Hill: We Need A Kids’ Librarian, Too

The Wilson Library branch is a ​“second home” to Helen and her children — especially to 7‑year-old Eli, who devours every animal-themed book he can find.

In spare moments, Wilson staff members set aside volumes they think Eli will like. But most days, they’re kept busy with adults needing job applications or a place to rest their head while inebriated.

So Wilson staff, regulars, and allies are calling on the city to fund a full-time children’s librarian at Wilson — the only branch in the city to lack the funding for one. 

Their advocacy comes as the city reckons with a literacy crisis, spurred by the pandemic and by a slow pivot to science-backed teaching methods. It comes as both library unions have worked through a public health crisis for three years without a contract, and as library workers are increasingly departing for the suburbs. 

And the push has been successful, at least so far. As of Monday evening, Mayor Justin Elicker wrote in a statement to the Independent that he would submit an amendment to his budget proposal funding a full-time children’s librarian at the Hill library branch.

Acting City Librarian Maureen Sullivan requested that the Elicker Administration add a full-time Youth Services Librarian based at the 303 Washington Ave. Wilson branch library to the Fiscal Year 2023 – 2024 (FY 24) budget proposal. That ask — in addition to a request for a library technology supervisor, who would help manage and maintain the various devices and digital services available to the public — did not initially make it into the $662.7 million general fund budget proposal that Elicker submitted to the Board of Alders earlier this month.

“It’s really important,” Sullivan said. ​“Every one of our facilities needs to have someone working with kids… someone with experience and the talent.”

Elicker said the omission was an error when asked about the matter on Monday. He wrote in a statement: ​“It’s important to have a full-time children’s librarian at all of our branches. Our children’s librarians help ignite a love of reading in our kids, serve as invaluable resources for parents and caregivers, and facilitate wonderful educational events and enrichment programs for our families. 

“The change from part-time to full-time librarian at Wilson Library Branch was inadvertently missed in the budget process. We will advance a budget amendment to include this change later in the process and I appreciate the Board of Alders consideration of this important request for the Hill neighborhood.” 

Currently, the city has budgeted a part-time children’s librarian position at Wilson. Each other branch has the funds for a full-time children’s librarian. 

According to Jeffrey Panettiere, a technical assistant at Wilson, the part-time position at Wilson has been vacant for nearly a year; an employee recently hired for the position decided to leave within weeks.

Panettiere attributed the vacancy to the non-union job’s low compensation. Part-time librarians make about $19 an hour, 19 hours per week. They are required to possess a Master’s degree, meaning that they typically have taken out student loans. Unlike full-time workers, they receive no paid time off, no sick leave, no holiday or weather emergency compensation. 

“It’s not something anyone could live on,” said Panettieri.

Meanwhile, the library system is struggling to retain even full-time workers, whose unions have been negotiating contracts with the city for three years, throughout the duration of the pandemic. The Fair Haven library branch has just lost its youth services librarian, Jennifer Nicolelli, to the Hamden Public Library, where she’ll earn $64,100 per year — about $13,000 more than what she made in New Haven.

When asked about the status of contract negotiations, Elicker said in a statement, ​“While I can’t get into specifics due to confidentiality agreements by all parties, negotiations are ongoing, we are making progress, and I am optimistic that we will arrive at a final contract that all parties will be pleased with, which compensates our hard-working library staff appropriately, provides increased library access and services for our residents, and that strengthens our library system as a whole.”

Melissa Meagher, who worked as a part-time children’s librarian at Wilson for over seven years before leaving in May 2022, said she never received a raise during her time working at the library. She left to become a full-time children’s librarian in Stratford, where the pay and benefits are better than in New Haven, she said.

"What Do You Have For Kids?"

In her absence, staffers at Wilson are scrambling to meet families’ needs. They welcome kids at inter-generational music and gardening activities. They do their best to keep up with the latest kid-lit offerings — especially in graphic novels, one of the library’s most popular genres. They’re no longer able to host local schools on a regular basis.

Typically, according to the library’s public services administrator, Maria Bernhey, children’s librarians ​“provide storytimes, they provide STEAM programming, outreach to New Haven schools, and just general outreach in the neighborhood.” They show up to festivals and partner with local organizations. At Wilson, the rest of the staff is ​“filling the gaps, but they’re not able to work at maximum capacity without having that full-time position filled.”

Ivonne Vargas, who runs a nearby childcare center called Centro Frenacer Childcare Learning, used to take her students — who range from newborns to five-year-olds — to the library for storytime and playtime. She especially loved watching the kids learn with wide eyes about a variety of musical instruments in Wilson’s music room.

“It was so excellent for the kids. They enjoyed it so much,” Vargas said. Without a dedicated youth services librarian, however, the library no longer has the capacity to host programs for the childcare center.

“One of the things people ask us the most is ​‘What do you have for kids?’ ” said Panettieri. ​“It’s really hard to have to say, ​‘Not much.’ ”

The Wilson Branch in particular has been on the front lines of serving adults with dire needs. The branch was among the first city buildings to open back up to the public during the Covid-19 pandemic. ​“We were able to provide an emergency need for people when doors were shut everywhere,” recalled Panettieri. In 2020, the library branch revived services in the atrium with front doors open for ventilation. ​“People would come up in winter coats in the dead of winter and apply for jobs.” 

Today, the library continues to serve regulars who struggle with substance use and rely on the library for shelter during the day. The three staff members who currently work at Wilson are kept busy assisting adults, whose needs are often complex.

Nevertheless, every afternoon from Monday through Thursday, Helen and seven-year-old Eli drop by the glass-walled Wilson Library, where they spend nearly two hours waiting together for Helen’s daughter to finish school two minutes away. (Their names have been changed to protect their safety.)

At Wilson, there’s a room full of musical instruments and board games; a window-seat reading nook just for kids; an array of toys, stuffed animals, and crayons; and most importantly, a team of library staff who have come to know Eli well.

The staff there, ​“they are so friendly,” Helen said. ​“Once they noticed he likes certain books,” they began setting aside recommendations for him.

Over time, Eli has become a ravenous reader. ​“He reads everything. I don’t even know what he doesn’t like to read,” said Helen. 

Wilson Branch Manager Meghan Currey argued that libraries play a critical role in fostering literacy habits outside of the classroom. ​“Reading isn’t something you just do in school. It’s something you do for the rest of your life,” she said.

Helen said she envisions an even more vibrant library branch that could operate summer camps and arts programs for kids: ​“Wilson library’s doing their best. If they actually had the space and the funds, there’s a lot they could do.”

“Other libraries have desks for children,” she added. ​“Children really need a lot of attention.” 

Another Wilson regular, Wanda Dawson, who likes to take her grandchildren to the library branch, argued that the library serves as a pocket of safety for kids who are afraid to be at home. ​“Some kids, they feel like that’s a safe haven for them. That may be an escape for them.” 

The fact that the Hill branch lacks a full-time children’s librarian is ​“not equitable,” said library board member Andrew Giering to members of the Board of Alders Finance Committee on Thursday evening. The Hill neighborhood has the highest poverty rate in the city at 39 percent, according to DataHaven. Forty-six percent of Hill residents are Latino and 36 percent are Black. 

“Providing literacy to our children and families plays a massive part in uplifting people from poverty, giving them options for legitimate employment, and preventing crime,” Giering told the committee. 

In other words, a well-funded library with the resources to grow kids’ skills and enthusiasm for reading could have positive effects throughout the neighborhood for decades.