2025 School Libraries Facts & Stats

2025 South Dakota School Libraries Facts & Stats: South Dakota

Through Program, Place, and Professional, school libraries make a powerful difference in student achievement.

• 91% Districts/Systems in South Dakota have a school library
• 98% Students attend a district/system with at least one school library
• 1 item per student added to library collections
• $14.50 spent on new materials per student
• 27 items checked out per student
• 82% of students checked out at least one book during the school year
• 4,450 classes visited school libraries every week
• 7,000 students visited school libraries independently every day

Data for the 2024 South Dakota School Libraries Facts & Stats comes from the South Dakota Public Library Survey held in 2023.

School libraries in South Dakota incorporate spaces that accommodate various learning styles and educational needs.

• 63% virtual spaces for programs
• 73% individual study spaces
• 99% small group instruction
• 93% classroom instruction
• 73% meeting room functions

S25LIBRARY CLASSES ARE OFFERED:

• 39% DAILY
• 31% WEEKLY
• 20% OCCASIONALLY/ON-DEMAND
• 10% NEVER

School libraries provide programs and activities that link literacy and student interests.

• 78% THEMATIC DISPLAYS AND BULLETIN BOARDS
• 71% LOCAL, STATE, AND NATIONAL READING PROMO PROGRAMS
• 60% ELL, SPED, AND MULTICULTURAL RESOURCES
• 55% BOOK FAIRS
• 50% PARTNER WITH PUBLIC LIBRARY
• 42% MAKER SPACES AND STEM
• 30% BOOK & SPECIAL INTEREST CLUBS
• 20% AFTERSCHOOL PROGRAMS
• 19% AUTHOR/ARTIST PROGRAMS

School libraries use a variety of resources for instruction.

• 93% books
• 67% videos
• 51% online learning tools
• 60% SDSL e-resources
• 46% other e-resources
• 41% makerspace tools

School libraries provide digital access to educational resources to support learners.

• 100% HAVE ACCESS TO RESEARCHDATABASES PROVIDED BY THESOUTH DAKOTA STATE LIBRARY
• 58% HAVE STAFF WHO PROVIDEINSTRUCTION TO TEACHERS & STUDENTS ON USING SDSL ELECTRONIC RESOURCES
• 81% OFFER ONLINE CATALOGS
• 63% OFFER VIRTUAL SPACES
• 62% HAVE DIGITAL BOOKS
• 52% PROVIDE MOBILE DEVICES
• 39% OFFER ADDITIONAL ELECTRONIC RESOURCES
• 16% STREAM VIDEOS

School librarians curate resources, provide guidance, and support student and staff development.

• 83% COLLABORATE & TEACH WITH CLASSROOM TEACHERS
• 83% TEACH WITH SD SCHOOL LIBRARY STANDARDS
• 82% COMMUNICATE82%UTILIZE SD SCHOOL LIBRARY GUIDELINES
• 64% COLLABORATE WITH LOCAL PUBLIC LIBRARY
• 61% PARTICIPATE IN PD ACTIVITIES OFFERED BY THE SD STATE LIBRARY
• 58% PROVIDE INSTRUCTION ON USING SDSL ELECTRONIC RESOURCES

School librarians curate resources, provide guidance, and support student and staff development.

• 89% CREATE READING PROMOTION
• 87% TEACH LIBRARY SKILLS
• 72% TEACH INFORMATION LITERACY
• 70% TEACH RESEARCH SKILLS
• 66% TEACH TEXTUAL LITERACY
• 64% CO-TEACH LESSONS WITH TEACHERS
• 56% TEACH TECHNOLOGY SKILLS
• 53% TEACH CIVIC & ETHICAL LITERACY
• 52% TEACH DIGITAL CITIZENSHIPS
• 49% TEACH MEDIA LITERACY
• 43% TEACH STEAM/STEM LESSONS
• 41% TEACH CONTENT CREATION

School librarians have a variety of educational backgrounds.

• LIBRARIANS: 27% ARE CERTIFIED TEACHER-LIBRARIANS WITH A LIBRARY ENDORSEMENT
• TEACHERS: 12% ARE CERTIFIED TEACHERS IN THE LIBRARY WITHOUT A LIBRARY ENDORSEMENT
• PARAPROFESSIONALS: 61% ARE LIBRARIANS WITH NO TEACHING CERTIFICATE AND NO LIBRARY ENDORSEMENT

School districts in SD vary in how they employ school librarians.

• 43% HAVE ADDITIONAL HELP IN THE LIBRARY (PARAPROFESSIONAL, EDUCATION ASSISTANT, TEACHING ASSISTANT)
• 88% LIBRARIANS WORK IN 1 LIBRARY
• 12%LIBRARIANS WORK IN 2+ LIBRARIES

HEAD LIBRARIANS WORK VARYING HOURS IN THEIR SCHOOL LIBRARIES:

• 17% < 10 hours
• 13% 11-20 hours
• 11% 21-30 hours
• 59% 31+ hours

The South Dakota State Library formally recognizes schools with libraries that demonstrate accomplished and exemplary practice in each of the three pillars of school librarianship: Program, Place, and Professional.

Each year, South Dakota public school districts, non-public systems, tribal/BIE schools, and state special schools are surveyed about their libraries. This summary reflects data from 283 school libraries (approximately 75% response rate).

Many thanks to the dedicated librarians andadministrators who contributed their time tothis effort.