Dearborn Public Library

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The purpose of the Dearborn Public Library is to enhance the lives and experiences of those who live, work, visit and invest in Dearborn by empowering them through connections with others and through access to educational, informational and recreational resources and activities.

• Increase awareness of the Library through marketing and outreach engagement
• Prioritize service to Youth (birth to 18)
• Prioritize service to Senior Citizens
• Unite our Community

To be the heart of lifelong learning and community bonding by providing welcoming, accessible spaces and resources that preserve the library as a cornerstone of public life and civic engagement.

To empower all members of our community by offering accessible resources, dynamic programs, and collaborative spaces that cultivate learning, creativity, and social engagement. We strive to ensure the library remains a trusted, inclusive hub that reflects the evolving needs and interests of the people we serve.

• Encourage use by all
• Provide a safe, user-friendly environment
• Collaborate with the community, creating synergies and relationships
• Anticipate and respond to community needs
• Stay up-to-date with best practices and technology
• Be good stewards of community resources
• Value and respect the privacy rights of patrons and staff as set forth by the American Library Association (ALA)

Cultivate library programming and services that foster rich community connections and facilitate civic bonds between neighbors.

Innovate library spaces to ensure they remain a cornerstone community institution conducive to the learning styles of our community.

Elevate the library’s visibility and its essential role within the community by fostering open communication, proactive outreach, and strategic marketing.

Increase accessibility by tailoring and expanding library services to meet the unique needs of children, youth, and seniors.

Library Ordinances

The City Charter outlines the role of the nine-member Library Commission stating it is to provide general management and control of the library system. The role of general management and control has been to hire the Library Director, do long range planning, review budgeting and to establish policy regarding the use of the library by the community. In addition the Commission is to be a channel for the public to voice their opinion.

The Department of Libraries shall be under the general management and control of a Library Commission consisting of nine members appointed by the Mayor. The Commission shall determine the policies of the Department of Libraries and shall select a Library Director who shall be a member of the classified service and who shall administer the activities of the Department of Libraries and be the appointing authority for all other library employees.

Available online – codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/dearborn

It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully, maliciously or wantonly tear, deface or mutilate or write upon, or by other means injure or mar any book, pamphlet, map, chart, painting, picture, photograph, periodical, newspaper, magazine, manuscript, film, microfilm, phonograph record, recording or exhibit or any part thereof, belonging to any public library. (Ord. No. 81-29, § 106, 7-21-81)

(a) Any person who shall procure, or take in any way from any public library, any book, pamphlet, map, chart, painting, picture, photograph, periodical, newspaper, magazine, manuscript, film, microfilm, phonograph record, recording or exhibit or any part thereof, with intent to convert the same to his own use, or with intent to defraud the owner thereof, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(b) Any person who, having procured or taken from any public library any book, pamphlet, map, chart, painting, picture, photograph, periodical, newspaper, magazine, manuscript, film, microfilm, phonograph record, recording or exhibit, or any part thereof, shall thereafter convert the same to his own use or fraudulently deprive the owner thereof shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(c) The failure of any person to return library material in accordance with the rules of the library shall constitute prima facie evidence of such intent to convert or defraud, provided that the person having procured or taken library material shall not have returned same within five days after receiving notice that such library material was overdue.
(Ord. No. 81-29, § 107, 7-21-81; Ord. No. 89-448, 5-2-89)
State law references: Similar provisions, MCL 750.364, MSA 28.596.