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10 Kern County Library Secret Perks!

10 Kern County Library Secret Perks!

Since 1900, the Kern County Library has been a center of learning in the Bakersfield, California area. The library has incredible benefits for its members. From free streaming services to scholarship opportunities, the Kern County Library has it all. Keep reading to discover what a Kern County Library membership has to offer!

Start a Garden with the Free Seed Library!

One of the unique things about the Kern County Library is the seed library. Anyone looking to exercise their green thumb can take advantage of this benefit. Located at the Arvin and Lamont Branches, the seed library is a great, FREE resource for anyone trying to grow their own food.

The seed library is designed to be self-replenishing. Each packet of seeds comes with instructions on caring for the plants. After your plants are grown, the instructions will show you how to harvest seeds from your mature plants. You then take the seeds to the seed library and the process begins for someone else. The seed library is free, but be sure to check online to determine when it is open as the library is seasonal.

Receive a Scholarship from the Kern County Library!

Ready to finish your high school diploma? You may qualify for a scholarship for an online high school diploma program from the Kern County Library. The scholarship gets you free enrollment in Career Online High School. Successful completion of the program gets you a diploma as well as a career certification. And with the scholarship from the Kern County Library, this program costs you nothing. Included is a personal tutor and 24/7 online access to study materials.

To be eligible for a scholarship, you must be 19 years or older and also a member of the Kern County Library in good standing. You must also be a resident of Bakersfield, California. To start the process, you must take an online self-assessment. Once that is completed, you must enroll online and complete a mandatory pre-requisite course. The final step is a personal interview with the library staff. Shortly afterward, the library will let you know if you have been given a scholarship.

Download or Stream Videos, Music, eBooks, and More FREE Digital Media!

With your Kern County Library card, you have access to an enormous amount of digital resources and streaming services. You won’t be disappointed in the selection regardless of if you are seeking education or entertainment. Below we highlight all of the digital resources available, sorted by category.

Digital Media

OverDrive is one of the largest digital collections of eBooks available. The service also offers a large number of digital audio books. You can access the collection through most mobile devices and computers. Each book may be checked out for up to 21 days. You can check out up to 30 titles at a time.

CloudLibrary is another popular eBook service available with your library membership. CloudLibrary has an app available for iOS and Android devices. You can check out a title for up to 14 days as well as check out three titles at once.

OpenLibrary is a digital lending program sponsored by the State of California. With OpenLibrary, you get access to over 200,000 eBooks for free.

Auto Repair Help

AutoMate is an excellent do-it-yourself auto repair resource. The service offers thousands of vehicle service and repair guides. The material is provided by the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM). It includes both step-by-step repair guides as well as maintenance schedules.

The EBSCO Auto Repair Reference Center is another great auto repair resource. It contains repair documentation for over 37,000 vehicles, both foreign and domestic.

Language Help

Pronunciator is an easy-to-use online language platform. With Pronunciator, you can learn any of the 80 languages available. The program is based on self-study, videos, tutoring, and more.

Citizenship Resources

Need help with the citizenship process? ProCitizen can help you prepare for your United States Naturalization test. ProCitizen offers study guides as well as practice tests.

Legal Help

You can handle your own legal matters when you have access to the Legal Information Reference Center. Operated by EBSCO, the Legal Information Reference Center contains hundreds of sample court forms as well as legal guides.

Newspapers

Newspaper Source Plus is a fantastic service that offers over 1,000 full-text papers. All told, the service offers over 38 million articles. Newspaper Source Plus offers titles like the Christian Science Monitor, the San Francisco Chronicle, and many more.

The Bakersfield Californian is the largest daily newspaper in the area. With your library membership, you can get online access to past and current issues going back to 2013.

Check out the fun, FREE events hosted by the Kern County Library!

Outside of major holidays, there are events scheduled at the Kern County Library every day of the year. On busy days, the library hosts up to 30 different events. The library offers children scavenger hunts as well as storytime. Adults can join a book club or take a yoga class. And for teens, the library offers LEGO clubs as well as homework help. There are hundreds of events available to library members! The best way to keep up with everything happening at the Kern County Library is by bookmarking their online event calendar.

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