Prologue

When it comes to libraries and their place in the modern world, don’t judge a book by its cover. The conventional image of a library is one of stacks of dusty books and silent studying, but in today’s world, they mean much more—especially to students. 

Local libraries provide easily accessible services and materials, and have become cornerstones of the community, with many forming small cultures of their own. 

Chapter 1: Local libraries

“A lot of people talk about the third place that you need to be happy, besides school or work and home,” senior Zaima Aurora said. “You just need another place where you can have a community. And for me, the library fills that.”

Local libraries provide a unique space where students can borrow books, study, or learn without the pressure and restrictions of a school library. They also operate outside of school hours, but are still nearby. 

Sarah Viviani has worked as a librarian for the past 10 years, so when it comes to creating the events and displays that make the library what it is, she knows every trick in the book. Viviani organizes programs for teenagers and some kids age groups, and her presence is a staple of the library community.

“We are a very lucky branch that everybody loves to come to the library. They love to check out books. They love to come to our programs,” Viviani said. “I like to create a very happy environment. That is why you will always see the decorations in the kids area or the teen area, or just [people] being able to converse with older adults about different books and stuff like that. I think they really enjoy when we’ve actually read books and we can actually carry on a conversation with them about it.”

Chapter 2: Education

The East Branch of the Seminole County Library System has printers, computers, reference books and large tables. They also have online programs where students can take practice tests and research subjects that interest them.

One such program run through the library, Learning Express, includes practice tests for AP exams and the SAT, and the digital library system includes electronic textbooks and research databases. Any citizen with a library card can access these resources through the library’s website.

Additionally, librarians with a wealth of knowledge can answer questions and converse with students.

“There’s these people who spent their entire lives getting educated on how to research, or how to do these things, or where to find those things,” senior Dynali Weerackoon said. “Obviously I use Google for my homework assignments too. But if it comes to that point where I’m like, ‘Oh, I don’t know how to start this project,’ they’re wonderful people to just go to and be like, ‘Hey, do you know what this thing is? Can you help me find it?’…So it’s just being willing to ask and be polite about it.”

Chapter 3: Volunteering

Local libraries tend to be popular choices for volunteer experience as well, with Weerackoon and junior Sofia Azevedo working in regular shifts a previous summer. Azevedo earned all of the volunteer hours required for Bright Futures, and continues to help out with the East Branch’s Chess Club program for younger kids, which uses teen volunteers to set up, clean up, and play against any children who need opponents.

While volunteering over the summer, the two shelved books, gathered books placed on hold, represented the Summer Reading Program, and assisted with various kids’ events. These often took place in the Meeting Room, and centered around a particular activity or subject.

In one instance, the library hosted a “Lego Day,” during which young kids and their families could build and play with the bricks.

“It was flooded with kids that were throwing things, and it was really chaotic, but it was really fun,” Azevedo said. “It’s like an inside joke that we reference back [to]. When Miss Sarah tells me about new events, I’m gonna say, ‘Oh, is it gonna be another Lego Day, or is it gonna be like a Chess Day?’”

Chapter 4: Teen programs

The library’s events are not just for kids. Viviani organizes separate Teen programs targeted toward the older group. In the past, these have included everything from glow-in-the-dark painting to gingerbread house-building to origami, but one of the most beloved monthly meetings is the Teen Book Talk, which provides a space for students to discuss any books and book-related topics that they choose.

“I do love our Teen Book Talks, because it’s such a cool place to get people together and just spill,” Weerackoon said. “There’s so much random stuff that happens there, and I think we really bond over that. That’s the highlight of my month.”

Viviani hosts the talks and often begins by introducing the books she has been reading, or asking the participants to share their recent interests.

“[Viviani] will talk a lot about new books that she’s reading,” Azevedo said. “She always has such niche, super specific topics that she’s reading about that she just finds somewhere. And it’s always really nice to hear about.”

The talks basically function as a sort of unstructured book club, allowing students with an interest in books a community in which to meet others and share their thoughts about both new and old stories.

“It’s just so fun to meet people who also love reading and are like minded, but also have different opinions,” Aurora said. “And I’m willing to talk about those opinions, because I feel like a lot of the time it’s hard to find people like that, and in school, not many people care about that.”

When coming up with new programs, different branches of the library tend to take a leaf from each other’s books. Viviani often takes inspiration from online communities or asks the teens who frequent the library what programs they would find interesting. Resources like Pinterest and library-based Facebook pages provide ideas and suggestions for many of the events that she creates.

