School and Public Library Collaboration: Identifying Facilitators and Barriers

This study surveyed school and public youth services librarians to discover the nature of collaboration between their organizations as well as their perceptions of factors that facilitate and act as barriers to collaboration between their institutions. Previous studies have identified a plethora of potential facilitators and barriers to collaboration and cooperation, such as support from managers, colleagues, and fellow collaborators, or a lack of time and money. Recent studies on collaboration between school and public libraries, however, have centered on case studies of successful collaborative endeavors rather than on ways that collaboration might not work between these two organizations. This study builds on the broader survey studies from the past to continue the discussion on the nature of collaboration and its purpose in school and public libraries. It concludes with suggestions for further research on this topic