WEST ORANGE, NJ — Like every other library in the country, the West Orange Public Library was forced to close when the COVID-19 pandemic began to shut down nonessential businesses in an effort to keep people home to prevent the spread of the virus. But that didn’t stop the staff from working, setting up online programs and resources for residents to access from their homes.
“We already have a digital presence, so it was the obvious move,” library Director Dave Cubie said in a phone interview with the West Orange Chronicle on April 17. “One of our librarians was already ordering books, so she pivoted to purchasing more e-books. We’re putting a lot into beefing up our digital collection. This is the only way people can get materials right now.”
According to Cubie, of the nearly 50,000 people who live in West Orange, more than 30,000 of them have library cards. The nearly 20,000 people who don’t have cards can still sign up for library cards now, even while the building on Mount Pleasant Avenue is closed.
“They can sign up for a card online and get the number, and then once we reopen they can get the physical card,” Cubie said.
On the homepage of www.wopl.org, artwork from students at the elementary schools in West Orange is being displayed. Story time for ages 3 to 6 is being livestreamed on Saturdays at 8:30 a.m, and the Yakety Yak Book Club for second- and third-graders is meeting via Zoom. For the access code, residents can email youth@westorangelibrary.org.
Other online resources include audiobooks and e-books from OverDrive, which can be accessed through the Bergen County Cooperative Library System at www.bccls.org/digital_collections/ebccls.shtml. In addition, the WOPL has access to eLibraryNJ, a consortium of online materials that can be accessed from the library’s website. Kanopy, a streaming service for films and documentaries, is also accessible from the library website.
According to Cubie, the WOPL staff is reaching residents with online resources. As of April 17, the 17 videos streamed and posted on the Facebook page had 5,584 views, and page views are up 177 percent. Post engagement is up 15 percent, reaching 9,701 people.
“If people need tech help, they can reach out to us,” Cubie said. “We’ll do everything we can.”
About 10 percent of the population in West Orange doesn’t have internet access, and Cubie said he and the library staff are trying to figure out how to deliver books to those people and to senior citizens who can’t leave their homes. Since sanitizing the books on the shelves isn’t realistic, the library would have to purchase hard copies of books or magazines and deliver them. It’s a work in progress.
Residents can email ref@westorangelibrary.org or call 973-736-0198 and leave a message for the staff.
“They can tell us what they’re looking for, and if we don’t have it we can buy it,” Cubie said. “A lot of people think of libraries as a place just for books and don’t realize the digital resources we have. We have staff members curating tutorials, and we’re putting together lists of things to keep people occupied. We want to help the people who need it the most.”
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