Welcome Madeleine. What’s happening at Mercer Island Library?
The King County Library System is planning to make changes
to the [Mercer Island] library, changes that upset many patrons.
They want to move the small meeting room away from the teen
area. Teens use the small meeting room all the time for group projects and
meetings, so it makes more sense to leave the small meeting room where it is
for easy access for the teens.
Current location of small meeting room (on right), adjacent to teen
area (on left).
In addition, the bookshelves are arranged parallel to the
windows, allowing teens some privacy. The new setup would take away that
privacy because the bookshelves would be placed at right angles to the windows,
taking away the cozy feeling that the teens love.
View of current Teen Area from librarian’s desk
They are taking away the comfy couch that allows a place for
teens to relax while reading or doing homework.
Also, they are replacing the tables in the teen area that
are beside the windows, where groups working together have natural light, with
a long shelf for computers. But this means that teens using computers would
look at screens facing the windows, which makes it harder to see the screens
against the light.
So what are the plans
for closing the library for all of this work?
At this point, KCLS estimates an 8 month closure. However,
this seriously affects students, high school students in particular, who use
the library every day. The library is within walking distance from Mercer
Island High School, giving students a safe place to go and study after school
or sports. Also the school library is only open for an hour after school and
rarely provides the needed materials for schoolwork, since it is a small school
library.
Where can I get more
information?
Take a look at our 5 minute video, SAVE MERCER ISLAND
LIBRARY: A THREATENED SMALL TOWN LIBRARY
Visit our website: www.LibraryRemodel.com
Email us at libraryremodel@gmail.com
Mercer Island High School sophomore Madeleine Smallwood addresses the King County Library System Board of Trustees
Thank you, Madeleine for your commitment to Mercer Island Library. We'll be mailing you a signed copy of Janet Lee Carey's newest teen fantasy IN THE TIME OF DRAGON MOON, due out March 24th, to show our gratitude.
Note to Librarians: If you’re a Youth Librarian
working in a school or public library we’d love to hear about you and your
library. Contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com
for an interview slot. The 2015 calendar currently has openings. Come share your library and library programs with us.
Note to Authors: If you’re interested in Roaring for Libraries on this blog, contact Janet at jlcarey@hotmail.com for an interview slot.
Madeline joined a successful community effort to protect Mercer Island Library from unwanted, costly, and time consuming "renovation" that KCLS planned for the library. Madeline's insight, passion, and commitment helped to defeat the KCLS plan and preserve our lovely and beloved library for the community. As an unexpected bonus, the money saved helped to fund a library that was needed in another area of King County--a win-win all around. It took fighting a huge library system, but the citizens of Mercer Island--including young people like Madeline--prevailed.
ReplyDelete