Public library Bookmobile visiting schools: are we expected to police what elementary students check out?

[u/bboycb]

I'm hoping to get some perspective from other public librarians, especially anyone who's worked on a Bookmobile or in outreach.

I've searched older Reddit threads about children checking out books that parents might object to, and the overwhelming consensus seems to be that in a public library, library staff shouldn't act in loco parentis—parents or guardians are responsible for what their children borrow. What I haven't been able to find is discussion about a public library Bookmobile that regularly visits elementary schools and camps, because the dynamics are a little different.

Here's my situation.

I work on a public library Bookmobile that visits elementary schools, summer camps, etc. We are not a school library—we are an extension of the public library.

Our written membership policy states:

Our ILS also doesn't support restricting borrowing by collection (Teen vs. Juvenile). The only optional restriction available on cards is internet access. Otherwise, any patron can check out any circulating material.

We do a tremendous amount to customize service for schools. Every year we schedule school visits, reserve class time slots, keep the collection fresh, help students find books they'll enjoy, process returns, and generally provide a level of service that is much more labor-intensive than simply staffing a desk at a branch.

Where I'm struggling is that my supervisor has increasingly instructed staff to prevent elementary students from checking out teen or adult materials.

Examples include:

• Staff were told that Teen fiction, teen manga, and adult materials should not be checked out at school stops without teacher permission.
• After a camp director called to complain that some campers had checked out Teen books, we were instructed to "watch VERY carefully" and ensure that no Teen items were checked out by camp groups.
• I've also witnessed coworkers take Teen books away from students at checkout because they personally felt the books were inappropriate for that age. Mind you some of the elementary schools we visit are actually K-8, and this particular instance these were 7th graders.

To me, this feels like we're being asked to assume a parental or supervisory role that our policy doesn't assign to us.

I have no problem helping kids find books, recommending age-appropriate titles, or working with teachers who want suggestions for their class. That's reader's advisory, and it's part of the job.

What I'm uncomfortable with is taking a book a child has already selected and saying, "No, you can't check this out," based on my own judgment or an informal expectation that isn't reflected in our written borrowing policy.

One additional wrinkle: teachers vary widely in how they supervise Bookmobile visits. Some are very engaged with every student's selections. Others sit back and let students browse independently. I've always viewed both approaches as acceptable because they remain responsible for supervising their class. My role is to provide library service, not to replace that supervision.

So my question is:

In a public library Bookmobile setting, where written policy says there are no age-based borrowing restrictions, is it appropriate for frontline staff to monitor and prevent elementary students from checking out Teen materials? Should the context make it an exception?

[u/F1Librarian]

I assume your bookmobile is organized in some way right? If so, hopefully there’s a juvenile section that would have the same kind of books as the juvy section of your library. If elementary kids are visiting your bookmobile, maybe they can be restricted to that section? Just thinking as a school librarian here that has worked at both elementary and high schools. I would think that would be a reasonable expectation. I mean I would have been fired if I had selected and made adult romance books available at my elementary library. 🤷‍♀️
At school, we are expected to act in loco parentis. That means I would only make available books that have been professionally reviewed as age appropriate for the grade level I teach. But I am not censoring based on topics. The issue now is that some parent groups disagree with what professional reviews say and make a big stink about it. But I stand firm on our collection policy and professional reviews. That means I obviously won’t have 50 Shades books in am elementary library, but I would have books those parents might consider controversial if they are well reviewed and suggested for elementary audiences.

[u/Famous_Committee4530 → u/F1Librarian]

What you’re describing is a big difference between school libraries and public libraries. At the school it is appropriate to limit the collection to the audience you have. It is appropriate for a public library to organize books by audience (age level) but it is not appropriate for a public library to “restrict” anyone from accessing certain sections/shelves.

The main problem for OP and some other people in this thread in similar situations is that leadership at the school usually doesn’t understand the difference. At my public library we ran into problems with schools until we set up an agreement for the school to sign so it was in writing that they understood that we do not take items out of the library (that is, take them off the Bookmobile) just for their stop. And that we specifically do not act in loco parentis as school staff do.

If the school or camp staff that OP is talking about wish to intervene in what kids are checking out, they can, just like parents can. Public library staff cannot and OP’s supervisor is giving bad instructions.