Charlotte Mecklenburg Library is rolling out a new language access plan across its 21 branches this week.
Key documents, including library card information, library use guidelines and branch hours and locations, will be available in the five most commonly spoken non-English languages in Mecklenburg County: Spanish, French, Russian, Vietnamese and Hindi.
"The language access plan is designed to really focus on making sure that all of our materials are something that can be read and accessed by everyone," said Cameron Smith, branch manager at the Pineville Library and co-leader of the library's Welcome CLT initiative. "Anyone that comes through our door should have that ability to be able to understand what we are offering."
The plan builds on years of work through the library's Welcome CLT initiative, which was launched in 2017 to better serve immigrants, refugees and other newcomers moving to the Charlotte area.
"We wanted to make sure that the library is a place where they feel at home, where they can access materials," said Lonna Vines, branch manager at Myers Park Library and co-leader of Welcome CLT. "That's what this team is all about, coordinating programs and resources for everyone in our community, including those international newcomers."
Vines said Charlotte's rapid growth helped drive the effort.
"When our team started in 2017, there were 42 people moving to Charlotte every single day," she said. "Now that number has just exploded, and so many of those people are moving from international locations as well."
Welcome CLT leaders said they began developing the language access plan after attending a language access workshop in 2025 and studying similar plans at other library systems around the country. The rollout was supported by a $10,000 grant from the American Library Association, which helped pay for translations and printing.
In addition to multilingual collections and English classes, the library also hosts quarterly naturalization ceremonies in partnership with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services as part of its broader effort to welcome newcomers.
