As public libraries in Baltimore County and throughout the state prepare for the start of summer reading programs this month, middle school pupils are racing to sign up as volunteers, hoping to keep busy, gain work experience and earn community service credit.
"Without the middle school volunteers, we absolutely couldn't do summer reading club," said Bob Hughes, a Baltimore County Public Library spokesman. In the county, 701 middle-schoolers were chosen from 1,000 applicants to be part of the program, which will begin June 17. Working 10 hours or more during the summer, each young person will help children and families register, distribute prizes as participants complete their reading goals, and answer questions.
"It is going to be very much like having your first job," librarian Jason ReBrassier told a roomful of young people and their parents at an orientation for the Towson Library's volunteer program. "It is a lot of the same responsibilities," such as being on time, offering prompt service, cooperating with team members and working with the library staff, he said.
Summer reading programs have been an important part of library outreach for many years. This will be the third consecutive year that a theme -- this year, it is "Race to Read," focusing on transportation -- and primary materials have been shared by counties throughout the state. More than 26,300 youngsters participated last year.
Library officials say volunteers play a key role in the success of summer reading programs.
In Anne Arundel County, nearly 200 middle school volunteers will assist with summer reading preparation, registration and events. The program there will start Monday. In Howard County, which began its program Saturday, each of its six branches uses about five volunteers. Many will work with the program for several summers.
In Carroll County, where the program also will start Monday, helping out at events is part of the job for more than 150 volunteers. Harford County's 299 volunteers provided 6,236 hours of service last year. This year, a new group of young people will be on the job when the program begins June 17.
"I thought ... it would be fun," Ava Ebaugh, 12, said of volunteering at the Towson Library. "It's good to get to know all the other people."
Ebaugh, who is home-schooled, says she reads all the time. She is looking forward to spending time with younger children: "It's good to ... see them reading," she said.
"I think the biggest thing is that [the participants] earn community service hours," said Brenda Brauer, volunteer coordinator for summer reading program at the Rosedale library. Every Maryland student must complete 75 hours of community service work to graduate from high school.
Many want to fulfill the requirement early, said Amber Sherinsky, who is finishing eighth grade at Parkville Middle School and will volunteer at the Rosedale library. "Sometimes people don't really think about it in middle school, and then in high school, they are rushing around. It is easier to get [the hours] now."
Each child who enrolls in a summer reading program is given a game board on which to check off reading tasks such as "I read about a vehicle I really like" or "I read with an adult today." Participants can return to their libraries for small prizes and incentives.
Library branches also will sponsor activities throughout the summer, among them puppet shows and crafts activities.
A separate game board for teens replaces cartoon graphics with transportation-related news items, suggested reading activities and a place to keep track of what they've read during the summer. Each library system can customize the program with prizes, events and rules.
Clifton Jenkins-Houk, soon to be a Ridgely Middle School seventh-grader, remembers participating in the summer reading program when he was younger. "It encouraged me to read a little bit more than I usually would have," he said.
"I remember bringing him [to the Towson library] when he was 4 years old," says Clifton's mother, Pamela Jenkins, of Lutherville. Seeing him volunteer this year provides "a nice sense of completion," she said. "As a mother, I appreciate that he wants to be on the other side of the table."