Los Angeles, Calif. – Access Books, a nonprofit organization that has been refurbishing school libraries in under-served neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles for over 20 years is partnering with the Herbert R. Mayer and Jeanne C. Mayer Foundation to create a brand new library at the Laurel Street Elementary School in Compton on July 24, 2021.

Laurel Street Elementary School is located at 1321 W Laurel Street and serves kindergarten through eighth grade students, 100% of whom live at or below the poverty level with various needs such as English language proficiency, being new to the country, and living in foster care or experiencing homelessness. Nine percent of the students receive special education services. Several years ago, due to overcrowding, the district dismantled the library to make room for an additional classroom. The library space has opened back up but the shelves are empty of books and the room is in need of reading furniture and a reading rug.

School principal Dr. Francisca Oweja stated, “The need for a student-friendly and inviting library has become even more urgent with the Covid-19 pandemic and consequent school closure. We would like to have a library that is not only inviting but is a safe place for children, a place with proper light and ventilation where reading materials that suit the age and interests of children are organized and accessible. Children should be able to reach library materials easily and the materials should be visible to them. At the same time, students and staff should be able to pass easily through shelves and seating areas while maintaining six feet of separation.” Access Books is going to make Dr. Oweja’s vision possible with funding from the Herbert R. Mayer and Jeanne C. Mayer Foundation. Access Books’ librarian, Meghan Gaynor will build the collection for the library from scratch, based on the demographics and needs of the school. Books are brand new, hard cover, culturally relevant and very popular with kids. They will be purchased at a very affordable price and volunteers will sort, catalogue and shelve books as well as paint literacy themed murals inside the library and in the halls. The grant also covers a new couch and reading rug.

Founder and executive director, Rebecca Constantino, PhD, started Access Books to make sure that all children, regardless of their economic status, had access to plenty of a high quality books via a well-stocked school library. “Many people mistakenly believe that children today are not interested in reading books and books are old fashioned and out of date,” Dr. Rebecca Constantino said. “This is just not true. Children are eager to hold, read and own books.’”

This is the third project in Compton that Access Books and the Herbert R. Mayer and Jeanne C. Mayer Foundation have partnered on this year. They refurbished two school libraries, Emerson Elementary and McNair Elementary, plus donated additional book bundles to all students to keep in both schools to read at home while learning remotely due to school closures during the pandemic.

Access Books has donated over 1.9 million books to over 300 schools over the past 20 years. Each year, 20 schools benefit from the library refurbishment program. Foundations interested in sponsoring another school library please contact Spike Dolomite Ward, Development Director, at [email protected].

For more information on Access Books, visit www.accessbooks.net or call 310-284- 3452. Tax deductible checks can be sent to Access Books, PO Box 64951, Los Angeles, CA 90064.

The Book Foundation is a non-profit organization that addresses the staggering book-to-child ratio of 1 to 300 in under-resourced communities by providing new books to disadvantaged children and youth. We strive to close the achievement gap through an all-inclusive approach to literacy that helps these young people excel academically to build brighter futures. The Book Foundation is a program of Make Good, Inc. which through its’ programs offers tangible, on-the-ground impact to Los Angeles’ most vulnerable and underserved young people.