Program Overview

Since 2005 Urbana-Champaign Books to Prisoners has operated a lending library program in the Champaign County Jail. It grew out of a desire on the part of the UCB2P leadership to act locally while continuing to operate state-wide, sharing some of their donated books with incarcerated people and giving volunteers a meaningful way to support and promote literacy in the jail population.

Today the small UCB2P jail library at the Champaign County Jail on South Lierman Avenue in Urbana is open every Friday morning, with +/-50 readers visiting during its open hours. Volunteers build and maintain the collection, help readers find books, check books in and out, and distribute newspapers, magazines, puzzles and writing materials.

The library is very important to the readers in the jail, and the librarians regularly receive expressions of gratitude from the Friday visitors. One anonymous patron left this poem for the librarians:

A tranquil moment is like a pound of gold,

A pull to content or a hectic road.

A journey of dispair or that guiding lite.

Which gets our site back to the lite.

Thanks for helping I to keep my head on straigt.

Peace!

Jail Library sessions are held Friday's between 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM

For more information on getting started as a volunteer Jail Librarian, send an email to [email protected]