|
|
|
Officials at the Glen Ellyn Public Library hope to cut the ribbon a new teen room in November, about a year after the second-story study room was closed because of mold.
With the end of the library’s $35,000 fundraiser in August, director Dawn Bussey is now acquiring the new carpeting, lighting, furniture and electronic equipment to put together a study space specifically for teenagers.
The center of the room will have a meeting table that can seat about a half dozen, and individual work and reading areas will fill out the rest of the room, Bussey said. The shelves will house the library’s young adult books.
She also is purchasing audio and visual equipment — MP3 player speakers and a television, among them — to help students working on multimedia projects.
Like the rest of the library, the teen room will have wireless Internet. While there will not be desktop computers, the library is purchasing two laptops that will be available for all patrons to use.
Library officials closed the study room in October after finding mold in the walls. They discovered the problem during an investigation into leaking windows and addressed the problem immediately with library funds, Bussey said.
Afterward, the library turned to the community for help in transforming the space into one for teens.
Bussey said she has found that schools are assigning students more cooperative projects, and the library could be a forum for group meetings.
“I think it’s great. In the real world, that’s typically how we work,” she said. “If you look even, you’ll see some of them are gathering at Starbucks or Caribou (Coffee).”
As technology becomes common in all realms of education, there has been more emphasis on multimedia group projects, said Audris Griffith, assistant principal for instruction at Glenbard West High School in Glen Ellyn.
With the library at Glenbard West closing at 4 p.m., it gives students space to meet after hours, she said.
“The addition of the teen room is a wonderful compliment and central location for people to get together,” Griffith said.
Judging by the support for the fundraiser, the community also recognizes teenagers’ need for a place to gather and work outside of school, Bussey said.
“I think that’s why we were able to raise the dollars so quickly,” she said.
The fundraiser got a boost early on when Glen Ellyn residents Dan and Midge Anderson offered $17,500 to match every dollar donated.
“The biggest thing I can say to that is just a great big thank you to all the people, all the organizations who contributed to it,” Bussey said.
Officials at the Glen Ellyn Public Library hope to cut the ribbon a new teen room in November, about a year after the second-story study room was closed because of mold.
With the end of the library’s $35,000 fundraiser in August, director Dawn Bussey is now acquiring the new carpeting, lighting, furniture and electronic equipment to put together a study space specifically for teenagers.
The center of the room will have a meeting table that can seat about a half dozen, and individual work and reading areas will fill out the rest of the room, Bussey said. The shelves will house the library’s young adult books.
She also is purchasing audio and visual equipment — MP3 player speakers and a television, among them — to help students working on multimedia projects.
Like the rest of the library, the teen room will have wireless Internet. While there will not be desktop computers, the library is purchasing two laptops that will be available for all patrons to use.
Library officials closed the study room in October after finding mold in the walls. They discovered the problem during an investigation into leaking windows and addressed the problem immediately with library funds, Bussey said.
Afterward, the library turned to the community for help in transforming the space into one for teens.
Bussey said she has found that schools are assigning students more cooperative projects, and the library could be a forum for group meetings.
“I think it’s great. In the real world, that’s typically how we work,” she said. “If you look even, you’ll see some of them are gathering at Starbucks or Caribou (Coffee).”
As technology becomes common in all realms of education, there has been more emphasis on multimedia group projects, said Audris Griffith, assistant principal for instruction at Glenbard West High School in Glen Ellyn.
With the library at Glenbard West closing at 4 p.m., it gives students space to meet after hours, she said.
“The addition of the teen room is a wonderful compliment and central location for people to get together,” Griffith said.
Judging by the support for the fundraiser, the community also recognizes teenagers’ need for a place to gather and work outside of school, Bussey said.
“I think that’s why we were able to raise the dollars so quickly,” she said.
The fundraiser got a boost early on when Glen Ellyn residents Dan and Midge Anderson offered $17,500 to match every dollar donated.
“The biggest thing I can say to that is just a great big thank you to all the people, all the organizations who contributed to it,” Bussey said.
