1. Summer reading is in full swing across the County, what can families expect from this year’s Summer Reading Challenge, and how can they get involved?
Ventura County Library’s “Level Up at Your Library” summer reading program launched on Monday, June 9. During the summer, the library will host a range of free activities for children, teens, and adults to encourage and support a love of reading. Participants can win prizes for reaching their reading goals.
Registration began on Monday, June 2, and continues through the end of the program on August 3. To learn more about the summer reading adventure, visit library.venturacounty.gov . Themed events, including a special Family Game Day celebration with the Gamez on Wheelz game truck and Kona Ice, will take place at every library branch during the month of July.
Children up to age 18 will be eligible to win books for registering and meeting reading goals; they will also qualify for entries into a Grand Prize Drawing for two California Neighbor Annual Passes to Universal Studios. Readers over the age of 18 will be eligible to win their own set of prizes for tracking books they’ve read and completing library challenges.
The summer reading program at the library is so much more than just a seasonal activity – it’s an opportunity to cultivate a lifelong love of reading and for families to come together and explore the library.
For reluctant readers, the program offers a variety of engaging activities that can help draw them in and ignite their enthusiasm for books. From engaging performances and activities to captivating Storytime sessions, librarians have curated a diverse range of experiences to cater to every reader’s interests.
Keeping children’s reading skills sharp over the summer is essential for maintaining and improving literacy. Research conducted over the past 100 years consistently shows that students typically score lower on standardized tests at the end of summer vacation than at the beginning—a phenomenon known as the “summer slide.” In fact, children who don’t read during the summer can lose up to two months of academic progress by the time they return to school. When parents encourage their children to participate in the Summer Reading Program, they play a vital role in preventing learning loss and helping to strengthen their child’s reading proficiency—even during the break from school.
Beyond the educational benefits, the summer reading program is designed to be a source of pure enjoyment. It’s an opportunity to bond with family and friends, discover new favorite authors, and explore hands-on STEM activities together. It represents how the library is more than just a place for books and serves as a vibrant hub of community, creativity, and lifelong learning.
2. Ventura County Library locations offer more than just books, what kinds of programs or resources are available this summer for families looking for free, fun activities?
In addition to the summer reading program, a wide array of events for all ages will be offered at the Ventura County Libraries this summer. For children and families these events include STEM programs, movie matinees, Kids’ Farmers’ Markets, Storytimes, Paws for Reading, Family Game Days, Toddler Play, Art Lab, Coding Clubs, and more.
Adults can participate in various activities and programs across the library system, such as knitting and fiber art clubs, English and Spanish conversation groups, ukulele jams, book clubs, lectures, poetry groups, and more. And be on the look out for the 2025 One County One Book countywide reading program title selection to be announced soon. We are busy planning for a very exciting author presentation as part of this annual literary event.
To view the Ventura County Library’s calendar of events, visit www.library.venturacounty.gov/events/ .
The library also loans out unique items for free through our Library of Things, including State Parks Passes, Knitting Needle Kits, Fossil Kits, Book Club Kits for local book clubs, and Home Energy Savings Kits and induction stovetops through a partnership with 3C-REN.
So yes, the library has more than just books – but we have those too! With a collection of over a half a million print and electronic books, there is something for everyone. And people can get a temporary library card and download thousands of e-books for free without ever stepping into a physical library building.
3. What is the Summer Lunch Program and how is the library is helping fight food insecurity for kids and teens during the break?
This summer the Ventura County Library will provide free lunches for children 18 and under. The Lunch at the Library program will be offered from July 7 through July 31 at three library locations, including the Avenue Library in Ventura, the Oak View Library, and the Albert H. Soliz Library in El Rio. These locations were selected specifically because there are fewer options for children’s summer lunch programs in these areas.
Studies have shown that many children experience barriers to receiving lunch when they aren’t in school. When they come to the library to get lunch during the summer, children can also participate in fun and educational activities to feed both minds and bodies. The Lunch at the Library program is a project of the California State Library, supported with funds from the State of California and the Ventura County Library Foundation.
4. Are there any current or upcoming projects focused on improving library spaces or expanding access for the community?
A primary goal and focus for the library system over the past ten years has been to upgrade the library facilities to be better equipped to deliver modern library services. Significant progress has been made with major library openings, renovations, and construction projects. In 2017, the Ventura County Library opened the brand-new Hill Road Library on the east side of Ventura. Funding for the Hill Road Library was made possible by multiple entities including both the county and city, and the Ventura Friends of the Library.
