Director's Page

Welcome to the Director’s Page.
Here you will find periodic messages from the Library’s Director, Laverne Mann.

CHPL is among New Jersey’s Busiest Libraries
Cherry Hill Public Library: 565,487 visitors

The CHPL is one of the state’s largest municipal libraries at 72,000 square feet. It has 30,187 total registered borrowers (28,785 resident and 1,402 nonresident) and 381,260 books in circulation.
In the state, there are 234 municipal libraries, 45 association libraries, 14 county libraries, and five joint libraries.

Click here for the full article.

Cherry Hill Public Library
Director’s Report
September 2021

CHPL was awarded an ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) grant from the NJ State Library for $14,854 for Cherry Hill Digital Inclusion - narrowing the digital gap and enhancing online learning with a focus on the workforce, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), entrepreneurs and homeschoolers.

One Book One Cherry Hill
Titles = The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett and Genesis Begins Again (YA selection) by Alicia D. Williams
Sept 1 – Website, events, promotion all go live September is the reading month, events for all ages run Oct-Nov.

    •Starting September 7, Hours for Monday- Wednesday until 9 pm, Thursday – Saturday until 5 pm
    •September 12 open for Sunday hours 1-5 pm

Click here for the full September 2021 Director’s Report

Cherry Hill Public Library
Director’s Report
July 2021

Visits: Week of June 21- highest in house count at 2,350 visitors, up 28% from previous week.
25,269 visitors since January 1

Awarded: New Jersey Council for the Humanities grant- One Book One Cherry Hill

Juneteenth – Cherry Hill Township event – Library had a table, and a Human Relations Council representative in parade.  We also will be at two CHT Barclay Farm concerts.

July 6, opened Tuesday night until 7 pm (now Mon- Wed until 7 pm)
Contactless pickup still available.

• September 7, opening until 9 p.m. M- W, Thurs- Sat 5 pm
• September 12 planning to open for Sunday hours 1-5 pm

The CHPL Art Gallery has reopened!
Stop by each month to see the new art work on display.
In July we are featuring the prize winning artists from
Cherry Hill Township's Juried art exhibit - Art Blooms.

Summer Reading Program!
June 21 - August 15

Click here for the full July 2021 Director's Report.

Cherry Hill Public Library
Director’s Report
May 2021

Congrats to CHPL Children’s Librarian Alia Shields!
Alia is now on the 2023 Caldecott Committee.
We are so proud of this huge achievement!

The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. The award is presented by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association.

“I am so honored to be elected to the 2023 Caldecott Committee. I can vividly remember being a little kid at the library and my mom holding up a picture book, showing me the gold medal, and telling me it meant that it was a good book. For a children’s librarian being on this committee is truly being ‘in the room where it happens!’” - Alia Shields

Cherry Hill Public Library
Director’s Report
January 2020

Congrats to Dr. Joseph Meloche for Outstanding Administrator of the Year from the
NJ Association of School Librarians (NJASL)

Cherry Hill Public Library
Director’s Report
September 2019

Town Council Proclamation for English as a Second Language tutors and librarian coordinator Elby Wang

Laverne Mann, Library Director
Director’s Message
The Cherry Hill Public Library is called ‘The Heart of Town’ and we truly want to live up to this standard.

We have created five strategic visions to broaden and enhance the quality of service we provide to patrons. These goals and tactics came out of a year of analysis, discussions, and community surveys.

The Cherry Hill Public Library wants to address the fast pace of change in society and technology. We want the community to use the library for reasons they told us were extremely important: for school reasons, entertainment, a quiet place to work or read, or to use the library computers and wifi.

To reflect the diversity of users in Cherry Hill we continue to evaluate our services, collections and programs. In the Cherry Hill schools, 30% of students are Asian, African American, Hispanic or other racial/ethnic heritage. More than 50 native languages are spoken by students and their families. More than 1700 students are bilingual, and more than 160 students receive ESL services.

Our surveys have found the community extremely satisfied with the staff courtesy and competence. The librarians and library staff are committed to rethinking collections and addressing societal and technological shifts. You will see us building more partnerships and on outreach in Cherry Hill.

The Cherry Hill Public Library has a bright future worth funding, and you belong at the library!