Carlsbad libraries win national Beanstack award; summer reading draws 3,124 participants

Library staff told the Board of Trustees on Sept. 24 that the 2025 Summer Reading Adventure drew 3,124 registrants, produced more than 1,900,000 minutes of recorded reading and earned national recognition from Beanstack as the program’s National Grand Prize winner.

"Carlsbad Library and Cultural Arts earned national recognition for our 2025 Summer Reading Adventure Program," said Laura Stanger, principal librarian for partnerships and community outreach, noting the program’s enrollment and that the $500 prize will be reinvested into the 2026 program.

Jennifer Benson, a children’s librarian who presented the final report, provided a detailed breakdown: 459 participants were ages birth to 4; 1,537 were kindergarten through fifth grade; 412 were teens in grades 6–12; and 716 were adults. Participation milestones were adjusted this year to encourage sustained engagement: the first reward at 60 minutes, a midpoint at 300 minutes and a final milestone at 600 minutes. Benson reported that 74% of registrants reached 60 minutes, 58% reached 300 minutes and 40% reached 600 minutes.

Benson said the program spanned 10 weeks (June 1–Aug. 10), and participants averaged 10.4 hours of reading per registered person. The program delivered 64 special events across all locations, with more than 1,900 program attendees; staff attended 17 community outreach events and reported more than 2,000 outreach contacts. Volunteers contributed substantial hours: eight adult volunteers gave 70 hours and 72 teen volunteers contributed 1,452 hours this summer.

Principal Librarian Andrea Hilliard and Stanger credited expanded Sunday hours at the Cole and Dove libraries and targeted outreach for part of the increase in library visits (Hilliard said visits rose 11% over August 2024). Stanger said staff attended 14 outreach events in August alone and engaged with more than 2,000 community members at concerts, schools and affordable-housing resource fairs.

Rewards and sponsorships were described in detail: Friends of the Carlsbad Library sponsored the program and provided book donations; rewards included small toys and coupons at lower milestones, museum passes and larger raffle items for high-achieving participants. Benson said 1,740 books were given away during the volunteer book-distribution part of the program.

Board members asked for clarification about methods used to count outreach interactions; staff said they used handheld counters and defined a counted interaction as a meaningful exchange about library services rather than a brief logistic question.

The presenters closed by highlighting the Beanstack recognition and the program’s outreach success. "This program is loved by so many generations of Carlsbad readers," Benson said, reading a patron comment that staff had received on social media.

The board received the report; there was no formal vote on the program at the meeting.