If you're studying for an important exam or really need to focus, do not come on weekdays. Coming from an Independence HS senior, the library gets extremely loud after school hours. After students get out at at 3 pm, the library becomes a socializing center and the librarians will constantly be telling groups of students to quiet down. On the other hand, during WEEKENDS, the library is quiet and perfect for "work grinds" :-) There are two separate areas with computers! There is also a large selection of rooms. The quiet study room does not have windows therefore if you plan to stay in there for an extended period of time, you might get uncomfortable. There is also a teen room but honestly, most of the time.. it will smell like sweat. LOL I will always love the MLK library more but this is a nice branch! read more

Beautiful on the outside but I wasn't exactly impressed upon entering. While is has been many, many moons since I've been to Educational Park Branch Library, I had not experienced the 2013 remodel of this place until now. In fact, the last time I set foot in this library was during my high school days as a Sixer. This particular library is a lot smaller than the other SJPL that I've visited. I took a quick stroll and ended up right back at my starting point before I knew it. Parking off to the side of the library is a bit small but the overflow in visitors can easily be accommodated with Overfelt Garden's lot. There seems to be plenty of seating located throughout the building but the indoor hands-on play area for the kiddos is extremely lacking. Here you will find fake foods, access to ABC Mouse, and coloring pages are available upon request. Unfortunately, I have not gotten to visit the outdoor play features I read about. 3 stars because the library is clean and the staff is nice. I couldn't imagine what this place looks like when school is actually in session but I'll openly avoid those kinds of visit if possible. read more

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A beautiful, bright, and large library in a more metro area of San Jose with 4 high schools nearby so there's quite a lot of people here sometimes but when we visited it was nice and quiet. read more

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Nice friendly library. Workers were friendly to me, not so much to the wifey. Bad parking lot due to it being next to the high school and crazy parents picking up their kids. read more

Hmmm so far this library has impressed me. The location is within the educational park in San Jose which is surrounded by independence high school, Adult Ed and charter school. This is right across the Independence school's dilapidated library which is an eye sore for how it was abandoned like that. Looks like one can use it as a setting in their scary of suspense home made flick. The building itself is modern with high ceiling and bright lighting. They have reading sections for your reading preferences and a kiddie nook on the side. They have a vending machine inside for drinks and study rooms for groups or individuals who want to be left alone. Since it is next to independence high school and other nearby school I can imagine how noisy it can be during the weekday but nice during the weekend. Went here twice and got some free stuff both days. First time coming here we saw that they were offering new library card designs. I got me the "Don't stop reading like a Robot" and the kiddo got the "Processor". The second time we got there for the free comic book day. And we got a copy of all the magazines they had lying around for grabbing. Suh -weeeeeet!!! 5 stars for me and yeah...I am coming back! read more

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Very nice public library, I love this place. Different from other libraries. Though not that big, but very nice ambience, clean, and interesting. They really decorate the room and very comfortable. They provide books and DVD which will make people interest of reading and watching something. I wish there is library like this in area that I live in... read more

The staff here are exceptional and this branch offers programs for little ones that other branches don't offer. We love playing here! read more

Educational Park Branch Library - Wee Play! - Libraries Near Me - San Jose, California

Too crowded with teenagers and loud. Hard to find parking and got blocked by school bus for 30 mins.

It's a nice place to study, but it is a little small for a library. There's a good amount of parking right next the the garden. Library itself is pretty compact and doesn't have many tables to sit at, but has outlets for laptops and such at each table which was great. I did notice that their book selection isn't all that much though. It has a kids section as well but tbh with all of the middle/high school kids that show up here just to mess around and be loud in the study section, I think they're going to need a bigger kids section. The toddlers were more tame and respectful than these kids. I didn't see many staff/workers around but I'm still surprised that no one said anything to hush them up. read more

