STEM project: Thanks to a $175,000 grant from the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation Pierce County Library System is building a STEM project. The Library will create Science to Go kits for children in kindergarten through third grade. The Library will also purchase more science related books and materials. It will work closely with school districts to foster greater cognitive skills and verbal abilities in students.

Gig Harbor Library landscaping: In July Windermere Real Estate agents from Gig Harbor rolled up their sleeves and trimmed shrubs, cut bushes, pulled weeds and gave an overhaul to the landscape around the Gig Harbor Library. The real estate firm selected Gig Harbor Library as its 2013 Community Service Project. Also this past month the Friends of the Gig Harbor Library funded a $5,000 landscaping project. Workers added three new dry river rock features making a fresh and welcoming look to the grounds. The friends group also is committed to maintaining the river rock improvements.

Intellectual freedom: Staff will continue discussions about intellectual freedom, which is based primarily on the First Amendment in the U.S. Constitution Bill of Rights and related court rulings. It is a core principle of libraries and directs the selection of books and access to the Internet via library computers. Intellectual freedom is also based on the Fourth Amendment and related court decisions regarding an individual’s right to confidentiality in their use of library materials and services.

At the August meeting staff will share how the Library administers compliance with the federal Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) The act protects children under age 17 from access on a library’s public computer to visual depictions of obscenity, child pornography, and other content that is harmful to minors on the Internet. From the hiring interview to ongoing training, the Library System constantly provides direction and tools for staff to comply with CIPA. A recent staff survey showed that 97 percent of staff is very confident or confident in responding to the public’s inquiries about CIPA and access to computers in libraries.

Pierce County Library’s 18 locations and online library bring people together, enrich lives and provide children and adults with opportunities to learn. Pierce County Library is the fourth largest library system in the state, serving 558,000 people.