Thompson schools, Loveland Public Library partner to expand access to electronic resources

Loveland Public Library and Thompson schools are partnering to give K-12 students access to e-books and other electronic resources without needing a librar y card.

Students will be able to use their names and student identification numbers to access the librar y’s digital catalog through the Student Success Initiative, and district digital media literacies coordinator Jo Conlon said the district expects it will help ease the burden on parents as students continue learning online.

“We’ve been talking about this for a while, just what it would take to get all of the parties on board,” she said. “This impacts all of our students. We could not be more excited.”

Besides e-books, students will be able to access research databases — 12 total, Conlon said, compared to the two available to district students — and articles as well as put holds on books, DVDS, CDS and other physical items that they can pick up during business hours.

The partnership will become active on Oct. 5. While parents may opt their children out of the program, Conlon said a day after the district’s announcement to parents that she had yet to receive any opt-outs.

Haley Squires, a children’s librarian at Loveland Public Library, said parents have until Sept. 30 to opt out, but added that the program would be helpful for children who were unable to get in touch with their parents to sign off on a library card.

“We’ve also had a number of kids with diverse backgrounds who can’t access the library because they can’t get a parent’s signature, basically,” she said.

Conlon said the partnership is the first in a series of efforts that the library will be undertaking to help district students, which will also include adding more research databases and expanding access to wireless internet.

“When we went into COVID, the library called within the first week, a person called me and asked what they could do to help,” she said. “It doesn’t get any better than that.”

She also said the library was working to make more electronic devices available to meet the district’s goal of having at least one internetcapable device per student.

“Between Thompson and the public library, we’re going to make it happen,” she said.

More information about the Student Success Initiative is available at http:// www.lovelandpubliclibrar y.org/tsdstudents. Max Levy: 970-699-5404, mlevy@prairiemountainme dia.com