Multnomah County Library Will End Its School Corps and Books2U Programs This Year

Multnomah County Library will end two programs for young readers at the conclusion of the 2024-25 academic year, citing changes to its staffing plan.

The library first announced the decision to staff on Monday and confirmed the decision today after WW inquired. The two programs on the chopping block are School Corps and Books2U. School Corps is a group of staffers who help K-12 students develop their reading skills and access library materials and resources. Books2U staff brought “high-interest paperbacks” into classrooms and other spaces to serve children, inspiring personal enjoyment in reading.

Both programs have been in place for nearly three decades. Library spokesman Shawn Cunningham says the programs were founded on limited duration grants and that the library continued offering them after grant funding expired. But now, the county says, it will instead honor promises they made to voters who asked for bigger and better library spaces.

“The library’s staffing plan is a path for the library to sustain its services in larger spaces with increased needs, particularly around safety and security,” Cunningham says.

Together, the programs cost the library about $870,000 this year. The county spent $436,897 on School Corps and $434,093 on Books2U. Cunningham says positions for the two programs will be transferred to other library support services. (Personnel costs make up the majority of both program budgets.) The county spends $108,000 across both programs on materials and services.

In messages sent to superintendents and educators the county shared with WW, library director Annie Lewis mourned the loss of the two programs. “I understand this news comes at a particularly challenging time,” she wrote. “Our schools continue to face unprecedented challenges with budgets and resources.”

Cunningham and Lewis both emphasized the library will continue its commitment to students, educators and young children through other library services like Welcome to Reading kits, teen room spaces at some locations, and free events for children.

“These were difficult, deeply considered decisions,” Lewis told WW. “The expertise of our youth librarians and our ability to create meaningful opportunities for students to access library services will continue in other ways and we remain dedicated to providing these essential services to support students in their literacy journey.”