Making the Library a Cooler Place

The teen interviews were part of a process the libraries went through to learn how to improve and expand their service to youth. Now DeWitt Wallace has turned the libraries' findings--as well as findings from a national survey--into an initiative to help public libraries win the hearts and minds of the young--and help educate them in the process. The association recently gave nine libraries $400,000 each to spend three years working on the project, called Public Libraries as Partners in Youth Development. DeWitt Wallace also gave the Urban Libraries Council $800,000 to manage the initiative.

Of course, public libraries already do a lot of programs for youth. What's different about this initiative, says project director Elaine Meyers, is that, first, it will focus on teens and the not-quite-teens called "tweens." According to a survey conducted by the American Library Association for DeWitt Wallace, libraries have less success in engaging these age groups than younger kids. For instance, says Meyers, when librarians were asked what role older school-aged youth play in planning programs, their most frequent answer was "set up and clean up" for events. So the grantees will try to involve teens more in shaping programs. The initiative also will focus on "positive youth development"--giving kids meaningful work experiences and building their confidence and leadership skills.

Participating institutions include Brooklyn (NY) Public Library; Enoch Pratt Free Library, Baltimore, MD; Fort Bend County Libraries, Richmond, TX; Free Library of Philadelphia; King County Library, Seattle, WA; Oakland (CA) Public Library; Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County (NC); Tucson-Pima (AZ) Public Library; and Washoe County Library, Reno, NV.--A. G.