Emma, this is such an important step forward for libraries. The fear many have about being late and racking up a fine is very real. I see it daily in my high school library. But so is the relief in their faces when I tell them not to worry, we don’t do overdue fines at my school. We are in the business of building relationships and creating a welcoming environment. You brought up some great points that I hadn’t considered. Great post!

Hi Emma,
I enjoyed reading your post! The materials in the last module about going fine free stood out to me too and I was so happy to see that the majority of libraries have now gone this route. I also have a distinct memory of my own Calvin library moment as a child- I was literally sweating going up to the desk! It’s nice to know my own children won’t experience that same moment as our library has been fine fee for a few years now.

Emma,
I loved the comic you included in your post! That truly is the attitude of many library patrons–absolutely stressed out when they know they have a library fine and willing to stop going to the library so they don’t have to face it. I don’t know how many times I have needed to reassure patrons that “I am not the library police”. And…it is so much more important to them to have access to the library than to worry about paying 35 cents for an overdue fee. I was so glad when the library I work at abolished fines about 5 years ago. Yet one more way to make the library accessible to all!!

@emmaginary The power of AI image generators is so fascinating to me right now. Glad you had that experience.

Yay for cat sleeping positions!

Welcome to #hyperlib!