Lotspeich Library to Safely Circulate Books

Lotspeich librarian Lori Suffield has created a safe way for students in first grade through fifth grade to check out books during the 2020-21 school year. Although younger students in first and second grade can’t visit the library for Suffield’s class, Suffield brings the library to them, wheeling a cart of grade-level books to classrooms. “Students are able to browse from the cart and select their books,” Suffield said. “All students use hand sanitizer before and after book selection.” Students have two bags to keep their books in—one for home and one for school to hold quarantined books. “When a student is finished with their books, they return the books in the bag to the quarantine crate in the Lotspeich Library,” Suffield said. “At the end of each day, I place a lid on the crate and that day’s returned books and bags are quarantined for at least 96 hours.  After the quarantine period, I check in and re-shelve the books.” Third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders have designated times for browsing and checking out library books on an as-needed basis. “Students enter the library in very small groups to browse the library collection,” Suffield said. Older students follow the same hand sanitizing and book protocol as the younger students. Suffield said she developed these protocols with the help of Hillsdale Campus nurse Joy Copfer and data from the American Library Association.