About Us

The Metropolitan Library System is a membership-based organization serving academic, public, school, and special libraries in Chicago and in the suburban communities of Cook, DuPage and Will counties. Established in 1966, MLS provides the leadership and resources necessary for our member libraries to succeed in their individual missions. MLS collaborates with the Illinois State Library, other library systems, and local libraries to create a seamless statewide network of information and resources for the people of Illinois.

Funding for Illinois Library Systems is provided through the Illinois State Library and the Secretary of State with funds appropriated by the Illinois General Assembly.

Annual Report

Every year, all Illinois regional library systems are required to submit an annual report to the Illinois State Library. Included in the report are the following items:

• FY2010 Annual Report
  • Challenges the System Faced (pdf)
  • Summary of System Membership (pdf)
  • Continuing Education (pdf)
  • Delivery (pdf)
  • Member Site Visits (pdf)
  • LLSAP (SWAN) (pdf)
    
    
• FY2010 Audit
  • FY2010 Audit (pdf)

   

MLS Annual Meeting 2010

The MLS Annual Meeting will be held on Friday, October 22, 2010 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at the Oak Park Public Library at 834 Lake Street in Oak Park, Illinois. Please register via the L2 calendar. If you have problems registering via L2, email Dorothy Kovacs at kovacsd@mls.lib.il.us.

MLS 2010 Holiday Schedule (pdf)

MLS 2011 Holiday Schedule (pdf)

Strategic Plan - FY2010-FY2012

With information members have provided to MLS since the planning process began in spring 2008, MLS has completed strategic planning for FY2010-FY2012. Download the Feedback Summary to see what information members have provided to MLS since the planning process began in spring 2008.

• FY2010-FY2012 MLS Strategic Plan with Mission, Vision, and Guiding Values (pdf)

Strategic Plan - FY2007-FY2009

You can download the FY2007-FY2009 MLS Strategic Plan document. Please note that this is a large document (2.14MB) and may take some time to download.

MLS Policies

• Blood Donation Leave Policy (view)
• Contracts and Purchases Policy (view)
• Employee Manual (view)
• Investment Policy (view)
• Meetings Via Electronic Means (view)
• Purchasing Policy (view)
• Reciprocal Access Policy (view)
• Room Rental Policy (view)
• Travel and Expense Policy (view)
• CE Fees, Reimbursements and Cancellation Policy (view)
• Post-Offer Testing of Drivers Policy (view)