FILE: The Eugene Public Library in downtown Eugene in May 2023.
Chrissy Ewald / KLCC
Thousands of public school students in Eugene are getting library cards delivered straight to their schools. Unless their adults opt out, all Eugene School District 4J students will get a library card delivered to their school, ready to use — no trip to the library necessary.
Besides a five-item limit on physical items, the student cards are the same as a regular card. Students who already have a card are welcome to keep both.
“We want to have as many out in our community get library cards (as possible),” said Angela Ocaña, Acting Director of Eugene Public Library. “The more we can expose kids to literacy early on and through their school years, the bigger impact it will have on literacy rates in our community.”
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According to the 4J website, there are nearly 16,000 students enrolled in the district. The name “4J” means it was the fourth school district incorporated in Lane County, and is a joint school district including parts of Lane and Linn counties.
An existing program already allowed all 4J and Bethel School District students to opt in to get a free library card. That’s regardless of whether they live inside Eugene city limits. The new initiative will send cards to students automatically.
Ocaña said this program is part of a larger effort to improve access to the library. Other efforts have included eliminating fines and the initial opt-in program for all public school students in Eugene districts. As book bans and restrictions on libraries have become more common across the country, Ocaña said “everyone’s working really hard to get kids access to materials across librarianship as a whole.”
The program will cost the district $10,000 per year to cover the students living outside the Eugene tax district.