“What’s wonderful is that the library world is a very sharing world,” Viviani said. “It helps that I’m also an artsy person, so when it comes to any of the artsy stuff, that is definitely what I enjoy doing with you guys the most. But first and foremost, I always want to make sure that I’m trying to give you guys something that you want.”

Chapter 5: People

Students also interact with the community at the East Branch, and the location has formed a warm and welcoming environment that encourages conversation, debate, and education. 

Part of that environment comes from the book displays and Teen section located near the back of the library, but the atmosphere and community would not exist with the people that make it up.

“Librarians, legitimately, are the coolest people on Earth,” Weerackoon said. “And I love the idea of getting books and being able to tell, ‘Oh, somebody’s read this and really liked this page.’ There’s something so cool about knowing that you’re sharing this love for a thing with so many other people.”

For students who frequent the local library, it has become a familiar place with a lot of meaning.

“I’ve noticed if someone new was working there, like I kind of know them,” Azevedo said. “Pretty much every time I go, there’s someone I know [or] I’ve seen before asking about something that I’ve talked to them about before.”

Chapter 6: School

The school’s media center has a reputation for serving more as a place for testing than a place for checking out books. In fact, very few students even know that the location provides as many services as it does. Students can print documents from the computers, replace lost or broken IDs, or just spend time there during lunch and breaks.

“If [students] need anything, they just need to let us know, and just be respectful and kind,” Library Media Specialist and Testing Coordinator Po Dickison said. “And whatever they need, we’ll try our best to get it for them. If we don’t have it, we don’t have it, but for the most part, we love to see kids and have them in here.”

The media center is a convenient location for club meetings, testing, or anything that requires an open space that can fit a large number of students. Like any library, though, it does also contain a selection of books that students can choose from for classes or personal enjoyment. Due to state standards, all of the books must have some justifiable relevance to a class’s curriculum.

“[The books] just have to be aligned to the curriculum and have been approved, and so if those books are here, students are allowed to check those out,” Dickison said. “We also have novels that teachers use for their classrooms, and students can check those out as well.”

The bookshelves stand in the back of the center, and after choosing a book, students are free to check one out by scanning their ID at the checkout on the central desk.

“Originally I thought that the media center didn’t have very good taste in books, but recently I’ve actually been in there more,” Azevedo said. “And I’ve looked at the shelves, and they do have really good books on history and school subjects that I think are really interesting. So I think if you take the time to look through it and actually look for something that you want to read, you’ll find something.”

Unfortunately, there is a considerable disconnect between the number of services that the media center actually provides and the amount that it is promoted and acknowledged on campus. Despite the efforts of administrators, some students see the center as lacking or not living up to its potential. Few students recall hearing about or thinking about the media center’s role as a facility to check out books.

“It’s never been promoted, like, ‘Go to the library, check out a book.’” Weerackoon said. “There’s so many kids who have no idea that you can even take them out, [or that] it’s even an available opportunity, because it’s never referred to in the capacity of a library.”

The convenience of an on-campus media center makes it a good choice for many, however. Students can access it during school hours, and do not have to travel to a new location like they would in order to go to a local library. Additionally, the center’s use of student IDs for checkouts means that anyone who attends Hagerty already has access to the system. 

“We’re just trying to make it an inviting, open space when there isn’t any testing going on,” Dickison said.

Epilogue

What lies in the future for libraries?

Every now and then, people will debate the necessity of keeping an institution that provides information in an era in which everything seems to exist online, but libraries serve as a valuable enough part of the community that they seem to be here to stay. 

“I think that it’s very important that you actually go somewhere that has books, because holding a book and actually seeing the words on a page gets you more than if you just looked at it online,” Azevedo said. “I feel like when you read it online, you don’t really associate it with books and knowledge and learning as much as you do when you’re actually in a room that is surrounded by stories, surrounded by authors and history.”

Many libraries are updating their technology and offering more services in order to adapt to the modern age. 

The East Branch—like many local libraries—allows patrons to check out physical media like DVDs of movies or CDs of audiobooks, but also has a virtual system where anyone with a library card can find ebooks or online audiobooks. Additionally, they offer a 3-D printing service (for a small fee), and allow classes, clubs, and groups to meet in their open room.

The school media center, similarly, plans to allow students access to equipment to produce personal and school-related projects.

“‘Maker Space’ is kind of dated, but I’d love to be able to host things like ‘Make and Take,’ [and let students] learn how to do creative things,” Dickison said. “We just acquired a Cricut through a grant that [Assistant Principal] Ms. [Colleen] Windt got, so we’re trying to make it more than just the testing center.”

By maintaining classic literary services and incorporating incoming technology, both local and high school media centers are preserving their roles as pillars of the community.

Long story short, libraries are here to stay.