Volunteers make a difference

National Volunteer Week is observed annually during the third week of April. Hundreds of volunteers are making a difference in their communities by supporting learning, literacy, and enrichment at Hennepin County Library.

In 2024, adult and teen volunteers gave more than 22,800 hours of service to their libraries. To our 755 valued volunteers, thank you!

They support staff and help the library deliver excellent public service by assisting students with homework assignments, tutoring youth to gain the skills to read at grade level, helping patrons build their digital literacy, organizing and shelving books, assisting at library programs, and many more supportive tasks.

Your support improves our library system and deepens our community ties.

Homework Help

Homework Help volunteers provided more than 8,400 drop-in tutoring sessions in 2024, supporting K-12 students at 18 library locations. These volunteers helped youth develop the skills they need to graduate and be successful beyond school. Nearly 90% of students served live in households that speak languages other than English and 98% of students reported feeling more confident in their schoolwork due to attending Homework Help at the library.

Let’s Read!

Hennepin County Library now offers a K-5 literacy program known as Let’s Read. The program offers free in-person reading support for students at 7 library sites. Students and trained volunteer tutors meet weekly one on one to work on grade-level reading skills. Volunteers answered the call to inspire elementary students to become lifelong readers, providing 1,747 Let’s Read tutoring sessions in 2024.

Support your library’s daily operations, programs, and services by joining Hennepin County Library’s volunteer program. New opportunities are published throughout the year.