San Antonio Public Library, San Antonio, TX

www.sanantonio.gov/library
Press Contact: Beth Graham, 210-207-2638, Elizabeth.graham@sanantonio.gov

San Antonio's Central Library Branch. Photo by Mark Roddenberry.

The San Antonio Public Library is striving to make its city of 1.2 million people a community of learning. The library has a strategy that addresses the cultural mosaic of the San Antonio community and is helping to boost library usage, especially among the hard-to-reach low-income Spanish-speaking population. The San Antonio Public Library can now boast that its programs and services bring approximately 10,000 people a day through the doors of its many branches.

U.S. Representative Charles A. Gonzalez (TX_20) said, "This award affirms what I have always known about the San Antonio Library. The library's outreach efforts assure a continuing role in educating our community. I am extremely proud of all those who make the library the great institution I know it to be!"

“I commend the San Antonio Public Library system for their unyielding commitment to literacy and education in South Texas,” said U.S. Representative Henry Cuellar (TX_28). “Libraries are one of the cornerstones of a free and informed society. As advocates of these important learning tools, the San Antonio Public Library is most deserving of this high honor.”

U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (TX) said, “I am proud that the San Antonio Public Library has been chosen to receive this prestigious award. Studies have consistently shown that early reading ability enhances success in the classroom. The library’s innovative programs and outreach help to make literacy available to all members of the community.”

“Each day, the San Antonio Public Library system promotes lifelong learning and an appreciation for literacy, culture, and the arts,” U.S. Senator John Cornyn (TX) said. “I congratulate my hometown library and its staff on this accomplishment. It is through their innovative partnerships and programs that they are able to touch the lives of thousands of Texas children, families, and citizens each day.”