Most adults fondly recall the day they received their first library card. Holding that card for the first time was both a rite of passage and a ticket to freedom via the imagination. Due to various barriers and the busyness of life, however, not all children are afforded that pivotal moment.

In 2017, the Cranston Public Library, in conjunction with Cranston Public Schools, decided to change that.

Through the Fresh Start initiative, all fines and fees were waived on children’s books and children who had never received cards were encouraged to apply by their school librarians.

Today, the initiative to provide library access to all Cranston students spans the entire system, and the process is easier than ever, making for a successful system.

Cranston Public Library Youth Services Coordinator Emily Brown has exhibited both excitement and gratitude about the program and the successful partnership between the schools and the library.

“We feel so fortunate to partner with the school librarians and get library card applications out to parents in a way that’s really easy for them,” Brown said.

Starting on March 1, in advance of National Library Month in April and summer vacation, the library provides paper library card applications in both Spanish and English, as well as an application that offers parents both languages, to encourage families to sign up.

The card applications are distributed to school librarians who present the prospect of one’s own library card to all students, and the students simply return them home to their parents to complete. After interested families complete and return the applications, school librarians have the applications processed and they return brand-new library cards to applicants.

The Cranston Public Library, in addition to eliminating fees on children’s materials, has also eliminated fees on most adult library materials. This was a decision the library had to work with the City of Cranston and the library’s Board of Trustees to enact.

The goal of the library ultimately has been to increase the usage of the library’s resources, both physically and online, and to increase the total number of children who are connected to the library, and that is thanks in large part to Cranston Public School librarians.

“I do think that bridging the school library to the public library is part of the goal of creating lifelong learners and lifelong readers,” Cranston Public Schools Library Supervisor Ellen Basso said.

“For example,” she continued, “with a series, we might have numbers one, two, and three of the series to get kids excited about it. And when they want four, five, and six, we say ‘Why don’t you run to the public library with your parents because they have a bigger collection?’”

Promotion of library materials does not stop with physical books, though.

“We are also really promoting using our e-book collection,” Emily Brown said. “Some middle and high schoolers will fill out a form at their school, get a public library card, never enter any of our buildings, but still have their access to materials that grow exponentially.”

Brown and library staff rely on both the school librarians and the promotional materials the library provides like videos.

“We sometimes have kids who come into the public library over the summer and they’re like, ‘Oh! I know you!’ And it’s either because we got to read to them during Reading Week or they saw a video of us saying, ‘Hi, I’m your public librarian! Come visit me at the library this summer!’” Brown said.

“They really feel a connection when they walk in.”

Brown speaks in words of success regarding the annual library card drive.

“Last year,” she said, “we received 476 applications from the schools. We issued 912 new youth library cards overall, so 52% of all new youth library cards issued last year in Cranston were a result of the library card drive through the school.”

Both school and public librarians acknowledged the barriers Cranston children encounter in receiving cards, including transportation and language, but thanks again to the initiative and enthusiasm of both organizations, those barriers have successfully been overcome.

Applications will be processed through the end of March, allowing families to begin using their new cards throughout the spring and over the summer.