So it's not the prettiest of the San Jose Public Library branches, but the Educational Park Branch is one of the friendliest library branches in the system. Since it is on the same property of Independence High School, there is usually a huge rush of students between 2-4pm. Despite the craziness, the staff there work well with the teens, by being stern enough so they are taken seriously, but not discouraging them from coming back. There is a really active teen advisory group there so if you or someone you know is looking for volunteer hours, it's a great place to be. Storytimes are small, but it gives them a more personal feeling and the parents and children are really well behaved! There are better book collections at other branches (mainly adult non-fiction), but their picture books, children's non-fiction, DVDs, and manga are pretty good. They also have wireless in the building, which helps since they have few PCs and don't have a computer lab. This branch is set to be closed late 2008, but the new branch will be built very close to the old location. Please give Educational Park a chance, you'll be pretty surprised how cool it really is... .... and so what if I've worked there before and loved every minute of it!?! :) read more

Pros: near Independence high school, so students can go there easily Cons: its small and most of kids hanging out there not for studying purposes, but they rather spend time their chatting or playing cards. You'll hardly concentrate there. I have to praise the staff there though. They're being so patient and yet strict enough with the kids. Because of them I'll give it 3 star. read more

This place isn't open Friday, Saturday, or Sunday which really bugs me because that's when a lot of people actually want to go to the library. The one thing that I do like about this place is that it's literally within the realms of independence high school and that it's pretty new. read more

It is a wonderful library! I had a very positive experience when I last visited this library. I was looking for books to check out to write a very important paper for school. Using the computer to search for reference material was very simple. I couldn't find enough references on my particular topic though, so I ask the librarian for help. I am so thankful for her. She went above and beyond to help me locate books that would assist me on witting my paper. She even found a book with very detailed information that covered all the main points I needed. She helped me locate it in another library and provide me with all the necessary information to put it on reserve. Honestly if it wasn't for the Librarian taking the extra effort to assist me I probably wouldn't have gotten 100/100 on the assignment. I would highly recommend visiting this library! They are very resourceful and helpful in helping students. A tip i would give is to come on a weekend because it is less crowded in my opinion. read more

Inside: This is a really small library, not many places to sit, there's about 2 study rooms. The staff doesn't really say anything to people that are being loud. The selection is alright, like I said it's kind of small. There's a few computers around for you to use but you have to get there soon since many people use them. Outside: The parking lot is small, as you enter the library there are sometimes very tough looking students that can be intimidating to some people since they are all dressed in baggy pants and long white shirts or usually all black. I would advise anyone to just leave the parking lot as soon as you get there since there are people exchanging drugs and smoking weed. Random story: One of the workers there during my visit wasn't really aware that there was someone sitting at the table reading and she pushed the empty chairs into the person's leg without saying sorry or anything. I guess it was her job to push in empty chairs but I still think she should have been more considerate to the person sitting there as well. read more

Loud and noisy. It is good that they have a quiet room. Students discuss and talk very loud in the library. Even a mother and grandparents bring an infant to the library. They are here not for reading or studying. They just stay in the library to chit chat and the infant keeps making sound too. read more

It's a great resource for the locals. A gateway to tons of reading, listening, and viewing material through the SJPL system and linkPlus, the library also hosts friendly programs like the free bicycle repair event on August 16, 2016. The staff are friendly. For instance, when i could not pick-up an item on hold in time, i called them and they extended the date by another day. It has free and fast WiFi in case one wants to stay for a longer time. It is adjacent to the Overfelt Gardens Park, so a visit to the library can be combined with a leisurely stroll in the nature. I'm glad to be one of the community donors of this library! read more

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This place has too many high school students on weekdays. The quiet room is too cold that I got sick once I studied in there. The staffs are young but they like to chat loud and joke as if they were in a party together, so it's noisy even on weekends . This library is helpless. I live nearby but I'd rather drive a distance to get to better libraries. read more

Well it's a good place to play cards with your high school friends and talk loudly. They have nice computers but tho but not that many available. read more

Dont go here. Garbage. Its seems so empty and like their isnt any books to really browse at. At least they say "have a good day" on your way out though. read more

Best staff here, get help what you need. Good place to do you homework, no matter what age you are.

The staff here is always available to assist you for any request that you have. Many great on-going programs are available here to help people from all age groups. My favorite ones are ESL & I.code read more