Just a few years later in 2022, a newly renovated and expanded Fillmore Library was reopened thanks to a state appropriation of $1.5 million secured by Senator Monique Limon and former Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson.
And in 2022, the California State Library began accepting applications for grant funding through the Building Forward Library Facilities Improvement Program that enabled libraries to pay for capital projects for public library buildings. Over the next two years the Ventura County Library applied for and received Building Forward grant funds in support of three library facilities in Meiners Oaks, Port Hueneme, and Ventura.
The new Meiners Oaks Library opened in 2024 thanks to a partnership between the Ventura County Library and the Ojai Unified School District. And the Ray D. Prueter Library in Port Hueneme reopened in 2025 with major renovations and refurbished spaces. This project was supplemented by both county and city funds.
Work on the Building Forward grant project in downtown Ventura is underway at the E.P. Foster Library. This project will address critical maintenance in the facility that was built in 1959, and will enable the library to install air-conditioning, a new roof, and a new elevator for enhanced access. The newly air-conditioned space will enable the library to function as a cooling center during heat emergencies and protect collections from damage due to the environmental conditions.
Other broadband grant funding from the State of California enabled the library to recently upgrade the E.P. Foster Library’s technology infrastructure, resulting in greatly improved Internet connection speeds and capacity.
Another project to upgrade the Prueter Library HVAC system is also underway so that it can serve as a designated clean air facility. Grant funding secured through a collaborative effort between the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District and the Ventura County Library made this project possible.
And a project is also just getting underway at the Ojai Library to refurbish the space thanks to two large bequests received by the Ventura County Library for this purpose.
To expand access to library services, three Ventura County Libraries – the Fillmore, Hill Road, and Meiners Oaks Libraries – offer Express Hours that enable adults to use the library during certain hours even when staff are not present. The Express Hours program expands library hours of service and increases access to basic library self-services.
Lastly, the Ventura County Library launched two new bookmobiles since 2019 with support from the Ventura County Library Foundation. The Mobile Library visits locations all over the county, removing barriers to library services for people who often have no other way to get to the library. And the School Mobile Library, a partnership with the Ventura County Office of Education, visits schools around the county delivering library services to students who don’t have access to school libraries or credentialed teacher-librarians.
5. Looking ahead, what’s your vision for the future of Ventura County Libraries, and are there any special events coming up that residents should mark their calendars for?
The vision for the future of the Ventura County Library aligns with the needs of our community, and as a core county service library services will continue to reflect County of Ventura goals and priorities. We will continue to determine library services and programs within this framework and by listening to the diverse communities we serve while striving to meet their needs.
We won’t rely on past practices just because things have always been done that way or get bogged down in unnecessary policy and procedures. We will remove barriers to services and constantly strive to create efficiencies and improve despite limited resources. We will seek additional funding to enhance our impact, while also leveraging partnerships and using innovation and creativity to do more with the resources we have. We will invest in our team of dedicated employees who remain our most valuable asset and support them in their work as civil servants.
Our public libraries will remain free and open to all, unique and welcoming places where everyone has access to information for lifelong learning and civic participation. Our library spaces will allow people to connect to information and to each other. Not only will library visitors discover commonalities with others and be comforted that they are not alone, but they will also explore and discover new stories and diverse points of view. As technology evolves, we will leverage it to deliver improved and more efficient services. And our libraries will continue to serve as a digital equalizer by providing access to technology itself, along with the training to use it, for so many who have no other place to go to connect, learn and grow, and ultimately be successful in society.
For those interested in supporting the Ventura County Library in this effort, please consider supporting the Ventura County Library Foundation. The Library Foundation enhances access to quality Ventura County Library System services, materials, and programming for children and adults across the county by securing supplemental funding and other resources from private and public donors through strategic partnerships & alliances.
The Library Foundation will present the “Books, Butterflies and the Botanical Gardens” fundraiser on Sunday, October 19 that will feature debuting novelist and long-time columnist Woody Woodburn at the Ventura Botanical Gardens. Also on the program will be Dr. Jana Johnson, Lead Biologist of The Endangered Butterfly Project, who is largely responsible for saving the Palos Verdes Blue butterfly from extinction. Short programs are scheduled at 1 and 3 p.m. from the author and biologist, as well as Gardens’ CEO Joe Cahill, followed by Q&A. The noon to 4 p.m. event includes self-guided tours of the five distinct Mediterranean climate zones of the world, raffles, desserts and book signing of Woodburn’s The Butterfly Tree as well as daughter Dallas Woodburn’s young adult fiction novels. Admission is $40 online at www.vclibraryfoundation.org and benefits the ongoing programs supported by the Ventura County Library Foundation.
