Alameda County Library Foundation
Providing critical support to public libraries in the Alameda County Library system resulting in all people in our communities having access to knowledge in all of its forms.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
The Alameda County Library Foundation strives to ensure the Library's resources, services, and programming are available to all members of our community.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Education and Literacy service
Our community program helps people read to learn, speak to everyone they choose to, and write to anyone using any writing tool. By reaching their personal goals, they can build the lives they want. Reading, writing, speaking, and listening services are provided to both Youths and Adults.
Homework Centers
Many young people lack access to homework help at home and cannot afford the high cost of private tutoring. The Library’s Homework Centers provide high quality, one-on-one homework assistance to children and youth in communities throughout Alameda County. The Homework Centers provide one-on-one help through paid staff and volunteers. An online tutoring program provides youth with access to accredited tutors who are well-versed in the full range of academic subjects, including high school and honors level. Any young person with a library card can access this help-from the Homework Centers, their homes, or any other place with an Internet connection.
Lunch at the Library
Providing lunches and learning activities to low-income youth and their caregivers during the summer months; programming to help adults for whom English is their second language access employment skills, search, and support; and services to make the library more accessible to people with disabilities. We also bring literacy programming to hard-to-reach children through our partnerships with county agencies and nonprofit organizations and deliver a Spanish Storytime at several of our branches.
Makerspaces
Makerspaces are beneficial for people of all ages looking for a place to cultivate new skills and work with materials and equipment they do not have space or money for. They also promote the acquisition of skills through collaboration. The Alameda County Library currently operates Makerspaces in three locations: The Curiosity Shop in Newark, the Makerspace Garage in Irvington (Fremont), and the Archimedes Makerspace in Fremont Main. Each Makerspace is filled with whiteboards, lab tables, hand tools, 3D printers, laser cutters, vinyl cutters, heat presses, full-sized robotics fields, soldering irons, and more to turn brilliant ideas into a reality. At Makerspace Garage, we also offer a tool lending library.
Mobile Outreach Services
The Alameda County Library brings libraries and library resources directly to communities through Poppy, our Mobile Library Van, and Redwood, our Mobile Library Bus. In addition to bringing Poppy and Redwood to sites throughout the county, we bring pop-up library services to parks, community centers, and elementary schools, setting up carts for patrons to browse our books. Individuals can also sign up for a free library card on the spot. Our current stops include Warm Springs Community Park (Fremont), Cherryland Elementary (Hayward), Age Well Center (South Fremont), and Schilling Elementary (Newark).
Programming for Seniors
We offer a wide range of programming for seniors, including computer, art, tai chi, ikebana, and genealogy classes; Sunday matinees; and free seminars in partnership with Savvy Seniors for both seniors and their family members, such as Keeping Elders Safe, How to Age in Place, and Consumer Fraud. We also operate the Booklegger Program, through which senior volunteers visit elementary school classrooms in Fremont and Castro Valley to promote a love of reading and introduce children to new titles and bring library programming to resident care facilities through our Mobile Outreach Services.
Seed Library
Free Grab n go Seed kits are given to our community monthly. Each month has a unique seed variety with instructions. These seed kits are free for everyone and include recipes, crafts, and seeds for their garden. Participating libraries are Fremont main, Centerville and Newark.
Storytimes
Getting very young children, including toddlers and even infants, “hooked” on reading very early in life can lead to life-long love of reading and the possibilities it creates. To help foster a love of books and reading among the very young, Storytimes are offered regularly at most library branches and include stories, songs and fingerplays. At the end of each Storytime, age-appropriate books are available for check-out to continue nurturing a love of reading, at home.
Summer Adventure
Summer Adventure is our reimagined Summer Reading Game! While we love reading, we want this name to celebrate the many ways we learn and follow our curiosities at the library. This year theme was a Magical Journey adventure guide which has activities, games and reading with book gifts and prize drawings.
We all enjoyed creating, exploring, learning, and connecting our way through A Magical Journey together. We loved seeing your submissions expressing and sharing stories in new and creative ways, and hope you’ll continue to enjoy the Submission Showcase year-round. See you next year for a brand-new adventure!
Tech-it-Out
Tech-it-Out kiosks provide a streamlined process to storing, charging, and checking out laptops. The Tech-it-Out Kiosk is an electronic device storage, charging and checkout unit. These kiosks provide patrons with easy access to devices. The kiosk stores, recharges, wipes, checks out and checks in laptops with little or no staff intervention. The kiosks also link directly to the Library’s automated catalog system and patron records which makes for a better overall patron experience
Where we work
External reviews
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
The mission of the ACLF is to provide critical support to public libraries in the Alameda County Library system resulting in all people in our communities having access to knowledge in all of its forms. We accomplish this mission by raising revenue in support of library programs, facilities and services that promote traditional and digital literacy, encourage educational achievement and lifelong learning, and address opportunity gaps in the communities we serve.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
To advance our mission, the ACLF raises funds for a variety of library programs, including homework centers; STEM programming through Makerspaces; Mobile Outreach services, bringing library services directly to the community;
and services to make the library more accessible to older adults and people with disabilities, among many other programs.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
ACLF is governed by a Board of Directors that represents a diverse group of individuals from both the private and public sectors. In addition, we have many partners that assist us in our efforts to support the Alameda County Library System. These include the Family Justice Center, the Fremont Family Resource Center, Abode, the Ashland Community Center, and many others.
We are also fortunate to have many dedicated supporters who help us advance our work. These include individuals, foundations, and corporations. Our fundraising is led by our Executive Director and supported by the Board of Directors.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In 2022-23, the Library welcomed more than 1.1 million individuals to its branches (a 31% increase from 2021-22) and circulated 5.5 million items. Programming highlights included naming our first Co-Youth Poet Laureates Yamini Jain and Nitika Sathiya; engaging more than 2,500 participants and distributing more than 1,000 books across Alameda County through our Summer Adventure program (the theme was “Wonder in Nature”); and reaching more than 16,000 children and caregivers last summer through Lunch at the Library.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
-
How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
-
Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
-
What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently
Financials
Unlock nonprofit financial insights that will help you make more informed decisions. Try our monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights?
Learn more
about GuideStar Pro.
Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Alameda County Library Foundation
Board of directorsas of 12/26/2023
Mr. Ralph Johnson
Castro Valley Sanitary District Board; East Bay Dischargers Authority
Navin Sethi, J.D.
Ernst & Young LLP
Janet Camarena
Candid.
Heather P. Hall
Amara Consulting Solutions, LLC
Stawan Kadepurkar
L&T Technology Services
Dinesh Sawal
Ameriprise Financial Services, Inc.
Tiffany Yang
Fjord Design and Innovation
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
No data
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data