country in state funding per capita
- Ohioans visit their libraries on average 3.41 X a year ranking it second highest among all states
- The average Ohioan checks out over 12 books a year, more than any other state in the country
- 2/3 of Ohioans have a library card, ranking it second in the country in that category
None of this happened by accident! In the 1980’s Ohio created the Public Library Fund (PLF) to make state funding is the primary revenue source for many Ohio libraries—not a supplement, unlike most other states. This has made Ohio’s system more equitable and stable across rural and urban areas.
Cleveland Public Library (CPL) and Cuyahoga County Public Library (CCPL). We often include visits to one of these libraries as a VIP stop on our EA orientations. As our candidates know—and we wholeheartedly agree—libraries are a vital part of community life. They are no longer just shelves of books; today, libraries serve as community hubs, safe spaces for after-school study, places to access computers, and helpful environments where librarians provide valuable support.
Here’s the scoop on the libraries in the Cleveland area:
Cleveland Public Library (CPL)
- Founded in 1869 with main branch on Superior Avenue in downtown Cleveland
- 27 neighborhood branches to serve the entire city
- CPL’s mobile library roves the city and can be found at University Circle’s Wade Oval Wednesday gatherings, at Edgewater Park, in AsiaTown and at the food truck Walnut Wednesdays in downtown and the library now has a presence in the produce stands at the West Side Market where they give away books on a first come first served basis
- Ohio Library for the Blind and Physically Disabled (located at the Memorial-Nottingham Branch)
- May, 2025 CPL celebrated the 100th anniversary of its Main Branch which consists of 2 buildings and the beautiful Eastman Reading Garden. It also houses Tech Central, a state-of-the-art computer lab featuring 90 computers, collaborative worktables, and a 3D printer
- CEO Felton Thomas is an amazing leader and often personally guides EA candidates during a stop at the CPL to see the Special Collections Department during their orientaiton days
- CPL owns and heads CLEVNET, a consortium of 44 public libraries across northern Ohio so patrons can access a robust digital collection of books and periodicals via an e-book system headquartered at CPL
Cuyahoga County Public Library (CCPL):
- serves 47 communities through its 27 branches spread out across Cuyahoga County (main administrative offices in Parma)
- consistently receives the overall highest scores and 5 stars (highest ranking) from the Library Journal which uses peer input to rank library systems
- multiple times in the past 10 years has received best library in the country award
- In 2011, CCPL launched an extensive renovation and construction program, resulting in many updated and newly built facilities
- part of SearchOhio and OhioLINK which provides access to materials from the State Library of Ohio as well as 17 university and college libraries statewide
- 12 CCPL branches include Student Success Centers, designed to support students in grades K–8
- All branches offer passport services in association with the US Department of State
- in partnership with the Cuyahoga County Public Library Foundation and Case Western Reserve University, CCPL also brings world-renowned authors to Cleveland through the William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage Series – check out the authors coming this year
- Jamar Rahming, is the new CEO and President-Elect of the Public Library Association and a recent EA alum who relocated from Wilmington Delaware
Additionally, quite a few suburbs in the region have their own library systems (all are affiliated with CLEVNET for the shared borrowing and lending) including:
- Barberton Public Library
- Cleveland Heights/University Heights Public Library
- Cuyahoga Falls Library
- Euclid Public Library
- East Cleveland Public Library
- Hudson Library & Historical Society
- Lakewood Public Library
- Rocky River Public Library
- Shaker Heights Public Library
- Stow-Munroe Falls Public Library
- Twinsburg Public Library
- Westlake Porter Public Library
Final fun fact….Libby, the free app that libraries all over the country use for lending ebooks, audiobooks and magazines from local libraries was launched in 2017 by a Cleveland company, OverDrive to simplify borrowing and accessing digital content. So the next time you download a book from the library, or listen to an audiobook on the Libby app, you can be proud that our town helped make that happen.
Since 1979, Executive Arrangements Guides have been providing lifestyle orientations to help recruits and newcomers see the possibilities of life in a new town. While Cleveland has always been our home base, but with the partnership of our new owner, Relocation Horizons we are expanding to new markets and now serve Chicago and Columbus. In each city EA has a presence, we seek out the best of the people, places and resources so the candidates we work with benefit from our inside scoop. If your talent attraction or global mobility team would like to improve the candidate’s experience from recruitment to on-boarding, give us a call at 216.231.9311.