Hundreds of students at Enlace Academy now have access to free library materials.
The west side school is the latest partner in The Indianapolis Public Library’s eResource Card campaign.
The program provides free digital materials to students, including eBooks, eAudiobooks, music and video streaming, and access to 80 research databases.
The eResource Card also offers students limited access to borrow physical materials. The students can visit any IndyPL branch with a parent or guardian to upgrade to a full library card.
Library officials said in a news release that the new partnership with Enlace, a K-8 charter school, comes as part of a larger effort to grow access among all public school students in the city.
Enlace serves 685 students. Of those, 442 gained new access to library materials with the new partnership.
Enlace Academy officials said in the release that the IndyPL partnership is especially welcome considering 87% of Enlace students speak a language other than English.
Officials said library access will help Enlace students access digital learning materials in languages like Spanish and Haitian Creole outside the classroom.
IndyPL provides cards to all students in Marion County township schools at the start of the year, totaling 1,000 to 1,800 cards. Other eResource Card partners include Herron High School, KIPP Indy Public Schools, SENSE Charter School, Tindley Accelerated Schools and St. Mark Catholic School.
In addition to its eResource Card program, Indy PL serves more than 80 schools through its Shared System libraries. This program allows schools to share library materials with IndyPL and other partner schools across the city.
A list of schools participating in the Shared System network is available at the IndyPL website.
Any parent or guardian living in Marion County — except in Speedway, which has its own library system — can register their child for a library card. To do so, adults can visit any IndyPL branch with their child and an identification card with their current address or other proof of residency.
Application forms are available online in 12 languages and can be filled out at home prior to an in-person visit. For more information, see indypl.org/get-a-library-card.
Mirror Indy reporter Carley Lanich covers early childhood and K-12 education. Contact her at carley.lanich@mirrorindy.org or follow her on X @carleylanich.
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