Adult Volunteers

Looking for a rewarding and fun experience? The library may be just the place for you! We are looking for reliable volunteers to support the library’s mission of “providing diverse resources for life-long learning and enjoyment.” Individuals 18 years of age and older interested in volunteering at the library are encouraged to apply.

Teen Volunteers

Ages 12-17 can volunteer at the library but their application process and expectations are a little different. The teen application window is only open at the beginning of the school year (September) and before summer (April). Check out our Teen Programs page to see the current status of teen volunteer opportunities.

Role of Volunteers:

Volunteers are here to assist library staff in their attempts to fulfill the goals and mission of the Urbandale Public Library. Their efforts are essential to maintaining library services and allowing staff to use time for professional tasks. With ongoing training, they help expand and enhance library services and provide an educational and cultural link to the community.

Volunteers are ambassadors for the library in the community and help create public awareness concerning all the programs and services the library provides. It is important that volunteers accept training and instruction with an open mind and a willingness to serve the public.

Potential Volunteer Positions and Tasks:

• Adopt-A-Shelf:
  • Volunteers will be assigned a regular section of the library to help ensure that it is neat and tidy. The volunteer will be taught the basics of shelving and will be asked to shelf-read, straighten, and hunt for lost materials within the assigned section.
• Home Delivery:
  • Volunteers will deliver bags of materials to homebound patrons and pick up bags of returned materials. Each bag will be labeled with the patron’s address and will be opaque to protect the patron’s confidentiality. This could begin as a monthly duty and be increased to semi-monthly, if there is demand from home delivery folks and volunteers are available. Volunteers should have a valid driver’s license and be able to lift 20 pounds, as some of the bags of materials are heavy.
• Interlibrary Loans:
  • Volunteers will package ILLs to be sent via IA Shares and place outgoing bags in a blue IA Shares tote. The MR/ILL Assistant will provide volunteers with outgoing ILLs and IA Shares labels. This task could be once or twice a week, and volunteers would need a brief training from the ILL Assistant.
• Info Desk:
  • Volunteers will welcome patrons into the library and direct those who are unsure of where to go. This task will likely be during times when the library typically sees an uptick in activity, such as during summer reading and/ or during book sales.
• Painting Program Cleanup (Once a month | 6:30/7:00-8:00 PM – evening weekday shift):
  • Involves moving tables and chairs, and picking up tarps, tablecloths, and other art supplies.
• Plants:
  • About once a week, volunteers will water plants that need watering. Volunteers should be able to lift a full pitcher or watering can. Knowledge of plants is a plus; otherwise, library staff can tell volunteers what the various plants are and indicators that they need water.
• Refrigerator:
  • About once a week, volunteers will remove out-of-date food and clean the community fridge. Volunteers should be able to reach inside to the back of the fridge to clean it.
• StoryWalk (Outdoors at Walker Johnston Park between April-October | frequency – about every 6 weeks | 1.5-2 hours solo shift – less time if more than one person helps | flexible day and time – can be completed outside of library hours):
  • Involves removing previous story pages from the StoryWalk frames and replacing them with new story pages. Some general cleaning of the StoryWalk frames may be necessary as needed.
• Examples of Other Miscellaneous Tasks:
  • Clean and check AV materials for damage
  • Support library book sales by helping staff sort and arrange items for sale
  • Assist with program set-up/clean-up

If interested, please read through the Volunteer Handbook that details the role and responsibilities of UPL volunteers, which can be found here. Potential volunteers will also be required to:

• Complete a volunteer application
• Complete a background check form
• Schedule and complete an interview with library staff
• If regularly volunteering, be able to commit a minimum of 1-2 hours per week

For more information, contact:

Residents of Urbandale interested in volunteering to serve on the Library’s Board of Trustees should apply through the City of Urbandale’s website.