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Joice iowaPhoto: Bill Whittaker · CC BY-SA 3.0
Joice Public Library

Joice’s library lends 2.1 print items per resident, against a typical 3.9 for libraries its size

Joice Public Library serves Joice’s 757 residents. Last year it lent 1,619 print books and media and logged 2,519 visits.

102 N State St., Joice 50446 · about 26 hours a week
–Civic lifeNot graded: fewer than 1,000 residents
Borrowed a year
1,619
2.1 per resident
Visits a year
2,519
3.3 per resident · Below typical (3.5)
Programs & events
57
about 1 a week · 872 attended
Cardholders
39%
297 cards
Open
26 hrs
a week

What stands out about Joice’s library

Read from the library’s own yearly report. The page puts what stands out first.

Civic life grade

What’s behind Joice’s civic life grade

Joice isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more.

–
Civic lifeA character grade: shown, never part of Joice’s overall grade.

Civic life counts registered nonprofits, library visits and online volunteering groups, so it can miss civic life that runs through congregations, mutual aid or neighbors looking out for each other.

Library visits: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024. Nonprofits: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, October 2026. Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. How TownRatings grades civic life →

How it compares

Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 3 of 7 measures

Per resident, against libraries serving under 2,500 people across the U.S.

Visits per resident 3.3 visits · typical 3.5Lower than 53%
Borrowing per resident 2.1 print items · typical 3.9Lower than 74%
Kids’ borrowing 0.1 kids’ items · typical 1.4Bottom 10%
Program attendance 1.2 attendees · typical 0.7Higher than 67%
Programs offered 75.3 per 1,000 residents · typical 60Higher than 59%
Cardholders 39% of residents · typical 54%Lower than 67%
Spending $60 per resident · typical $54Higher than 57%
Fewer per residentMore per resident
Size group

Joice Public Library serves 757 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving under 2,500.

A year at the library

Every hour the doors are open, about 1 item goes out

Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.

2,519
visits
3.3 per resident
1,619
loans, print + digital
2.1 per resident
57
programs & events
872 attended
297
library cards
39% of people served
Every open hour1items borrowed
Every week17people at a program
Every day5Wi-Fi sessions
1 staff (full-time equivalent)10 public computers8,711 books & media on the shelves
What people borrow

Books and media off the shelf

1,619 print loans last year. The library didn’t report its e-book and e-audiobook loans.

1,619loans
Books & media (adults) 96%Kids’ books & media 4%
How hard the shelves work
0.2×

Each of the 8,711 books and other items on the shelves went out about 0.2 time last year, on average.

Kids & programs

57 programs a year

Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.

Schools in Joice →

Programs last year by age group

Ages 0–55
Ages 6–1112
Teens8
Adults18
All ages14
Little ones
0.1

story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.

63
kids’ books & media borrowed
872
people at programs
57
programs
The building

Find it

Joice Public Library, 102 N State St., Joice.

26
hours open a week
2,576
square feet
8,711
books & media
With a card

No late fees.

New in Joice? The Handbook →

Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.

What your card is worth

What a library card is worth

Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Joice cardholder borrows.

In a month I’d use…
Books$17 each
1
Kids’ books$12 each
0
E-books & audio$15 each
0
Movies & music$4 each
0
Programs & classes$10 a program
0
Computer & Wi-Fi$3 a session
0
Your card saves you about
$204
a year at retail prices · $17 a month

Who pays for it
$60 per resident a year

Typical for a library this size: $54. Operating budget $45K.

Local taxes 85%State 4%Gifts & other 11%

Last year the library lent and hosted about $41K worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $45K budget.

Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.

Retail prices are typical, rounded down: a new book $17, a kids’ book $12, an e-book or e-audiobook $15, a movie rental $4, a class or program $10, a computer or Wi-Fi session $3. The average cardholder’s month = the library’s yearly loans, attendance and Wi-Fi sessions ÷ its 297 cardholders ÷ 12.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.

  • Digital loans not reported. The library didn’t report e-book loans, so borrowing here is print only.

Hours are the survey’s yearly average; libraries are compared with others serving about as many people. How TownRatings uses library figures →

Questions about the library and civic life in Joice

Does Joice have a public library?

Yes. Joice Public Library, 102 N State St., serves Joice’s 757 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 26 hours a week, averaged over the year.

Is Joice Public Library fine-free?

Yes, no late fees (the library’s 2024 survey report).

How busy is Joice’s library?

It logged 3.3 visits and lent 2.1 print items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.5 visits for libraries serving under 2,500 people.

What is Joice’s civic life grade?

Joice isn’t graded on civic life: TownRatings grades towns of 1,000 residents or more. How it works.

Book talk

Reading, story times and the library in Joice.

Town Square →
Start a conversation

Libraries: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024. Each library reports its own numbers. Distances are straight-line from the town center. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.