CUMBERLAND — Teens will have at least one new reason to visit the public library come July: playing video games for free.

The Cumberland Public Library is purchasing some of the more popular video game titles –– including Guitar Hero and Dance Dance Revolution –– to host game nights at least once a month.

Jennifer Beiermann, who coordinates the library’s young-adult programming, says the new offering is an effort to draw more youths between the ages of 12 and 18 to the library, particularly that elusive demographic — boys.

“It is an opportunity to get more young people into the libraries. Maybe once they’re in, they’ll see there are more than just books. We have CDs, movies, graphic novels, Internet access, and audio books,” she said.

The Friends of Cumberland Library, a fundraising group, has agreed this month to purchase a Nintendo Wii and a Playstation 2 console and two projectors at a cost of $1,400, according to Sally Wilbour, the group’s treasurer.

Meanwhile, the library applied for the games and other effects through a local donation program offered by Best Buy. Beiermann says she requested the video games Guitar Hero, Mario Kart, and Dance Dance Revolution Supernova, at a cost of more than $300. The application is pending, but if it is rejected, Wilbour says the Friends have agreed to cover the added expense.

Wilbour says that the decision to finance the program was easy: “This program is attracting kids to the library, so it’s a plus.” And while “it’s a big purchase,” she says, “It won’t break the bank.”

Video game events at libraries have become commonplace in other states in the region, but, so far, not in Rhode Island, says Beiermann.

Beiermann says she has observed libraries’ growing interest in video games in articles in professional journals and on library Web sites. “Trying it out here is something I’ve always had on the back of my mind,” she says.

The opportunity came when Gretchen Hanley, the young-adult librarian at the Lincoln Public Library, mentioned that she was interested in bringing in a woman who specializes in video-game library programs.

Beth Gallaway runs Information Goddess Consulting, a freelance consulting and training company specializing in library services for children and young adults. She had visited the Lincoln library before to talk about video games and gaming in general. This time, she offered to bring in some of her own video-game systems and card games to let children use them.

Both librarians thought it would be a good way to take a test run of gaming before starting out on their own.

For $250, Gallaway came down from New Hampshire on a Wednesday night last month with a Nintendo Wii and Playstation 2 in tow. According to Beiermann, about 18 children (15 boys and 3 girls) came out for 2½-hour event at the Cumberland library.

The children played Guitar Hero, Dance Dance Revolution, Donkey Kong and karaoke. Beiermann set the games up away from the main library floor, in the community room, in order to not disturb other patrons.

She was pleasantly surprised at how well the evening played out: “It was orderly. No one seemed to monopolize things.”

After the successful test run, Beiermann made the pitch to the Friends of the Public Library.

Her thinking is that libraries have to expand their offerings to stay relevant with younger generations and to continue to encourage them to read. It also has to be a place where children can meet friends in a safe, social environment.

Being off of the main road, not near any public bus lines isolates Cumberland library to a degree, she says. And young adults, particularly boys, are tough to bring in.

“They have busy lives at that age, with jobs, extracurricular, and sports. Or they may not have a parent to drive them around because they are both working,” she said. “Dragging in boys is a big deal. It is hard for any library anywhere.”

pmarcelo@projo.com