As schools navigate testing pressures and evolving technology, some Ohio librarians say they are filling gaps that go beyond books, serving as community spaces and helping students build digital literacy skills.

Hannah Green, a school librarian in Columbus City Schools, the largest district in the state, said students are often assumed to be fluent online because they grew up with technology, but that’s not always the case.

"These kids barely know how to write an email or even just interact online in general but they are expected to, because they're digital natives," she said, "but we're assuming that they have these skills that they really don't."

Ohio does not currently require a standalone digital literacy course for high school graduation, and school libraries are sometimes closed during standardized testing to serve as exam spaces.

Green said librarians also help students navigate research in a rapidly changing online environment, often within limited classroom time. Beyond instruction, she said, school libraries offer something equally important.

"Libraries are important," she said. "They're important for literacy, they're important for students to have a space that they can go, and be either not in the lunchroom or hang out with their friends, or something like that.

Library advocates say schools, especially in underserved communities, rely on librarians to support reading, research skills and safe gathering spaces. Despite policy debates and curriculum pressures, Green said, many school libraries continue focusing on student needs day to day.

Support for this reporting was provided by the philanthropic foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York.