Partnership increases access and reduces barriers to support learning
 
PORTLAND, Ore. — May 26, 2020. All David Douglas School District K-12 students can now use their school student ID to access Multnomah County Library services, just like a regular library card.

The new program, called Library Connect, will allow around 9,600 students to instantly use digital books, magazines, newspapers, music, movies, get help from online tutors and more, all without fines or fees. Library staff who specialize in outreach to schools, support for educators and students and early literacy programs will tailor resources for students. When library buildings reopen in the future, David Douglas students will be able to borrow books and other materials, plus use library computers and chromebooks. 

Library Connect is the result of a partnership between Multnomah County Library and David Douglas School District that the library seeks to expand to other Multnomah County school districts.

"This partnership has been in the works since before our COVID-19 school closure, but launching now is an especially beneficial time for our students and families," said David Douglas Superintendent Ken Richardson. "Our students will now have online access to a huge variety of reading and educational materials. And once this pandemic is over, the fact that every student in David Douglas will automatically be a library card holder is a big step forward to providing equitable access to educational support for all our students."

“The library is proud to serve David Douglas students with this new service when support for educational needs has never been more important,” said Director of Libraries Vailey Oehlke. “When we work together to meet urgent community needs in challenging times, we can do incredible things.” 

Multnomah County Library’s School Corps program also offers library cards with expanded borrowing privileges for educators, in-classroom reading motivation programs, personalized interest-based reading lists and ready made book and instructional kits for group reading projects.