The new library has proven to be as successful and popular a location as was envisioned 10 years ago when it was in the planning stages. It has become a gathering place for the community and a place for all ages to meet, study, and converse.

As an after-school destination, the library has become so popular that on some early-release days there is not a single chair unoccupied. However, Library Director Mary Wilson and staff have reported that the energy and excitement that enter the library along with the children after school lead to behaviors inappropriate for a library.

Below are the policies developed and approved by the library trustees over the last few months. The library asks that parents of school-age children read the library’s children’s policy and code of conduct and share its contents with their children.

Library patrons who feel they must leave the library when the kids descend upon it should know that the trustees are committed to making the library welcoming to everyone at all times.

Copies of these documents, which were recently sent home with children, appear below, and are also available at www.harvardpubliclibrary.org.

Children at the Harvard Public Library

It is the objective of the Harvard Public Library to provide a safe, secure and positive environment for the education and enjoyment of children of all ages. To this end, it is crucial that children understand the code of conduct expected of all patrons who use the library. The library staff will remind children and their parents, guardians, or caregivers of appropriate standards of conduct befitting a public library. If these standards are not met, the library staff may request that disruptive children leave the premises.

No child under the age of 10 is allowed in the library without the supervision of a parent or guardian. For safety’s sake, parents, guardians, or caregivers should make sure their children over the age of 10 are sufficiently mature to read and understand the library’s code of conduct before allowing them to visit the library by themselves. During story hours or library-supervised activities, parents, guardians, or caregivers are requested to remain in the library with their children. Parents or guardians are responsible for the actions and behavior of their children, even when said parents and guardians are not on the library premises.

Dennis O’Connor, a district manager at Waste Management, reads I Stink, a book about garbage, to children at the library at an event earlier this fall. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)

School-age children are welcome to use the library to study, do research, or browse. Those causing disturbance to others will be reminded of the code of conduct and asked to behave. After a second disturbance, a warning will be issued; a third such incident will result in the person being asked to leave the library.

The staff will familiarize themselves with the names of those causing a disturbance so that if disturbances recur, parents or guardians will be contacted by the library director.

At closing time, children are asked to wait outside or in the vestibule until they are picked up. In case of an emergency closing, children should know how to contact their parents, guardians, caregivers, or a neighbor to arrange for pickup. If the child is not picked up, the police will be notified and the situation transferred to that department.

—Submitted by the Harvard Library Trustees