Los Angeles Public Library: It’s Not Just a Library Card
Growing up, I remember bringing home a stack of books on a Friday afternoon after a trip to the library. As an avid reader, the library was my candy shop, and my library card was my “multi-pass” to a treasure trove of books. To this day, I’m still a library card holder at the Los Angeles Public Library. And who wouldn’t want to be? From a new library card design created by local artist Gajin Fujita in 2019 to access to technology, activities, and of course, books. Here are a few perks to being a LAPL card holder:
Free and discounted admission to LA museums: The LAPL’s Discover & Go program offers free or discounted passes to museums and places of interests like The Broad, La Brea Tar Pits & Museum, National History Museum, the LA Zoo and many more. This program is available to all Los Angeles residents 18 and over with an LAPL card in good standing.
Access to the Octavia Lab: The Octavia Lab is a do-it-yourself studio space located at the Central Library of the Los Angeles Local Library, honoring bestselling author and acclaimed pioneer of science fiction, Octavia Butler. Services offered includes 3D printing, laser cutter, green screen and buff screen backdrops, PC and Apple access to Adobe Creative Cloud, MakerBot, Print, and Silhouette Studio. They even have sewing machines and computerized embroidery machines. For access, call the lab at (213)228-7150 to make reservations.
DIY digitation: The Memory Lab, part of the Octavia Lab, lets you digitize all your old photographs, keepsakes, journals, cassette tapes, and even those home videos on VHS. All you need make a reservation, attend a hour and a half orientation, and sign a release form.
Tutoring Services: Need a tutor for your kids or even yourself but can’t afford a private one? No worries! Your library card provides free access to one-on-one online homework assistance! Tutors are available from 11am to 11pm daily, providing assistance in English and Spanish for a wide variety of subjects. This service is available not only for students in grade K-12 but also to adult learners. They even offer 24/7 access to test prep and study resources for standardized exams.
Online Learning: A diverse (and massive) array of online courses are available to you through your LAPL card. Choose from more than 3,000 courses and 150,000 video tutorials from Lynda.com, six week interactive course from Gala Course, and a comprehensive selection of language, software, business, and career-related courses.
Digital Access to magazine and newspapers: Get access to The New York Times, Vogue, The Washington Post, The New Yorker, and O (The Oprah Magazine). With the use of Press Reader , you get instant access to more than 3,000 newspapers, in different countries, and in about 50 languages.
Access to E-media: Enjoy access to thousands of audiobooks, ebooks, digital comics, and yes, even movies! Link your library card to the Overdrive, Libby, Hoopla, and Kanopy to get started.
All this and access to free books in the library? What are you waiting for? Apply for your LAPL card now and take advantage of all these FREE perks. With this week being National Library Week, what better time to get one?
