For many Menlo Park residents, sending a child to an Ivy League school is not entirely out of the ordinary. In fact, a place in a prestigious university is often expected.

Elibet Jimenez, who grew up in Menlo Park's Belle Haven neighborhood, graduated from Yale University in 2012. But her acceptance to the school was anything but the result of family expectations. As it happens, she was the first in her family to go to college at all.

Ms. Jimenez credits many of her academic accomplishments to her home community, a key component of which is the Belle Haven Community Library, a branch of the Menlo Park Library. Curious and eager to learn from a young age, Ms. Jimenez immersed herself in the nearby library, so to her, it's more than a place to check out books.

"It was my 'go to' library growing up," she said. "I knew all the librarians, and I would always seek them out."

Now, at age 24, she's focused on giving back. "It was always my plan to come back home," said Ms. Jimenez, who moved back to Belle Haven after graduating. "This community made me who I am, and I want to give back to the people who guided me."

Recently, she was hired as the literacy outreach specialist for Project Read-Menlo Park, a literacy program administered through the Menlo Park Library that offers free tutoring for adults with limited English-language skills.

And Project Read hits pretty close to home. Ms. Jimenez's parents improved their English skills through the program, and her mother, who worked with her volunteer tutor to successfully apply for U.S. citizenship, still participates in it.

"My mom has been with her tutor for over seven years," she said. "They have a really strong bond."

Ms. Jimenez's early experiences with the local library go beyond hanging out there as a child and getting to know the staff. "I volunteered there in high school," she said. "After I graduated (from college), I worked part time for Project Read and the (library's) children's division, before getting my current position."

In 2012, Ms. Jimenez secured a five-hour-per-week position working with Project Read as a classroom coordinator for its evening classes for beginning and intermediate English language learners.

"We never had that position before," noted Roberta Roth, literacy program manager for Project Read. With a grant from Facebook, Project Read was able to create the post and hire Ms. Jimenez to coordinate classes and serve as a liaison between teachers and the program office, Ms. Roth said.

Now, Ms. Jimenez interacts directly with people as the literacy outreach specialist for the program. "I love helping put people in touch with resources and information," she said. "I also publicize events, recruit tutors, and connect those tutors with learners."

More than anything, Ms. Jimenez recalls the strong support system she had growing up, and hopes to emulate this in her own work.

"I want to help people in the community find ways to advocate for themselves to feel empowered," she said. "I think literacy is one of the key ways to do that."

Ms. Jimenez rose above her circumstances in an area where so many kids are raised in privilege, and when asked about how she did it, she praised the power of information.

"A lot of people don't have access to information they need to get to college," she said. "I was lucky because my parents were good role models, and they showed me all the resources they knew of — including the library."

"Elibet is an extremely intelligent person," said Ms. Roth. "She is very passionate about the impact literacy has on individual's and families' lives."

"Being able to encourage the community that built me is really important," Ms. Jimenez said. "This is home."