Muwekma Ohlone School - Library Refurbishment
January 2026
On January 31st, Access Books Bay Area along with community volunteers united to refurbish the school library at Muwekma Ohlone Middle School in San José (“Ohlone”). Access Books Bay Area provided Ohlone with not only brand new books for the library but also books for the classrooms and inspiring vibrant murals outside the library.
Ohlone currently enrolls 592 students in grades 6-8, 72% of which are considered socioeconomically disadvantaged, 85% are Hispanic/Latino, and 37% are English Language Learners. Many students also are experiencing homelessness and receive shelter and services through our partner organization Amigos de Guadalupe.
Mark Dooley, Ohlone’s Paralibrarian, was present on the project day and helped process books. He met with our Marketing and Communications team to share his thoughts on introducing new literature to students and keeping a well-stocked library:
“Well, it’s always hard to reach out to kids who don’t think of themselves as readers. The big thing a well-stocked library can do is surprise, because if they have come to the conclusion that they are not a good reader or they’re not a powerful reader they’re not going to try—but if I can surprise them with something in a book then that’s more likely to catch their interest and keep their interest up. And so, you know we get new books in all the time. [It’s good].”
Access Books Bay Area purchased 929 brand-new, diverse and culturally relevant Spanish and English language books for the school library. Additionally, 400 new and gently used books were donated to the classrooms to provide an additional source of pleasure reading books for the students. The donated books were carefully curated to include a diverse range of voices, genres, and formats, including graphic novels. We hope this collection sparks a new joy for reading.
On the project day, 59 Access Books Bay Area team members and community volunteers came together to fill the library with vivid and diverse books. Together we processed the new books and shelved them in their new home. By the end of project day, our team and volunteers gained a deeper appreciation for the extraordinary space that is a library, and felt pride in the hard work put into this refurbishment.
A huge thank you to Dunn-Edwards Paints for the incredible selection of quality paints donated to help bring our vision to life. Shoutout to our Artistic Director, Olivia Herlihy, the creative force behind the beautiful mural on the outside wall of the Ohlone Library.
We deeply appreciate the generosity of our donors, sponsors, and partners, the dedication of our volunteers, and the support of the school administration and staff who helped make this refurbishment as remarkable as it was. We hope our shared commitment to bridging the literacy gap continues to bring us together as we serve and refurbish school libraries across the Bay Area, ensuring children in under-resourced schools have the books they need to grow into lifelong readers.
