Here in Palo Alto, parents take for granted that their children’s schools will have cheerful and welcoming libraries, but the reality is that PAUSD is one of only a handful of districts in California where every school is required to have a credentialed librarian.
In fact, California ranks as the worst state in the nation for public school access to library instruction, with a librarian to student ratio of one to 7,800. And this matters because research has shown that access to a library can make a difference in academic achievement, especially for children in under-resourced communities.
Enter Access Books Bay Area
So that’s why we were so excited to learn about a local nonprofit called Access Books Bay Area that is working to refurbish neglected libraries in local, low-income elementary and middle schools, stock them with high-interest books and train parents and staff to ensure access to literacy for more children. The effort, which began two years ago, was started by Greene Middle School librarian Amanda Collins.
Looking for a service project that would engage students in the importance of books and literacy, Amanda heard about Access Books, a nonprofit that has been rebuilding school libraries in Southern California for over 20 years.
“I was drawn to the Access Books model due to how volunteers and local staff worked together to rebuild a library in one day, including paint, decorations, furniture, and books,” Amanda said. “It felt like something we could do in near Palo Alto and make a big impact.”
Four libraries completed and just getting started
Amanda established a 501(c)3 for Access Books Bay Area, began fundraising, and recruited five founding board members, including Alison Guan and Linda Forrester.
The team got off to an impressive start and has opened newly redecorated and stocked libraries in four schools over the past two years: Willow Oaks Elementary and Ravenswood Middle School in East Menlo Park, Dorsa Elementary School in San Jose and Taft Elementary School in Redwood City.
The next library renovation is scheduled for January 26, 2019, at Ben Painter Elementary School in San Jose.
Access Books Bay Area partners with a different external organization for each library project to help gather funding, recruit volunteers and solicit gently-used books. It costs about $17,000 for Access Books Bay Area to refurbish a school library, including furniture, paint, supplies, and, most importantly: new books. Previous partners have included the National Charity League (NCL), All Students Matter, Young Men’s Service League (YMSL), and Greene Middle School.
Replacing outdated books with culturally relevant literature
“The materials in the schools where we are setting up libraries are super outdated,” explained Allison Guan. “Most of the books are over 25 years old on average, and the information is obsolete. These books are just not appealing to kids.” That’s why the Access Books Bay Area process starts with Allison and Linda going to the school to get rid of books that are no longer relevant to today’s children and to talk with the staff about what they want for their new library.
“We’re different from other book drives because we work closely with each school to identify their specific desires in terms of topics, language, reading level and more. Our goal is that the library is ready for check out immediately after we finish a project,” Collins said.
children help sort books at Taft Elementary School in San Jose
Once the school’s book needs and desires are identified, Amanda draws on her Master’s degree in library science and many years of experience to order literally thousands of books for the new library. The used books gathered by the partner organization are used to replenish and update each classroom library. As soon as the books are in hand, Access Books Bay Area gets ready for the library refurbishing event.
A one-day volunteer event with a huge impact
With the help of 50-60 volunteers from the school, the partner organization and Access Books Bay Area, the team completely paints, decorates and stocks the shelves of a school’s library in one day. Volunteers break into groups to sort books for classroom libraries, label and scan new books for the main library, paint the walls, open and assemble the furniture and more.
A unique element of the Access Books Bay Area design is that each library gets hand-painted stencils of famous book characters (like Esperanza Rising), which are created using a projector (no special artistic skills are required). As the before and after photos of Dorsa Elementary reveal, the transformation is amazing! Or you can check out this video of the Ravenswood project.
New libraries get rave reviews from staff and students
It’s no surprise that the new Access Books Bay Area libraries get rave reviews from school staff and leaders. “I appreciate Access Books staffs’ intentionality in selecting current books, as well as books that are culturally relevant to Dorsa students,” commented Viviana Garcia, the Principal of Dorsa Elementary School. “I feel so fortunate that Dorsa was selected by Access Books! Our library went from an outdated space to a vibrant, welcoming, updated resource!”
Similarly, Rebecca Sanchez, Library Assistant at Willow Oaks Elementary School, commented: “Because of your generosity and organization, our school library now has a wider selection of nonfiction books at the lower reading-levels that our students sorely need. They’ve been excited to come to the library to find and check out books that they are able to read on their own and look forward to visiting the school library each week. Thank you so much!”
How to get involved
Access Books Bay Area is on a mission to provide quality, high-interest books to schools where at least 90 percent of students live at or below the poverty line, and they welcome support to help increase their impact. Specific ways to get involved:
- Make a donation: New books for school libraries cost about $10 each. A $50 donation will bring five new books to children in need.
- Volunteer: The next Access Books Bay Area library refurbish event will be January 26th at Painter Elementary School in San Jose.
- Start a book drive: Gently used books are needed for classroom libraries.
- Donate new books: Maybe make your next birthday list focused on giving new books for Access Books Bay Area
- Learn more: Access Books Bay Area is an all-volunteer organization looking to grow. Spread the word!
All photos by Access Books Bay Area.
