Urban library problems have gone suburban

Poverty and lack of resources—two problems that typically affect school and public libraries in urban cities—were recently the topics of discussion between me and a longtime friend, who is a middle school librarian near where I grew up. Over the last few years, urban expansion has made this area of Cincinnati, once considered a "suburb," feel more like an extension of the city rather than a separate community. Along with this change came the introduction of a wide range of students who live very different lives and have different experiences with the types of technology and literature available to them at home. Many of the teens this librarian now serves are more sophisticated, especially in their reading tastes, but also lack regular access to basic resources, such as up-to-date computers. As a result, this librarian says she needed to purchase different kinds of materials for her collection, including books that dealt with more mature issues such as race and sexuality. And, she certainly needed to focus on an increased understanding of newer technologies, particularly teaching teens how to stay safe online. But she feared that some parents and administrators would resist or perhaps not appreciate the need to change. There's no doubt that the shifting demographics of inner-ring suburbs—communities on the edges of metropolitan areas—have put libraries, which are sometimes slow to change and react, in a tough spot. But as teen advocates, we need to find ways to serve all young people. And we need to do it all on a very limited budget. There are basic steps you can take to ensure that your library is a welcoming place that serves everyone and helps contribute to the overall health of the young people experiencing this transition. Creating a teen advisory board (TAB) is a great first step. I'm not talking about the same old TAB you've had for years. Now is the time to readvertise and recruit new members. Making sure that young patrons realize that the library's services are for all teens may seem simple, but I've been repeatedly surprised over the years when I've invited teens to join groups like TABs only to have a teen say, "You want me to come to that?" The answer is, yes! But teens need to hear that emphatically stated, and they need to feel welcomed and empowered when they actually get up the courage to show up at their first TAB meeting. Enhancing teen spaces is another suggestion. Even if there's no funding available, staff can create a neutral and welcoming place that's owned by all teens and not dominated by any one group. Believe it or not, non-YA library staff can sometimes be the biggest obstacle to serving these new communities in transition. When teens in these new communities misbehave in the library, it's not uncommon for other staffers to say, "Well, those aren't our regular kids doing it." This attitude serves to increase arbitrary and unreal divisions between teens and the community at large. Working to help other library staffers to more fully understand and appreciate teens from all walks of life and backgrounds is essential to laying the foundation for a library that effectively serves everyone. Once staffers begin to understand that "their kids" don't exist and that they're all "our kids," it won't be such a stretch to purchase a wider variety of materials and create programs that appeal to a broader spectrum of interests. One of the greatest strengths of these changing communities and the libraries that serve them is the amazing potential for creative and innovative services that can be developed as we seek to engage all of the community's teens. So if you're working in a community in transition, ask yourself, "Why can't the library be one of the first organizations to recognize and celebrate this power?"

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Paula Brehm-Heeger is a teen services coordinator for the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County in Ohio.