Photo: South Fayette Township · CC BY-SA 4.0South Fayette Township’s library runs 68 programs per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24 for libraries its size
South Fayette Township Library serves South Fayette Township’s 18,358 residents. Last year it lent 136K books, movies and e-books and logged 42K visits.
The short version on South Fayette Township’s library
Three times the programs of a typical library its size
South Fayette Township Library ran 1,256 programs last year, about 24 a week. That’s 68 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 24. People show up: 22,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Most programs are for young children
77% of the 1,256 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 16 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
The shelves work hard
Each of the 21,000 items on the shelves went out about 4.4 times last year, on average. What people borrow ↓
Kids’ books are most of what goes out
Children’s books and media make up 64% of print loans. Per resident, kids’ borrowing is higher than at 76% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Numbers are the library’s own report to the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
What’s behind South Fayette Township’s civic life grade
On library visits, community nonprofits and volunteering, South Fayette Township is ahead of 36% of U.S. towns, #543 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. South Fayette Township’s count of community nonprofits holds the grade up; the share of younger adults in volunteering groups pulls it down.
Most U.S. towns with similar household incomes ($93K–$155K) score higher, so income alone doesn’t account for it.
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 →
89 community nonprofits are registered in South Fayette Township
4.8 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (11 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town. 2 more name a national or statewide reach and are left out.
6.1%
6.1% of South Fayette Township’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 7.0% in the typical Pennsylvania town and 7.5% nationally.
Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. ZIP-code figures, weighted by where South Fayette Township’s residents live; 2022.
About 19 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
children’s books and media borrowed per child under 18 in South Fayette Township last year.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on 5 of 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people across the U.S.
South Fayette Township Library serves 18,358 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000.
Every hour the doors are open, about 54 items go out
Fiscal year 2024. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
136K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
Each of the 21K books and other items on the shelves went out about 4.4 times last year, on average.
43,131 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
South Fayette Twp Library, 515 Millers Run Rd, Morgan.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy.
New in South Fayette Township? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $5.41 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average South Fayette Township cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $43. Operating budget $398K.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $2.2M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $398K 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 3,719 cardholders ÷ 12.
Libraries next door
South Fayette Township ranks 3rd of 3 for borrowing per resident. Tap a town to see its library.
| Town | Library | Loans per resident | Hours | Civic life |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bridgeville | Bridgeville Public Library fine-free | 21.0 | 48 | B |
| Upper St. Clair Township | Upper St. Clair Township Library | 17.1 | 52 | B |
| South Fayette Township | South Fayette Twp Library fine-free | 7.4 | 48 | C+ |
| North Fayette Township | Western Allegheny Comm Library fine-free | — | 58 | C |
| McDonald | Heritage Public Library fine-free | — | 32 | C+ |
| Collier Township | None of its own | — | — | C+ |
| Oakdale | None of its own | — | — | C |
| Noblestown | None of its own | — | — | — under 1,000 residents |
| Cecil Township | None of its own | — | — | C |
Loans = print + digital items borrowed in the library’s fiscal year, per person it serves. — = no library of its own, a county or regional system (its numbers cover many towns), or no report. Civic life: — = not graded (unincorporated places, whose nonprofits can’t be placed by mailing address, or towns with fewer than two of the three inputs).
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- Visits are a typical-week estimate. South Fayette Township Library counted one typical week and multiplied by 52, as the survey allows.
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 South Fayette Township
Does South Fayette Township have a public library?
Yes. South Fayette Township Library, 515 Millers Run Rd, serves South Fayette Township’s 18,358 residents (the survey’s count) and is open about 48 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is South Fayette Township Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is South Fayette Township’s library?
It logged 2.3 visits and lent 7.4 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 3.1 visits for libraries serving 10,000 to 25,000 people.
What is South Fayette Township’s civic life grade?
C+ South Fayette Township is ahead of 36% of U.S. towns on civic life, #543 of 1,029 in Pennsylvania. The grade combines library visits per resident, community nonprofits per 1,000 residents and the share of adults 25–44 in volunteering groups. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in South Fayette Township.
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.