Dec. 15, 2014
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Calgary, Alberta – In partnership with the Calgary Public Library, the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) and Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD), today announced a new initiative to enhance student learning in Calgary. Library Unlimited is a program that puts free Calgary Public Library cards into the hands of each and every student and teacher in the public and Catholic school districts in Calgary. Today’s announcement complements the Calgary Public Library’s plans to provide greater access than ever before to the Library’s resources through the removal of membership fees in January 2015.
“The Calgary Public Library is making digital and physical Library resources available to even more students than ever before,” says Bill Ptacek, CEO of the Calgary Public Library. “Library Unlimited is a joint partnership with the CBE and CCSD. This initiative underscores our collective commitment to enhance the learning needs of our community and most importantly, the immediate needs of Calgary’s students and teachers.” Helping young learners to succeed and thrive is a strategic priority of the Calgary Public Library. Library Unlimited will see roughly 165,000 free library cards distributed to students as early as January of next year. Funding for these cards will come from the Library’s operating budget.
“We are excited to partner with the Calgary Public Library on this important initiative that will see library cards in the hands of every CBE student and employee,” says David Stevenson, chief superintendent of the CBE. “This is a wonderful example of what can happen when like-minded organizations join forces to strengthen and enhance student learning.”
“We are thrilled that our teachers and students will have access to digital and physical resources through the library. This partnership demonstrates the strength of the community coming together to support the teaching and learning of our students,” says Gary Strother, Superintendent of the Calgary Catholic School District.
The Calgary Public Library is one of the largest public library systems in North America and the second largest civic public library system in Canada. In 2013, Calgarians visited the Library’s 18 locations more than 5.3 million times and borrowed more than 16 million items including books, DVDs, and e-resources.
The Calgary Board of Education is the largest public school board in Calgary, Alberta, educating 114,500 students in more than 225 schools in Calgary.
The Calgary Catholic School District is the largest Catholic school district in Alberta, serving more than 52,000 students in 105 schools located in Calgary, Airdrie, Cochrane, Chestermere and Rocky View County.
